$51 Find Cheap Flights from Charlotte to California

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from Charlotte to California departing on 10/28. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel. Click the price to replicate the search for this deal.
1 adult
1 adult, Economy

KAYAK searches hundreds of travel sites at once for deals on flights to California

 
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Charlotte to California.
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Charlotte to California.
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Best California Flight Deals from Charlotte

Cheapest round-trip prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours
Los Angeles
Los Angeles1 stop$131
San Francisco
San Francisco1 stop$153
San Diego
San Diego1 stop$153
San Jose
San Jose1 stop$229
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$268
Fresno
Fresno1 stop$270
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo1 stop$309
Bakersfield
Bakersfield1 stop$298
Arcata
Arcata2 stops$544
Redding
Redding2 stops$439
Reno
Reno1 stop$219
Sacramento
Sacramento1 stop$180
Los Angeles
Los Angeles1 stop$131
San Francisco
San Francisco1 stop$153
San Diego
San Diego1 stop$153
San Jose
San Jose1 stop$229
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$268
Fresno
Fresno1 stop$270
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo1 stop$309
Bakersfield
Bakersfield1 stop$298
Arcata
Arcata2 stops$544
Redding
Redding2 stops$439
Reno
Reno1 stop$219
Sacramento
Sacramento1 stop$180

Cheap Flights from Charlotte to California

 
Here are some of the best deals found on KAYAK recently from the most popular airlines for round-trip flights from Charlotte to California that are departing in the next months. While these flights were available on KAYAK in the last 72 hours, prices and availability are subject to change and deals may expire.
Discover the best prices for you by selecting your travel dates on KAYAK.

Recent round-trip flight deals from Charlotte to California

Tue, Jul 29 - Tue, Aug 5
United Airlines Logo
5:00 pm - 10:00 pmCLT-SNA
8h 00m1 stop
United Airlines Logo
6:45 am - 5:12 pmSNA-CLT
7h 27m1 stop
$111United Airlines
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Sat, Aug 2 - Sat, Aug 9
Spirit Airlines Logo
9:28 pm - 11:20 pmCLT-LAS
4h 52mnonstop
Spirit Airlines Logo
6:30 am - 1:40 pmLAS-CLT
4h 10mnonstop
$122Spirit Airlines
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Mon, Aug 18 - Fri, Aug 22
Frontier Logo
11:26 am - 8:32 pmCLT-LAS
12h 06m1 stop
Frontier Logo
8:55 am - 9:30 pmLAS-CLT
9h 35m1 stop
$136Frontier
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Mon, Aug 25 - Mon, Sep 8
Frontier Logo
12:50 pm - 5:50 pmCLT-LAX
8h 00m1 stop
Frontier Logo
6:35 am - 4:25 pmLAX-CLT
6h 50m1 stop
$143Frontier
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Mon, Jul 28 - Mon, Aug 4
American Airlines Logo
6:24 pm - 8:02 pmCLT-LAS
4h 38mnonstop
American Airlines Logo
11:55 pm - 7:26 amLAS-CLT
4h 31mnonstop
$169American Airlines
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Sat, Nov 1 - Sat, Nov 8
Southwest Logo
2:00 pm - 6:15 pmCLT-LAS
7h 15m1 stop
Southwest Logo
7:00 am - 7:35 pmLAS-CLT
9h 35m1 stop
$178Southwest
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Sat, Nov 1 - Fri, Nov 7
Southwest Logo
6:30 am - 12:00 pmCLT-LAS
8h 30m2 stops
Southwest Logo
8:25 am - 6:05 pmLAS-CLT
6h 40m1 stop
$184Southwest
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Wed, Jul 30 - Tue, Aug 5
Delta Logo
5:31 pm - 11:36 pmCLT-SJC
9h 05m1 stop
Delta Logo
6:20 am - 6:54 pmSJC-CLT
9h 34m1 stop
$287Delta
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Tue, Aug 12 - Tue, Aug 19
Delta Logo
6:05 am - 12:20 pmCLT-SJC
9h 15m2 stops
Delta Logo
11:14 am - 11:51 pmSJC-CLT
9h 37m2 stops
$297Delta
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Sat, Sep 27 - Mon, Sep 29
American Airlines Logo
10:59 am - 6:35 pmCLT-SJC
10h 36m1 stop
American Airlines Logo
9:47 am - 9:39 pmSJC-CLT
8h 52m1 stop
$315American Airlines
Find Deal
Useful Info

KAYAK's insights & trends for Charlotte to California flights

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from Charlotte to California to help you find the cheapest flights, the best time to fly and much more.

