$36 Find Cheap Flights from San Diego 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 San Diego to California departing on 4/27. 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 San Diego to California.
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from San Diego to California.
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Flight Deals

Cheap Flights from San Diego to California

Cheapest round-trip prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours
Los Angeles
Los Angeles1 stop$105
San Francisco
San Franciscononstop$112
San Jose
San Josenonstop$117
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$239
Fresno
Fresnononstop$97
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispononstop$117
Bakersfield
Bakersfield1 stop$298
Arcata
Arcata1 stop$305
Redding
Redding1 stop$226
Reno
Reno1 stop$134
Sacramento
Sacramentononstop$117
Los Angeles
Los Angeles1 stop$105
San Francisco
San Franciscononstop$112
San Jose
San Josenonstop$117
Palm Springs
Palm Springs1 stop$239
Fresno
Fresnononstop$97
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispononstop$117
Bakersfield
Bakersfield1 stop$298
Arcata
Arcata1 stop$305
Redding
Redding1 stop$226
Reno
Reno1 stop$134
Sacramento
Sacramentononstop$117

Book Cheap San Diego 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 San Diego 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 San Diego to California

Thu, Apr 23 - Thu, Apr 30
Frontier Logo
9:07 pm - 10:33 pm
SAN
-
LAS
1h 26mnonstop
Frontier Logo
4:11 pm - 5:40 pm
LAS
-
SAN
1h 29mnonstop
$68Frontier
Thu, Apr 30 - Mon, May 4
Frontier Logo
9:07 pm - 10:33 pm
SAN
-
LAS
1h 26mnonstop
Frontier Logo
4:11 pm - 5:40 pm
LAS
-
SAN
1h 29mnonstop
$74Frontier
Tue, Feb 24 - Tue, Mar 3
Southwest Logo
10:30 am - 11:50 am
SAN
-
FAT
1h 20mnonstop
Southwest Logo
8:00 am - 9:20 am
FAT
-
SAN
1h 20mnonstop
$97Southwest
Tue, Feb 24 - Tue, Mar 3
Southwest Logo
10:30 am - 11:50 am
SAN
-
FAT
1h 20mnonstop
Southwest Logo
11:00 am - 2:40 pm
FAT
-
SAN
3h 40m
1 stop
$107Southwest
Wed, Mar 11 - Wed, Mar 18
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
8:59 pm - 10:47 pm
SAN
-
SFO
1h 48mnonstop
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
6:35 am - 8:15 am
SFO
-
SAN
1h 40mnonstop
$113Hawaiian Airlines
Wed, Feb 25 - Sat, Feb 28
Alaska Airlines Logo
10:29 am - 12:08 pm
SAN
-
SJC
1h 39mnonstop
Alaska Airlines Logo
12:45 pm - 2:10 pm
SJC
-
SAN
1h 25mnonstop
$117Alaska Airlines
Wed, Feb 18 - Sat, Feb 21
Alaska Airlines Logo
8:04 am - 10:05 am
SAN
-
SMF
2h 01mnonstop
Alaska Airlines Logo
12:47 pm - 2:27 pm
SMF
-
SAN
1h 40mnonstop
$117Alaska Airlines
Sat, Feb 21 - Sun, Feb 22
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
8:30 am - 9:56 am
SAN
-
FAT
1h 26mnonstop
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
6:02 am - 7:24 am
FAT
-
SAN
1h 22mnonstop
$118Hawaiian Airlines
Mon, Mar 9 - Mon, Mar 16
United Airlines Logo
6:15 am - 8:05 am
SAN
-
SFO
1h 50mnonstop
United Airlines Logo
7:00 am - 8:40 am
SFO
-
SAN
1h 40mnonstop
$124United Airlines
Tue, Feb 24 - Tue, Mar 3
United Airlines Logo
11:57 am - 5:20 pm
SAN
-
MRY
5h 23m
1 stop
United Airlines Logo
2:01 pm - 5:29 pm
MRY
-
SAN
3h 28m
1 stop
$177United Airlines
Booking Insights

KAYAK's insights & trends for San Diego to California flights

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

What is the cheapest San Diego to California flight route?

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

The cheapest ticket to California from San Diego found in the last 72 hours was to San Jose, at $91 round-trip. The most popular route is from San Diego (SAN) to San Francisco (SFO), and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 72 hours was $117.

Can I save money by flying with a layover from San Diego 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 $220, prices are generally cheapest when you fly direct.

