Heightened sanitation
Daily cleaning, installation of cabin HEPA filters on flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area
Low season |
August | Best time to beat the crowds with an average 4% drop in price. |
---|---|---|
High season |
December | Most popular time to fly with an average 16% increase in price. |
Average price round-trip |
$332 | (avg. price over the last 2 weeks) |
Good deal round-trip |
$158 | or less |
Good deal one-way |
$116 | or less |
United Airlines, Air Canada and Air New Zealand have all waived their change and cancellation fees on flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area. Confirm policies on booking site.
Alaska Airlines does not allow booking a middle seat on flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area.
Flights to Oakland | 4h 23m |
The cheapest ticket to San Francisco Bay Area from Chicago found in the last 72 hours was $109 one-way, and $217 round-trip. The most popular route is from Chicago to San Francisco, and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 72 hours was $38.
Southwest flies most frequently to San Francisco from Chicago. In general, American Airlines, Air Canada and Azul fly the most to San Francisco Bay Area.
Entry restrictions
The United States has restricted the entry of all foreign nationals who have passed through or have been in China, Iran, Most European Countries (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City), the UK, Ireland, Brazil and South Africa in the past 14 days.
With the exception of certain travelers which includes certain family members of US citizens or permanent residents including; spouses, children (under the age of 21), parents (provided that his/her US citizen or permanent resident child is unmarried and under the age of 21), and siblings (provided that both the sibling and the US citizen or permanent resident are unmarried and under the age of 21);
There is also an exception for travelers with the following visas: A-1, A-2, C-1, C-1/D, C-2, C-3, CR-1, CR-2, D, E-1 (as an employee of TECRO or TECO or the employee's immediate family members), G-1, G-2, G-3, G-4, IR-1, IR-4, IH-4, NATO-1 through NATO-4, or NATO-6 visa;
Members of the US Armed Forces, spouses, and children of members of the US Armed Forces;
Travelers with invitation of the USA government for a purpose related to the containment/mitigation of the Coronavirus (COVID-19);
Travelers with documents issued by the US Department of Homeland Security, US Customs and Border Protection, or US Department of State indicating that the traveler is exempt from the restriction;
B1 crew crewmembers that are engaged in lightering, Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) activity, wind farm activity, private air/sea crew and other similar crewmember activities;
Students with an F-1 or M-1 visa and their F-2 and M-2 dependents, if they arrive from or have been in Ireland, the UK or Schengen Area in the past 14 days.
Entry requirements
All travelers, 2 years of age or older (including US citizens and transit passenger) must present a negative COVID-19 viral or antigen test result issued 72 hours prior to departure or have a proof of recovery from the virus within the last 90 days prior to boarding the plane.
Travelers must complete a disclosure and attestation form before departure.
Exemptions or waiver to the testing requirements may be granted by the CDC on an extremely limited basis when emergency travel (like an emergency medical evacuation) must occur to preserve someone’s life, health against a serious danger, or physical safety and testing cannot be completed before travel.
US citizens and permanent residents arriving from the UK must present a medical certificate with a negative COVID-19 PCR or antigen test result issued within 72 hours prior to departure.
Travelers arriving in New York State must complete the Traveler Health Form.
Travelers arriving in Massachusetts must complete the Massachusetts Health Form.
Quarantine requirements
Travelers are advised to get tested 3-5 days after travel and stay home and self-quarantine for 7 days after travel. Even if they test negative, they must still stay home and self-quarantine for the full 7 days. If the test is positive, isolate to protect others from getting infected.
Travelers who did not get tested, are advised to stay home and self-quarantine for 10 days after travel.
All other info
Travelers are subject to COVID-19 measures set by the state/territory of their final destination. For more information go to CDC website.
There are currently 1,104 active cases of COVID-19 diagnosed in US and 0 deaths as of Mar 1 2021
Please see our Coronavirus (COVID-19) Travel Restrictions page for more information on restrictions worldwide.
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 to San Francisco Bay Area.
KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to San Francisco Bay Area is likely to change within 7 days, so travelers know whether to wait or book now.
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 Bay Area with an airline and back with another airline.
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 Bay Area up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.
Scores according to KAYAK customer reviews
Pros: "First class was A+"
Cons: "Not a thing"
Cons: "A little more room."
Pros: "It’s not American, United, or Delta."
Cons: "The Gogo Internet access was much worse than non-existent, causing me to pay and waste literally hours trying to get a single flight search done on [This idiotic form is broken—the search engine that starts with “Kaya”], and now I have to waste more time and effort to demand a refund from Gogo."
Pros: "Fast, smooth flight"
Cons: "I gave food a one star because there is none. N/A"
Pros: "Everything went smooth and was great besides the boarding."
Cons: "Boarding seemed to take quite quite awhile, not sure what the deal was but once we were boarded they kicked it into high gear"
Cons: "Delayed"
Cons: "Delayed departure. I was offered drinks at first then last third of flight was left with dirty glass too long."
Pros: "The staff and crew were fabulous! The choice for viewing movies and/or TV shows was wonderful! I'm looking forward to flying with them again very soon!"
Cons: "NA"
Pros: "Plenty of leg room, comfy seats, plenty of overhead storage, and really friendly crew."
Cons: "I understand having a bigger food selection may not be easy but maybe a little cheaper would be nice"
Cons: "No soft drinks. Really."
Cons: "the person nwxt to me was hesitant to stand ip when I wanted to go bathroom. Ither than that I lived it. Attendants were super nice which makes experience different."
Pros: "Promptness."
Cons: "Only beverages. Perhaps a little something, like nuts"
Cons: "When two tickets are purchased together I expected seats to be assigned together as well. Apparently this doesn’t happen when booking through a third party site. My husband and I were assigned seats late and in different rows."
Cons: "No comfort given to passengers despite 2.5 hr delay in leaving and another 1 hr on the ground after landing"
Pros: "Crew was very nice"
Cons: "Flight was over booked by about 15 people. Barely got a seat, and it was the middle seat in the very back of the plane. I bought the ticket and picked a seat...it shouldn’t be that hard to be able to board the plane and get a seat. Will likely not fly with them again. Don’t want to risk not being able to get home when I need to."
Pros: "First time on Alaska. Great experience."
Cons: "Reading lights did not work. Fortunately I could move"
Pros: "Nice movies Comfortable seats"
Cons: "Noisy air con Seat not reclining Headphone jack not working No storage space"
Pros: "Team very nice and polite."
Cons: "All the airplanes should have screens"
Cons: "The USB charger on my seat was broken"
Pros: "Thank you for recycling in the cabin!"
Cons: "Economy is always cramped, not just an Alaska comment. My computer almost got destroyed because the guy in front leaned his seat back"
Cons: "Two lines for what?"
Cons: "My emotional therapy dog of 7 pounds got part of her paw ripped off on an airport escalator. Though she was bleeding profusely all over me, I was not allowed to use the first aid kit to bandage her. I had to bring her to an emergency vet upon landing in Minneapolis"
Pros: "Excellent experience all around on all flights."
Pros: "Quick, quiet, & cool. Just the way I like it"
Pros: "all"
Pros: "not crowded"
Cons: "almost 3 hrs late"
Cons: "Late departure, late arrival, stuck half an hour on the ground before being able to get out of the plane while the PA blasts a message about Alaska being the most ponctual airline : a joke"
Pros: "Always reliable. The updates on my emails and phones are fantastic. Alaska always exceeds my expectations. Proud that they are from my hometown. Seattle."
Cons: "Nothing."
Cons: "Delayed both ways"
Cons: "Diversion to San Jose without shuttles to downtown SFO."
Pros: "Staff was nice."
Cons: "We were awakened at 130am for breakfast!!!!!! Who eats in the middle of their sleep."
Pros: "Alaska is the best."
