Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from Los Angeles to San José to help you find the cheapest flights, the best time to fly and much more.
If you are looking for a flight deal from Los Angeles to San José, look for departures on Tuesdays and avoid leaving on a Sunday, as it's usually the priciest day. When flying back from San José, Tuesday is the cheapest day to fly and Monday is the most expensive.
The cheapest month for flights from Los Angeles to San José is October, where tickets cost $371 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are December and June, where the average cost of round-trip tickets is $679 and $591 respectively.
No, with an average price for the route of $494, prices are generally cheapest when you fly direct.
To get a below average price on the flight from Los Angeles to San José, you should book around 2 weeks before departure, which saves you about 3% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 5 weeks before departure.
In the past 5 days, the cheapest round-trip tickets from Los Angeles to San José were found on Viva ($502) and Avianca ($509).
There are 8 airlines that fly nonstop from Los Angeles to San José. They are: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Avianca, Copa Airlines, Delta, JetBlue, United Airlines and Volaris Costa Rica. The cheapest price of all airlines flying this route was found with Volaris Costa Rica at $167 for a round-trip flight. On average, the best prices for this route can be found at Volaris Costa Rica.
Weekly flights between Los Angeles and San José historically see delays in approximately 15% of cases, with the average delay over the past year being 108 minutes.
Typically, flights leaving in the early afternoon tend to face fewer delays, whereas flights in the morning have historically encountered delays more often.
Statistically, Thursday is the day of the week with the fewest delays on this flight route, while Sunday has typically experienced more delays than other days.
Based on our data, United Airlines have experienced the fewest delays on this route in the past 12 months, with only about 11% of their flights encountering any delays.
San Salvador (SAL) is the top choice – 39% of KAYAK users who clicked on 1-stop flights from Los Angeles to San José picked an itinerary connecting there.
Flights via Monterrey (MTY) offer the most affordable fares, with an average round-trip price of $411.
Consider flying via Guatemala City (GUA) for the shortest journey. The average one-way travel time for flights connecting there is 7h 50m.
If you prefer a quick connection, Guatemala City (GUA) often has the shortest layovers from Los Angeles to San José, with an average of 1h 35m.
There are 4 cabin class options for the route. These are First, Business, Economy and Prem Economy. Perform a search on KAYAK to find the latest prices and availability for all cabin fares, which differ across airlines.
Each day, there are between 1 and 2 nonstop flights that take off from Los Angeles and land in San José, with an average flight time of 5h 57m. The most common departure time is 4:00 pm and most flights take off in the afternoon. Each week, there are 9 flights. The most frequent day of departure is Friday, when 22% of all weekly flights depart. The fewest flights depart on a Monday.
A direct flight to San José will take on average 5h 31m to travel the 2,721 miles flying distance from Los Angeles.
Early birds can take the earliest flight from Los Angeles at 4:41 pm and will be landing in San José at 11:46 pm.
If you prefer to fly at night, the latest flight from Los Angeles to San José jets off at 10:41 pm and lands at 5:30 am.
Based on the flight data, it is generally cheapest to fly from Los Angeles to San José on a Tuesday in October.
Cheapest Route: The cheapest route is directly from Los Angeles (LAX) to San José (SJO).
Booking Advance: It is generally cheaper to book your flight around 176 days in advance.
Cheapest Airline: Spirit Airlines is generally the cheapest airline for this route.
Direct or Layover: It is significantly cheaper to fly with a layover than to fly direct.
AI-powered; AI can make mistakes.
| Low season | September |
|---|---|
| High season | December |
| Cheapest flight | $200 |
Direct departures
Los Angeles Los Angeles to San José Juan Santamaria Intl
Monday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Tuesday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Wednesday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Thursday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Friday
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
Saturday
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
Sunday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Direct returns
San José Juan Santamaria Intl to Los Angeles Los Angeles
Monday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Tuesday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Wednesday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Thursday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Friday
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Saturday
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
Sunday
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
Alaska Airlines,United Airlines
It was a very short flight so there really wasn’t any entertainment my. The little pretzels were good though and the cabin crew was awesome.
