Frankfurt (FRA) – San Francisco (SFO)
- Distance
- 9,172 km
- 5,699 mi · 4,952 nm
- Flight time
- 11 h 24 min / 10 h 51 min
- Average gate to gate: FRA → SFO / back
- Time difference
- 9 h
- CO2 per passenger
- 1,071 kg
- One way, economy, incl. RF (634 kg CO2 only)
- Passengers / year
- 601,695
- Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 · −9.2%
- Flights / week
- 44
- Both directions, average
- Seats filled
- 86%
- 701,008 seats a year
- Airlines nonstop
- 3
- UA, LH, DE
Traffic: U.S. DOT, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, T-100 Segment (all carriers, scheduled service), Aug 2025 – Jul 2026. Distance: WGS-84 ellipsoid. CO2: UK DESNZ 2026 factors. Sources
The way there
- Heading from FRA
- 323°
- Heading from SFO
- 29°
- Halfway point
- 66.12, -69.75
- Great-circle km
- 9,149 km (sphere, for EU261)
- In the air FRA → SFO
- 10 h 54 min
- In the air SFO → FRA
- 10 h 10 min
- Clocks
- San Francisco is 9 h behind Frankfurt
The estimate for a route without real times is 11 h 35 min; how it is worked out is on Sources.
Show as a table
| Month | Passengers |
|---|---|
| Aug 2025 | 70,453 |
| Sep 2025 | 66,041 |
| Oct 2025 | 62,606 |
| Nov 2025 | 44,450 |
| Dec 2025 | 48,642 |
| Jan 2026 | 41,113 |
| Feb 2026 | 32,790 |
| Mar 2026 | 45,998 |
| Apr 2026 | 40,958 |
| May 2026 | 47,297 |
| Jun 2026 | 50,311 |
| Jul 2026 | 51,036 |
Show as a table
| Month | Flights |
|---|---|
| Aug 2025 | 245 |
| Sep 2025 | 232 |
| Oct 2025 | 228 |
| Nov 2025 | 179 |
| Dec 2025 | 185 |
| Jan 2026 | 162 |
| Feb 2026 | 140 |
| Mar 2026 | 179 |
| Apr 2026 | 167 |
| May 2026 | 185 |
| Jun 2026 | 180 |
| Jul 2026 | 184 |
Airlines flying FRA–SFO nonstop
| Airline | Flights / week | Share of passengers |
|---|---|---|
| UAUnited Air Lines | 27 | 56% |
| LHLufthansa German Airlines | 14 | 37% |
| DECondor Flugdienst | 3.1 | 7% |
Both directions, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026. Airlines with at least one flight a month. U.S. DOT, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, T-100 Segment (all carriers, scheduled service). Sources
Aircraft on this route
- Boeing 777-200ER/200LR/233LR · 918 flights
- Boeing B747-8 · 597 flights
- B787-900 Dreamliner · 303 flights
- Boeing 777-300/300ER/333ER · 179 flights
- Airbus Industrie A330-900 · 162 flights
- Boeing 747-400 · 100 flights
- Airbus Industrie A340-300 · 5 flights
- Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner · 2 flights
Also carried: 17,381 tonnes of freight and 82 tonnes of mail a year (passenger and cargo flights).
Delay compensation (EU261 / UK261)
Measured by great-circle distance: 9,149 km.
FRA Frankfurt → SFO San Francisco
EU261€600 for arriving 3 hours or more late (€300 if 3–4 hours).
Covers any airline.
SFO San Francisco → FRA Frankfurt
EU261€600 for arriving 3 hours or more late (€300 if 3–4 hours).
Covers EU, EEA or Swiss airlines only.
Also owed for a cancellation with less than 14 days' notice or denied boarding. Not owed for extraordinary circumstances. On a connection, the distance to the final destination counts. From 23 October 2027 the EU's Regulation 2026/2202 applies; it keeps these amounts (what changes in 2027). Information, not legal advice.