FlightRecord

Salt Lake City (SLC) to Denver (DEN): On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

The calendar drives reliability on SLC–DEN. October 2024 flights landed on schedule 87% of the time, but July 2025 dropped to 63% — a gap of 24 points. Across the full period the route averages 77% on-time against a national 78%. Morning departures also hold up better than evening ones (83% vs 71%), which matters most in the rough months.

On-time
77%
arrived <15 min late
Avg delay
16 min
completed flights
Cancelled
0.5%
Flights/day
21
last 12 months
Duration
1h 36m
scheduled
Distance
391 mi

Best airline from SLC to DEN

5 airlines flew this route regularly between 2024-06 and 2026-05.

AirlineOn-timeAvg delayCancelledFlights
SkyWest Airlinesmost reliable83%16 min0.5%2,744
Delta Air Lines77%16 min0.4%3,315
United Airlines77%16 min0.6%2,647
Frontier Airlines76%19 min1.0%2,030
Southwest Airlines74%14 min0.4%4,875

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly on-time percentage for SLC to DEN flights50%75%100%June 2024: 74% on-time (686 flights)74Jun 2024July 2024: 75% on-time (703 flights)75August 2024: 71% on-time (695 flights)71September 2024: 87% on-time (648 flights)87Sep 2024October 2024: 87% on-time (661 flights)87November 2024: 80% on-time (600 flights)80December 2024: 83% on-time (641 flights)83Dec 2024January 2025: 77% on-time (648 flights)77February 2025: 76% on-time (614 flights)76March 2025: 80% on-time (673 flights)80Mar 2025April 2025: 72% on-time (635 flights)72May 2025: 67% on-time (644 flights)67June 2025: 65% on-time (664 flights)65Jun 2025July 2025: 63% on-time (688 flights)63August 2025: 71% on-time (669 flights)71September 2025: 80% on-time (644 flights)80Sep 2025October 2025: 80% on-time (662 flights)80November 2025: 84% on-time (589 flights)84December 2025: 76% on-time (623 flights)76Dec 2025January 2026: 80% on-time (634 flights)80February 2026: 83% on-time (615 flights)83March 2026: 80% on-time (672 flights)80Mar 2026April 2026: 80% on-time (640 flights)80May 2026: 79% on-time (663 flights)79

Best time to fly from SLC to DEN

Aim for departures around 5 a.m. (94% on-time); avoid 4 p.m. departures (61%).

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour, SLC to DEN5 a.m.: 94% on-time (956 flights)56 a.m.: 90% on-time (741 flights)67 a.m.: 82% on-time (1,545 flights)78 a.m.: 72% on-time (1,172 flights)89 a.m.: 86% on-time (642 flights)910 a.m.: 80% on-time (1,646 flights)1011 a.m.: 83% on-time (587 flights)1112 p.m.: 84% on-time (496 flights)121 p.m.: 81% on-time (1,502 flights)132 p.m.: 67% on-time (1,239 flights)143 p.m.: 67% on-time (442 flights)154 p.m.: 61% on-time (645 flights)165 p.m.: 68% on-time (1,197 flights)176 p.m.: 68% on-time (1,117 flights)187 p.m.: 73% on-time (408 flights)198 p.m.: 70% on-time (630 flights)209 p.m.: 81% on-time (572 flights)2110 p.m.: 74% on-time (72 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday78%16 min
Tuesday78%15 min
Wednesday78%16 min
Thursday77%16 min
Friday73%19 min
Saturdaybest79%15 min
Sunday78%15 min

What causes delays on this route

Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT.

  • Late-arriving aircraft29%
  • Airline operations35%
  • National airspace system33%
  • Weather4%

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights from SLC to DEN delayed?
23% of SLC–DEN flights arrived 15 or more minutes late (the US DOT definition of a delay) between 2024-06 and 2026-05. The average arrival delay across completed flights was 16 minutes.
Which airline is most reliable from SLC to DEN?
SkyWest Airlines has the best on-time record on this route at 83%, based on 2,744 flights. 5 airlines flew SLC–DEN frequently enough to compare in this period.
What is the best time of day to fly from SLC to DEN?
Departures around 5 a.m. have the best record (94% on-time), while departures around 4 p.m. have the worst (61%). As on most US routes, delays accumulate through the day, so earlier flights are generally safer.
How long is the flight from SLC to DEN?
The scheduled SLC–DEN flight time averages 1h 36m over 391 miles. Actual arrival times vary — flights on this route land 15+ minutes late 23% of the time.
How often are SLC to DEN flights cancelled?
0.5% of scheduled flights on this route were cancelled between 2024-06 and 2026-05, at or below the national rate of 1.6%.
What is the worst month to fly from SLC to DEN?
July 2025 was the roughest month in this dataset, with only 63% of arrivals on time. The best was October 2024 at 87%. If your dates are flexible, that 24-point gap is worth planning around.

Based on 15,611 flights, 2024-062026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.