It was a very short flight so there really wasn’t any entertainment my. The little pretzels were good though and the cabin crew was awesome.
It might not have been their fault, but there was a two hour delay due to weather. Then we boarded and were about to leave when they said there were more problems at the destination, took us back to the gate where we had to fully deplane. But then five minutes later, they said everything was fine and to get back on the plane. This was the part that pissed everybody off.
Comfortable seats, good drinks with lots of water refills, staff was kind and understanding of my disabled mother!
They were flexible and able to get me home a day earlier due to a family members illness. Flight was on time and great friendly crew.
Agent could not provide me a boarding pass for the second leg of my flights - yet with a partner airline. Not understood.
Overall, it was a good flight. My only quip- they made us check our carry on bags when there was plenty of overhead space left. My wife and I thought maybe the aircraft was really full, but that wasn’t the case. There were a number of open seats, and even more overhead compartments with no luggage. A minor annoyance, sure, but when we intentionally didn’t check luggage to make it easier, it was disappointing to have to do it anyways.
Alaska is consistently the best in all categories. Excellent airlines and employees
I paid for the $8 WiFi for the flight and it never worked. The crew told me it goes in and out and to keep trying. I didn’t get to watch the show I had planned to watch, bummer that I paid for the service. The person next to me said she has never been successful with in flight WiFi.
Our flight when we finally got rerouted to a different destination than we were going was fine. But 2 days was taken out of our vacation because our flit was cancelled. We understand mechanical problems and of course don’t want to be on a plane that has mechanical problems.Wish there had been another solution.
Easy fast check in, friendly and cordial crew. Comfortable seats
Smooth flight. Easy boarding. Come early. Check in line is long
Quick boarding and check in.. but premium seats don’t recline.. very hard to relax. But overall, it was a Great a satisfying experience.. Thank You
If they listen to you especially when there’s a problem with a passport now I lost my tickets and also my seat money
The worst airline I have ever experienced. Terrible customer service. Absolutely disgraceful
Checking bags at the airport, very confusing they make lines for different flights but they don’t have any signs, so if you are on the wrong line be aware they will send you to the end of the correct line. No priority for check in even if you pay and no priority to disabled persons and elderly persons.
Despite all the negative reviews, I took Volaris with a family of 4 (including a toddler and infant in arms). The only compliant was they charged me $70 to gate check our wagon (which we use as a stroller) and then it was not available for pickup at the gate (which is the entire point), so we had to get through customs and the airport with our luggage and no way to push our kids :(
Après avoir manqué l’avion aucune aide de la part des agents à l’aéroport pour trouver un autre vol
Más comida no cobrar tanto por los asientos y comida food
Worst airline ever!! Delays in all my flights!!! Do not flight with Volaris!
The departures screens in the airport showed the flight as canceled for some weird reason, but when I got to the gate just to double check, it showed it as on time, and not canceled. This was confusing, but ultimately I was able to get to where I needed to go.
I was promised by United Airline (operated by ANA) that I will be seated together with my kids as I am the only adult flying with two minors. We did not get seats together in our 11 hours flight from LA to Tokyo. When asked at the gate, ANA representative said United Airline should have informed them that there is a parent flying with two minors. He said they can’t do anything in the system as the flight is full. He ask me to ask passengers next to me and the kids if they are willing to change seats. This is ridiculous! However, I went in the flight and asked other passages but no one willing to change seats. 11 hours and we were seating separately. I was very disappointed with this. It made things super inconvenient for me.
Service was professional and quick. Premium economy seat was comfortable given the class
Flight was delayed but more than 90 minutes. This caused me to miss my available windows for pick-up by a friend. I had to pay $125 for an uber back home from the airport which was an added expense that I had not budgeted for my trip. Staff was friendly.
Food was surprisingly delicious. Space in the seat is horrible when the seating front is reclined. Movie offerings were terrible. Crew was friendly and helpful.
The business class seat is exceptional. I wish the food is more palatable.
My flight was canceled a few hours before boarding. I was rebooked on Copa airlines and missed an important meeting .
Business class seats felt very cramped compared to other airlines.
OK, we were delayed and had to de plane and reboard.
