$98 Find Cheap Flights from New York 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 New York to California departing on 3/1. 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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These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from New York to California.
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Flight Deals

Cheap Flights from New York to California

Cheapest round-trip prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours
Los Angeles
Los Angelesnonstop$171
San Francisco
San Franciscononstop$217
San Diego
San Diegononstop$207
San Jose
San Jose2 stops$228
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$282
Fresno
Fresno1 stop$253
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo1 stop$257
Bakersfield
Bakersfield1 stop$378
Arcata
Arcata2 stops$370
Reno
Reno1 stop$269
Sacramento
Sacramento1 stop$204
Los Angeles
Los Angelesnonstop$171
San Francisco
San Franciscononstop$217
San Diego
San Diegononstop$207
San Jose
San Jose2 stops$228
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$282
Fresno
Fresno1 stop$253
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo1 stop$257
Bakersfield
Bakersfield1 stop$378
Arcata
Arcata2 stops$370
Reno
Reno1 stop$269
Sacramento
Sacramento1 stop$204

Book Cheap New York 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 New York 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 New York to California

Mon, Feb 9 - Mon, Feb 9
Spirit Airlines Logo
9:00 am - 12:33 pm
EWR
-
LAX
6h 33mnonstop
Spirit Airlines Logo
11:59 pm - 11:42 am
LAX
-
EWR
8h 43m
1 stop
$171Spirit Airlines
Sat, Feb 21 - Sat, Feb 28
Multiple Airlines Logo
11:59 am - 10:46 pm
LGA
-
LAS
13h 47m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:20 am - 11:12 pm
LAS
-
LGA
12h 52m
1 stop
$171Multiple Airlines
Mon, Feb 23 - Tue, Mar 3
Multiple Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 9:01 am
JFK
-
LAS
6h 01mnonstop
Multiple Airlines Logo
11:58 pm - 11:58 am
LAS
-
JFK
9h 00m
1 stop
$172Multiple Airlines
Mon, Feb 23 - Tue, Mar 10
JetBlue Logo
7:45 pm - 10:46 pm
EWR
-
LAS
6h 01mnonstop
JetBlue Logo
10:50 am - 6:40 pm
LAS
-
EWR
4h 50mnonstop
$207JetBlue
Fri, Mar 13 - Wed, Apr 15
Delta Logo
8:40 pm - 12:11 am
JFK
-
SAN
6h 31mnonstop
Delta Logo
10:25 pm - 6:50 am
SAN
-
JFK
5h 25mnonstop
$207Delta
Sat, Feb 21 - Sat, Feb 28
JetBlue Logo
7:45 pm - 10:46 pm
EWR
-
LAS
6h 01mnonstop
JetBlue Logo
10:50 am - 6:40 pm
LAS
-
EWR
4h 50mnonstop
$210JetBlue
Thu, Feb 19 - Tue, Feb 24
Delta Logo
8:35 pm - 12:05 am
JFK
-
SAN
6h 30mnonstop
Delta Logo
7:00 am - 3:24 pm
SAN
-
JFK
5h 24mnonstop
$217Delta
Tue, Mar 10 - Tue, Mar 17
American Airlines Logo
8:05 pm - 11:57 pm
JFK
-
SFO
6h 52mnonstop
American Airlines Logo
2:00 pm - 10:29 pm
SFO
-
JFK
5h 29mnonstop
$217American Airlines
Thu, Mar 5 - Wed, Mar 11
Alaska Airlines Logo
4:45 pm - 8:36 pm
JFK
-
SFO
6h 51mnonstop
Alaska Airlines Logo
6:29 am - 3:00 pm
SFO
-
JFK
5h 31mnonstop
$218Alaska Airlines
Wed, Apr 22 - Sat, May 9
Alaska Airlines Logo
6:23 pm - 9:56 pm
EWR
-
SFO
6h 33mnonstop
Alaska Airlines Logo
7:40 am - 4:21 pm
SFO
-
EWR
5h 41mnonstop
$219Alaska Airlines
Booking Insights

KAYAK's insights & trends for New York to California flights

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

What is the cheapest New York to California flight route?

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

The cheapest ticket to California from New York found in the last 72 hours was to Los Angeles, at $133 round-trip. The most popular route is from New York John F Kennedy Intl Airport (JFK) to Los Angeles (LAX), and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 72 hours was $179.

Can I save money by flying with a layover from New York 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 $415, prices are generally cheapest when you fly direct.

What is the cheapest month to fly from New York to California?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from New York 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 New York to California is September, when tickets cost $312 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are December and April, when the average cost of round-trip tickets is $438 and $375 respectively.

