SFO

$28 Find Cheap Flights from California to San Francisco - Compare and Save

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight to San Francisco departing on 8/18. 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, 0 bags

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Cheap Flights from California to San Francisco

 
Here are some of the best deals found on KAYAK recently from the most popular airlines for round-trip flights from California to San Francisco 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 California to San Francisco

Mon, Jul 27 - Tue, Jul 28
Frontier Logo
7:46 pm - 9:38 pm
SAN
-
SFO
1h 52mnonstop
Frontier Logo
10:23 pm - 12:04 am
SFO
-
SAN
1h 41mnonstop
$90Frontier
Thu, Aug 13 - Sun, Aug 16
Frontier Logo
7:45 pm - 9:32 pm
SAN
-
SFO
1h 47mnonstop
Frontier Logo
10:23 pm - 11:59 pm
SFO
-
SAN
1h 36mnonstop
$91Frontier
Wed, Aug 5 - Wed, Aug 12
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:45 pm - 9:32 pm
SAN
-
SFO
1h 47mnonstop
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:55 am - 9:35 am
SFO
-
SAN
1h 40mnonstop
$92Multiple Airlines
Sat, Aug 15 - Tue, Aug 18
United Airlines Logo
2:01 pm - 3:14 pm
SBA
-
SFO
1h 13mnonstop
United Airlines Logo
10:40 am - 11:57 am
SFO
-
SBA
1h 17mnonstop
$177United Airlines
Tue, Aug 18 - Tue, Aug 25
United Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 7:17 am
RNO
-
SFO
1h 17mnonstop
United Airlines Logo
8:45 pm - 10:03 pm
SFO
-
RNO
1h 18mnonstop
$181United Airlines
Wed, Aug 26 - Sat, Aug 29
American Airlines Logo
1:09 pm - 7:05 pm
PSP
-
SFO
5h 56m
1 stop
American Airlines Logo
5:33 am - 12:24 pm
SFO
-
PSP
6h 51m
1 stop
$183American Airlines
Sat, Sep 26 - Sat, Sep 26
Alaska Airlines Logo
1:58 pm - 3:40 pm
PSP
-
SFO
1h 42mnonstop
Alaska Airlines Logo
7:12 pm - 8:53 pm
SFO
-
PSP
1h 41mnonstop
$192Alaska Airlines
Wed, Aug 26 - Sat, Aug 29
Alaska Airlines Logo
8:15 am - 9:52 am
PSP
-
SFO
1h 37mnonstop
Alaska Airlines Logo
7:12 pm - 8:53 pm
SFO
-
PSP
1h 41mnonstop
$197Alaska Airlines
Sat, Sep 12 - Mon, Sep 14
Southwest Logo
11:20 am - 6:20 pm
PSP
-
SFO
7h 00m
1 stop
Southwest Logo
3:20 pm - 10:10 pm
SFO
-
PSP
6h 50m
1 stop
$204Southwest
Tue, Aug 18 - Tue, Aug 25
Southwest Logo
5:45 am - 11:05 am
SBA
-
SFO
5h 20m
1 stop
Southwest Logo
11:15 am - 5:05 pm
SFO
-
SBA
5h 50m
1 stop
$212Southwest
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Good to know

Low seasonJanuary
Cheapest flight$28
Best time to beat the crowds with an average 12% drop in price.
Flight from Ontario to San Francisco

Flights from California to San Francisco: the best tips from KAYAK users

Insights shared by verified travelers who flew the route from California to San Francisco 
ClaudiaFlew with United Airlines
SAN
-
SFO
Jun 2026
Please be careful: 1,5 hrs for transfer in San Francisco might not be enough time in the future
LindseyFlew with SWISS
SAN
-
SFO
Dec 2025
Ready for weather delays of wind in SFO, which happens often. Keep that in consideration when planning an additional leg of a trip after it from SFO.
Verified travelerFlew with United Airlines
ONT
-
SFO
Feb 2026
1 hr is doable if you're transferring at sfo but probably just get something to go food wise
JakeFlew with United Airlines
BIH
-
SFO
Jul 2025
Security in Bishop does not open until 1 hour before the flight.
RonaldFlew with Alaska Airlines
SNA
-
SFO
Apr 2025
The airport security can take a long time, the bathrooms are not always available near the gates due to construction, repairs, remodels.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
LAX
-
SFO
Jan 2025
Bring water and snacks with shorter flights as some routes will not offer it.
CongFlew with United Airlines
SNA
-
SFO
Nov 2024
Nothing really, being clothes that are easily taken off like shoes at the security will always save time
VyomaFlew with Alaska Airlines
SAN
-
SFO
Jun 2024
Be sure to read the signs, i have heard it's confusing for connecting flights if you don't follow the directions.
KathyFlew with United Airlines
RDD
-
SFO
Jun 2024
Realize it’s a smaller plane and you will probably have to green tag any carry on.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
LAX
-
SFO
Jul 2024
Bring a sweater, just incase other people's ac makes you cool.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
LAX
-
SFO
May 2024
Please be prepared to check in your luggage even if there is available space in the overhead bins. Despite the availability of space, Alaska Airlines employees refused to allow us to bring our bags onto the plane and insisted that we check them in.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
SNA
-
SFO
Feb 2024
Long Beach and SNA are convenient airports for flying out of Orange County. I wish I knew about the size of the plane which caused a fee for checking one small bag that normally was a carry on for other airlines such as SouthWest.

