$365 Find Cheap Flights from Zurich 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 Zurich to California departing on 4/20. 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 Zurich to California.
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Zurich to California.
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Cheap Flights from Zurich to California

Cheapest round-trip prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours
Los Angeles
Los Angeles1 stop$554
San Francisco
San Francisco2 stops$630
San Diego
San Diego2 stops$726
San Jose
San Jose2 stops$676
Fresno
Fresno3 stops$849
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo2 stops$856
Reno
Reno2 stops$853
Sacramento
Sacramento2 stops$852
Los Angeles
Los Angeles1 stop$554
San Francisco
San Francisco2 stops$630
San Diego
San Diego2 stops$726
San Jose
San Jose2 stops$676
Fresno
Fresno3 stops$849
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo2 stops$856
Reno
Reno2 stops$853
Sacramento
Sacramento2 stops$852

Book Cheap Zurich 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 Zurich 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 Zurich to California

Thu, Mar 5 - Sat, Mar 21
United Airlines Logo
9:40 am - 9:12 pm
ZRH
-
LAX
20h 32m
1 stop
United Airlines Logo
8:45 am - 6:40 am
LAX
-
ZRH
13h 55m
1 stop
$554United Airlines
Thu, Apr 9 - Fri, Apr 24
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:15 am - 8:20 pm
ZRH
-
LAX
22h 05m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
6:00 pm - 5:15 pm
LAX
-
ZRH
14h 15m
1 stop
$594Multiple Airlines
Fri, Mar 6 - Sun, Mar 15
Multiple Airlines Logo
6:05 am - 3:20 pm
ZRH
-
LAX
18h 15m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
8:30 pm - 6:45 pm
LAX
-
ZRH
14h 15m
1 stop
$595Multiple Airlines
Fri, Mar 6 - Tue, Mar 10
British Airways Logo
10:10 am - 6:25 pm
ZRH
-
LAX
17h 15m
1 stop
British Airways Logo
1:45 pm - 3:30 pm
LAX
-
ZRH
17h 45m
2 stops
$603British Airways
Fri, Mar 6 - Tue, Mar 10
British Airways Logo
6:05 am - 1:30 pm
ZRH
-
LAX
16h 25m
1 stop
British Airways Logo
12:30 pm - 3:30 pm
LAX
-
ZRH
19h 00m
2 stops
$604British Airways
Thu, Mar 5 - Sun, Mar 8
American Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 8:33 am
ZRH
-
SNA
35h 33m
2 stops
American Airlines Logo
12:47 pm - 6:45 pm
SNA
-
ZRH
21h 58m
2 stops
$613American Airlines
Fri, Mar 6 - Mon, Mar 9
American Airlines Logo
6:05 am - 11:59 pm
ZRH
-
ONT
26h 54m
2 stops
American Airlines Logo
10:56 am - 6:25 pm
ONT
-
ZRH
23h 29m
2 stops
$613American Airlines
Mon, May 25 - Tue, Jun 2
Lufthansa Logo
9:25 am - 4:20 pm
ZRH
-
LAS
15h 55m
1 stop
Lufthansa Logo
11:30 am - 12:15 pm
LAS
-
ZRH
15h 45m
2 stops
$661Lufthansa
Wed, Apr 8 - Wed, Apr 15
Lufthansa Logo
8:15 am - 9:08 pm
ZRH
-
SJC
21h 53m
2 stops
Lufthansa Logo
8:45 am - 12:15 pm
SJC
-
ZRH
18h 30m
2 stops
$686Lufthansa
Fri, Apr 3 - Sat, Apr 18
SWISS Logo
9:50 am - 6:45 pm
ZRH
-
SMF
17h 55m
1 stop
SWISS Logo
10:37 am - 7:45 am
SMF
-
ZRH
36h 08m
1 stop
$949SWISS
Booking Insights

KAYAK's insights & trends for Zurich to California flights

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

What is the cheapest Zurich to California flight route?

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

The cheapest ticket to California from Zurich found in the last 72 hours was to San Francisco, at $604 round-trip. The most popular route is from Zurich (ZRH) to San Francisco (SFO), and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 72 hours was $604.

Can I save money by flying with a layover from Zurich 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.

Yes, flying with a layover may cost you more time, but you can also save money on the route, with a 2 stops layover the cheapest option at $777 on average.

What is the cheapest month to fly from Zurich to California?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from Zurich 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 Zurich to California is February, when tickets cost $711 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are July and December, when the average cost of round-trip tickets is $963 and $867 respectively.

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

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

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

How far in advance should I book a flight from Zurich 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 Zurich 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 Zurich to California, you should book around 3 weeks before departure, which saves you about 32% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 3 weeks before departure.

