Route guide
San Francisco to New York: airports, nonstops and premium transcon
The other premium transcontinental route, and the one where the Bay Area airport you choose can save you an hour on the ground before you have even taken off.
On this page
SFO, Oakland or San Jose
- San Francisco (SFO) has the most transcontinental service, including the premium cabins. It is also notoriously fog-affected, which causes arrival delays disproportionately often.
- Oakland (OAK) is smaller and quicker to move through, and better for the East Bay.
- San Jose (SJC) is the sensible choice for the South Bay and much of Silicon Valley, and avoids a long drive north.
Bay Area ground transport takes longer than the map suggests. Choosing the airport closest to where you are actually going is worth more than most fare differences.
Fog, and why SFO delays
San Francisco's parallel runways are close together, so in low visibility the airport must space arrivals further apart, which cuts its arrival rate substantially. The result is that SFO generates arrival delays in conditions that would not trouble most airports, particularly in the summer fog season.
If you are connecting through SFO or have a hard deadline in New York, build in margin.
The premium transcon market
Like New York to Los Angeles, this is a route where several carriers deploy genuine lie-flat business cabins rather than domestic recliners, driven by the volume of corporate travel between the Bay Area and New York. If you are going to buy a premium domestic seat, this is one of the two routes where it buys the most.
Eastbound red-eyes are the norm on this route for the same jet stream reason as the LA market: depart late, arrive in the morning.
At a glance
| Typical flight time | Around 5.5 hours eastbound, closer to 6.5 westbound |
|---|---|
| Time zones | Three hours |
| Airports, Bay Area | SFO, Oakland, San Jose |
| Airports, New York | JFK, Newark, LaGuardia (perimeter-limited) |
| Watch | SFO fog delays, particularly in summer |
Getting a price for this route
We do not publish fares, on this route or any other. Airfares move constantly and depend on your exact dates and availability, and as a ticket agent we are required to advertise the full price including all taxes and mandatory charges wherever we show one. A number posted here would be wrong by the time you read it.
Tell us your dates and how many of you there are and we will come back with the realistic options and one total price per passenger. If the best answer is a fare you can book yourself in three minutes, we will tell you that too.
Common questions about this route
Which Bay Area airport should I use?
SFO for the widest choice and the premium cabins, Oakland for the East Bay, San Jose for the South Bay and Silicon Valley. Ground time in the Bay Area is significant, so choose by where you are actually going.
Why does SFO delay so often?
Its parallel runways are close together, so in low visibility arrivals must be spaced out and the airport's arrival rate drops sharply. Summer fog is the common cause.
How long is the flight?
Around five and a half hours eastbound and closer to six and a half westbound, because of the jet stream.