FlightRecord

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 82% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 63% in July 2024. Across the year it averages 72% against a national 78%, over roughly 858 departures a day to 187 destinations.

Departures on-time
72%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
21 min
Arrivals on-time
77%
Cancelled
2.5%
Destinations
187
nonstop
Airlines
12

Plan your departure from DFW

The choices most likely to improve your odds, based on this airport’s historical record.

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
89% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
77% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Envoy Air
83% on-time from DFW
Cancellation risk
2.5%
above the US average
Check routes from DFW ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at DFW50%75%100%June 2024: 64% on-time (27,690 flights)64Jun 2024July 2024: 63% on-time (29,084 flights)63August 2024: 73% on-time (27,900 flights)73September 2024: 80% on-time (26,198 flights)80Sep 2024October 2024: 82% on-time (27,861 flights)82November 2024: 79% on-time (25,197 flights)79December 2024: 73% on-time (25,814 flights)73Dec 2024January 2025: 77% on-time (25,124 flights)77February 2025: 78% on-time (22,869 flights)78March 2025: 75% on-time (27,095 flights)75Mar 2025April 2025: 71% on-time (25,689 flights)71May 2025: 69% on-time (27,178 flights)69June 2025: 63% on-time (28,224 flights)63Jun 2025July 2025: 64% on-time (28,959 flights)64August 2025: 67% on-time (27,091 flights)67September 2025: 78% on-time (25,641 flights)78Sep 2025October 2025: 76% on-time (27,182 flights)76November 2025: 73% on-time (25,032 flights)73December 2025: 70% on-time (25,770 flights)70Dec 2025January 2026: 73% on-time (24,229 flights)73February 2026: 77% on-time (22,019 flights)77March 2026: 71% on-time (26,008 flights)71Mar 2026April 2026: 73% on-time (25,686 flights)73May 2026: 71% on-time (27,419 flights)71

Best time of day to depart from DFW

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at DFW5 a.m.: 89% on-time (8,033 flights)56 a.m.: 87% on-time (9,885 flights)67 a.m.: 85% on-time (41,913 flights)78 a.m.: 84% on-time (61,680 flights)89 a.m.: 78% on-time (21,505 flights)910 a.m.: 79% on-time (51,316 flights)1011 a.m.: 73% on-time (27,434 flights)1112 p.m.: 76% on-time (49,838 flights)121 p.m.: 69% on-time (27,324 flights)132 p.m.: 72% on-time (42,253 flights)143 p.m.: 67% on-time (30,748 flights)154 p.m.: 70% on-time (41,903 flights)165 p.m.: 65% on-time (34,161 flights)176 p.m.: 63% on-time (37,877 flights)187 p.m.: 63% on-time (48,837 flights)198 p.m.: 61% on-time (31,685 flights)209 p.m.: 67% on-time (41,634 flights)2110 p.m.: 63% on-time (22,161 flights)2211 p.m.: 52% on-time (771 flights)23scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday71%22 min
Tuesdaybest77%19 min
Wednesday73%20 min
Thursday73%19 min
Friday73%19 min
Saturday72%21 min
Sunday69%24 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from DFW ↓

