$590 Find Cheap Flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg

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 Francisco to Johannesburg departing on 8/25. 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

KAYAK searches hundreds of travel sites at once for deals on flights to Johannesburg

 
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from San Francisco to Johannesburg.
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from San Francisco to Johannesburg.
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Flight Deals

Cheap Flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg (SFO-JNB)

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

Tue, Oct 7 - Thu, Oct 16
Turkish Airlines Logo
6:45 pm - 10:35 amSFO-JNB
30h 50m1 stop
Turkish Airlines Logo
5:50 pm - 4:40 pmJNB-SFO
31h 50m1 stop
$1,099Turkish Airlines
Find Deal
Thu, Oct 2 - Thu, Oct 16
Cathay Pacific Logo
12:20 am - 7:40 amSFO-JNB
46h 20m1 stop
Cathay Pacific Logo
11:20 am - 11:15 amJNB-SFO
32h 55m1 stop
$1,100Cathay Pacific
Find Deal
Thu, Nov 6 - Sat, Nov 15
 Logo
1:10 pm - 10:50 amSFO-JNB
35h 40m1 stop
 Logo
12:20 pm - 11:05 amJNB-SFO
32h 45m2 stops
$1,108
Find Deal
Tue, Sep 9 - Tue, Sep 23
 Logo
4:10 pm - 3:50 pmSFO-JNB
38h 40m2 stops
 Logo
5:00 pm - 4:58 pmJNB-SFO
32h 58m2 stops
$1,124
Find Deal
Wed, Sep 17 - Wed, Sep 24
Qatar Airways Logo
3:55 pm - 9:35 amSFO-JNB
32h 40m1 stop
Qatar Airways Logo
3:10 am - 1:35 pmJNB-SFO
43h 25m2 stops
$1,209Qatar Airways
Find Deal
Sun, Oct 5 - Sat, Oct 11
Qatar Airways Logo
3:55 pm - 9:35 amSFO-JNB
32h 40m1 stop
Qatar Airways Logo
4:50 pm - 1:35 pmJNB-SFO
53h 45m2 stops
$1,210Qatar Airways
Find Deal
Fri, Nov 21 - Mon, Dec 1
British Airways Logo
5:30 pm - 10:25 amSFO-JNB
30h 55m1 stop
British Airways Logo
7:35 pm - 3:00 pmJNB-SFO
29h 25m1 stop
$1,225British Airways
Find Deal
Fri, Nov 21 - Wed, Dec 3
British Airways Logo
5:30 pm - 10:25 amSFO-JNB
30h 55m1 stop
British Airways Logo
7:35 pm - 3:00 pmJNB-SFO
29h 25m1 stop
$1,232British Airways
Find Deal
Thu, Jan 22 - Thu, Feb 12
American Airlines Logo
4:15 pm - 10:25 amSFO-JNB
32h 10m2 stops
American Airlines Logo
7:35 pm - 3:00 pmJNB-SFO
29h 25m1 stop
$1,236American Airlines
Find Deal
Wed, Nov 5 - Sun, Nov 9
American Airlines Logo
8:40 pm - 10:25 amSFO-JNB
27h 45m1 stop
American Airlines Logo
10:00 pm - 9:28 pmJNB-SFO
33h 28m2 stops
$1,242American Airlines
Find Deal
Booking Insights

KAYAK's insights & trends for San Francisco to Johannesburg flights

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

What’s the cheapest day of the week to fly from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

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

Your flight ticket price will generally be cheaper if you fly to Johannesburg on a Tuesday and more expensive on a Thursday. On your return trip to San Francisco, you should consider flying back on a Saturday, and avoid Wednesdays for better deals.

What is the cheapest month to fly from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg, 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 Francisco to Johannesburg is March, where tickets cost $1,166 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are December and July, where the average cost of round-trip tickets is $1,801 and $1,584 respectively.

How far in advance should I book a flight from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

To calculate weekly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each week before departure over the last year for round-trip flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg, 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 Francisco to Johannesburg, you should book around 1 week before departure. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 8 weeks before departure.

Good to know

Cheapest flight$590
Flight from San Francisco to OR Tambo Airport, Johannesburg

When to book flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg

Are your dates flexible? Find out the best times to travel from San Francisco to Johannesburg based on our flight data from the last year. Discover the cheapest month and even day to fly.
Estimated round-trip price
KAYAK looks at all historical flight data for each date to provide a predicted price for one-way trips or round-trips with a duration up to 40 days. While we try to provide actual minimum prices for each date, some prices are predictions and actual prices may differ.

FAQs for booking flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg

  • What is the cheapest flight from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

    In the last 3 days, the lowest price for a flight from San Francisco to Johannesburg was $590 for a one-way ticket and $1,099 for a round-trip.

  • Do I need a passport to fly between San Francisco and Johannesburg?

    A passport is required to fly from San Francisco to Johannesburg.

  • Which airports will I be using when flying from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

    San Francisco is served by only 1 airport and there are 2 airports in Johannesburg. You will leave San Francisco from San Francisco and you will be arriving in Johannesburg at one of these airports: Johannesburg Lanseria or Johannesburg OR Tambo.