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

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

When flying from New York to California, you should consider leaving on a Monday and avoid Sundays if you are looking for the best rates. For your return to New York, you’ll find the best rates on Wednesdays and the most expensive ones on Sundays.

How far in advance should I book a flight from New York 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 New York 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 New York to California, you should book around 3 weeks before departure, which saves you about 40% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 14 weeks before departure.

Good to know

Low seasonSeptember
Cheapest flight$98
Best time to beat the crowds with an average 9% drop in price.
Most popular time to fly with an average 8% increase in price.
Flight from New York John F Kennedy Airport to Las Vegas

Flights from New York to California: the best tips from KAYAK users

Insights shared by verified travelers who flew the route from New York to California 
BeverlyFlew with JetBlue
JFK
-
SFO
Dec 2025
Wear support socks which helps when you sit for a long time.
AnjaliFlew with Spirit Airlines
EWR
-
LAX
Dec 2025
look out for landing in the new terminal that is then a bus ride away from your luggage
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
EWR
-
SFO
Dec 2025
Bring your own food and in flight activity since they don’t supply any.
LuisFlew with Delta
JFK
-
SFO
Mar 2025
It’s a long flight, come prepared to either watch movies, read or sleep.
HowardFlew with Alaska Airlines
JFK
-
SAN
May 2025
Must have a tablet to watch videos. Bring a seat cushion.
AracelyFlew with Spirit Airlines
EWR
-
LAX
Dec 2024
Bring snacks and your own water bottle to stay hydrated.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
EWR
-
SAN
Feb 2025
My flight was not delayed, but my family had a flight earlier in the week that was, by 5 hours. My daughter says she'll never book a late afternoon flight as they seem most likely to be delayed. I personally like the timing and usually they cost less. Also, get on the plan with fully charged devices or a non-electronic form on entertainment.
Verified travelerFlew with American Airlines
JFK
-
LAX
Jan 2025
Be there on time it really need two hours for security checkups
Verified travelerFlew with Qantas Airways
JFK
-
LAX
Nov 2024
there was an instance where a non speaking couple didnt know when to board. people cut in front of them and the crew didnt respond. it would be nice if there were translators available to assist when needed. i get that you want people on board as quickly as possible. sometimes, it's like herding cats. but do assist the people who dont understand the language.
JulieFlew with Alaska Airlines
JFK
-
SFO
Oct 2024
Leave early. JFK can be messy. I couldn’t find healthy food choices so eat before you arrive.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
JFK
-
SAN
Oct 2024
Landing in La Guardia or Newark (New Jersey) is more convenient for commuting to Manhattan.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
EWR
-
LAX
Jun 2024
Make sure to get food before you get to the airport. Bring chargers for ur phone or your technological device.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
JFK
-
SFO
Jun 2024
SFO is one of the most convenient and pleasant airports. When flying Alaska Air make sure to bring your food and a larger water bottle that usual (you get only two drink services (one small cup each) for a 6 hour flight.
BerniceFlew with Alaska Airlines
EWR
-
SAN
Jun 2024
Give yourself plenty of time to get through security.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
JFK
-
PSP
Mar 2024
Bring an iPad with lots of shows downloaded. The terminal at jfk is nice and small, easy to go thru security. Palm Springs airport is amazing. You step out and feel like you’re on vacation.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
EWR
-
LAX
Apr 2024
There are buses from Time Square Bus Terminal to Newark for $18 direct no stops you are there in 30 minutes.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
JFK
-
SFO
May 2024
The airport food was limited and expensive. Best to bring a sandwich from outside…
MasakoFlew with Alaska Airlines
EWR
-
LAX
Apr 2024
Newark has few food options so pack something if you can. It’s not worth getting food at Newark.
Verified travelerFlew with Alaska Airlines
EWR
-
SAN
Feb 2024
Allow time for TSA (I had) or figure out the priority boarding (I didn't but will look into it for future flights), I thought they were pretty inefficient. A guy behind me was freaking out because he was going to miss his flight and a bunch of us let him cut the line in hopes he could make it.
SridharFlew with Spirit Airlines
EWR
-
OAK
Dec 2023
Fly light. Get seats in front. Make sure you get here before 10 - rental car place closes prior.
LaurenFlew with JetBlue
JFK
-
LAX
Dec 2023
Be very careful that you don’t misplace anything. If you have to go through TSA multiple times, be sure to retrieve ALL your things even if it means you have to hold up the line unfortunately. Otherwise, there will be zero help to retrieve your things afterwards even though there are so many cameras.

