American's Main Cabin Extra offers early boarding and complimentary drinks.
American's Wi-Fi offers high-speed connectivity, with T-Mobile customers getting complimentary access.

Planning a trip from Chicago to Los Angeles? KAYAK’s data-powered insights will help you find cheap flights. Learn the best time to fly, how early to book your ticket, and other tips to secure great prices.
The data suggests that the cheapest day to fly from Chicago to Los Angeles is generally a Wednesday, while the cheapest month to travel this route is typically September.
Cheapest Route: Opt for flights from Chicago Greater Rockford (RFD) to Los Angeles (LAX) for the most affordable route.
Booking Time: Book your flight at least two weeks in advance for the best prices.
Cheapest Airline: Consider flying with Frontier, as it is generally the cheapest airline for this route.
Direct or Layover: Direct flights are typically cheaper than those with a layover.
AI-powered; AI can make mistakes.
| Low season | September |
|---|---|
| High season | December |
| Cheapest flight | $80 |
Direct departures
Chicago to Los Angeles
Monday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Tuesday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Wednesday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Thursday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Friday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Saturday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Sunday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Direct returns
Los Angeles to Chicago
Monday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Tuesday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Wednesday
American Airlines, Southwest, Spirit Airlines, +1 more
American Airlines, Southwest, +2 more
1
Thursday
American Airlines, Southwest, Spirit Airlines, +1 more
American Airlines, Southwest, +2 more
1
Friday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Saturday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
Sunday
American Airlines, Frontier, Southwest, +2 more
American Airlines, Frontier, +3 more
1
2
San Diego airport is brand new, spacious, airy and very smooth checkin at SW baggage drop.
San Diego airport is brand new, spacious, airy and very smooth checkin at SW baggage drop.
Plane crashed into a bus or some other vehicle on the ground while pulling out of the gate. No injuries, but wing tip was damaged and returned to gate for “maintenance issues” and we departed 5 hours later because the plane went out of service and new plane was flown in from a nearby airport, Midway.
Ever since Southwest starting charging for bags, passengers don't want to pay to check their bags, so the gate agents have to beg people to check their roller bags now because there's "not enough space". This was a terrible business move by Southwest.
All was good. I just had a hard time getting connected to the WiFi/internet during the flight
Delays delays delays. Late taking off, late landing, wait for a gate, etc.
Connecting flight is on time and boarding was a breeze!
Better and more food and drinks. Put msnbc and free speech tv on the news channel selection list.
Very smooth checking in our luggage with a super pleasant SW agent. I enjoyed a fun entertaining movie.
after landing, we stay 2 hours on the taxi way before reaching the gate The airline and the crew were good though
First time traveling on Southwest since bag fees were implemented. Usual good service. Just more expensive now.
After a delay at the gate, C3, at Ohare on Sunday, I left my Blk ski coat on the bench at the gate, lost! Please review my lob claim, thx.
Very thoughtful flight attendant offered me water immediately since I had run to make my connection.
Always wish for more healthy, gluten free options. We have to bring our own.
Having a long layover, I was very appreciative of the ability to stand by for an earlier flight. Other airlines like Delta have refused this to me in the past, just to be mean (because my ticket class wasn't high enough). United went out of their way to help me get to my destination early, which I really appreciated given that it was the third leg of a 24+ hour journey for me.
Other than a way way too cold cabinets for the entire flight, all was great
One bag is incorrect and not acceptable for an international flight. The food was not just good. I won't fly with them again.
Plane boarded early a quickly, was mostly full. We left close to on time. And landed early.
Flight was timely, relatively comfortable, with decent entertainment and food served. Only problem encountered was with the free messaging which I highly appreciate, but it did not work from iphone to non-iphones.
Subject: Formal Complaint: Discriminatory and Unprofessional Conduct – Request for Immediate Action & Compensation Dear [Airline Customer Relations Team], I am writing to file a formal complaint regarding my recent travel experience with [Airline], which was by far the worst I have ever encountered. What occurred was not only unprofessional, but in several instances discriminatory, unsafe, and unacceptable. On the first leg of my trip, I arrived only four minutes past check-in. Instead of making any attempt to resolve the matter, your representative flatly denied me boarding and made me wait while she attended to passengers who arrived after me. By the time a manager intervened, it was too late to board, costing me time, money, and unnecessary frustration. The second leg of my trip (Chicago–San Francisco) raised even more serious concerns. From the outset, it was apparent that the staff—particularly two attendants—prioritized Caucasian passengers while dismissing African American and minority passengers. • When a Caucasian passenger in the exit row refused to comply with federal safety requirements, I, as a first responder, immediately offered to switch seats and assume the responsibility. My offer was blatantly ignored, and instead, a Caucasian passenger seated further up was chosen. This was discriminatory and deeply insulting, especially as I was actively de-escalating the situation that could have delayed the flight further. • During a lengthy tarmac delay of over 90 minutes, passengers were given conflicting and unreasonable instructions that created unnecessary distress and tension. • Throughout the flight, a visibly intoxicated passenger directly in front of me was disruptive, rude to others, failed to comply with seatbelt and electronic device rules, and yet faced no enforcement from the crew. In stark contrast, I was singled out for repeated compliance checks even though I was following every rule. This unequal treatment was so obvious that multiple passengers around me spoke up in my defense. This pattern of behavior demonstrated a clear lack of professionalism, disregard for passenger safety, and discriminatory treatment. I expect far better from an airline of your stature. As a paying customer subjected to this unacceptable treatment, I am formally requesting: 1. A full investigation into the conduct of the staff on both flights. 2. A written apology acknowledging the discriminatory and unprofessional behavior I endured. 3. Appropriate compensation for the distress, inconvenience, and mishandling of my travel. If this matter is not addressed promptly and thoroughly, I will have no choice but to escalate my complaint further, including filing with the U.S. Department of Transportation and sharing my experience through other channels. I trust [Airline] will take this complaint seriously and provide a timely resolution.
