Chicago (MDW) to San Diego (SAN)
Flight time
≈ 4h 15m
Bearing
258° W
Chicago (MDW) to San Diego (SAN) is 1,725 miles (2,776 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
Look up a route, or build a trip
Change the airports, or add stops for a multi-leg trip.
What actually flies MDW–SAN
Filed traffic dataIn May 2026, Southwest Airlines was the only carrier flying nonstop MDW–SAN; the Boeing 737 MAX 8 was the most common aircraft at 45% of departures; flights ran 81% full.
Departures
205
May 2026
Seats
33,253
both directions
Passengers
26,940
both directions
Load factor
81.0%
RPM ÷ ASM
Who flies MDW–SAN?
Southwest Airlines was the only carrier to fly nonstop MDW–SAN in May 2026 (205 departures).
- WN
205 departures · 33,253 seats
Share of departures100.0%81.0%
Load
What plane flies MDW–SAN?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew 45% of MDW–SAN departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737 MAX 8
92 departures · 84.9% load
44.9% - Boeing 737-700
69 departures · 72.4% load
33.7% - Boeing 737-800
44 departures · 83.5% load
21.5%
How has MDW–SAN traffic changed?
Nonstop MDW–SAN departures rose from 178 in June 2025 to 205 in May 2026.
Monthly nonstop MDW–SAN traffic, trailing 12 months through May 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
June 2025
178 departures · 25,068 passengers
87.6%
Load
July 2025
184 departures · 26,104 passengers
89.0%
Load
August 2025
174 departures · 25,552 passengers
90.9%
Load
September 2025
172 departures · 24,355 passengers
87.9%
Load
October 2025
177 departures · 25,746 passengers
85.6%
Load
November 2025
168 departures · 23,403 passengers
80.6%
Load
December 2025
182 departures · 25,261 passengers
79.8%
Load
January 2026
134 departures · 17,820 passengers
76.2%
Load
February 2026
132 departures · 17,688 passengers
78.4%
Load
March 2026
197 departures · 26,870 passengers
83.1%
Load
April 2026
207 departures · 27,343 passengers
81.4%
Load
May 2026
205 departures · 26,940 passengers
81.0%
Load
By direction
Each direction is filed separately — they rarely match.
MDW → SAN
80.3% full
104 departures · 13,738 passengers
SAN → MDW
81.7% full
101 departures · 13,202 passengers
Nonstop MDW–SAN traffic has been filed since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through May 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work).
The airports
Frequently asked
How far is Chicago (MDW) from San Diego (SAN)?
MDW to SAN is 1,725 miles (2,776 km / 1,499 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from MDW to SAN?
A nonstop covers the 1,725-mile great-circle distance in roughly 4h 15m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies MDW–SAN?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew the largest share of departures (44.9%), followed by the Boeing 737-700 (33.7%).
What mileage do I earn flying MDW–SAN?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,725-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
Keep exploring
Every route below is its own page.
Popular long-haul routes