FAQs - booking California flights

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

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

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight from New York 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 New York 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 New York 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 New York 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 New York 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 in the morning, when round-trip flights cost $357 on average. Morning departures are around 44% 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 $639.

Reviews of the top 5 airlines serving from New York to California

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from New York 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 New York 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
Alaska AirlinesOverall score based on 11795 reviews
8.1Boarding
8.5Crew
7.1Food
7.8Comfort
7.0Entertainment
Airline reviews

I paid $168 each for myself and my daughter for an upgrade and we didn’t get any of the things mentioned by you/ site that comes with an upgrade. It was all just the same. One snack and one beverage. Nothing else. I don’t understand what the upgrade was.

4.0 OkayAnonymous, Jan 2026
JFK - PSP
Read more Alaska Airlines reviews

I paid $168 each for myself and my daughter for an upgrade and we didn’t get any of the things mentioned by you/ site that comes with an upgrade. It was all just the same. One snack and one beverage. Nothing else. I don’t understand what the upgrade was.

Every thing is on time, boarding, landing nice and smooth. But No tv? No food for 6 hours flight?

I don’t think Alaska coordinates with Kayak. I did not get a “check-in” email inviting me to check in 24 hours in advance. Had to wait 20+ minutes to get a wheel chair.

First Class seats had no more legroom then Premium Economy. There was no working WiFi or entertainment. I would have rather paid $400 more and flown on United for the 6 hours from EWR to SFO.

Overall the flight was on-time and plane ride very comfortable. The free snacks not so good - only a small bag of pretzels and no milk. I wanted milk. There was not entertainment on the plane unless I wanted to download their APP. But I would consider flying with them again and be more prepared on my part with food and entertainment.

This time it is good, no delay and right on time

No food but only snack was provided during the 6-hour flight from EWR to LAX. I was so hungry during the trip.

Miss bigger screens for movies Staff was friendly Seats comfortable Bathroom line long

Seats are so small now that it's very hard even for a medium-sized person to be comfortable!!!

Good experience on flight. But flight was delayed for takeoff by an hour, and Alaska posted the wrong landing time on its website. So the person who was designated to pick me up arrived 1 hour early and sat waiting for a long time at 11pm at night. This could have been avoided with better text and website communication by Alaska/Hawaiin Airlines

The entertainment screens were not working and there was no air condition the entire flight. Very uncomfortable.

It was Delta, but the flight attendants were stressful and disrespectful. I am a diamond member a travel weekly. I have not had a negative thing to share in quite some time. But this was noticeable.

The plant way delayed departing by 3 hours. It was an old airplane with broken seats and armrests. The bathroom made a hollering sound. A really crappy flight experience and travel day all around.

Original flight was cancelled and when i was rebooked by the airline, they couldn't seat me in the same type of seat as I had originally booked (went from window/aisle to middle/middle and one was a bulkhead seat, and other wasn't in the same class)

My flight was cancelled with no explanation after I had already cleared security. I was given 4 options to rebook, only one being non-stop like I had paid for. I grabbed it. It was 4 plus hours later and then took off even later. Biggest complaint is that I booked early and had an aisle seat. They gave me a "window" seat in front of the exit row, so the seat did not decline. I weigh all of 103 #s and it was tight for me! For what I paid, I feel I was kind of ripped off. I think they should have given me the empty comfort seat for the inconvenience. There was no apology nor any explanation as to why the flight was cancelled. My guess is it benefitted Delta in some way.

Very smooth, on-time, and pleasantly uneventful flight. The team at the gate and on board were professional and genuinely courteous. The pilot kept us well updated throughout, and both takeoff and landing were steady and enjoyable without any drama. Just a good, solid flight. Thank you! 💗

I truly love flying with Delta. They have always treated me with the upmost respect

The flight was great. The gate location was way to far away!!!

This route with Delta always has delays or is cancelled. Aircrafts seem smaller and older. I fly Delta quite a bit - haven’t had issues with the international flights. But this route has always been the troublesome one

I believe that a four-hour trip should have a meal. Delta had none.

Perfect flight. Smooth flight. Arrived 20 minutes early at destination. Excellent service.

Flight was delayed 8 times. We were sitting at the airport for 14 hours. We got 2 hours of sleep (if that) on what was not meant to be a red-eye.

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.

This flight was perfect. No complaints and only the highest regard for the crew and ground staff and how they executed perfectly. I fly a lot with United and would request predictability and transparency in their operations instead of last minute changes.

Survey sent before we actually left. Delay after delay. Now a crew problem.

