Denver (DEN) to Chicago (MDW)
Flight time
≈ 2h 35m
Bearing
76° E
Denver (DEN) to Chicago (MDW) is 893 miles (1,437 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies DEN–MDW
US DOT T-100 · filed dataIn April 2026, Southwest Airlines was the only carrier flying nonstop DEN–MDW; the Boeing 737 MAX 8 was the most common aircraft at 48% of departures; flights ran 82% full.
Departures
314
April 2026
Seats
51,568
both directions
Passengers
42,194
both directions
Load factor
81.8%
passengers ÷ seats
Who flies DEN–MDW?
Southwest Airlines was the only carrier to fly nonstop DEN–MDW in April 2026 (314 departures).
- WN
Southwest Airlines
314 departures · 51,568 seats
Share of departures100.0%81.8%
Load
What plane flies DEN–MDW?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew 48% of DEN–MDW departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737 MAX 8
150 departures · 82.1% load
47.8% - Boeing 737-700
89 departures · 84.5% load
28.3% - Boeing 737-800
75 departures · 78.8% load
23.9%
How has DEN–MDW traffic changed?
Nonstop DEN–MDW departures fell from 397 in May 2025 to 314 in April 2026.
Monthly nonstop DEN–MDW traffic, trailing 12 months through April 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
May 2025
397 departures · 54,150 passengers
82.1%
Load
June 2025
553 departures · 76,667 passengers
81.3%
Load
July 2025
590 departures · 83,386 passengers
82.4%
Load
August 2025
447 departures · 66,288 passengers
86.3%
Load
September 2025
408 departures · 58,404 passengers
83.7%
Load
October 2025
427 departures · 58,514 passengers
80.6%
Load
November 2025
354 departures · 47,526 passengers
80.3%
Load
December 2025
387 departures · 53,102 passengers
82.4%
Load
January 2026
318 departures · 40,393 passengers
74.3%
Load
February 2026
277 departures · 36,009 passengers
78.1%
Load
March 2026
330 departures · 47,026 passengers
84.6%
Load
April 2026
314 departures · 42,194 passengers
81.8%
Load
By direction
The DOT files each direction separately — they rarely match.
MDW → DEN
78.2% full
159 departures · 20,750 passengers
DEN → MDW
85.7% full
155 departures · 21,444 passengers
Nonstop DEN–MDW traffic has been filed with the US DOT since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through April 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work). The DOT publishes roughly three months in arrears.
The airports
Frequently asked
How far is Denver (DEN) from Chicago (MDW)?
DEN to MDW is 893 miles (1,437 km / 776 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from DEN to MDW?
A nonstop covers the 893-mile great-circle distance in roughly 2h 35m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies DEN–MDW?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew the largest share of departures (47.8%), followed by the Boeing 737-700 (28.3%).
What mileage do I earn flying DEN–MDW?
Distance-based programs credit off the 893-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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