SJO - SFO

$176 Find Cheap Flights from San José to San Francisco

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 José to San Francisco departing on 12/1. 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

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

 
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from San José to San Francisco.
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from San José to San Francisco.
Travelers love KAYAK
41,299,237 searches in the past 7 days on KAYAK

Save 22% or moreCompare multiple travel sites with one search.

Track pricesNot ready to book? Create a price alert for when prices drop.

Bundle and saveSave money when you bundle your flight + hotel.

Filter your dealsChoose cabin class, free Wi-Fi and more.

Flight Deals
Expert advice
Booking Insights
Flight Deals

Cheap Flights from San José to San Francisco (SJO-SFO)

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

Mon, Oct 13 - Thu, Nov 13
Avianca Logo
7:45 pm - 12:35 pmSJO-SFO
17h 50m1 stop
Avianca Logo
11:10 pm - 1:40 pmSFO-SJO
12h 30m1 stop
$347Avianca
Find Deal
Mon, Sep 29 - Fri, Oct 3
Avianca Logo
9:35 am - 10:45 pmSJO-SFO
14h 10m1 stop
Avianca Logo
10:50 am - 11:15 pmSFO-SJO
11h 25m2 stops
$350Avianca
Find Deal
Fri, Oct 24 - Tue, Oct 28
Copa Airlines Logo
5:57 am - 11:39 pmSJO-SFO
18h 42m1 stop
Copa Airlines Logo
1:36 am - 6:58 pmSFO-SJO
16h 22m1 stop
$351Copa Airlines
Find Deal
Fri, Oct 24 - Tue, Oct 28
Copa Airlines Logo
9:17 am - 11:39 pmSJO-SFO
15h 22m2 stops
Copa Airlines Logo
1:36 am - 4:37 pmSFO-SJO
14h 01m1 stop
$356Copa Airlines
Find Deal
Wed, Nov 5 - Mon, Nov 10
Alaska Airlines Logo
1:55 am - 7:47 pmSJO-SFO
19h 52m2 stops
Alaska Airlines Logo
6:59 pm - 12:38 amSFO-SJO
27h 39m2 stops
$371Alaska Airlines
Find Deal
Wed, Oct 15 - Tue, Oct 21
JetBlue Logo
1:00 pm - 11:16 pmSJO-SFO
11h 16m1 stop
JetBlue Logo
11:20 pm - 11:55 amSFO-SJO
11h 35m1 stop
$375JetBlue
Find Deal
Mon, Oct 20 - Tue, Oct 28
JetBlue Logo
1:00 pm - 10:24 amSJO-SFO
22h 24m1 stop
JetBlue Logo
9:44 pm - 12:06 pmSFO-SJO
13h 22m1 stop
$380JetBlue
Find Deal
Tue, Sep 30 - Tue, Oct 28
Multiple Airlines Logo
5:05 am - 12:35 pmSJO-SFO
8h 30m1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
1:36 am - 1:53 pmSFO-SJO
11h 17m1 stop
$384Multiple Airlines
Find Deal
Thu, Oct 2 - Tue, Oct 28
Multiple Airlines Logo
3:05 pm - 10:45 pmSJO-SFO
8h 40m1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
1:36 am - 1:53 pmSFO-SJO
11h 17m1 stop
$388Multiple Airlines
Find Deal
Tue, Feb 17 - Wed, Feb 25
Alaska Airlines Logo
2:26 am - 8:49 amSJO-SFO
32h 23m2 stops
Alaska Airlines Logo
5:15 pm - 11:00 pmSFO-SJO
27h 45m1 stop
$413Alaska Airlines
Find Deal

Everything you should know

Our travelers' advice
AI-generated summary based on content written by travel experts
Use self-check-in kiosks at SJO's Terminal A.
Consider BART from SFO for a cost-effective city ride.
Expert advice
Expert advice
Expert advice
Expert advice
Top airlines
Avianca
Cheapest • from $347 (round-trip)
Alaska Airlines
Best reviews • 8.0 score
Airline reviews
Airline reviews
+1
+1
Airline reviews
Airline reviews
+1
When to book
2 weeks
in advance
Our data shows that travelers who book at least 2 weeks in advance save around 15% compared to booking last minute.
Insights
Insights
Insights
Insights
When to travel
September
Cheapest • 12% price drop
December
Most popular
Good to know
Good to know
+1
+1
Good to know
Good to know
+1
Cheapest round-trip
$347
Overall average: $495
Avianca
Mon 10/13Thu 11/13
SJO - SFO • 1 stop
Cheapest non-stop
$569
Typical prices: $595-1839
United Airlines
Tue 3/10Tue 3/17
SJO - SFO • Non-stop
Start a new search
KAYAK searches 100s of sites at once to find you the best travel deals.
We hope you love your trip to San Francisco!
Expert advice