Good to know

Low seasonJanuary
Cheapest flight$350
Best time to beat the crowds but there is an average 7% increase in price.
Most popular time to fly with an average 15% increase in price.
Flight from Zurich to San Diego

Flights from Zurich to California: the best tips from KAYAK users

Insights shared by verified travelers who flew the route from Zurich to California 
JanieFlew with SWISS
ZRH
-
SFO
Jan 2026
If you need to do an overnight layover, Grand Hyatt at SFO is perfect and has a 24 hour cafe!
Verified travelerFlew with SWISS
ZRH
-
LAX
Dec 2024
Don't pack too much, as the carry-on back size is smaller than most other airlines.
Verified travelerFlew with SWISS
ZRH
-
LAX
Sep 2024
Have Swiss app it keeps you updated pretty instantly of any delays or gate changes

FAQs - booking California flights

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

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

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight from Zurich 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 Zurich 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 Zurich 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 Zurich 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 Zurich 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 afternoon, when round-trip flights cost $868 on average. The most expensive time of day to fly to California is generally in the afternoon, which is peak travel time and where the average cost of a ticket is $868.

Top tips for finding cheap flights to California

  • Looking for a cheap flight? 25% of our users found tickets from Zurich to the following destinations at these prices or less: San Francisco $731 one-way - $646 round-trip

Reviews of the top 5 airlines serving from Zurich to California

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from Zurich 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 Zurich 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.
7.6
SWISSOverall score based on 1880 reviews
7.4Comfort
8.3Crew
7.7Boarding
7.1Food
6.8Entertainment
Airline reviews

Business class seating in Swiss really is just Economy seating minus the middle passenger

6.0 GoodPhilipp, Feb 2026
ZRH - CAI
Read more SWISS reviews

Business class seating in Swiss really is just Economy seating minus the middle passenger

No choice of food was given, and I was served leftovers, so they were returned back. the crew is unfriendly and harsh. Need to be trained on communication.

Great flight. I didn't watch the entertainment. I used my iPad the whole flight. But, staff was great, smooth flight, comfortable seat (business seat 7A) and food was really good (I'm a vegetarian).

The flight was very nice but the food selection for the people in the last rows was limited to vegetarian meals only. I think vegetarian meal should not be offered as a main selection.

Drinking water could be in more sustainable packaging than plastic bottles

They lost my luggage on December 30th. It is now January 3rd and i still don’t have it. I’ve called lost and found multiple times and they cannot provide an update. They keep saying one day and then it gets postponed again. This is ridiculous and unprofessional. It’s infringing on my vacation. I have stressed how important it is for me to have my suitcase right away. It should have been resolved within 1-2 days.

Made us gate check carry ons Then didn’t get them on the plane. Service they used didn’t deliver our carry ons for more than a day Total mess

0lane 2qs on tim3. Very bad food. No free wifi, only for texts. Entertainment poor and hard to access.

At boarding, the locations where we had to have our passports checked prior to boarding were very unclear. Occasional staff wandered around telling people, but in busy area of the terminal this was not obvious. It was also located well after the check in desk in terms of walking to the gate. The Premium Economy service was attentive and warm. The only big draw back was lack of restrooms, and no division or even curtain between PE and Economy.

We had seats between the bathroom and a screaming baby, and did not have enough room to lay my head down on the tray table. Not ideal.

I couldn’t make my first flight due to weather delays trapping us in the town we were in. Then I had to buy a new ticket

Flight attendants had a little attitude. Food tastes no good.

Overall we had a good experience during our flight from San Francisco to Houston.

it was a very short flight so my expectations were low.

Good flight. However, when booked flight with United, assumed the layover included by United in San Francisco of 1 hr and 40 minutes was sufficient . Not so and would recommend at least 2 hours or more. Needed to go through US immigration (very long lineups), then pick up bags, take all the way to another terminal, running because we did not have sufficient time. We made the flight because they held the door for us but luggage didn’t follow.

Very disappointing given gate agent behavior. Filed a formal complaint with United.

Flight delayed. WiFi connectivity very poor if not existant. Last minute arrival forced me to run to catch my connection.

The power at the seat didn't work and the seat itself was difficult to adjust - this was a business class seat. Flight attendant gave me miles to compensate. The attendant was very professional and on top of his game the entire flight.

the whole trip was smooth, and as comfortable as flying is these days. flight crew was friendly and very courteous and helpful.

Very poor. The flight was delayed from Toronto because some forget to do there job . I got to my connecting gate in San Francisco 10 minutes before the departure.but this didn’t let me board even though the flight was still there for an other 30 minutes. The the gentleman at the unite airline desk told me that they usually wait for passengers but air Canada called and told them not to we I been rerouted to Manila instead of Hong Kong . In San Francisco they mad me check in my carryon bag . I was told the it will directly go yo ho chi minn cuyt but I was told that by the Vietnams airline desk that’s not there I’m 10 hours behind my scheduled flight and looks like I I’m going without baggage. I don’t have a chance of catching ..

The flight was significantly delayed for 6.5 hours because of snow. There was no communication once the plane returned to the gate regarding when the flight would resume. Other flights were departing while our flight was being unloaded for reasons unknown. Our flight also seemed out of the queue regarding further deicing, refueling, and waiting to Taxi to the runway.