Pros: "Prompt. Very friendly"
Pros: "I like the option to watch movies on my phone"
Pros: "Fast, everyone was nice"
Cons: "Couldn't get wifi to work but no big deal"
Pros: "Friendliness"
Pros: "It's kind of fun to ride in the small planes even though they are less comfortable."
Cons: "I didn't know that carryon suitcases wouldn't fit inside the plane. If this was mentioned somewhere in my ticket paperwork, I missed it. I would have prepared my toiletries better if I had known in advance."
Cons: "It got delayed and they didn't tell us until we got here."
Pros: "Very accommodating staff"
Cons: "We were asked to exit the plane at Tarmac and I was traveling with 2 little children. There were a lot of stairs to get off the plane and then walk back to terminal and then a lot of stairs were there to get back to terminal. I was hurting in my knee and my kids ears were hurting badly because the pressure was not controlled while landing. It was a very bad experience and I will definitely think twice about flying Alaska again."
Pros: "New equipment"
Cons: "Sparse food."
Pros: "Boarding was very clear, some airports you can't hear what group they are calling to board. In addition they had a screen to show which group was boarding which was very helpful. The staff was nice, no issues."
Pros: "The staff"
Cons: "The landing was a bit abrupt"
Pros: "Comfortable"
Pros: "Staff was nice"
Cons: "Didn't like that only drink choices were water and OJ. Only had pretzels, peanuts too would have been nice"
Cons: "A child crying the whole trip behind my seat. No effort by mother to stop child from crying"
Pros: "All good"
Cons: "Short-staffed, so short tempered workers.kiosks did not work. Nickled and dimed on everything. Like flying in prison. No light and a cold hard bench seat. Awful."
Pros: "The staff was surprisingly welcoming for a budget airline. Everything went very smoothely and both my flights on this round trip arrived early. Well done!"
Pros: "When we landed and exited the plane"
Cons: "Charging for carryines just ain't worth it. I'm not ever flying frontier or spirit. The extra cost for no hassle will be worth it."
Cons: "Look like frontier is always late"
Pros: "Attendants were friendly, plane was clean, and the experience was overall great."
Cons: "It would have been nice if the plane carried wifi or some kind of tv/music option for entertainment."
Pros: "Nothing."
Cons: "Everything."
Pros: "uh the "big front seat" was decent? fairly roomy and still cheap"
Cons: "fuckin screaming children everywhere, it was horrendous"
Cons: "Being charged for a carry on."
Pros: "well managed boarding process."
Cons: "personal pain difficulty with cabin air pressure during descent. Unusual in my experience in planes this large. Occurs more often in smaller regional airplanes."
Cons: "Trip had over 8 hours of delays."
Cons: "They lost my baggage..."
Cons: "Very very poor service"
Cons: "no free snack? not even a bag of peanuts?! disappointing"
Pros: "Lengthy delay with poor communication about the delay. Then delayed for an hour on the runway."
Cons: "Service was poor and comfort was awful"
Cons: "No room, very uncomfortable"
Pros: "Pilot did good job navigating thru turbulence."
Cons: "I did not like the long delay"
Pros: "Smooth ride, convenient boarding. Very short distances, they may be OK."
Cons: "Checked and carry-on luggage rules are complicated to navigate. There is a charge for seat allocation, etc. We weren't even offered water free-of-charge! I wouldn't consider flying again. Because when you add the cost of luggage, etc. Southwest is more attractive."
Cons: "Delayed several hours, sat on Tarmac for 30 motionless minutes on departure and arrival"
Cons: "Late late late arrival."
Cons: "I didn't know they were going to charge me $40 for a carryon. I guess I should have read the fine print."
Cons: "delays with NO feedback"
Pros: "Attention of the fly attender was very good"
Cons: "My fly was delayed for almost 6 hrs in I don't recive any information about that no email no txt message"
Pros: "Getting where I was going"
Cons: "Everything else."
Cons: "Just give me a final price with a seat and a carry on!! Rip off!"
Cons: "See above."
Pros: "Very efficient."
Cons: "No free beverage."
