$84 Find Cheap Flights from Chicago 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 Chicago to California departing on 9/11. 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

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 Chicago to California.
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Chicago to California.
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Cheap Flights from Chicago to California

Cheapest round-trip prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours
Los Angeles
Los Angelesnonstop$180
San Francisco
San Francisco1 stop$280
San Diego
San Diego2 stops$256
San Jose
San Jose1 stop$277
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$310
Fresno
Fresno1 stop$313
Reno
Reno1 stop$310
Sacramento
Sacramento1 stop$388
Los Angeles
Los Angelesnonstop$180
San Francisco
San Francisco1 stop$280
San Diego
San Diego2 stops$256
San Jose
San Jose1 stop$277
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$310
Fresno
Fresno1 stop$313
Reno
Reno1 stop$310
Sacramento
Sacramento1 stop$388

Book Cheap Chicago to California Plane Tickets

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

Fri, Jul 3 - Wed, Jul 8
Frontier Logo
9:13 pm - 11:49 pm
ORD
-
LAX
4h 36mnonstop
Frontier Logo
11:59 pm - 6:17 am
LAX
-
ORD
4h 18mnonstop
$180Frontier
Fri, Jul 3 - Tue, Jul 7
Frontier Logo
9:13 pm - 11:49 pm
ORD
-
LAX
4h 36mnonstop
Frontier Logo
6:30 am - 5:28 am
LAX
-
ORD
20h 58m
1 stop
$182Frontier
Tue, Sep 22 - Tue, Sep 29
United Airlines Logo
5:30 pm - 7:57 pm
ORD
-
ONT
4h 27mnonstop
United Airlines Logo
7:00 am - 1:03 pm
ONT
-
ORD
4h 03mnonstop
$219United Airlines
Tue, Aug 18 - Tue, Aug 25
Southwest Logo
8:50 pm - 11:10 pm
MDW
-
LAX
4h 20mnonstop
Southwest Logo
6:00 am - 12:00 pm
LAX
-
MDW
4h 00mnonstop
$219Southwest
Tue, Sep 1 - Tue, Sep 8
Southwest Logo
9:25 am - 1:05 pm
MDW
-
LAX
5h 40m
1 stop
Southwest Logo
11:55 pm - 5:55 am
LAX
-
MDW
4h 00mnonstop
$225Southwest
Tue, Sep 22 - Tue, Sep 29
United Airlines Logo
5:30 pm - 7:57 pm
ORD
-
ONT
4h 27mnonstop
United Airlines Logo
1:18 pm - 10:46 pm
ONT
-
ORD
7h 28m
1 stop
$229United Airlines
Sat, Aug 8 - Sat, Aug 15
American Airlines Logo
9:05 pm - 11:48 pm
ORD
-
SFO
4h 43mnonstop
American Airlines Logo
10:50 pm - 5:13 am
SFO
-
ORD
4h 23mnonstop
$287American Airlines
Wed, Jul 8 - Wed, Jul 15
Alaska Airlines Logo
7:59 pm - 9:26 am
ORD
-
SJC
15h 27m
1 stop
Alaska Airlines Logo
5:02 pm - 1:21 pm
SJC
-
ORD
18h 19m
1 stop
$292Alaska Airlines
Wed, Jun 10 - Tue, Jun 16
Alaska Airlines Logo
7:59 pm - 9:26 am
ORD
-
SJC
15h 27m
1 stop
Alaska Airlines Logo
3:15 pm - 11:36 pm
SJC
-
ORD
6h 21m
1 stop
$307Alaska Airlines
Wed, Sep 23 - Sat, Sep 26
American Airlines Logo
6:35 pm - 9:09 pm
ORD
-
SNA
4h 34mnonstop
American Airlines Logo
1:26 pm - 10:18 pm
SNA
-
ORD
6h 52m
1 stop
$340American Airlines
Booking Insights

KAYAK's insights & trends for Chicago to California flights

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

How much is a round-trip flight from Chicago to California?

This analysis is based on the cheapest round-trip price found on KAYAK in the last 12 months by searching for a flight from Chicago to California departing in July.

What is the cheapest Chicago to California flight route?

Data is based on round-trip flight searches on KAYAK over the past month.

The cheapest ticket to California from Chicago found in the last 3 days was to Los Angeles, at $199 round-trip. The most popular route is from Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport (ORD) to Los Angeles (LAX), and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 3 days was $199.

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

The average price for all round-trip flights from Chicago to California depending on the time of departure, clicked by users on KAYAK in the last 2 weeks.

The cheapest time of day to fly to California is generally at night, when round-trip flights cost $317 on average. Morning departures are around 54% 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 $785.

