Houston (HOU) to Chicago (MDW)
Flight time
≈ 2h 41m
Bearing
25° NE
Houston (HOU) to Chicago (MDW) is 938 miles (1,510 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies HOU–MDW
Filed traffic dataIn June 2026, Southwest Airlines was the only carrier flying nonstop HOU–MDW; the Boeing 737 MAX 8 was the most common aircraft at 42% of departures; flights ran 90% full.
Departures
341
June 2026
Seats
56,065
both directions
Passengers
50,356
both directions
Load factor
89.8%
RPM ÷ ASM
Who flies HOU–MDW?
Southwest Airlines was the only carrier to fly nonstop HOU–MDW in June 2026 (341 departures).
- WN
341 departures · 56,065 seats
Share of departures100.0%89.8%
Load
What plane flies HOU–MDW?
In June 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew 42% of HOU–MDW departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737 MAX 8
143 departures · 89.5% load
41.9% - Boeing 737-800
103 departures · 89.2% load
30.2% - Boeing 737-700
95 departures · 91.2% load
27.9%
How has HOU–MDW traffic changed?
Nonstop HOU–MDW departures fell from 362 in July 2025 to 341 in June 2026.
Monthly nonstop HOU–MDW traffic, trailing 12 months through June 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
July 2025
362 departures · 54,384 passengers
89.6%
Load
August 2025
330 departures · 48,720 passengers
87.6%
Load
September 2025
323 departures · 44,522 passengers
81.1%
Load
October 2025
310 departures · 43,761 passengers
84.5%
Load
November 2025
272 departures · 35,063 passengers
77.5%
Load
December 2025
291 departures · 39,160 passengers
79.4%
Load
January 2026
257 departures · 30,425 passengers
71.7%
Load
February 2026
233 departures · 28,636 passengers
74.9%
Load
March 2026
311 departures · 44,183 passengers
85.8%
Load
April 2026
294 departures · 39,862 passengers
82.3%
Load
May 2026
301 departures · 44,510 passengers
89.3%
Load
June 2026
341 departures · 50,356 passengers
89.8%
Load
By direction
Each direction is filed separately — they rarely match.
MDW → HOU
90.0% full
175 departures · 26,049 passengers
HOU → MDW
89.6% full
166 departures · 24,307 passengers
Nonstop HOU–MDW traffic has been filed since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through June 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work).
The airports
Frequently asked
How far is Houston (HOU) from Chicago (MDW)?
HOU to MDW is 938 miles (1,510 km / 815 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from HOU to MDW?
A nonstop covers the 938-mile great-circle distance in roughly 2h 41m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies HOU–MDW?
In June 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew the largest share of departures (41.9%), followed by the Boeing 737-800 (30.2%).
What mileage do I earn flying HOU–MDW?
Distance-based programs credit off the 938-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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