FAQs for booking flights from California to San Francisco

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

    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 California to San Francisco.

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

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to San Francisco from 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 California to San Francisco?

    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 to San Francisco with an airline and back to California with another airline.

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

    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 to San Francisco from California up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

Reviews of the top 5 airlines serving from California to San Francisco

 
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from California to San Francisco? 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.
7.9
Alaska AirlinesOverall score based on 12641 reviews
8.1Boarding
7.0Entertainment
7.8Comfort
7.0Food
8.5Crew
Airline reviews

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.

2.0 MediocreMichael, May 2026
LAX - SFO
Read more Alaska Airlines reviews

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.

Overall it was fine, however one of my two checked bags did not arrive and I was told it was left in Palm Springs. I don't understand how one of the two bags made it through fine but the other got lost .

Was notified the departure would be late. Later on it was suddenly on time. Traffic by LAX was horrendous, and I missed the flight.

This was likely the smallest, oldest plane I've been on. It didn't handle turbulence well and we were all jostled a lot more than I'm used to. At least it was a short flight.

I liked the crew. There was no food flight to short

2 FLIGHT DELAYS? what an inconvenience to stay @the airport HALF THE DAY😳from 1pm till boarding @ 4pm pass 😠exhausting !

Flight was delayed - we left at 11:30 pm instead of 10:30 and it was extremely inconvenient. It affected both the day of the flight and the next day

Flight attendant took my carefully folded coat and flung it across the aisle to the bin across the way. Where one of the passengers rescued it for me, because that just wasn’t right!!

the flight was delayed twice and then delayed from taking off.

Flight was delayed twice, I was forced to check my bag, and the only offered water or apple juice on the flight

The flight was late. The crew was rude. There was no food. Cramped and uncomfortable. Nothing about this flight was good.

Plane was clean and comfortable. Flight attendants and gate staff were professional, friendly and efficient. Boarding and deplaning were orderly and efficient. All in all, the typical excellent Southwest experience.

Boarding was easy. The seats are small and fairly uncomfortable

The problem with the seat assignments is that there were a lot of rows in the front that were empty but my row at the back was full. Just not so pleasant.

Good but I prefer choose your own seat. With the new assigned seats they should board from the back I see no advantage to this new boarding. Just like every other airline

The lead steward kept singing about "San Francisco" and hotel California---more annoying than humorous....needs work. Flight was smooth and on time.

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.

Can not wait for seating change to reduce the amount of pre boards - it’s disheartening the abuse. And then then deplaning

Flight was delayed more than 2 hour do the scheduling issues and then some confusing weight and balance matters, followed by a miscommunication with the tower on which runway was going to be used based on the airplane weight. All these things should have been figured out in advance. Instead of arriving at 12:30 a.m. we arrived at 2:30 a.m. very difficult to find a taxi or other transport at SFO. Luggage was delayed. An extension of an unpleasant flight day

The crew was fabulous, outstanding, friendly, attentive and just great, really made my flight one of the best I've ever had, thank you southwest crew flight #474, from Los Angeles to San Francisco on April 2,2024

We sat on the runway for over an hour before departure. That was unwelcome.

Everything went smoothly, although the usual gripes about airline travel were still present: the boarding process is inefficient, the snack selection is limited, and so on. Since there was extra space on the flight, the gate agent rearranged many people's seats to put people on the aisles and windows, leaving the middle seats empty, as much as possible, which was pretty great.

One of the flight attendants was a little cranky. I appreciated the free wifi and plug to charge my laptop

WiFi didn’t work most of the time. The usb chargers would work only occasionally for 5 mins and wouldn’t charge after that. Had to keep trying repeatedly at each of the seats in the row.