What is the cheapest Charlotte to California flight route?

The cheapest price for flight routes found by users searching on KAYAK in the last 2 weeks for round-trip flights from Charlotte to California.

The cheapest ticket to California from Charlotte found in the last 72 hours was to Los Angeles, at $148 round-trip. The most popular route is from Charlotte (CLT) to Los Angeles (LAX), and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 72 hours was $148.

Can I save money by flying with a layover from Charlotte to California?

The average round-trip price for all non-stop flights, flights with one layover, and flights with two layovers for the route found by users searching on KAYAK in the last 2 weeks.

Yes, flying with a layover may cost you more time, but you can also save money on the route, with a 3 stops layover the cheapest option at $342 on average.

What is the cheapest month to fly from Charlotte to California?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from Charlotte to California, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the median of all values for each month.

The cheapest month for flights from Charlotte to California is August, when tickets cost $272 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are March and December, when the average cost of round-trip tickets is $429 and $413 respectively.

What’s the cheapest day of the week to fly from Charlotte to California?

The average price of all round-trip flights from Charlotte to California clicked on KAYAK for each day over the last 12 months.

If you are looking for a flight deal from Charlotte to California, look for departures on Tuesdays and avoid leaving on a Sunday, as it's usually the priciest day. When flying back from California, Wednesday is the cheapest day to fly and Sunday is the most expensive.

How far in advance should I book a flight from Charlotte to California?

To calculate weekly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each week before departure over the last year for round-trip flights from Charlotte to California, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the average of all the values for each week.

To get a below average price on the flight from Charlotte to California, you should book around 3 weeks before departure. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 7 weeks before departure.


Good to know

Low seasonFebruary
High seasonJuly
Cheapest flight$51
Best time to beat the crowds with an average 7% drop in price.
Most popular time to fly and prices are also 0% lower on average.
Flight from Charlotte to John Wayne (Santa Ana)

FAQs - booking California flights

  • Are there services for those with limited mobility at the airports in Charlotte and California?

    Yes, each of these airports along this journey is ADA-compliant. At Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) and at any of the arrival airports in California, you will have access to accessible restrooms and water fountains, communication assistance, and wheelchair assistance free of charge. You can also request assistance with boarding and deplaning, including during any layovers. If you need to use these services, contact your airline in advance.

  • What are some common layover airports on the route from Charlotte to California?

    You will find many direct flights from Charlotte to Florida depending on your destination, but some routes will require one or two layovers. If you fly with Frontier from Charlotte (CLT) to San Diego International Airport (SAN), you will have a layover in Denver. Those flying with American Airlines to Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) will have a layover in Dallas (DFW), while those flying with United stop at Denver (DEN). If you are flying to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) with Delta will stop in Atlanta (ATL), while those with American Airlines stop at Dallas (DFW) and those with Frontier stop at Denver (DEN).

  • Are there any direct flights from Charlotte to California?

    Yes, there are a lot of direct flights from Charlotte to California. You will find direct flights from Charlotte (CLT) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on board Spirit Airlines and American Airlines. Direct flights to San Diego International Airport (SAN) are operated by American Airlines. Direct flights to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) are on board American Airlines, as well. There is also a direct flight to Sacramento International Airport (SMF) on board American Airlines.

  • How can I make my flight from Charlotte to California more sustainable?

    Eco-conscious travelers should consider booking nonstop flights when possible to reduce the amount of fuel burned during takeoffs and landings during their flights. Also, consider flying with Delta Air Lines or Frontier, two of the most sustainable airlines flying this route. Finally, pack light and consider booking an economy-class seat. 

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from Charlotte to California?

    KAYAK is a travel search engine. That means we look across the web to find the best prices we can find for our users. With over 2 billion flight queries processed yearly, we are able to display a variety of prices and options on flights from Charlotte to California.

  • How does KAYAK's flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy my flight ticket from Charlotte to California?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight from Charlotte to California is likely to change within 7 days, so travelers know whether to wait or book now.