Expert advice for your flight from San José to San Francisco

 
Snippets provided in this section are AI-generated based on a summarization of KAYAK-commissioned articles. The articles are presented as-is, for general informational purposes only, and may not be up-to-date. The opinions contained in the articles are original to the author and reflect their authentic experience, which may vary significantly from the experience of others.
KAYAK teamed up with top travel experts to share the best tips for your journey.
Airports
SJO

For a smooth departure from SJO, use the self-check-in kiosks at Terminal A. Arrive early as security line lengths can vary.

Read more about SJOby Mark Chesnut
SFO

Upon arrival at SFO, consider using BART for a cost-effective ride to the city. The station is in the International Terminal.

Read more about SFOby Blane Bachelor
Our travel experts
Mark Chesnut

Mark Chesnut

Expert on SJO

Mark Chesnut

Mark Chesnut

Mark Chesnut is a travel writer and public speaker with more than 30 years of experience. The 2019 winner of the NLGJA Excellence in Travel Writing Award, Mark is the author of the book “Prepare for Departure” and has covered air travel for multiple top consumer and trade media outlets.

Read more
Blane Bachelor

Blane Bachelor

Expert on SFO

Blane Bachelor

Blane Bachelor

Blane Bachelor is a journalist and editor specializing in travel and aviation who writes regularly for top global outlets. Born and raised in Florida, Blane has worked and lived in four countries, including the Netherlands, where she’s currently based with her family. Her favorite way to get to know a new destination is by running or riding a bike around town – or hearing a spooky ghost story about local history. She will always choose the window seat.

Read more
Booking Insights

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

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from San José to San Francisco 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 José to San Francisco?

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

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

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

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from San José to San Francisco, 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 José to San Francisco is September, where tickets cost $476 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are July and December, where the average cost of round-trip tickets is $618 and $587 respectively.

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

To calculate weekly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each week before departure over the last year for round-trip flights from San José to San Francisco, 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 José to San Francisco, you should book around 2 weeks before departure, which saves you about 15% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 13 weeks before departure.

Good to know

Low seasonNovember
Cheapest flight$176
Best time to beat the crowds but there is an average 4% increase in price.
Most popular time to fly with an average 8% increase in price.
Flight from San José to San Francisco

When to book flights from San José to San Francisco

Are your dates flexible? Find out the best times to travel from San José to San Francisco 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 José to San Francisco

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

    In the last 3 days, the lowest price for a flight from San José to San Francisco was $176 for a one-way ticket and $347 for a round-trip.

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

    Yes, you'll most likely have to show a valid passport before boarding the plane in San José and on arrival in San Francisco.

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

    On your way to San Francisco, you’ll fly out from San José Juan Santamaria Intl. You’ll be landing at San Francisco.

  • Which airlines offer Wi-Fi service onboard planes from San José to San Francisco?

    All the following airlines offer inflight Wi-Fi service on the San José to San Francisco flight route: Iberia, Lufthansa, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta, and British Airways.

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

    The Boeing 737 MAX 8 is the aircraft model that flies most regularly on the San José to San Francisco flight route.

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

    Star Alliance is the only airline alliance operating flights between San José and San Francisco.

  • On which days can I fly direct from San José to San Francisco?

    There are nonstop flights from San José to San Francisco on a daily basis.

  • Which is the best airline for flights from San José to San Francisco, Alaska Airlines or Copa Airlines?

    The two airlines most popular with KAYAK users for flights from San José to San Francisco are Alaska Airlines and Copa Airlines. With an average price for the route of $537 and an overall rating of 8.0, Alaska Airlines is the most popular choice. Copa Airlines is also a great choice for the route, with an average price of $455 and an overall rating of 7.5.

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

    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 José to San Francisco.

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

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

    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 with an airline and back to San José with another airline. Booking your flights between San José and SFO can sometimes prove cheaper using this method.

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

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

KAYAK’s top tips for finding a cheap flight from San José to San Francisco

  • Looking for a cheap flight? 25% of our users found flights on this route for $196 or less one-way and $364 or less round-trip.

Prefer to fly direct from San José to San Francisco?