They are always late and seats was also not having working charger

did not have enough meal for first class passengers so offer us snack

We were upgraded to Business Class. So comfortable with great service and food options

The flight was completely full. Crew was not happy. Everyone was rude and brusque. Travelling with an arm in a cast and seating in the first row of economy cabin (in front of the separation) I needed help retrieving my tray for the meal. A staff member literally threw the tray on my lap, without helping to take out the tray. Boarding was messy, with 300 people waiting in an encloses space with low ceiling. I will try to avoid AA next time I have a long flight.

The comfort of Business Class made this trip far more comfortable. I was indeed surprised when I asked one of the flight attendant to help me set up my "bed", she responded that "We don't make beds in Business Class any longer...only First Class" I believe her name was Giselle, but I'm not certain. She did instruct me how to adjust the seat, place the hooded cover and I clearly understood how to place the blanket and the cover. Additionally, the meal I was served (a beef dish) was almost inedible. The beef was tough and odd tasting. I didn't mention it as I was hoping to quickly settle down and try to get some sleep.

Amazing I love American. I’ll never fly anyone else if I can help it.

Everything about the flight was lovely. My only suggestion would be to offer a few more options of tv series from Apple TV or HBO.

After the door had been closed, the cockpit makes an announcement that catering is running late and it is not the airline's fault. It is their fault in the sense that we had to sit for 2 hours or more when we could have stayed in the terminal. Poor communications between catering and airline. This caused a young man to lose his temper and he went storming out hitting objects. He had complained to the gate agent that he had already waited at the gate 7 hours and when can the airplane leave? Airilnes do a poor job of explaining delays, maintenance issues, etc. whereas being truthful may gain more sympathy or understanding.

We were told the flight was delayed 5 times, then it was moved to the next day.

Excellent service; they helped me reschedule so I can fly in an earlier flight

Wonderful staff. The boarding process can be improved a little better by adequate prior communication but all in all they did fine. However the boarding gate was quite unfreindly to elderly and who needs help with sevral stairs.

Flight map did not work. Crew was great, food was good, plane took off on time and landed early. That's all I can ask.

I had a good comfortable seat. There was nearly an hour delay. There was an accident with the champagne, but I was well compensated. These things happen sometimes.

Very good. Comfortable and I felt well taken care of from start to finish

Bulkhead seats should not be an extra charge. They are extremely uncomfortable. And we missed our connecting flight due to slow luggage retreaval.

Not great - seats were very narrow and food was terrible.

Some of the crew was sassy and not super helpful. The food was okay, but it seems like they were all unprepared compared to my flight I did from JFK to Frankfurt

We missed our flight. There was not enough time built into the layover to get through immigration, customs, bagclaim, bag rechecking, and the long trip to another terminal and gate. Kayak really screwed up. We took the bus up to Wisconsin and then were picked up in Brookfield by private car. It was lucky we didnt miss the last bus out.

We were in premium economy seats that appeared to be locked in plae, No reclining. My aching back.

Late takeoff, but on time landing. Lost bags, 3 days to find them, still in transit to my location. Power outlets broken, Wi-Fi not working, so much for working on the long flight.

Late! Late and late! More than 1hr 30mn. This sucks when it is the last of a 4 flight journey. I missed my dinner! Which is not nice on Valentine’s Day!!! But better than the gate next to us, the poor Chinese people were rebooked to the next day flight. AA had to call security as it became very heated with the passengers! It was a mess at DFW that afternoon/evening. I wish they had some food for the people who travel as part of international journey. Indigo does it in India and it is fantastic.

Good. For a long flight. The comfort of the seat could be better. Also, the food was « normal » plane food. Not indian plane food unfortunately! Everything else was smooth and great.

The seats were comfortable. So many empty seats allowed for stretching out and sleeping. The onboard entertainment was pretty good. The cabin crew were so kind and kept the passengers well- hydrated, and well fed.

We had American Airlines on our return and it was confusing if we were going with Aa or BA I had 2 different flight numbers and didn’t get our gate until it was boarding. So we were a bit nervous as the which it was

Our Jackson, Mississippi to Dallas Fort Worth flight was delayed on 1/19/26.. This was changed to Jackson to Charlotte in the last minute because of this delay. This started some kind of disconnect between American Airlines and British Airways bookings. We could not go past the passport control in London Heathrow. I had to go to the counter and waited for more than 30 minutes to get a new boarding pass. Problems did not end there. Somehow our entire return flight was canceled by someone. I had to make several phone calls over several days to fix the problem – this was not easy from India. Looks like there was some kind of disconnect between two airlines or some agent did not do it right. I’m anxious to know what went wrong.

My touch screen at my seat wasn't working, the films BA advertised on the website for this flight were not available, and the plane was a little dated, food was good and the staff were good, just let down by the aircraft facilities.

Did not like the seating configuration at all with 2+3+2 in business class. Lacking total privacy and comfort

The flight crew was kind, flexible, and accommodating. The seats on the plane were extremely uncomfortable.

Check-in experience, for business call please provide a premium experience

Everything you need to know for your flight from Zurich to California

Information on your arrival and departure airports