Can I save money by flying with a layover from Chicago 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.

No, with an average price for the route of $445, prices are generally cheapest when you fly direct.

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

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from Chicago 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 Chicago to California is September, when tickets cost $258 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are March and May, when the average cost of round-trip tickets is $390 and $358 respectively.

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

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

When flying from Chicago to California, you should consider leaving on a Thursday and avoid Mondays if you are looking for the best rates. For your return to Chicago, you’ll find the best rates on Fridays and the most expensive ones on Mondays.

How far in advance should I book a flight from Chicago 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 Chicago 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 Chicago to California, you should book around 3 weeks before departure, which saves you about 27% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 7 weeks before departure.

Good to know

Low seasonJanuary
Cheapest flight$84
Best time to beat the crowds with an average 11% drop in price.
Most popular time to fly with an average 13% increase in price.
Flight from Chicago O'Hare Airport to Ontario

FAQs - booking California flights

  • Is ORD accessible to all?

    You can count on having a smooth experience at ORD if you’re disabled, as this airport is accessible to all. To cater to passengers with mobility impairment, it features drop-off areas equipped with curb ranks and mandates each airline that serves flights to California to offer wheelchair assistance. It has also invested in restrooms throughout the airport with wheelchair-accessible facilities. The said restrooms are three in Terminal 1, two in Terminal two, over ten in Terminal 3, and two in Terminal 5.

  • How can I travel to ORD from Downtown Chicago?

    In case you’re set to fly from Chicago’s ORD to California, you can travel to the airport from Downtown Chicago via a Blue Line train, a Metra North Central Service train line, a CTA bus, or a taxi. Boarding a Blue Line train, a Metra North Central service train, or a CTA bus is advisable if you’re on a budget. On the other hand, boarding a taxi is advisable if you value convenience. This is because, unlike its comparisons, a taxi will pick you up at your preferred destination and transport you directly to the airport.

  • Can I breastfeed my baby before my flight to California?

    Regardless of the Chicago airport you’re set to fly out of, you can comfortably breastfeed your baby while waiting for your flight since both transit stations offer nursing rooms equipped with comfortable seats, deep sinks, changing tables, and power outlets. At MDW, the available nursing room is in Concourse C, next to the yoga room. In contrast, at ORD, the rooms are available near gates B4, B10, and C 20 in Terminal 1, between gates E5 and F9 in Terminal 2, the Rotunda and gate L6 in Terminal 3, gate M20 in Terminal 5, and on Level 1 of the Multi-Modal Facility.

  • Is it possible to rent a car at LAX?

    If you want to rent a car once you land at LAX, you’ll be able to do so with ease since the airport features counters for Alamo, Avis, Fox, Enterprise, Budget, Dollar, Hertz, National, Payless, Six, Zipcar, and Thrifty. The counters for these agencies are housed in the airport’s car rental center, accessible through purple Rental Car Shuttles. These shuttles are boarded on the Lower/Arrivals Level islands outside the Baggage Claim.

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from Chicago 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 Chicago to California.

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

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight from Chicago 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 Chicago 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 Chicago 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 Chicago 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 Chicago to California up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

Top tips for finding cheap flights to California

  • You can board your flight to California at Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) or O’Hare International Airport (ORD). When selecting your flight, choose one that departs at MDW. Doing so is in your best interest because MDW experiences lower passenger traffic than ORD, meaning it has shorter queues.
  • When booking a flight to California, book one that lands at an airport close to your preferred destination. You can land at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), San Diego International Airport (SAN), San Francisco International Airport (SFO), and Oakland International Airport (OAK) if you’re flying into Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, and Oakland, respectively.
  • Suppose you intend to fly to California with your pet. If that’s the case, you can let your pet relieve itself at ORD in one of the airport’s Service Animal Relief Areas. They are outside security on the lower levels of Terminals 1, 2, and 5 and inside security in Terminal 3 Rotunda and Main Hall.
  • If a small airport serves your California destination, use LAX as your travel base. This is because it serves commercial flights to nearly all small airports in the state. If you need assistance at MDW, visit the airport’s information desk at the Main Entrance of the Terminal. Here, you’ll find knowledgeable airport staff, always ready to help.
  • If you need assistance at MDW, visit the airport’s information desk at the Main Entrance of the Terminal. Here, you’ll find knowledgeable airport staff, always ready to help.

Reviews of the top 5 airlines serving from Chicago to California

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from Chicago 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 Chicago 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.
7.9
Alaska AirlinesOverall score based on 12398 reviews
7.0Food
7.8Comfort
8.5Crew
8.1Boarding
7.0Entertainment
Airline reviews

Extremely professional crew there are very friendly and first class. Everything worked well on the plane. Food was to be expected. Drinks were very good. Shout out to Charlie in first class who was an excellent flight attendant.