Check in was quick and easy during early hours. Flight was on time, and customer services was a plus.
We were told the flight was delayed 5 times, then it was moved to the next day.
The experience with American Airlines was good, although the Philippines Airlines flight was much better (better seats, better food, better entertainment options, overall better). Again, the MIA to LAX flight was fine, but nothing in comparison to the comfort and accommodations of the Philippines Airlines flight from LAX to MNL.
Wish some foods provided rather than just biscuit/cookie for flight more than 2 hours
The business class seats are dated and uncomfortable. The space is bare minimum and there is absolutely no privacy. For $4K, this is not what I expect.
The flight crew was rude. We were in first class and no one even offered water until an hour after we were in the air. Horrible experience
The stewardess hit me with the food kart twice on the head and didn't say I'm sorry once. The same stewardess gave me a warm Apple Juice with No ice. The Flight was delayed for Departure 6 times, starting from 2:36pm, finally taking off 7:50pm. I was late picking up my child from the sitter by 3 hours.
Did not get the seat I selected and paid for.
There is no room, no gluten free options, or any free internet/entertainment. You have to bring your own tablet or smartphone because there are no screens.
American Airlines is a mediocre airlines: they do not maintain the highest standard of cleanliness in the cabins, and the food is not well thought out. Service is not at top of mind compared to other international airlines such as Singapore Airlines, JAL or others.
Boarding gate in Honolulu was staffed with a great clerk with a soothing voice despite the flight delay of over an hour. Flight attendants in the plane were all grumpy, not pleasant looking bunch. Their sour attitude showed throughout the flight. Inly able to get a select few movies started. Most of the movie links in the “free entertainment” did not work.
Flight was canceled, huge lines to get baggage returned. Most other airlines had delays but not widespread cancellations like Spirit.
The plane was freezing and everyone had on their winter coats. I pulled out my sweaters out of my carryon to cover myself and put on an extra pair of socks. They offered NO FREE drinks or snacks on a 6 hour flight. The seats don’t have plugs or charges or any form of entertainment- so I just played my one downloaded game on my phone because I couldn’t sleep because I was too cold. Miserable flight though we landed safely.
Always comes in handy when I want a quick weekend getaway.
My luggage didn’t arrive at LAX, so that wasn’t a good experience.
I was never aware that I had to pay $100 per luggage to them on the plane that are simply carry-ons. This is discriminatory and I’m going to be alerting my entire family and friends and my Instagram following up over 75,000 of this issue and misunderstanding, including mismanaging.
Cancelled my flight last minute and did not help me rebook. It was a horrible experience.
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
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.
Delayed. Text notifications were slow. Not much information o what was happening. Boarding was slow and confusing. Wasn’t even offered water other flight. Had to ask. No entertainment at all. Felt like.a Greyhound bus.
When I wanted to check in 3 hours prior to boarding time, the employees mentioned “a little over an hour delay” so I waited for an hour then I went to go look for food in the terminal and most people from that flight were in the same area looking for food. Finally I decided after food to check to see if it’s anytime closer and now it’s 2 mins until boarding closes?! What are you kidding me? I didn’t receive anything via sms about boarding now nor via email or on the intercom. I luckily made it through, barely, and then there’s no room for my carry on mind you I’m in the very first row so I had to place my purse in one further row back and my carry on sections down. Not sure who pays for better seats to get your stuff placed all over the plane but that was the worst experience I’ve ever had flying with anyone.
Better than expected. Staff were friendly and nice on both flights.
There was no one at the counter to assist with our check in. The app didn’t work, so I arrived at the airport with time to check in and I couldn’t because no employees were there. When I finally got someone on the phone, it was inside the 60min rule and they said I could no longer check in and they could sell me another ticket. We had to scramble and pay an additional $800 for tickets and THEN AFTER (about 60 min from my original convo with customer service and 10min after original departure time) I had boarded my new flight, there was email saying my original flight from Frontier was delayed and leaving 2hr 50min later, but I STILL wouldn’t have been able to check in. Which means customer service should have been able to see it and let me check in because I was well within my check in time. When I call Frontier, they hang up on me. So their app didn’t work and they employees left and they take zero responsibility or assistance with their “customer service”
Terrible. Flight cancelled with no reasoning and no flights to rebook. Employees were useless and did nothing to help. Did not even know where to retrieve luggage from the cancelled flight. Flyers beware.
No fault of Frontier staff: plane was very late, reached Orlando at 1 am, took a while to get luggage. Weather, gov financial shutdown impact on TSA, air controllers seemed to have multiple flights backed up. Frontier staff seemed to cope as gracefully as possible. It did reassure me that I and my new hip could adapt to travel challenges. Food/entertainment were irrelevant to my trip.
Terrible. The canceled my entire flight when I requested a refund for a trip frontier canceled trip one way.
i was unable to check in the flight. refund requested
Just know that everything, and I mean everything is “ala cart”. 60$ just to put something in the overhead bin. I will never fly Frontier again nor do I recommend them to anyone else.
I think Frontier was very good at communication. Their app worked very well. Loading was great and the flight was nice and easy.