Cons: "Lugage took forever & no foood or drinks"
Pros: "Nothing"
Cons: "Worst customer service"
Pros: "Politeness"
Cons: "Overall everything"
Pros: "nothing"
Cons: "the fact that i was delayed more than 5 hours on the departure and more than 1 hour on the way back. Why is there an option for entertainment when none is provided? Also you need to pay for the food"
Cons: "to expensive to cary on a bag."
Pros: "Middle seat was empty"
Cons: "The delay. No food. No apologies"
Pros: "I was upgraded for free!"
Cons: "The payment necessary for baggage."
Cons: "Delayed for 4 hours"
Pros: "Nice and helpful employees, good experience"
Cons: "Nothing"
Cons: "Delay after delay without much updating"
Cons: "Delayed 3.5 hours for no reason."
Cons: "Very unhappy that my price listed on kayak did not include the additional cost for a seat."
Pros: "Everything went as planned"
Pros: "Same as above."
Cons: "NA"
Cons: "Everything!!"
Pros: "Nice, new plane."
Cons: "Small trays."
Pros: "Carry on charge not happy."
Cons: "Carry on charge is ridiculous."
Cons: "Extremely uncomfortable"
Pros: "No problems went very well"
Cons: "Nothing bad to say"
Pros: "It was very punctual"
Cons: "Service was terrible staff not friendly never using this airline again"
Pros: "Very informative on where to go!"
Cons: "Not very informational on security policy"
Pros: "No fanfare, no hassle."
Pros: "Flight was on time"
Cons: "Everything had an additional charge, so that “great fare” I found on Kayak was actually BS. They wanted to charge us $55 each to carry on our backpacks. Not rolling suitcase carry on luggage, backpacks. They charge for water on the flight, but they don’t tell you that until you are on the flight. The poor flight attendants had to walk through the flight at the end trying to sell credit cards! It was the most tasteless experience I have ever had traveling."
Cons: "Seats don't recline - at all - and feel like they're made out of cardboard. Couldn't even rest my head on the fold-out table as it's about 5 inches diagonal! Another thing that will prevent me from flying with this airline is that the spirit (pun intended) of charging extra for everything always leaves you wondering where the next hidden fee will turn up."
Pros: "Every thing on time all was good."
Cons: "There wasnt any power outlet and wifi"
Pros: "No nonesense, on time, friendly, attentive, dialed in process"
Cons: "Really barebones, no wifi, no reclining, baggage fees seem excessive, no entertainment, USB power would be nice I'd pay $5 each way for that"
Pros: "Take off wasn't harsh like usually is. Fight attentand was very attentive"
Pros: "Just great! Pay for things you need only."
Cons: "All good"
Pros: "Departed on time; arrived on time"
Cons: "Uncomfortable seats; no storage pocket; insufficient tray table"
Cons: "Customer unfriendly"
Pros: "Quick and arrived early"
Cons: "Nothing included: pay for seat, pay to have a carry on, no good or drinks including water is free"
Cons: "N/A"
Cons: "They broke my new luggage"
Pros: "Friendly flight staff."
Cons: "very cheap flights, then they charge you for everything extra, inlcuding carry on bags and a glass of water. The seats (lined, hard plastic shells which don't recline) are surprisingly comfortable."
Cons: "The two hours delay"
Pros: "Both flights were on time."
Cons: "Wish piecemeal pricing was explained in the beginning instead of in multiple e-mails"
Pros: "The staff went above and beyond when we had an issue with out third party reservation .....they took care of the whole problem when it wasn't their error! Very impressed!!! And gave us exit rows to sit in for our inconvenience."
Cons: "No complaints"
Cons: "them charging for everything except the bathroom"
Pros: "Everything went smoothly and we made great time."
Cons: "I didn't know about the bag fee upfront, otherwise I might have made arrangements with another airline."
Cons: "Spirit does not participate in the TSA Precheck program. We will not fly with you again, until you do participate!"