  • What is the Hacker Fare option on flights from Charlotte to California?

    Hacker Fares allow you to combine one-way tickets in order to save you money over a traditional round-trip ticket. You could then fly from Charlotte to California with an airline and back with another airline.

  • What is KAYAK's "flexible dates" feature and why should I care when looking for a flight from Charlotte to California?

    Sometimes travel dates aren't set in stone. If your preferred travel dates have some wiggle room, flexible dates will show you all the options when flying from Charlotte to California up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

  • What is the cheapest time of day to fly to California?

    The cheapest time of day to fly to California is generally at night, when round-trip flights cost $365 on average. Morning departures are around 69% cheaper than evening flights, on average. The most expensive time of day to fly to California is generally in the evening, which is peak travel time and where the average cost of a ticket is $1,307.

Top tips for finding cheap flights to California

  • Looking for a cheap flight? 25% of our users found tickets from Charlotte to the following destinations at these prices or less: Las Vegas $91 one-way - $198 round-trip; Los Angeles $158 one-way - $330 round-trip
  • Those flying from Charlotte, North Carolina, to California will be using Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) as their departure point. This airport is a hub for American Airlines, US Airways, PSA Airlines, and more. Aside from Charlotte, this airport also serves nearby cities like Belmont, Gastonia, and even Newport, South Carolina.
  • Travelers who want to book the cheapest flights possible from Charlotte to California can expect to fly to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on board Spirit Airlines. These are usually direct flights, but sometimes they have a layover in Chicago. If your flight has a layover, you will need to self-transfer.
  • Those flying out of Charlotte will usually have access to some airline lounges depending on the airline they are using. You can find the American Airlines Admirals Club in the terminal as well as a USO Lounge, an American Express lounge, and The Club CLT.
  • Travelers wanting to visit the Napa Valley in northern California should consider flying into either San Francisco International Airport (SFO) or Sacramento International Airport (SMF). These are the two closest major airports to Napa Valley.
  • If you want to visit Yosemite National Park in California, your best bet will be to fly into either San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC) or Sacramento International Airport, as you will have easy road access to Yosemite National Park from these nearby airports.

Reviews of the top 5 airlines serving from Charlotte to California

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from Charlotte to California. Airline scores are aggregated from all reviews left by passengers on KAYAK after flying with an airline. KAYAK doesn’t show reviews that are older than 5 years. Learn how KAYAK collects reviews.
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from Charlotte to California? KAYAK airline reviews give an overall score for each airline based on loads of factors, including comfort, boarding, in-flight entertainment and more, to make your decision easier. See airline scores according to verified KAYAK customer reviews.
8.0
SouthwestOverall score based on 4272 reviews
8.6Crew
8.0Comfort
7.6Entertainment
7.0Food
8.2Boarding
Airline reviews

First time traveling on Southwest since bag fees were implemented. Usual good service. Just more expensive now.

8.0 ExcellentMichael, Jun 2025PHX - SAN
Read more Southwest reviews

First time traveling on Southwest since bag fees were implemented. Usual good service. Just more expensive now.

It was a perfect flight in all aspects! Both legs!

Boarding process, crew were good. But the seats were so uncomfortable that was all I could focus on. I literally had to sit forward so that all 3 of us could fit in row. I will try to avoid Southwest in the future for any flights over 60 minutes.

Great flight, 47 passengers on a 180 seat plane. Stewardess was pleasant and cheerful.

Great experience flying Southwest. The crew was really kind and helpful, and very friendly with our toddler.

Plane late from DC to Austin 30 minutes. Crew made up much of the time enroute to San Diego.

Fine, but how to board on SW versus othrr airlines, is just lame. Goood staff though and all was solid otherwise.

Was as expected. Crowed planes. Too many carryons delaying takeoff. But the ride only took an hour and saved me a lot of time SFO is a not a great airport.

Was as expected. Crowed planes. Too many carryons delaying takeoff. But the ride only took an hour and saved me a lot of time SFO is a hell hole of an airport. It is the new LaGuardia. Everything Cobbled together. Security gates closed. Terri directional signage

I will be flying again Southwest Airlines. Friendly crew, comfortable and affordable.

