Historical on-time performance
Denver to Chicago
895 miData through May 2026Source: US DOT · BTS
Flights on DEN–MDW arrive on time 72% of the time over the last 12 months.
On-time rate72%arrived within 15 min
p90 delay45 min1 in 10 flights is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled1.8%of scheduled flights
based on 2,271 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
- Southwest AirlinesOn-time72%Medianon timep9045 minCancel1.8%Flights2,271
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline33%
- Weather1%
- Air traffic (NAS)14%
- Late aircraft52%
- Security0%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Late aircraft.
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline18%
- Weather57%
- Air traffic (NAS)25%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Weather. Shares are among 40 cancellations with a reported cause (BTS reports causes from June 2003).
Over time
On-time trend
By season
On-time rate by month
When to fly
Best time to fly DEN → MDW
All airlines · rolling 36 months (2023-06 .. 2026-05).
Best time of day
Mornings are the most reliable time of day to fly this route — 88% on time.
- Mornings88% on time · p90 15 min · 2,957 flights
- Middays80% on time · p90 30 min · 1,732 flights
- Afternoons69% on time · p90 45 min · 1,410 flights
- Overnights59% on time · p90 80 min · 1,116 flights
- Evenings54% on time · p90 85 min · 1,705 flights
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 70% to 78% on time.
- Wednesdays78% on time · p90 40 min · 1,218 flights
- Saturdays75% on time · p90 45 min · 999 flights
- Tuesdays74% on time · p90 45 min · 1,229 flights
- Mondays73% on time · p90 45 min · 1,398 flights
- Fridays72% on time · p90 45 min · 1,396 flights
- Sundays70% on time · p90 45 min · 1,317 flights
- Thursdays70% on time · p90 50 min · 1,363 flights
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