Seoul (ICN) – San Francisco (SFO)
- Distance
- 9,106 km
- 5,658 mi · 4,917 nm
- Flight time
- 10 h 39 min / 12 h 28 min
- Average gate to gate: ICN → SFO / back
- Time difference
- 17 h / 16 h
- January / July
- CO2 per passenger
- 1,063 kg
- One way, economy, incl. RF (629 kg CO2 only)
- Passengers / year
- 708,280
- Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 · −15.7%
- Flights / week
- 58
- Both directions, average
- Seats filled
- 82%
- 859,528 seats a year
- Airlines nonstop
- 4
- UA, KE, OZ
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 ICN
- 48°
- Heading from SFO
- 312°
- Halfway point
- 53.73, -178.05
- Great-circle km
- 9,085 km (sphere, for EU261)
- In the air ICN → SFO
- 10 h 3 min
- In the air SFO → ICN
- 11 h 47 min
- Clocks
- 17 h in January, 16 h in July
The estimate for a route without real times is 11 h 30 min; how it is worked out is on Sources.
Show as a table
| Month | Passengers |
|---|---|
| Aug 2025 | 68,825 |
| Sep 2025 | 59,674 |
| Oct 2025 | 65,089 |
| Nov 2025 | 60,052 |
| Dec 2025 | 56,581 |
| Jan 2026 | 42,818 |
| Feb 2026 | 49,271 |
| Mar 2026 | 56,680 |
| Apr 2026 | 59,815 |
| May 2026 | 62,713 |
| Jun 2026 | 63,580 |
| Jul 2026 | 63,182 |
Show as a table
| Month | Flights |
|---|---|
| Aug 2025 | 290 |
| Sep 2025 | 273 |
| Oct 2025 | 278 |
| Nov 2025 | 258 |
| Dec 2025 | 230 |
| Jan 2026 | 244 |
| Feb 2026 | 212 |
| Mar 2026 | 247 |
| Apr 2026 | 240 |
| May 2026 | 246 |
| Jun 2026 | 242 |
| Jul 2026 | 248 |
Airlines flying ICN–SFO nonstop
| Airline | Flights / week | Share of passengers |
|---|---|---|
| UAUnited Air Lines | 28 | 45% |
| KEKorean Air Lines | 14 | 27% |
| OZAsiana Airlines | 13 | 24% |
| YPAir Premia | 2.8 | 4% |
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
- B787-900 Dreamliner · 1,609 flights
- Airbus Industrie A350-900 · 692 flights
- Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner · 535 flights
- Boeing 777-300/300ER/333ER · 172 flights
Also carried: 29,952 tonnes of freight and 525 tonnes of mail a year (passenger and cargo flights).
Delay compensation (EU261 / UK261)
Measured by great-circle distance: 9,085 km.
Neither EU261 nor UK261 covers this route: it neither starts nor ends in the EU, EEA, Switzerland or the UK. Other countries have their own rules (for example Canada's APPR or Brazil's ANAC rules).
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.
Every airport pair between Seoul and San Francisco
Kilometres. Linked numbers have a page of their own. All Seoul airports
More routes from ICN
| Route | Distance | Passengers |
|---|---|---|
| ICN → NRT | 1,260 km | 2,519,026 (6 mo) |
| ICN → KIX | 862 km | 2,313,960 (6 mo) |
| ICN → FUK | 563 km | 1,708,245 (6 mo) |
| ICN → HKG | 2,067 km | 1,316,010 (6 mo) |
| ICN → TPE | 1,460 km | 1,184,972 (6 mo) |
| ICN → PVG | 821 km | 1,111,272 (6 mo) |
| ICN → BKK | 3,665 km | 950,069 (6 mo) |
| ICN → DAD | 2,976 km | 941,076 (6 mo) |
| ICN → SIN | 4,614 km | 900,158 (6 mo) |
| ICN → TAO | 580 km | 797,360 (6 mo) |