 
Direct data is based off flight results for the next 60 days. Find direct flights from all airlines flying direct from San José Juan Santamaria Intl to San Francisco.
Find which airlines fly direct from San José Juan Santamaria Intl Airport to San Francisco Airport, which days they fly and book direct flights.

Direct departures

San José Juan Santamaria Intl to San Francisco

Monday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Tuesday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Wednesday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Thursday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Friday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Saturday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Sunday

United Airlines

United Airlines

See more direct flights

Direct returns

San Francisco to San José Juan Santamaria Intl

Monday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Tuesday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Wednesday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Thursday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Friday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Saturday

United Airlines

United Airlines

Sunday

United Airlines

United Airlines

See more direct flights

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

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from San José to San Francisco. 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 José to San Francisco? 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 10000 reviews
7.1Entertainment
7.1Food
7.8Comfort
8.1Boarding
8.5Crew
Airline reviews

It was a good experience! Thank you:) No sparkling mineral water… 🥲

8.0 ExcellentSteven, Aug 2025BOS - SFO
Read more Alaska Airlines reviews

It was a good experience! Thank you:) No sparkling mineral water… 🥲

On time, WiFi worked, reasonable legroom, helpful staff. Unfortunately there was no water for handwashing in the rear lavatory.

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!!!

My experience would’ve been great because we were on a new plane, but they said as we boarded that the plane would be too new to have WiFi, which to me is unreasonable - newer planes should def have WiFi! It was a 5 hour flight from Anchorage to San Fran and because there was no WiFi, I had to take an unexpected half day off work, which was super annoying because I had a lot to do and we only found out a few minutes before takeoff.

I liked the crew. There was no food flight to short

2 FLIGHT DELAYS? what an inconvenience to stay @the airport HALF THE DAY😳from 1pm till boarding @ 4pm pass 😠exhausting !

Flight was delayed - we left at 11:30 pm instead of 10:30 and it was extremely inconvenient. It affected both the day of the flight and the next day

I don’t like it stuff not friendly and no one help for my mom she 82 years old lady I requested wheel chair but no one provided and no one help.

If there were movies it would have made the flight much easier.

We had a great flight just wished they had a tv so we can see a movie that would of made my trip excellent.

horrible service, food was an embarrassment, no charging for cellphones, stay away

Great experience with a crew always thinking in the passenger

Very happy with my flight. I would definitely recommend it.

Did upgrade, travel in business it was great (more room I could sleep)

Had to go through security at the gate again. Had to take off shoes and go through the whole thing again even though we have global entry. They asked us to check in items bought at duty free during our layover and since we checked our luggage at the original departure airport, they forced us to check in a small backpack. None of this ever happened with other airlines. In addition, no vegetarian food option and no snacks during a 7 hr flight. Luggage limits are unusually small. This is unacceptable. Will NEVER fly Copa again and will tell friends and family to avoid this airline.

We paid extra with copa for seats near one another The plane was changed and we lost our seats We were all Separated. We have not received a refund for our seats despite emailing and calling.

It was ok. However, the food was quite poor since I don't eat pasta.

Tell people to remain in their seats during the meal/beverage distribution. Enforce boarding by group numbers. No one was checking. Tell people to turn their electronics speakers off. Bigger cups for drinks.

Placed us in the last rear row of the plane so could not recline seats because of the rear wall, and also made it more of a tight space when the passenger in front reclined their seat. While understand seat assignments, every passenger should be afforded a reclining seat. The odor control scent from the restrooms was overwhelming strong. My wife and I could not deal with it, and she suffered a terrible headache as a result. I kept getting hit by the crew since I was on the ilse seat. No apologies, nothing. They made me feel like I was supposed to take the beating for a 3 hr flight.

1. when we went to check in, our 2 first class seats had been CANCELED and the flight was sold out. This was done without our prior knowledge. It was all we could do to restore one first class seat for my wife and I flew economy. 2, Our flight home was scheduled to leave at 10:30 pm. Due to tsunami warnings, the roads were closed and our flight status was uncertain as to whether it would leave as scheduled. It was announced that it would now leave at 11:20 pm and the roads were now open since the tsunami had come and gone. We made a mad dash to the airport and checked in. Delays were announced at 12:30 pm, 1:30 am, 2:30 am and at 3:30 am it was canceled. Since this was a flight due to natural (tsunami) causes, there was no compensation. We were told to return at 1:00 pm the next day and our baggage would be kept on the plane since the same plane was going to leave at 1:00 pm. We had to return to our hotel for the rest of the night. The same plane did not leave at 1:00 pm and our baggage was gone! All in all, it was a miserable performance by UA. Information was hard to obtain and no one knew what was going on and what was going to happen. Hundreds of passengers slept on the floor, chairs, etc. No food and no water was made available to the passengers. It was a situation where UA could care less what was going on. As a one million mile flyer, I had not experienced anything like this before and it was hugely disappointing!