Not a "Delta" issue, but a JFK issue: We booked a connecting flight with 3 1/2 hours between to clearn immigration and customs. Our inbound flight (BCN to JFK) was on the taxiway 45 minutes which ate into our layover time. Immigtration was insanely quick with the CBP MPC app; however, clearing TSA (again, after we were ALREADY cleared in Spain on the inbound international flight) took over 95 minutes. This left us with 10 minutes before boarding the connecting flight (JFK to SAN) to walk to the far end of Terminal 4 and try to find food. We didn't find any food that could promise to serve us in under 10 minutes so we boarded the Delta flight after coming off a plance and an 8-hour flight knowing that we wouldn't be served any food on the next 5 1/2 hour flight. I feel like Delta needs to put pressure on the JFK TSA to open more screening stations (by our count, we saw only 5 scanners open and a line of - as we said - over 90 minutes. The insult is that we WERE ALREADY SCREENED through TSA, but as you come off one flight into the USA, you have to go through the whole process again. It seems like if you have a connecting flight, there should be a way to pass through immigration and customs without needing to return through TSA.

There are 4 flights in consecutive gates with about the same departure time. Two flights were boarding at the same time. One was delayed or boarding would be happening at the same time. I am not sure what Delta and LAX need to do to have a better layout at the end of Terminal 2

5 hours of delay that could've been much shorter if Delta had taken the 1 hour delay they imposed on the flight before boarding to run any of the plane checks required for flight to find the hydraulic issue that required nearly 3 hours to fix. $24 of meal credit buys a sandwich and a soft drink. Poor communication within the terminal about what gate we'd be re-boarding from and when we'd be re-boarding.

The entertainment and wifi mostly didn't work on this flight.

Terrible entertainment system - kept freezing and audio kept cutting out. Snacks were mediocre at best for a 5 hour flight.

I am still upset that my bag was lost on a recent trip to Rome ; we were inconvenienced and out €150 Euros ; delta has refused to reimburse us

This had nothing to do with Delta… The flights were on time and flawless. The service was excellent. We purchased seats in (aisle/middle) comfort plus since this was a cross country flight. Unfortunately, the woman seated at the window was 300+ pounds and, as might be expected, covered up about a third of the middle seat also. there was absolutely nothing that Delta could have done about that… I just don’t know what the answer should be. If you purchase a seat, you should should be able to use the entire seat and not just the portion that someone else is not sitting/oozing in. Disappointing…there should be something that could be done….I'm just not sure what solution could be.

Seats are much much more comfortable than United, which is what I usually fly

If I pay extra for "comfort+" I expect leg room where I can stretch my legs. I was seated with an attendant's seat blocking my feet. Knee space was fine but my feet had less room than the non-"comfort+" seats. Also, don't go cheap on food when you have flights of 3+ hours. It's insulting.

Only one side of the heafphone jack work. Crew was friendly and helpful.

Boarding was very efficient. Everyone got on board and we got on our way very quickly. It was frustrating that the entertainment app was not functioning properly. I was not able to activate some of the movies offered. The crew on this flight appears to be pretty grumpy. They had no smile on their faces. I felt like they were doing us a favor for being there.

Delayed because of weather in Nashville. I think God or some higher power generally has cursed me when it comes to flying out of Charlotte on American. I'm delayed pretty much everytime. We need Team Cobra Kai types to come in and "sweep the leg(s)" of the Charlotte ops people on principle. Don't let the sweet southern rocking chairs fool you, Charlotte is a sinkhole

Long 5 hour and 45 min flight and only one drink service and cookie snack

Newark airport grounded inbound flight and only announced when the flight was about to start taxing.

Terrible. The flight was delayed two hours due to weather. Then when we got on the plane, the first pilot ended up timing out and we had to wait for a second pilot. Second pile came on board and we tax it out. Had to return back to the gate because of an unruly passenger. Then the copilot timed out. Had to wait for new copilot. Also had to wait for maintenance to check for fuel. Then found out the second pilot timed out and we had to wait for a third pilot. Was ready to go and then needed maintenance again for another issue. In the end, it was 2 o’clock in the morning when they announced that the flight couldn’t go because the third pilot and the second copilot had timed out.

