SBA - ORD

$157 Find Cheap Flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from Santa Barbara to Chicago departing on 5/27. 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

KAYAK searches hundreds of travel sites at once for deals on flights to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport

 
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Santa Barbara to Chicago, as well as popular online travel agencies
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Santa Barbara to Chicago, as well as popular online travel agencies
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.

Flights Deals
Useful Info
Flights Deals

Cheap Flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago

 
Here are some of the best deals found on KAYAK recently from the most popular airlines for round-trip flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago 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.

Recent round-trip flight deals from Santa Barbara to Chicago

KAYAK's recommended round-trip deals from the most popular airlines that fly from Santa Barbara to Chicago.
Discover the best prices for you by selecting your travel dates on KAYAK.
Alaska Airlines Logo
6:27 pm - 5:40 amSBA-ORD
9h 13m1 stop
Alaska Airlines Logo
10:00 am - 5:37 pmORD-SBA
9h 37m1 stop
$305Alaska Airlines
Find Deal
Sun, May 25 - Tue, Jun 3
Delta Logo
5:45 am - 6:50 pmSBA-ORD
11h 05m2 stops
Delta Logo
7:30 am - 12:02 pmORD-SBA
6h 32m1 stop
$311Delta
Find Deal
Wed, May 21 - Sat, May 24
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
6:27 pm - 5:40 amSBA-ORD
9h 13m1 stop
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
10:00 am - 5:37 pmORD-SBA
9h 37m1 stop
$327Hawaiian Airlines
Find Deal
Fri, May 30 - Tue, Jun 3
American Airlines Logo
4:25 pm - 12:37 amSBA-ORD
6h 12m1 stop
American Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 12:34 pmORD-SBA
8h 34m1 stop
$335American Airlines
Find Deal
Wed, May 21 - Sat, May 24
Southwest Logo
3:35 pm - 11:40 pmSBA-ORD
6h 05m1 stop
Southwest Logo
5:25 pm - 11:25 pmORD-SBA
8h 00m1 stop
$351Southwest
Find Deal
Thu, May 29 - Thu, Jun 5
American Airlines Logo
4:25 pm - 12:37 amSBA-ORD
6h 12m1 stop
American Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 11:28 amORD-SBA
7h 28m1 stop
$356American Airlines
Find Deal
Wed, May 28 - Sun, Jun 1
United Airlines Logo
5:00 am - 1:15 pmSBA-ORD
6h 15m1 stop
United Airlines Logo
7:45 pm - 11:59 pmORD-SBA
6h 14m1 stop
$357United Airlines
Find Deal
Thu, May 15 - Mon, May 19
Southwest Logo
5:40 am - 4:45 pmSBA-ORD
9h 05m2 stops
Southwest Logo
5:25 pm - 10:30 pmORD-SBA
7h 05m1 stop
$365Southwest
Find Deal
Tue, Aug 26 - Fri, Aug 29
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
7:29 pm - 7:03 amSBA-ORD
9h 34m1 stop
Hawaiian Airlines Logo
2:07 pm - 7:49 pmORD-SBA
7h 42m1 stop
$378Hawaiian Airlines
Find Deal
Mon, Sep 22 - Fri, Sep 26
United Airlines Logo
4:01 pm - 12:25 amSBA-ORD
6h 24m1 stop
United Airlines Logo
6:26 pm - 11:58 pmORD-SBA
7h 32m1 stop
$379United Airlines
Find Deal
Sat, Jun 14 - Thu, Jun 19
Useful Info

KAYAK's insights & trends for Santa Barbara to Chicago flights

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago 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 Santa Barbara to Chicago?

The average price of all round-trip flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport clicked on KAYAK for each day over the last 12 months.

For Santa Barbara to Chicago, Saturday is the cheapest day to fly on average and Monday is the most expensive. Flying from Chicago back to Santa Barbara, the best deals are generally found on Monday, with Thursday being the most expensive.

What is the cheapest month to fly from Santa Barbara to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport, 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 Santa Barbara to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport is November, where tickets cost $341 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are December and January, where the average cost of round-trip tickets is $796 and $575 respectively.

Good to know

Low seasonJanuary
High seasonOctober
Cheapest flight$157
Best time to beat the crowds but there is an average 21% increase in price.
Most popular time to fly and prices are also 15% lower on average.
Flight from Santa Barbara to Chicago

When to book flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago

Are your dates flexible? Find out the best times to travel from Santa Barbara to Chicago 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 Santa Barbara to Chicago flights

  • What is the cheapest flight from Santa Barbara to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport?