What is the cheapest month to fly from San Diego to California?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from San Diego 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 San Diego to California is July, when tickets cost $179 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are March and January, when the average cost of round-trip tickets is $276 and $249 respectively.

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

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

If you are looking for a flight deal from San Diego to California, look for departures on Thursdays and avoid leaving on a Saturday, as it's usually the priciest day. When flying back from California, Tuesday is the cheapest day to fly and Monday is the most expensive.

How far in advance should I book a flight from San Diego 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 San Diego 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 San Diego to California, you should book around 2 weeks before departure, which saves you about 33% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 25 weeks before departure.

Good to know

Low seasonDecember
Cheapest flight$36
Best time to beat the crowds but there is an average 46% increase in price.
Most popular time to fly and prices are also 21% lower on average.
Flight from San Diego to Las Vegas

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

Insights shared by verified travelers who flew the route from San Diego to California 
LindseyFlew with SWISS
SAN
-
SFO
Dec 2025
Ready for weather delays of wind in SFO, which happens often. Keep that in consideration when planning an additional leg of a trip after it from SFO.
AmyFlew with Spirit Airlines
SAN
-
OAK
Dec 2024
Make sure you download your movies in advance and try not to bring more luggage than you need. And keep in mind that the gate at San Diego airport is terribly small.
VyomaFlew with Alaska Airlines
SAN
-
SFO
Jun 2024
Be sure to read the signs, i have heard it's confusing for connecting flights if you don't follow the directions.
BillFlew with Alaska Airlines
SAN
-
SMF
May 2024
Security at Sacramento can take longer than you think it might for a small airport.

FAQs - booking California flights

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

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

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight from San Diego 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 San Diego 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 San Diego 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 San Diego 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 San Diego 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 evening, when round-trip flights cost $856 on average. On average, there is no price difference when choosing to fly in the morning or the evening on this flight route. The most expensive time of day to fly to California is generally at night, which is peak travel time and where the average cost of a ticket is $950.

Top tips for finding cheap flights to California

  • Looking for a cheap flight? 25% of our users found tickets from San Diego to the following destinations at these prices or less: Las Vegas $70 one-way - $118 round-trip; Los Angeles $229 one-way - $557 round-trip; San Francisco $128 one-way - $210 round-trip

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

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from San Diego 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 San Diego 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 11799 reviews
8.1Boarding
7.1Food
8.5Crew
7.0Entertainment
7.8Comfort
Airline reviews

Worst first/business class I have ever flown after 75 years on planes. Barely acceptable seats, terrible food, uninterested attendants, unavailable WiFi. I’ll never fly this airline again.

4.0 OkayJerry, Jan 2026
SAN - ORD
Read more Alaska Airlines reviews

Worst first/business class I have ever flown after 75 years on planes. Barely acceptable seats, terrible food, uninterested attendants, unavailable WiFi. I’ll never fly this airline again.

Again, very smooth and all of the Alaska folks were great. They continue to meet all my needs.

The whole experience went smoothly with no hitches along the way.

My Alaska Airlines return flight, although worked out in the end, didn't start off well. The initial plane that my family and I boarded was grounded because of a mishap that happened to one of the engines and everyone on board had to disembark the plane. Thankfully we were accommodated with a another plane but our initial flight was supposed to have departed at 11 pm San Diego time for Orlando but instead we ended up leaving at 1:40 am San Diego time. All Passengers were informed that part of the delay was that the plane had to be inspected by the captain, the food had to be stocked and the individuals responsible for fueling the plane left for the evening and had to be summoned to return to fill up our. The Alaska Airlines crew at the airport and on the plane were awesome and apologetic. I know that the crew wasn't responsible for the mishap of the engine but I think in the future the airline should offer a complimentary drink or (1) item of food other than pretzels, nuts or chips to all passengers since we're not to blame for the extreme set backs. The airline in general is good and I recommend to all flyers.

Late leaving so threatened our connection in Vegas to Seattle. We did make up time and made our connection.

Dropping off of the checked bags took way longer than it should have. The agent for the pre-tagged and ready to drop off line was gone and didn't come back for about 15 minutes. The other bag check lines were barely moving. Agents were standing around and not much was getting done. Everything else about the flight was great.

Was late but $50 voucher was great benefit of the summit card.

See previous. It was the flight from Honolulu to Kapalua that was cancelled.