Busiest routes from DFW

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
DFW → ORD (Chicago)6,93371%23 min
DFW → LGA (New York)6,85671%22 min
DFW → ATL (Atlanta)6,73975%19 min
DFW → LAX (Los Angeles)6,27074%19 min
DFW → DEN (Denver)6,01671%22 min
DFW → IAH (Houston)5,77471%24 min
DFW → SEA (Seattle)5,23871%19 min
DFW → LAS (Las Vegas)5,23270%22 min
DFW → PHX (Phoenix)5,14372%21 min
DFW → MCO (Orlando)4,93466%25 min
DFW → MIA (Miami)4,84370%23 min
DFW → AUS (Austin)4,76670%23 min
DFW → SAT (San Antonio)4,40367%26 min
DFW → SFO (San Francisco)4,06367%25 min
DFW → CLT (Charlotte)3,88473%19 min
DFW → SLC (Salt Lake City)3,86471%23 min
DFW → BOS (Boston)3,78470%23 min
DFW → SAN (San Diego)3,55366%25 min
DFW → DTW (Detroit)3,55076%19 min
DFW → EWR (Newark)3,51570%27 min
DFW → XNA (Fayetteville)3,51579%16 min
DFW → BNA (Nashville)3,51168%25 min
DFW → PHL (Philadelphia)3,37971%23 min
DFW → DCA (Washington)3,30974%18 min
DFW → MSP (Minneapolis)3,24676%20 min
DFW → OKC (Oklahoma City)3,17572%21 min
DFW → SGF (Springfield)3,07980%12 min
DFW → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)2,95572%20 min
DFW → TPA (Tampa)2,92170%22 min
DFW → MAF (Midland/Odessa)2,92079%14 min
DFW → TUL (Tulsa)2,90673%21 min
DFW → SNA (Santa Ana)2,90579%14 min
DFW → MSY (New Orleans)2,82168%24 min
DFW → LIT (Little Rock)2,66476%19 min
DFW → LBB (Lubbock)2,63078%17 min
DFW → ELP (El Paso)2,56769%25 min
DFW → MCI (Kansas City)2,54869%24 min
DFW → ICT (Wichita)2,49274%22 min
DFW → PDX (Portland)2,44166%23 min
DFW → MEM (Memphis)2,42870%22 min
DFW → CRP (Corpus Christi)2,40480%13 min
DFW → MFE (Mission/McAllen/Edinburg)2,40371%24 min
DFW → AMA (Amarillo)2,38581%12 min
DFW → STL (St. Louis)2,36271%22 min
DFW → ONT (Ontario)2,31570%21 min
DFW → ABQ (Albuquerque)2,29969%23 min
DFW → RDU (Raleigh/Durham)2,28070%22 min
DFW → TUS (Tucson)2,20670%23 min
DFW → BHM (Birmingham)2,20275%21 min
DFW → SHV (Shreveport)2,13376%20 min

Compare airlines departing DFW ↓

Where flights into DFW come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ORD (Chicago) → DFW6,92572%24 min
LGA (New York) → DFW6,85273%23 min
ATL (Atlanta) → DFW6,73573%23 min
LAX (Los Angeles) → DFW6,26376%21 min
DEN (Denver) → DFW6,02175%21 min
IAH (Houston) → DFW5,77374%26 min
LAS (Las Vegas) → DFW5,24279%19 min
SEA (Seattle) → DFW5,23776%17 min

Most reliable routes

  1. DFW → BMI84%
  2. DFW → FAR83%
  3. DFW → TRI83%
  4. DFW → HRL83%
  5. DFW → CMI83%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. DFW → ALB47%
  2. DFW → SYR54%
  3. DFW → MDT55%
  4. DFW → HDN56%
  5. DFW → BFL56%

What causes delays at DFW

Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT, weighted across routes departing DFW.

  • Late-arriving aircraft46%
  • Airline operations31%
  • National airspace system14%
  • Weather8%

Alternative airports near Dallas/Fort Worth

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
DAL — Dallas Love Field12 mi73%16 min
ACT — Waco Regional Airport90 mi80%19 min
TYR — Tyler Pounds Regional Airport102 mi80%18 min
SPS — Wichita Falls Municipal Airport / Sheppard Air Force Base113 mi83%21 min

Compare the airport-level record first, then check the exact route you plan to book.

Airline performance at DFW

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Envoy Air83%10 min131,758
United Airlines81%19 min18,634
Delta Air Lines80%19 min24,061
SkyWest Airlines78%18 min53,159
Spirit Airlines75%18 min14,323
PSA Airlines74%25 min33,535
Frontier Airlines74%21 min19,417
Alaska Airlines71%18 min4,750
American Airlines66%26 min330,532
JetBlue Airways60%45 min697

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at DFW?
28% of departures from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-06 and 2026-05, with an average departure delay of 21 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from DFW?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 89% of the time at DFW, versus 52% around 11 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at DFW?
In this dataset, July 2024 was the weakest month at DFW, with 63% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at DFW?
2.5% of scheduled departures from DFW were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 630,959 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.