10.0 ExcellentAnonymous, May 2026
ORD - SEA
Read more Alaska Airlines reviews

Extremely professional crew there are very friendly and first class. Everything worked well on the plane. Food was to be expected. Drinks were very good. Shout out to Charlie in first class who was an excellent flight attendant.

The gate agents begged us to check our carryons. They BEGGED us, over and over, and said that the flight was completely, totally full, and said that if we don't check our bags, it will cause huge delays. They finally said that "group suchandsuch will be required to check bags!" So I checked mine. Well, the flight wasn't close to being full, and many of the overhead compartments were *empty*! Moreover, my bag was delayed at the carousel, and it wasn't on the carousel that was posted. COME ON, AIRLINE, you can look at the seating for the flight on your computer and decide whether it's really necessary to beg and beg and beg people to go through the hassle of checking their bags! This is annoying as hell and makes me not want to use your crummy airline ever again.

A gluten free option I could actually eat would have been nice.

On this flight there wer only 25 people on board. So no one in 5 rows ahead of me and noone in 7 rows behind me. So very chill.

Flight delayed no communication. The gate was changed so many times.

It departed an hour and a half late because the crew got in late the previous night due to weather related problems. So we got into LA later than anticipated and traffic was much worse.

Good. I didn’t order food and there was no entertainment available.

It is a hassle to not have entertainment screens on the backs of the seats.

I had to cancel this trip due to medical reasons. I took out flight insurance but I was unable to cancel my reservation on either Kayak or Alaska. I need proof that I did not take this flight to get my refund. I have tried for a week and a half together that information from either Kayak or Alaska but so far I have gotten no response. I am very disappointed!

I had to change my flight last minute due to a medical emergency. Their agent was compassionate and extremely helpful. This airlines really cares about making travel, for fun, work, or an emergency a customer-focused experience. Thank you!

The first time I flew in the extra legroom section. It was difficult to notice a difference. I had bad luck with my neighbors. The crew was okay. Southwest has reduced the live TV options.

No gluten free snacks. Seats felt worn or bare bones even though it was a new 737 MAX 8.

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.

Not having a five hour delay with little notice! The crew was very kind, though, and just as tired as we passengers were. The flight didn't depart until nearly 1 am...and no reason was ever given.

This leg was much better, but we did have to have a 3 hour lay o er after coming from a very exhausting hiccup with our flight from BNA to Den

The Air hostess were very rude on my flight from Houston to Austin . Their regular communication itself felt a they are shouting at people.

I flew twice this week on Southwest, was delayed over 2 hours both ways. From Pittsburgh to Chicago it was due to weather but the gate agents, pilot etc were great at updating everyone. Today from Midway to Pittsburgh the plane had come from an international location, kept getting delayed, no information was given until we were delayed for the third time. It was ridiculous, whoever scheduled that plane to fly to Pittsburgh after didn’t consider a lot of things.

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.

No food or entertainment, just a quick 40 minute flight. A little bumpy due to Santa Ana winds but pilot has no control over that. Good flight and landing!

A long delay. Don't travel late in the day.

Super friendly with lots of drink options an entertainment. Friendly crew.

The crew was great. Very friendly and responsive. The plane was old, small and tight. We ran out of overhead space and I had to check. Middle seat was particularly tight.

Several missed and almost missed connections. It felt like everything was being patched together last minute without enough resources and it ended up being an extremely stressful experience that basically ruined our weekend on the west coast. What a waste.

Crew was friendly. Seats are too narrow, particularly when a big person is in the adjacent seat, but I understand this is due to smaller planes usually flight into Lincoln. I have experienced several flight delays going out and coming into Lincoln airport, I say maybe 50% or higher of the flights I've taken out of this airport have been delayed.

Great flight. Boarded efficiently. Arrived early at CLT. There was no in flight entertainment on this aircraft. Great crew.

The seat was comfortable. There was a lot of turbulence. If it weren't for that,it would have been okay.

Poor communication, flight was delayed for preventable reasons. I missed my connection.

No meal service to the back of the plane as it started late or was too slow to get it out before it was time to land.

Terrible, if possible won't be flying again anytime soon!

The airplane was an old model, the overhead didn’t have enough room for people’s items and made boarding and boarding disappointing and stressful. Crew allowed passengers to bring more than the permitted baggage sizes.

Original flight was on time, then late, then changed gates...4 times. Once our newest plane came in, it was fine.

