Chicago (ORD) to Sacramento (SMF)
Flight time
≈ 4h 21m
Bearing
274° W
Chicago (ORD) to Sacramento (SMF) is 1,777 miles (2,860 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 ORD–SMF
US DOT T-100 · filed dataIn April 2026, United Airlines operated the most departures, one of 2 carriers flying nonstop ORD–SMF; the Boeing 737-800 was the most common aircraft at 36% of departures; flights ran 81% full.
Departures
288
April 2026
Seats
48,296
both directions
Passengers
39,243
both directions
Load factor
81.3%
passengers ÷ seats
Who flies ORD–SMF?
United Airlines operated the most nonstop ORD–SMF departures in April 2026 (175), one of 2 carriers on the route.
- UA
United Airlines
175 departures · 28,068 seats
Share of departures60.8%88.3%
Load
- AA
American Airlines
113 departures · 20,228 seats
Share of departures39.2%71.5%
Load
What plane flies ORD–SMF?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737-800 flew 36% of ORD–SMF departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737-800
104 departures · 82.4% load
36.1% - Boeing 737-900ER
62 departures · 90.0% load
21.5% - Airbus A321
44 departures · 60.0% load
15.3% - Airbus A320
25 departures · 91.5% load
8.7% - Boeing 737-700
21 departures · 84.8% load
7.3% - Airbus A319
15 departures · 85.3% load
5.2% - Boeing 737 MAX 8
13 departures · 84.2% load
4.5% - Boeing 737 MAX 9
4 departures · 79.2% load
1.4%
How has ORD–SMF traffic changed?
Nonstop ORD–SMF departures rose from 248 in May 2025 to 288 in April 2026.
Monthly nonstop ORD–SMF traffic, trailing 12 months through April 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
May 2025
248 departures · 36,281 passengers
85.1%
Load
June 2025
239 departures · 37,104 passengers
87.9%
Load
July 2025
244 departures · 35,676 passengers
85.3%
Load
August 2025
241 departures · 32,961 passengers
78.8%
Load
September 2025
233 departures · 34,045 passengers
85.8%
Load
October 2025
245 departures · 34,979 passengers
84.9%
Load
November 2025
176 departures · 25,578 passengers
84.1%
Load
December 2025
150 departures · 22,448 passengers
87.4%
Load
January 2026
134 departures · 18,600 passengers
82.8%
Load
February 2026
113 departures · 15,517 passengers
85.9%
Load
March 2026
219 departures · 30,530 passengers
80.5%
Load
April 2026
288 departures · 39,243 passengers
81.3%
Load
By direction
The DOT files each direction separately — they rarely match.
ORD → SMF
77.8% full
146 departures · 19,241 passengers
SMF → ORD
84.9% full
142 departures · 20,002 passengers
Nonstop ORD–SMF 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 Chicago (ORD) from Sacramento (SMF)?
ORD to SMF is 1,777 miles (2,860 km / 1,544 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from ORD to SMF?
A nonstop covers the 1,777-mile great-circle distance in roughly 4h 21m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies ORD–SMF?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737-800 flew the largest share of departures (36.1%), followed by the Boeing 737-900ER (21.5%).
What mileage do I earn flying ORD–SMF?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,777-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.
Other routes from ORD
Popular long-haul routes