  • Which aircraft models fly most regularly from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

    We unfortunately don’t have that data for this specific route.

  • Which airline alliances offer flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

    oneworld, and Star Alliance are the airline alliances operating flights between San Francisco and Johannesburg, with oneworld being the most commonly used for this route.

  • What is the most popular layover when flying to Johannesburg from San Francisco?

    London is the most popular layover city among KAYAK users traveling from San Francisco to Johannesburg.

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

    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 Francisco to Johannesburg.

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

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to Johannesburg from San Francisco 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 Francisco to Johannesburg?

    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 Johannesburg with an airline and back to San Francisco with another airline.

  • What is KAYAK's "flexible dates" feature and why should I care when looking for a flight from San Francisco to Johannesburg?

    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 Johannesburg from San Francisco up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

Reviews of the top 5 airlines serving from San Francisco to Johannesburg

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from San Francisco to Johannesburg. 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 Francisco to Johannesburg? 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.
7.4
United AirlinesOverall score based on 8928 reviews
7.3Comfort
7.1Entertainment
8.1Crew
6.6Food
7.7Boarding
Airline reviews

The pilots were late and it made us 1 hour late. The meat was tough and bok choy was also tough.

10.0 ExcellentWendy, Aug 2025SFO - YYC
Read more United Airlines reviews

The pilots were late and it made us 1 hour late. The meat was tough and bok choy was also tough.

Stuck on tarmac for two hours plus a 5.5 hour flight. Rude flight attendant. And no meals, not even for purchase!

I learned that seating towards the end of plane that a line forms for the restroom and people use your chair as a hand railing, bumping your seat consistently. I was seated in the aisle. I think that next time if I am towards the back row I would want to sit in the middle or window seat.

The best airline I have ever travel , really good customer service, attention and service !!

Everything was great. Only thing that could’ve made it better was buy on board options for hot food, but the snacks were decent. The flight attendants were great. I had no complaints. I was able to make it to my destination safely

Horrific. They missed my connecting flight to San Diego. I didn’t get there until Monday at 9am when I had a mandatory court settlement conference scheduled at 6am since we had parties on the east coast. This caused many issues. All because United apparently forgot to hold the doors open until my flight landed that only had a 10 minute delay. This was the last flight to Southern California. So I couldn’t even rent a car to finish the trip. United cannot be trusted when traveling on specific days and times since weather didn’t have anything to do with the delays.

Very comfortable (upgraded to business class). The audio on my screen didn’t work, but I managed to play the audio through my phone while watching the screen.

Flight was late as pilot crew had to land at different airport in their previous flight. Passengers boarded and had to wait for pilots inside plane. Series of incomplete and unnecessary announcements by an annoying voice, rather than complete, informative announcements.

Breakfast was not loaded at SFO due to catering company change. Seems like a major airline at a major hub would have thought of something else or warned passengers to pick up food before boarding a 3 hour flight.

Boarding seemed to be organized bedlam. For what ever reason, preboarding took longer than 20 minutes. Made the plane 20 minutes late taking off. Luckily we arrived on time. Flight crew seemed very friendly. Only slight turbulence.

The staff was not very polite but the flight was very very nice and comfortable and the entertainment was great

Great crew - old style upper class seats on the older fleet now feels dated

Premium economy more comfortable than economy, but not by much. Did was awful, do not try the omelette. Flight crew were helpful. Flight was delayed by over an hour. Overall but bad, arrived safely and thank God.

Food was excellent. Service was very good. Staff was very helpful to all passengers.

The crew was excellent as ever on Virgin. The special meal was poor unfortunately. More significantly when we arrived at Manchester Airport there was no air bridge provided and we had to exit the plane down a rickety stair case. This is unacceptable for a transatlantic flight. Whilst I understand that this is the airport’s fault at the end of the day the airline is responsible for our transportation and needs to do something.

Super friendly and helpful staff, from check-in desk to cabin crew.

Following a paid seat upgrade for enhanced comfort, I encountered an unacceptable odor in my assigned area. It took three hours for the crew to relocate me, and the replacement seat was unacceptably close to the lavatory, offering no improvement.

Good overall. Cannot fault the airlines. I have had better entertainment systems before ie ice in Emirates but it was not too bad. Food was decent and staff were friendly.

I did not fly by vergin atlantic from bangalore to vasco da gama

Your flight delayed at Heathrow n I almost missed my mother funeral.you idiots. I had to waste 10 hours in different airports. Thank your stars I'm not suing you.

The crew were very hospitable and pleasant. The food was pretty good. Unfortunately, there was a flight delay of more than 2 hours. We're not sure why but it appeared to be outside the control of Turkish Airlines.

Bough tickets with luggage, but made me pay at Airport as well

The economy seat was so uncomfortable, had not enough leg room for 13 hours flight, front seat basket was broken and couldn’t hold anything, food quality was horrible( we got food poisoned ) we charged for logged which used to be free. We paid too much for this flight and very disappointed. Turkish air line better to make satisfy and respect people instead of find different way to scam people.