Generally on time departures and arrivals, clean planes, sky miles membership provides great benefits (complimentary upgrades, etc).

my mom urmila patel needed a wheelchair which was not available on the curbside. she needed to walk almost 50 meters inside (at the risk of falling) and then had to wait in line to get a wheelchair (this is not ok). Once obtained she had to seat in it for 30-45 minutes for someone to take her in thru the checkin process (which was fairly smooth and easy). the lady who helped her with her checkin process was very courteous and helpful

I usually get upgraded so my experience is usually amazing. I did not get upgraded this time - which was fine - but the wifi had issues, the monitors were going in & out, & (though not Delta's fault) one of the gentlemen next to me desperately needed a shower.

Staff were friendly and happy. Delta could make sure passengers that don't have the app know of changes. Without Kayak I would not have known about the change of gate or the delay. Kayak was faster to notify me.

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

I guess they don’t serve drinks on planes anymore

The staff was extremely helpful and friendly at all times! They went above and beyond to get us into an earlier flight in San Diego to make our connection in SFO possible, because our original flight did actually not make it! I did so much appreciate the UA team and how they made this possible. We also didn’t have seats together on the long flight to Singapore, but they found us seats together last moment with no additional cost! Nobody sat next to us, so that we were able to sleep! Thanks to UA for improving their service and Underpricer for booking this trip! Please be careful: 1,5 hrs for transfer in San Francisco might not be enough time in the future

Seat pitch is horrible especially on the 15 hour flight. Gate crew at SFO was Outstanding. The flight crew was also great.

Late plane. Only one crew on the ground so we b had to wait for Denver flight to come in, board, and depart. At 78 yrs of age I was not pleased trying to get my connection. What really made me angry was the notification you sent me to hurry up or I would miss my connection. Why tell me to hurry up when you got me in late. It was not a good way of treating customers.

Boarded plane and then delayed 1.5 hours while on the plane

Really good 😊 the woman at the gate entrance was a little rude checking in our carry-on but i dont think she worked for the airline, she worked for the airport at sacramento, other than that amazing.

The gate was too far away for the connecting flight

Very poor the plane itself was really old, slight smell that couldn’t be named. I didn’t even get a boarding pass UNTIL AFTER clearing security! Even then, they said when I get to my connected flight I’ll get my 2nd boarding pass there! A bit ridiculous!

Do not like the feeling of being in the basic economy. Everyone should feel good no matter what.

Horrible. Delayed on both planes several times. No attempt to fix it

Delays!!! Maintain your planes so your customers don’t have to sit on their assess for over an hour on the tarmac!! Also, United app is buggy. Videos did not load. Overall a miserable experience. Flight crew was awesome though.

Charges unexpected. For seat that didnt recline. Please reverse extra seat and carryon charge. Bad business that is a bait and switch.

I couldn’t check in because the app didn’t work. It took 3 Frontier employees at the counter to get me checked in. Flight left 3 hours after departure time

Horrible! The short distance flight ended up taking 5 hrs! There was a 3 hr delay for the flight to take off and there was a 70 min wait on the tarmac for some bogus reason that the pilot said the gate he was supposed to board was taken up. After a 30 min wait he said the plane that was supposed to push out of the gate called a medical emergency and 40 min later he ended up boarding another gate. For the initial 3 hr delay there was no information/alert about the gate or delay in the app or the boards up until the boarding time and even beyond! Had to walk all the way to the end of the terminal to find the frontier staff to ask what was going on. Avoid this airline at all costs! If you have carryon bags or checked bags , their prices come equivalent to the prices of more reliable airlines. They are the worst in timeliness at 60% (reported as delayed) this year (check the data) by a high margin even compared to the second worst airline. If you are ok with having a miserable flight experience with the odds close to flip of a coin, feel free to try them. If you value your time , money and flying experience, stay away.

Our flight was delayed by four hours without notice, the app for getting my boarding pass is super confusing, and I wasn’t able to check a suitcase without paying for a higher cost package

First the gate was a total nightmare-no chairs anywhere! So over crowded and only one bathroom and nightmare of food service - took forever and NOT one place to sit. No inflight entertainment and had to pay 60.00 for a small carry on. I will never fly Frontier again!

Flight was 3 hours late leaving. Poor communication from the staff about delays. Impossible to get in touch with customer service (by design). And it actually didn't come out to be much cheaper than a non-budget airline! Not worth the headache, I'm never flying Frontier again

See my previous comment which is mostly about our flight from Phoenix to SFO

The check in at the airport was awful. Told I need to pay for a bag. The item was taken at screening. I went back to get my $ back and they gave me a coupon with a QR code that doesn’t work. Worst costumer service ever!!!!!

4 hour delay because they used our aircraft to fly a different segment (per the captain)

absolutely horrific. delayed flights, overbooking. over charging. nightmare service beyond words. stay away.

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