American Airlines initially postponed the flight. Then they cancelled it an rescheduled us on a flight that would take over 24 hours with multiple stops. They then changed this flight to a reasonable alternative the next day which they later cancelled and replaced with a flight that would take off with an additional 16 hour delay. They blamed weather but I noticed (at 4am) that Delta had direct flights from Charlotte to Detroit. I went on line. Booked it and was in Detroit buy 9am. The interesting thing is they did a similar thing to a family member just 2 days earlier. I don't think I will fly American unless I have to.

I was a little disappointed of not having an android charger. Only one it was for an iPhone. I've flown American in the past and had access to one.

At least it was a short flight. Greyhound with wings.

One of the best flights I’ve had. So smooth.

This flight didn’t happen because AA agents didn’t let us board the flight

This was the first time I use Spirit Airlines and was pleasantly surprised. It was a last-minute booking and I was happy to see there was availability on your airline for a price that was affordable. The staff was friendly. The only things I thought were missing, were the ability to recline the seats, although I don’t use that very often, and it would’ve been nice to have power access at the seats to plug in my devices.

Didn't like size of seats. Found charges for checked luggage and carry on too high

Boarding was a breeze, however, two of the flights that I boarded with Spirit did not have Wi-Fi available.

Very good. Nothing more or less than expected. No complaints.

My experience with the spirit as a first time it was OK, but the seats need a little cushion, the problem I had the most impacted me was when checking in the scales were so off and wrong. It will tell that you would have more weight, which was not true. The scale was say that it had Thirty Eight Pounds, when get in the labels when we send the luggage into the band. It says that it was overweight. I really really dislike that because the scales are not accurate. If I use Spirit and I have that issue again. That will be my last time flying with the spirit, even though I like so much to service the planes, and everything else

hahaha we are delayed for one hour plus.. but thx we arrived San Diego safe

Worst airline ever! The guy weighing my bag had his foot on the metal plate and when I called him out on it, I got this stupid little smirk. La is a scam and so is Spirit Airlines. All the flight attendants looked like they hated our flight just as much as we did.

Unclear pricing; ended up being charged an extra $52 just to get onboard

Spirit is awful. Too expensive for what you get. Stop nickel and diming.

would be great to get basic water, soda at least and stop charging for carry ons

We’ve all seen the YouTube vids of out of control passengers. But this was an instance of a highly aggressive, bully flight attendant. Yelling in the face of a vet with PTSD who was texting their family. And no , we had not yet been instructed to put our phones in airplane mode. My suggestion is that you should pay whatever difference there is in order to avoid Frontier airlines. Additionally, after 3hrs trying to get customer service frontier offered a $25 voucher. I declined. This experience was so traumatic. To be verbally assaulted and abused by a flight attendant that has the power to say “boo” and I miss my flight ( which was to a family member’s funeral ). Frontier is unsafe and I cannot impress enough how much I discourage anyone ( esp those with any kind of disability like PTSD ) flying on Frontier.

My flight was delayed by two hours which made it so that I would miss my layover flight. I stood in line for customer service for over an hour and when I reached the agent she told me to scan a QR code and it'll give me options. I wasn't offered any help, guidance or compensation, only told that I have options but that I had to figure it all out myself. I was refunded part of the trip and had to buy an expensive same day ticket from another airline in order to get home. I will never fly Frontier again.

We were delayed three times ,and that destroyed my plans, and reservations

Very bad! No good service delayed my second connection flight

They canceled flight. Hard to believe there was even a plane incoming for us to get on

I liked the price of the flight and the chance to buy a seat with no person seated in the middle seat.. Also the flight was right on time.

Plane was down graded and I lost my uncharged exit row with more leg room. No mention or offer of refund from podium. Flight attendant was nice to explain this happens often and that I could request a refund via online form submission. I did this and have heard nothing back.

Horrendous. I do not recommend Frontier. The passengers lack manners and decency, and the flight attendants lack professionalism. If I wasn’t in a bind to fly with 48 hours notice for a job interview, I would not have selected a flight with Frontier and I never plan to fly with them in the future.

The seats were hard molded plastic covered in plastic vinyl. And the scam to charge people extra to sit together. Don’t they know we can just ask someone to trade seats. And watching the staff separate young children from parents… super classy. We had to guilt them into offering up our seats. This companies policies suck. Don’t give them your money.

Everything went as planned. Crew was great. Seats were still not that comfortable.

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