This is really the rating of two flights. JFK to IST then IST to NQZ. New York to Istanbul was good. Good crew and all positives. The flight to Astana was so bad that brought it all down. Crew was nonexistent above the minimum, seats were cramped, and it was hot on the plane. Turkish Airlines seems to be slipping down to US based carriers level.

The 2 agents on the check in counter were super nice , helpful and very polite. Boarding was like a 1 2 3, I would recommend Turkish airlines for your next trip.

Everything was very good, except that the plane was an hour and a half late

flight with heavy turbulence old boeing 777 rest wasnt clean dashboard doesn’t work

Light and recline did not work on my seat. Very uncomfortable and could not read in the dark

Bad experience; they are not good anymore. They charge too much for luggage seat are so uncomfortable, Flight delays which may miss your next flight, they don’t care if you miss the flight or not. Zero customer services for front desk representatives Istanbul's airport I’m not using this airline any more.

I’ve been traveling for 20 years. I tried Turkish airline for the first time horrible horrible service and it would be my last time even if I get offer for a free ticket, I will not accept it. They have races and the worst Flight attendant

4 hours late, including over +1 hour waiting in plane to take off. Baggage left behind too.

While waiting to claim my checked luggage, I discovered the airline had lost it. After a long wait and inquiries, I discovered it was on another flight. Fortunately, the airline finally sent my luggage home.

Was not able to watch most shows on the entertainment site. They would not load

Our flight was 1.5 hours delayed. There was no weather for the inbound flight, so I don't understand why. This meant a VERY late arrival and only a quick nap before my morning flight.

Delayed flight, so I switched fights to SFO to Phoenix , Phoenix to DSM. Excellent service through American Airlines

AA re-routed flight from HNL to LAX due to delay. My group of 3 with reserved seats in row 9 was broken up, with one assigned to a middle seat, another in the last row of the plane. Not happy. No explanation to the delay. No apologies. No compensation. Would have been nice to be offered an Admiral Club admission or a voucher for the extra 3 hours of layover in LAX. Could not hear the boarding gate announcements in LAX. Adjacent gate was boarding at the same time. Loud speakers were competing against each other. Barely made my boarding group.

Almost a 6 hour flight and the only food option is a cheese plate… and chips. Also how is it there are no options for texting on American. I’ll be going back to delta and united.

Bad food, small seats that didn’t recline. I thought I was buying a quantas ticket so I feel like I got scammed

The chair cushions may need an upgrade. I have been noticing they are so worn out, thin so you’d sit in a dip 😄. Other than that, all was an enjoyable trip. Thanks AA!

Cramped seats. FAA should make airlines have more legroom, for even short people complain

Crying baby the ENTIRE flight. Not your fault, but I paid 2700 for a premium economy ticket and it wasn't worth it. should have just stuck with coach. flight attendants very mediocre - minimal effort. Plane didn't seem very clean. Didn't have any cleansing wipes - most airlines give you this when you board. Flat screen scrolling didn't work. Toiletry case a joke - why bother at all?

The staff were fantastic and couldn't have been more accomodating; however, the air-conditioning was broken in our section of the aircraft, leaving us feeling extremely cold and unwell on arrival in Johannesbury. The head sets were also faulty, causing difficulty when listening to announcements and entertainment.

Enjoyable flight, helpful crew everything was organized to accommodate passengers.

Terrible, We experienced massive delays and then couldn’t book a hotel through the link provided, nothing was available. We then went to the airport the next day and experienced further delays, almost no communication was given. We had dinner at lunchtime and breakfast at midnight. We then landed in Jhb at 1am and had to book another hotel as our flight to durban was at 8am. The experience was painful and very expensive.

I was transferred to an American Airlines flight. The boarding was late and unorganized. The seating was extremely tight and uncomfortable. Will not use AA again.

The check-in of my luggage was terrible. When purchased my tickets, one luggage and one carry-on was part of the fight. My flight was switched from British to American Airline. During check-in of luggage at the airport, I was denied and had to pay extra $75. How do I get reimbursed for this extra luggage payment?

This was the second time on BA, food terrible, bathrooms gross,( granted, that was mostly due to the disgusting children urinating all over it)boarding was late and disorganized. No gate issued until last minute st Heathrow, bad system, caused undue stress. Seats were painful, that's what you get for traveling like a poor in economy, right BA? Should have been able to afford business or first class if you want to actually be able to walk upright without back pain after a trip.

The delay was not communicated via text and the person who helped with check in also didn’t inform me about the delay. I ended up missing my connection and it was a waste of 5 hours. The crew didn’t mention there would be someone at the gate informing of if I would be rebooked and there was no signage. Overall a very poor experience. The British Airways app was also very buggy, and didn’t work. I will avoid flying with British Airways when possible.

Cancelled flight minutes before boarding. Rescheduled flight was two days later

The flight attendants were EXTREMELY personable and appreciated the service, lights going off after dinner (probably the norm, but I haven’t flown evening overnight flights in a while). Thank you!

Everything you need to know for your flight from San Francisco to Johannesburg

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