    In the last 3 days, the lowest price for a flight from Santa Barbara to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport was $157 for a one-way ticket and $305 for a round-trip.

  • Do I need a passport to fly between Santa Barbara and Chicago?

    No, a passport isn't needed to fly from Santa Barbara to Chicago. However, local authorities might ask for an official ID.

  • Which airports will I be using when flying from Santa Barbara to Chicago?

    On your way to Chicago, you’ll fly out from Santa Barbara. You’ll be landing at Chicago O'Hare Intl.

  • Which aircraft models fly most regularly from Santa Barbara to Chicago?

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

  • Which airline alliances offer flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago?

    SkyTeam, oneworld, and Star Alliance are the airline alliances operating flights between Santa Barbara and Chicago, with oneworld being the most commonly used for this route.

  • Which is the best airline for flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago, Delta or United Airlines?

    The two airlines most popular with KAYAK users for flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago are Delta and United Airlines. With an average price for the route of $377 and an overall rating of 8.0, Delta is the most popular choice. United Airlines is also a great choice for the route, with an average price of $455 and an overall rating of 7.4.

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from Santa Barbara to Chicago?

    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 Santa Barbara to Chicago.

  • How does KAYAK's flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy my flight ticket from Santa Barbara to Chicago?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to Chicago from Santa Barbara 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 Santa Barbara to Chicago?

    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 Chicago with an airline and back to Santa Barbara with another airline. Booking your flights between Santa Barbara and ORD 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 Santa Barbara to Chicago?

    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 Chicago from Santa Barbara 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 Santa Barbara to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport

  • Looking for a cheap flight? 25% of our users found flights on this route for $169 or less one-way.

Top 3 airlines serving from Santa Barbara to Chicago

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from Santa Barbara to Chicago. 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 Santa Barbara to Chicago? 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
DeltaOverall score based on 7934 reviews
8.2Boarding
7.9Entertainment
8.5Crew
7.9Comfort
7.3Food
Airline reviews

Delta flight was on time, seats were comfortable, and crew was nice.

8.0 ExcellentAnonymous, Apr 2025LAX - DEN
Read more Delta reviews

Delta flight was on time, seats were comfortable, and crew was nice.

Thank you for not flipping the plane on the run way. You guys get a 5 star rating for the flight!!!

Boarding is, as it always is… horrible. Gate lice. Slow moving zones. Too many people with carry ons

It was terrible, if they ran flights on time it would make a big difference.

Delta seems to be improving in many areas, except they are super bad with the food available. Bring back normal food service on long flights.

I actually received a notification from kayak on email but not one by text from Delta when my departure gait changed and I almost missed my flight

New boarding doesn't make sense. Filling front first is slow.

Delta flight was great from the check in all the way to arrival. However, I had a very bad experience. I requested a wheelchair and the wheelchair employee that went to pick me up from the plane in Boston to bring me to the baggage claims told me I have to pay him. I was under the impression that it was a free service and I usually give tips but the person forced me to pay and since I said no because I was upset with his demand when my daughter walked in to pick me up he demanded payment from my daughter who paid him thinking maybe now it is a charged service.

Horrible. Grateful to be alive but spent 13 hours at airport only to return back to my familys house and flight changed to next day. They tried to fix a part on plane, had no back up plane and after 10 hours , reattempted the flight and it STILL wasn't fixed. We got a meal voucher and rescheduled flight but there should be some other compensation for the 15 hours spent in airport

5 hour delay. They blamed the weather but it was the computer issues they had been dealing with for days.

Smooth flight. Boarding was chaotic. Could not hear the gate agent over the intercom. People were lined up in the wrong lines. Groups one and two were told to board through line one and group 3 through line 2. All very confusing. Once in the air, the flight was smooth. There was no entertainment option on this aircraft, even though it was a larger aircraft.

Overall poor for me I paid extra for seats with leg room and my regional flights exit row seats have less leg room then the others that's money that could have been saved and on my final flight home the flights air was not operating it was unbearably hot in the cabin I will be contacting United and filing a DOT complaint

There's just no way to sit fully upright and comfortably in these seats. There needs to be 2 more inches of room, and that's not something that only one person on the flight needs - the whole flight needs 2 more inches of room. If that means you sell 6 less seats, so be it. It's too close for anyone. Forcing people to pay for "premium" economy just to get "barely enough space to breathe" isn't really an answer to that.

