San Diego (SAN) to Sacramento (SMF)
Flight time
≈ 1h 46m
Bearing
330° NW
San Diego (SAN) to Sacramento (SMF) is 480 miles (773 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies SAN–SMF
US DOT T-100 · filed dataIn April 2026, Southwest Airlines operated the most departures, one of 5 carriers flying nonstop SAN–SMF; the Boeing 737-700 was the most common aircraft at 31% of departures; flights ran 75% full.
Departures
959
April 2026
Seats
131,168
both directions
Passengers
98,977
both directions
Load factor
75.5%
passengers ÷ seats
Who flies SAN–SMF?
Southwest Airlines operated the most nonstop SAN–SMF departures in April 2026 (648), one of 5 carriers on the route.
- WN
Southwest Airlines
648 departures · 101,924 seats
Share of departures67.6%76.4%
Load
- OO
SkyWest Airlines
192 departures · 14,592 seats
Share of departures20.0%81.1%
Load
- QX
Horizon Air
60 departures · 4,560 seats
Share of departures6.3%82.2%
Load
- AS
Alaska Airlines
58 departures · 9,906 seats
Share of departures6.0%55.6%
Load
- SY
Sun Country Airlines
1 departures · 186 seats
Share of departures0.1%22.0%
Load
What plane flies SAN–SMF?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737-700 flew 31% of SAN–SMF departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737-700
302 departures · 81.2% load
31.5% - Embraer E175
252 departures · 81.3% load
26.3% - Boeing 737 MAX 8
222 departures · 73.0% load
23.2% - Boeing 737-800
149 departures · 70.8% load
15.5% - Boeing 737-900ER
21 departures · 49.0% load
2.2% - Boeing 737 MAX 9
13 departures · 60.0% load
1.4%
How has SAN–SMF traffic changed?
Nonstop SAN–SMF departures rose from 885 in May 2025 to 959 in April 2026.
Monthly nonstop SAN–SMF traffic, trailing 12 months through April 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
May 2025
885 departures · 92,708 passengers
79.9%
Load
June 2025
891 departures · 95,873 passengers
81.0%
Load
July 2025
926 departures · 101,038 passengers
82.2%
Load
August 2025
885 departures · 100,897 passengers
84.7%
Load
September 2025
823 departures · 90,122 passengers
79.6%
Load
October 2025
871 departures · 99,375 passengers
80.4%
Load
November 2025
930 departures · 94,315 passengers
75.2%
Load
December 2025
924 departures · 96,799 passengers
76.6%
Load
January 2026
813 departures · 79,075 passengers
73.2%
Load
February 2026
822 departures · 82,977 passengers
78.2%
Load
March 2026
992 departures · 103,422 passengers
79.1%
Load
April 2026
959 departures · 98,977 passengers
75.5%
Load
By direction
The DOT files each direction separately — they rarely match.
SAN → SMF
75.9% full
481 departures · 50,153 passengers
SMF → SAN
75.0% full
478 departures · 48,824 passengers
Nonstop SAN–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 San Diego (SAN) from Sacramento (SMF)?
SAN to SMF is 480 miles (773 km / 417 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from SAN to SMF?
A nonstop covers the 480-mile great-circle distance in roughly 1h 46m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies SAN–SMF?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737-700 flew the largest share of departures (31.5%), followed by the Embraer E175 (26.3%).
What mileage do I earn flying SAN–SMF?
Distance-based programs credit off the 480-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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