I found the staff to not be very attentive at all. When paying for Business Class you expect a certain type of service and that was not found. They were almost rude even

Our experience on United Airlines was extremely poor. The plane was extremely cold throughout our entire flight- which multiple people complained about- and we had to wait 2 hours to get a blanket which was too thin and barely helped warm us up. As well as this, none of the entertainment features were working so we had to sit through a roughly 10 hour flight with nothing to keep our attention, including the actual flight path screen. It was an extremely disappointing experience and I would hope that this gets fixed if we ever choose United Airlines again.

I really enjoyed flying with United airlines amazing experience , good customer service and great food

1.It will be better if sandwich is warm. 2.The food is too salty. 3.Breakfast needs some vegetables or fruits.

Boarded plane and then delayed 1.5 hours while on the plane

It was all good flight was on time, service was good I enjoyed a few movies and everything was smooth

My flight was delayed a very short period of time but they did not hold my connecting flight to San Diego, also through United. So they closed the doors before we got off our plane. They would only have to help the door open for another five to ten minutes. So I missed a court deadline for a manditory mediation settlement conference for my client. I had to get an associate to be there in person and be on the phone with him relaying what he needs to do the entire time. The court was very upset with me and so was my client. United cannot be trusted.

Really good 😊 the woman at the gate entrance was a little rude checking in our carry-on but i dont think she worked for the airline, she worked for the airport at sacramento, other than that amazing.

Boarding was mayhem. Late boarding by 15 minutes because of lack of staff (missing 1 flight attendant. We had to wait for an arrival of another plane before we could board). Flight was a little rough, but cannot blame on airlines.

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

I don’t usually fly budget airlines or airlines in the United States. It was as good as any other airline. The seats are comfortable and the airline attendants are not rude & surly. Very nice flight (s).

They have the most inexperienced / rude flight staff I’ve encountered

very difficult boarding process - aggressive passengers not the friendliest crew

WiFi was not eorkig (again) And the plane was from 1990 with the screens which were.not touch and most didn’t even work and if lucky could tune in tv

I paid extra for a seat closer to the front. The TV didn’t work at all for the entire flight. Would have been nice to know before I purchased an “upgraded “ seat

It was great. I had never flown on JetBlue before, but would be very happy to fly with them in the future.

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.

The captain gave good announcements and the flight attendants were friendly. The WiFi was pretty good. The plane itself looked very old inside and the seats were very uncomfortable. The screens in the seat backs were the smallest I’ve ever seen. There were so many loud and obnoxious kids on this flight and the parents didn’t do much to try to quiet them down. Some had videos and games on tablets with higher than necessary volume going the whole time.

Too many long delays with JetBlue. Worst major airline that serves JFK but unfortunately I keep going back because of the prices.

The seats were uncomfortable and barely reclined at all. Very little leg room despite being business class. The crew was friendly and the food was good. Had to use my own phone for in-flight entertainment.

The check in is the only positive thing in Avianca. The seat is the most uncomfortable I have traveled, the distance is minimal.

Not what it used to be. The sale of food makes them look greedy!

Avianca is not what it used to be. So disappointing

It was horrible. My experience with Avianca. I didn’t know it was Pakistan international Airlines but anyway, whatever it is it is bad horrible you guys need to upgrade everything in those planes. And you guys charge $130 for a carry-on did they wanna let me in with my carry-on that I travel everywhere with the luggage you guys are such a dog thank you

why did we have to go through security mid flight

The incoming plane was late and no information was shared. They even announced we would board in 10 muntes 40 minutes prior to the plane arriving, and the website said until takeoff that we had taken off an hour earlier

Seats are very tight even in Plus, no complimentary snacks or beverage

Late departure. When the flight arrived in Medellin the plane sat at the gate for 20 minutes waiting for a bus for us to get off the plane.

I receive a service for what I pay, so it is fair.

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

Information on your arrival and departure airports

Not what you’re looking for? Find thousands of other hotels, flights, car rentals and package deals with KAYAK.