I love flying with United. Unfortunately, I flew on an older plane with minimal upgraded technology (no Bluetooth functionality or handy charging ports). Otherwise, the flight was great and even arrived early.

They changed my seats after I checked in and I was stressed from the time I saw that information until just before boarding, when the gate attendant fixed it, but it shouldn't have happened. And if it couldn't be prevented, then the people on the phone I spoke with should have done something to help, which they did not, nor did they offer me compensation, just meaningless apologies.

Smooth flight, especially take off and landing, and great crew on board. Really loved the stroopwaffles!

Deplaning was delayed because of Jetbridge equipment issues in MKE, causing an issue on an otherwise great flight.

I would like the crew to talk LESS over the PA and specifically about credit card offers. I am trying to work, sleep, watch a movie and the PA was booming about a credit card offer. Could we go back to the days when the customer was more important than selling a credit card?

There were no TV screens - even in Business class. 5 delays, and only given $12 meal voucher! Terrible!

My seat tv didn’t work the whole trip. And the seat space is too small despite being seated at the front.

On the plus side, crew was attentive, drinks were cold, and in-flight entertainment selection was better than some other airlines. On the negative aide, Plane was delayed almost an hour, either no announcements from the gate crew. Biscoff cookies are gross, appreciate airlines that give a choice. Also, crew had no personality or enthusiasm at all.

Baggage handling poor. Second time this has happened. My bag went to San Francisco instead of Fiji. No apology. Luckily Nadi airport staff are fantastic. My bag arrived in Fiji the next day.

Disliked having to wait a little longer to disembark from the plan when we landed in London

Food should be better quality. Video screens have poor resolution and the library of movies is poor. The other airlines are much better.

They only offered water for Group 6. Awful announcements from the Crew. Couldn't understand a single word. Barely came by for the trash afterwards. Man, I love water for a premium flight. Wow. Water in a cup.

Great. Quick and quiet and east. The breakfast choices were a welcome surprise!

We arrived 4 hours early and still almost missed the flight because they weren’t able to access one of the boarding tickets. They then sent hour bags late and we were all of our without clothing and eventually had to take an expensive cab back and forth to the airport as they wouldn’t deliver the bag which arrived late at night that day and we would have to wait until noon the began day (messing up a second day of plans). Also, all the food has dairy or pork. No vegan or even vegetarian option in the flight—even for purchase.

Terrible. They canceled our early morning flight after midnight on the day of and had no available flights to rebook my family on for the next 72 hours. Yet they still had other flights that were not cancelled from JFK so it couldn’t be based on the weather. It felt like they canceled the flight based on it not being profitable enough for them. I am not interested in traveling with the again. The absolute worse customer service and lack of accountability.

First time flying with JetBlue and never again. I went to the counter to request meet and assist because I'm 74 and my wife is 79. I walk with a cane and my wife is handicapped and has her own wheel chair. I told the agent that my wife and luggage was at the entrance door. The ticketing agent said to me that they don't offer meet and assist. I need to bring them our luggage and then go back and get my wife in order to get my boarding pass. As I went back to get my luggage a Southwest agent along with a TSA agent recognized the situation and came over and took my wife and luggage to the JetBlue ticketing counter alongside the line and told the JetBlue agent to issue to take our luggage as soon as they could.

Flight was fine, price was good but food onboard was abysmal. I was on there for breakfast and lunch and dinner 845am EST to 845pm GMT and all I got was a yoghurt parfait, fruit and a piece of cake. Later snacks included an ice-cream brownie and a pizza twist. I was hungry by the time I landed and the airport amenities were closed. Not happy.

Not a pleasant experience, service was poor. Didn't like it

Everything was great. I liked the text updates so that I never miss a gate change & I have all the latest info.

No internet on a flight over three hours in this age is criminal. Staff inattentive and dismissive

Worst flight experience ever flights canceled. JetBlue told us just did not even bother standing in line to come back in one and a half hours then without any information we had to go pick up all of our luggage and spend over $2000 in accommodation just to get home. JetBlue said that the next flight available for us to get home would be three days later. Absolutely absurd hasn’t offered to give us any compensation do not fly JetBlue horrible company. They said it was based on the weather and the weather is great in all locations that we would’ve been flying to total hoax. I think it’s a conspiracy theory.

flight was delayed for hours with no explanation. The plane was a very old aircraft.

The flight departed more than 1 hour late. Leg room is bigger than most airlines

Excellent. Although they used to greet me as a mosaic member and provide a free drink, early boarding helps me to keep coming back to JetBlue.

Everything you need to know for your flight from New York 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.