Crew was great (professional, attentive, prompt). Snacks for 4 hrs flight is deplorable.
Check-in and in-flight staff were better than average. The seat was a fair size but too hard and not enough padding. The cushion/pillow provided is poor (thin and seems to be disposable ,it provides no effective cushioning or support). Food was OK-ish but no choice of inflight snacks and no easy place to get drinks other than water (I could ask for juice by intruding into the staff area at the back of the plane) Entertainment was very good actually. Overall better than I expected from a US-based airline (sorry!) but compared to ANA or Singapore it was so-so. (I live in Japan so they are my comparative airlines)
Luggage did not make it onto my plane. Business seats were economy with empty row seat. Just horrible experience. Why would the company allow for transfers that don’t give employees enough time to transfer luggages??
The gate experience at LAX was abysmal (same for the arrival experience two days prior). Despite the LAX -> SAT schedule of two flights daily, our departure gate was at a smaller hub that we had to be bussed to from Terminal 4. Fortunately, I arrived at LAX extra early and had time to spare, but if I had not known, I might have missed my flight. I looked at the LAX airport map in the AA app and there was no indication of the additional boarding process. Lastly the gate area we were bussed to was crowded with limited food and beverage options. On flight, the fight attendant was hospitable and attentive, the flight was smooth, and AA's free (and working) wifi for AA members were all on the positive side.
Our flight from JFK to Madrid was delayed. We had to go from one side of the Madrid airport (Terminal 4s to the far end of terminal 4 - Gate K98) to our gate in less than 30 minutes. Put passport control and security/baggage check and that’s very hard unless you’re Usain Bolt. I called Iberia Airlines and the telephone customer service told me that I was going to have to pay to re-book. Luckily the help desk in the airport (who was dealing with dozens of people from the same JFK-Madrid flight) did not charge us extra to reschedule to a flight 8 hours later. They also gave us a voucher for breakfast and lunch. Glad the actual person at the airport had some actual sense.
For an long range economy flight I feel more space and more meal options need to be offered for flights over 5 hours
The flight from LA to Chicago was smooth and service was very good overall.
It's a long flight and that is always difficult. I was comfortable and well. The movies available were great and the crew was good.
The crew was very attentive through out the flight. Seats were comfortable, nice flight bag with pillow and blanket. Food was okay, since it was a overnight flight seemed to go by fast.
Left early arrived early..right amount of talking from pilots..of course had to love the biscuit and water!
Boarding gate at LAX was too crowded—two gates next to one another
On time departure and early arrival. Flight attendant very nice.
The employees at the gate were not communicating, they preferred to give the upgrade to pilots and not to the elite passengers Every flight I more disappointing, clients shooed be priority instead of other employees even if they are pilots, there was plenty room for pilots in economy
They should provide water to passengers who ask for it
The worst experience I've ever had because the "people" @ Avianca wouldn't let me fly because they said I needed a round trip ticket
Seating was tight. Seats don't recline. Initial flight was cancelled. Lost two days of vacation.
I had bad experiences before now was excellent I am glad they have business class again
It was delayed and I lost my connection flight to Cali and I missed my Mom's funeral
I actually upgraded to the medium level of seats from basic and even doing that it may have been physically the most uncomfortable flight I have ever had. They packed everyone like is a train to death camp. It was a red eye so I hoped to get some sleep but it was physically impossible to find a comfortable way to rest. I met other folks on the same flight and they said the same thing. It was an utterly miserable flight and if I have any other options I will never fly with them again
Deplaning was a mess, I sat in business (seats are horrible) and the front door had a problem so we had to deplane from the rear exit. The stairs were not tall enough to reach so there was a large step down from the plane to the top of the stairs.
Staff are the rudest in the industry … awful customer service … will never fly Avianca again
Pros: we leave and arrive on time Cons: the most uncomfortable seats ever. You cant recline at all your seats. No entertainment No TVs flight attendants didn't provide even a glass of water. You have to go to back of the airplane and ask for one. I am Colombian and I remember seeing the flight attendants very neat, elegants which is or was a staple of Avianca.it was one with tennis shoes, no male up, the hair was messy... that was really odd.