The crew were very nice. The Chocolate is good and v there’s no entertainment. Thanks

The crew were very nice. I would have appreciated a pillow for comfort. I had a special meal that was sloppy, but the salad was great. Thanks

The plane was in Moline all night. Consequently, we assumed an on time departure at 8:15am. Unfortunately, and as is the normal case with United in Moline, we departed 2.5 hours late. When the crew came, it was discovered that there was very little heat in the plane. Seems this should have been checked hours before the crew arrived. Then when we boarded and the plane was to be de-iced, the United de-icing truck was not working! We awaited the American Airlines truck. All of this caused us to miss our connection in Chicago. My suggestion is never take United Airlines flight from Moline. We have been disappointed 80% of the time and have vowed to not take United again from Moline.

Flight was delayed two hours. No snacks and no tv screens. My bag got stuck in Chicago

The aircrew was solid, the flight was chill, I had no issues. The gate agent was not the best. I was trying to use a military bag upgrade to move my bag from under the seat to the overhead bins and he told me there’s no overhead bins on the plane, argued with me why booking put a military member in basic economy (I don’t really understand this) and made it an issue to even try to help me stating I’d have to call reservations to get a bag upgrade. When every other agent with United can add it at the gate, this man couldn’t be bothered.

They canceled our flight and left us stranded to figure it out

Everything was very good. Was able to change a make run flight leaving on direct earlier in the app -seamless!!! Well done

To start, I’d like to say that every American Airline personnel I interacted with on the ground, especially flight crew, was very friendly and did their best to help me out. Despite this, however, my experience with the airline was an entire mess. The 7:19 PM flight was heavily delayed due to weather, and pushed to 10:30 AM the next morning. Because of this, I had to spend the night inside of the airport. At some point later in the night, I got an email saying that the flight had been canceled. I called the support number, and the representative on the other line told me that the flight was still on and that I didn’t need to rebook. The next morning, no one came to the gate to open the door for the crew until almost 11 AM. By this time the flight crew had been waiting for over an hour, and they had called management to get someone to open the door for them multiple times. Around 11:30, the gate screen had changed to a different flight. I ended up buying a last minute ticket with Southwest airline just to get to Chicago, because the next flight with American wasn’t until 7:19 pm that day. Now, earlier that morning my suitcase had been sent ahead of me to ORD. I went to baggage claim to ask them if I could have my suitcase forwarded to where I was staying. The representative at SDF baggage claim said they could and put the claim in for me. As I was going back through TSA, I got an email that the airline had found my suitcase, but the next step was to send it BACK to SDF. I called the airline support number again, and I made it clear that my suitcase needed to stay in Chicago and to not come back to SDF. The representative told me that they would hold my suitcase at ORD and that it wasn’t going to be forwarded anywhere. Once I got there, I found that they had loaded my suitcase onto a plane to send it back to SDF. Thankfully, I had gotten to the baggage claim counter in time for them to put in a request to bring my suitcase back up. My refund with the airline is processing already, but because of this entire experience and miscommunication at every turn of the way, I will not book with American Airlines in the future.

The plane was late and then sat on the runway for almost 45 minutes before taking off.

Crew professional. Easy bag drop off. On time. Good entertainment.

Everything was great. Boarding, early departure, early arrival, and deplaning were smooth. Smooth flight.

Per usual, flight status, staff courtesy and professionalism were excellent

The only thing is if Wi-Fi is available after you land and taxi to the gate. It takes forever to get to the gate, and having the Wi-Fi continue would be great to bide the time at least 5 minutes before you arrive at the entrance. That is my only comment; otherwise, everything was good.

Had to wait on pilot and crew to depart and had to wait to arrive at the gate because they only had 2 crews working. Delays, delays....Planes just keep getting smaller and tighter and they nickle and dime for everything. When will an airline actually wake up and make flying more enjoyable?

Seating was horrible. Small seats. Access to flight information and extras very iser unfriendly. Kept losing internet after paying for it. Staff in madison was as unprofessional and unhelpful.

Delayed due to no crew. On a major holiday travel day.

Other than being delayed 5.5 hours and having to get a hotel because I missed my connecting flight, it was an okay flight. No in-flight Wi-Fi or entertainment.

Everything you need to know for your flight from Santa Barbara to Chicago

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.