I almost missed my flight and they helped me out enormously

Delays experienced in boarding/take off due to incoming plane delayed. However, the boarding time/depart time in the app was significantly delayed in providing these updates. Usually not updated until an hour after we should have already boarded. Poorly managed.

Moved to earlier flight which unexpectedly had maintenance issues initially indicated as quick fix to ultimately plane changes. Moved back to original flight, also delayed. In all cases customer updates and communication very unclear, no updates on drivers for delays.

Typical AA - late by 90+ mn. Gate changed twice... Changed the departure time 6 times No explanation, no communication on reasons for delay I travel with AA twice a year... and it is consistently very poor.. I will continue to use AA only when i have to.

The gate got changed several times and the flight was delayed over an hour. Awful experience

American continues to decline in their customer service and its beyond disappointing.

It was an older plane. First Class was not especially roomy or comfortable. It was a short flight so there were no meal but they did offer mixed nuts which used to be normal but now is rare. Crew member was very polite and professional.

Flight to Tampa was delayed taking off due to plane arriving late but no other issues

There weren't enough employees at check in took awhile to get bags checked. There wasn't a wheel chair for me, I was sent to someone who turns out to work for a different airline, if My flight hadn't been delayed I probably would have missed my flight as it was, by the time I arrived at my gate, they started boarding in about 15 minutes. I don't know who took me to my gate, definitely was not the normal people who take passengers to the gate. I'm guessing she may have been in a management position. I wish I knew her name, she went beyond to help me. With that said everyone was kind, and were doing the best they could. So, I choose to say it was an Adventure, stressful start, but good. In the end went well. The situation was not only difficult for passengers but the employee's.

The staff at the check in counter was so rude. Made you feel Incompetent

Frontier scheduled a 40 minute connection in DEN. What they failed to mention was that they “close the doors” 20 mins prior to departure, which means you only have 20 mins. Not enough time. Possibly against DOT regulations. Filing complaint.

Flight was scheduled at 9:40pm. Got delayed to 10 am, the next day. crazy

The bag check, flight check-in, and onboard experience convinced my wife and me that we will actively go out of our way to avoid flying Frontier Airlines in the future. At bag check, we were informed that check-in could only be completed via the Frontier mobile app. Unfortunately, the app was extremely frustrating—sending us through repetitive, confusing loops that repeatedly forced us to decline add-on services with nearly every click. While most airline apps upsell, this one felt intentionally exhausting. As the process dragged on, we became genuinely concerned that my phone battery would die before check-in could be completed. We approached the bag check staff—who were standing together talking—and explained both our frustration and our predicament. They laughed. Later, my wife described the interaction as “gaslighting,” which felt accurate. We were then informed it would cost $25 per person simply to have our boarding passes printed. From that point forward, the tone of the experience was consistently hostile. The bag check employees were condescending and combative, behaving more like bullies than customer service staff. Unfortunately, that same attitude continued onboard. One flight attendant argued with me when I attempted to stow my backpack in the overhead bin. I explained that we had each paid $75 to check our bags specifically so we would not need to use carry-on space and could have adequate legroom. She demanded to see my ticket, pointed out that it said “no carry-on”—which I acknowledged—and I reiterated that this was precisely why we paid to check our bags. Her response was, “I don’t make the rules.” She then walked away, but not before asking if I “truly wanted to fly back to Chicago today?”—an unnecessary and unmistakable threat. It is also worth noting that despite booking our tickets together in the same transaction, we were not seated together. Upon our return to Chicago—where we could once again sit together—we compared onboard experiences. We both remarked on how unhappy the flight attendants appeared and how each of us was separately asked whether we would like to purchase a beverage. We declined. At no point was water mentioned as an option, leaving us with the clear impression that even water came at a cost—or that complimentary water, if available at all, was deliberately left unmentioned. Overall, the experience was shocking and deeply disappointing, but it was also a profound learning experience—one we will not forget and will not repeat. -Steve

Plane was hot and miserable and the crew was rude!

12 hour delay required getting on and off plane 3 times - would have at least liked to have been offered a snack or drink

They didn’t offer a water, even after I asked

Flight was canceled. Most upsetting was message from Kayak, stating that the flight was canceled and click with Kayak for details regarding rebook, refund details. THERE'S NO INFORMATION PROVIDED BY KAYAK EXCEPT THAT FLIGHT IS CANCELED. AND NOW THIS SURVEY TO FIND OUT HOW WAS THE FLIGHT !!!!!!!

Our flight was canceled. I will never use Kayak nor Frontier for travel again. The entire experience was a headache.

Everything you need to know for your flight from Chicago to California

Cabin class types available on flights to California

Cabin classes available on flights to California. Prices are the lowest found on KAYAK over the last 7 days. Price and availability is not guaranteed.