Cons: "I understand that Spirit intentionally gives minimal additives and services but I feel they can be a lot more transparent about what they do and do not provide. I felt very uncomfortable on my trip back for the following reasons. 1. Tray table was half the size as a normal tray table. I was trying to do work on it with my small computer and it kept falling off and into my seat mates lap. 2. There was a flight attendant named Duron who made a few comments that made me feel very uncomfortable. I felt he was inappropriate. When collecting trash he walked by my aisle and commented to the person next to me (he was reading the New York Times), "Anything about Trump, or Kill-her-y, Killary, Hillary in there?" And laughed. I was shocked that someone, especially a professional at work would say something so volatile and frankly, violent. On his second round he again came by and asked if "Trump was in the paper and worth reading. Killary in there? You can guess who I am voting for." While people in the back row laughed and the man next to me nervously laughed. I felt very uncomfortable and felt he was inappropriate. I plan never to fly Spirit again after this experience. I hope that you can address this issue with your quality assurance team and to Duron. It can't continue. Thank you,"
Cons: "Spirit Airlines are a collection of thieves who use bait and switch tactics and bully their customers while they are travelling."
Pros: "Everything was surprisingly pleasant. The seats were crammed and if my husband came he for sure wouldn't have fit in them."
Cons: "There really wasn't anything I had s problem with"
Pros: "Airplane was clean and relatively new"
Cons: "Website and customer service"
Pros: "Nothing"
Cons: "Terrible experience. You have to pay for carryon bags, seat change, drink, and so on. At leadt Adds $150 to your purchased ticket. 3 hours delay. You have to make a paper ticket..(electronic ticket that you download from website when you check in does not work ( Rude service. They say they are independent from all other airlines so they can not access simple flight info on other airlines... Very tight seating I would pay extra and go on other airlines"
Pros: "Well, I was warned about the charging for everything including a boarding pass."
Cons: "Bad service. The complicated on line reservations for pre pay of bags, specific seat assignments, and to print the boarding pass. Too many sales adds from Spirit. Then they pushed the credit card on the plane. Ridiculous."
Pros: "one of the stewardesses called out a guy who was on his cell phone and it was hilarious."
Cons: "No free drinks! Not even water or soda Bad turbulence. Spirit generally sucks. You have to show up earlier than most other flights, the carry-on is far too expensive, and the $9 plan is generally a scam unless you really plan on being a frequent flyer...the way they word their stuff online is rather deceptive in my opinion. false advertisement. ive watched many other people get confused by their brochures, not just me."
Pros: "Exactly as advertised.No frills.gets you to your destination"
Cons: "They kept changing the gate of departure and the fight was delayed many times. It was just not a reliable flight."
Cons: "I cancelled this flight and someone was not on the ball to notice this. I should not have received several emails posting about my flight and getting tickets. I had to call Spirit to confirm this and it took up much of my time, also causing much anxiety to think it had not been cancelled after all. This flight was cancelled several hours after I had reserved, and I made new reservations for a different date."
Cons: "By far worst air line I have ever used my son agreed we will never use again"
Pros: "Flight was available and a good value. Flight safe and on time."
Cons: "Spirit gives NO complimentary beverage service. I had to pay $3.00 for a drink of water! No complimentary snacks either."
Pros: "We landed safely. The fare was low but the fees were stupid dumb high. It wasn't explained how the fees at the gate were when we booked. I would never Fly spirit again."
Cons: "Everything was an up charge. The flight was filled with very small children who treated the flight like they were freshly uncaged animals. The seats don't go back. The fees were stupid retarded. I could tell everyone there not only rarely flew in planes but it was obvious they were all first time flying Spirit bc no one in their right mind would fly there twice."
Pros: "Very efficient and timely"
Cons: "Used Kleenex in the seat pouch in front of me"
Pros: "- On time departure and arrival (early, actually) - One of the genuinely funniest takeoff preparation spiels I've ever heard"
Cons: "- Charging extra for every little thing (such as ordinary seat selection, charging for carry-on luggage, a glass of water) - Most cramped seats ever - Advertising banners pasted to the cabin wall - Selling their credit card AND pushing it off as an "entertainment""
Pros: "Going to Oakland and back to Chicago both flights delayed by two hours and one hour"
Pros: "Love the low cost"
Cons: "wish I could use the TSA pre-screen and get one free carry-on"
Pros: "If you're traveling light, the airfare is great. Only pay for what you need - no food, no luggage, etc."