I truly appreciated the kindness and attentiveness of the staff and flight attendants. They did their best to be prompt with departure times to San Diego and back to New York! Alaska Airlines ... you are awesome!!

I've never flied them before but liked them. Weather was bad so a little scarey but they did a great job landing.

3 hour delay. Had to change plans and was still delayed.

The flight crew was extremely rude and especially not helpful when our flight was delayed.

The boarding and seat assignment system no longer works for me, but I know it is being replaced. Otherwise, I am good with the overall experience.

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

Still a fan of open seating. Flight was on schedule and arrived on time. The 737 MAX is very comfortable.

San Diego airport is brand new, spacious, airy and very smooth checkin at SW baggage drop.

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.

Delays delays delays. Late taking off, late landing, wait for a gate, etc.

Connecting flight is on time and boarding was a breeze!

Very smooth checking in our luggage with a super pleasant SW agent. I enjoyed a fun entertaining movie.

First class ticket gets you a choice of chips or nuts. . Just like economy Southwest. Also no screen in the seats. This is first class???!

The food was terrible this time. Otherwise pleasant, quiet, on-time.

Flight arrived 30 min early and bag was waiting at the baggage pickup. United Club HNL was one of the nicest in the system

Yet another flight in which beverage and snack service was skipped. Other that that, firmly mediocre. Landed early, to gate late due to congestion at the gates. Airline's fault or airports fault: unknown.

Teeny tiny bathrooms, crew was not realistic about when we'd arrive.

Unbelievably poor service from flight attendants. They didn’t even do water service on a four hour flight. Just disrespectful.

Flight was late - I was downgraded from first class to coach

United needs to step up their game. Delayed flight leaving Seattle, San Francisco. Older aircraft, not very comfortable.

Plane boarded early a quickly, was mostly full. We left close to on time. And landed early.

7 hours delayed due to operational issues on United’s end. Basically laziness.

The flight was delayed by 2 hours and we had no food or water or chargers

Horribly late because they had no crew!!! And then jet bridge didn’t work!! Then we arrived at a gate at lax miles away that we had to take a shuttle to a terminal!! I was over 3 hours late to getting the LA! Should have been here at 8:30 and at an appointment at 10:30 and arrived and left lax at 11 am!! Horrible experience!!!

Once again, the staff seem to think they are above the customers and treat everyone with disdain, belittling people.

Flight was canceled 8 hours before departure for lack of operational control and prepositioning of a plane. Then had the audacity to say it was because of weather, however there was no weather here in California or New Orleans or in between. It was the weather in Florida, Florida it had nothing to do with our flight path just the plane was supposed to fly us. 8 hours is more than enough time to move a plane anywhere in the US. That left me with a bill of 1200 dollars to re book a flight oh and kayaks insurance what a joke. Probably will never use kayak or spirit ever again terrible companies terrible customer service. I’ll also let everyone and anyone know this was an abomination and only for the customer. Also will be making a report to the DOT on bad business practices on behalf of kayak and spirit as well as the BBB. Do better, take care of your customers and don’t suck

The airplane had a strange noise that was constant throughout the flight. Thankfully I had noise-cancelling over-ear headphones that muted much of it.

it was terrible. flight was cancelled hours before the flight without a given reason and no other booking available .

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.

It was ok. It was expensive to check 2 bags ($75.00 per bag), and then it took a long time to wait for shuttle to take us from one terminal to the terminal where the plane was taking off at LAX. And all of this for a flight where we had to pay for any food or drink that was not water.

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.

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

I think Frontier was very good at communication. Their app worked very well. Loading was great and the flight was nice and easy.

This airline sucks. They offer low rates then charge you for everything, the app does not work well, the seats are the most uncomfortable. Maintenance issues on the flight, and you still have to sit through their credit card commercials. People are nice enough but does not make up for overall poor experience.

Great for the price. No wifi or entertainment, but gate agents and crew were fantastic and we boarded quickly and left on time.

Decent clean onboard experience. Okay discount airline experience. Unfortunately, any customer service interactions are difficult and unhelpful. There is no service. Also, a premium seat only gets you premium boarding if you line up first. Once they start general boarding you must go to the back of the line. Not very premium

The crew was mostly okay. The flight attendant who answered our questions was curt and unhelpful unfortunately. He seemed upset and I understand having off days.

Very bad! No good service delayed my second connection flight

Everything you need to know for your flight from San Diego to California

Information on your arrival and departure airports