Cons: ""Read the fine print" is what I was essentially told when I learned I had to pay $50 to check my suitcase. I booked via Kayak - who gives no indication of the several fee options to check luggage, beginning from $30 online at spirit.com and so on. Disliked the service and structure, won't fly Spirit or book through Kayak again."
Pros: "Fairly cheap fare. Uncrowded area of O'Hare, pretty quick security line."
Cons: "Did not find out about the baggage fees until electronic check in. Appears that only the front row of seats reclined. Constantly kneed in the back by tall passenger behind me. Seemed like making a seat choice was possible only after $60 club membership ON TOP OF minimum $12 seat fee. Back to Virgin or a major next time."
Pros: "The "a la carte" payment plan was very deceptive. I had a second bag that easily fits in the overhead. I had to pay $ 65.00 when normally it is free."
Cons: "Total abuse of the situation and black mailing me into a rediculous extra charge."
Pros: "You do miss the small frills you get with other airlines but they aren't worth the cost you can often save with Spirit. And the staff were all professionals who took pride in their jobs. Overall a really great experience."
Cons: "No wifi, no free beverage but in fairness they do tell you that upfront."
Cons: "Spirit attendants at check-in misdirected me multiple times due to a glitched boarding pass that they would not explain to me. Then, when I got to security, they couldn't scan my pass because the toner level of the printer had been low and the code came out fuzzy. Then, at the gate, there were no attendants around, so I went looking for one. When I returned to the gate, the gate had closed, which resulted in my missing my flight. I missed a full day of my trip thanks to your poor service, and after calling customer service multiple times with absolutely no result, I will be taking my story to social media and never flying Spirit again."
Pros: "Preared to book replacement flights and hotel and food vouchers with 8 airline personnel ."
Cons: "Inefficiency, lack of communication and computer problems make this a horrible airline to use."
Cons: "Will never fly Spirit again. Poor customer service, an awful website and brand, and charged extra for a seat AND a carry-on. Which is fine if I knew that when the ticket was purchased."
Pros: "humor of the steward"
Cons: "cost of extra bag, lack of free snacks, elements of pushiness to see the airline's packages (tickets, etc.)."
Pros: "I arrived alive."
Cons: "Flight took off early and I was rescheduled to another flight missing a funeral. Spent 4 hours on layover in Vegas only to find out that flight was delayed for an hour. Spirit airlines charges for EVERYTHING including water and cary on."
Cons: "They lost my checked luggage"
Cons: "The plane dropped suddenly 2 hours in and the pilot never gave an explanation"
Pros: "Nothing"
Cons: "Flight was delayed 10x (maybe more I lost count of the emails). Flight was supposed to leave at 3:30pm we left at 8:30pm so we were at the airport for over 6 hours since the first delay came on our way to the airport and was only 20 min at the time. Spirit refused to waive baggage fees in light of the terrible experience that was due to their own mechanical failures. Only thing they offered was $7 food voucher and $50 voucher on a new flight. Never flying with them again."
Pros: "I really liked the flight attendants."
Cons: "I really didn't like the hidden fees. The huge fee for a carry-on completely negates the low price of the airfare."
Airlines flying from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area have enacted additional safety measures and adjusted policies to better accommodate travelers. Policies vary by airline.
Heightened sanitation
Daily cleaning, installation of cabin HEPA filters on flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area
Mandatory masks
Masks required on board, masks provided on flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area
Social distancing seating
Middle seats unavailable to book on flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area
Pre-flight testing
Testing for antibodies, testing for symptoms for flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area
Flexible cancellations
Waiving of change fees. Search flexible flights from Chicago to San Francisco Bay Area