Best time to fly out of Minneapolis (MSP)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Minneapolis Saint Paul / Wold Chamberlain: departures in the Before 6am band left on time 93.7% of the time, against 74% in the 4–6pm band. These are historical odds, not forecasts. The records say what happened on this schedule over three years; they know nothing about tomorrow’s thunderstorm.

Data through June 2026 · Bureau of Transportation Statistics

On-time rate by hour and day

On this page, “on time” means a departure that pushed back less than 15 minutes behind its scheduled time — the Bureau of Transportation Statistics definition, and the one airlines are held to.

Share of departures that left on time, by hour band and day of week.
Departure time MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
Before 6am 93 94 94 96 92 93 94
6–8am 91 92 93 92 90 90 91
8–10am 87 90 91 90 88 88 88
10am–12pm 84 87 88 86 84 86 84
12–2pm 82 86 85 83 83 85 83
2–4pm 76 81 80 77 77 80 78
4–6pm 75 78 73 70 73 79 72
6–8pm 75 79 78 72 73 78 73
8–10pm 76 83 81 75 75 82 76
10pm–12am 74 82 80 71 70 80 76
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at MSP was Before 6am — 93.7% of departures left on time across 6,076 flights. The weakest was 4–6pm at 74%. 6–8am departures from MSP left on time 91.3% of the time across 41,731 flights; 6–8pm departures, 75.3% across 51,110. That is a gap of 16 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at MSP

July was the hard month at MSP: 74.4% of departures left on time, across 33,489 flights. October was the easy one at 88.4%. Each month pools three years of that month, so a single bad week does not decide it.

Share of departures that left on time, by calendar month. Best month in green, worst in amber. The hairline sits at the overall rate, 82.3%.
Departure on-time share at MSP by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 80.4% 25,976
February 84.6% 24,496
March 81.9% 29,314
April 85.4% 29,067
May 82.5% 31,146
June 76.1% 32,174
July 74.4% 33,489
August 80.4% 33,312
September 87% 30,472
October 88.4% 31,357
November 88.1% 28,759
December 80% 29,229

Airlines at MSP

Every airline with at least 100 departures from MSP, busiest first. These are that airline’s departures from this airport only — its record across the country sits on its own page.

Airline Left on time Typical delay Cancelled Departures
Delta Air Lines 82.3% 65 min 0.8% 201,837
SkyWest Airlines 83.6% 86 min 0.9% 76,362
Southwest Airlines 79% 52 min 0.8% 20,107
United Airlines 82.6% 86 min 1.1% 15,623
American Airlines 80.8% 99 min 1.7% 13,449
Endeavor Air 86.8% 72 min 0.6% 11,393
Republic Airways 85% 82 min 3.6% 4,096
Frontier Airlines 75.7% 86 min 1.5% 3,776
Alaska Airlines 82.2% 52 min 1.1% 3,210
Envoy Air 79.5% 65 min 1.9% 2,798
PSA Airlines 76.9% 118 min 5% 2,502
Spirit Airlines 78.4% 69 min 0.9% 2,471
Allegiant Air 80.7% 85 min 0.3% 607
JetBlue Airways 63.1% 116 min 1.8% 560

What delays out of MSP were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 66,525 flights that departed MSP and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 49.9% put down to airline operations and 21.3% to air traffic & airport volume.

Late-arriving aircraft 20.1% Airline operations 49.9% Air traffic & airport volume 21.3% Severe weather 8.6% Security 0.1%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 20.1%
  • Airline operations 49.9%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 21.3%
  • Severe weather 8.6%
  • Security 0.1%

Late-arriving aircraft is the knock-on category: the plane came in late, so it went out late again. It is why a 7am problem in Newark is still a problem in Denver at dinnertime, and why it is usually the biggest slice on the bar.

If you are connecting through MSP

Of 358,825 scheduled arrivals into MSP, 81.7% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 61,900 arrivals that ran late, 52.3% were no more than 45 minutes behind — which is the difference between a tight connection and a new boarding pass.

Work out a specific layover — pick the airport and the minutes you have, and the tool reads the same arrival records back as a share.

Busiest routes out of MSP

Ranked by flights, with the share that arrived on time at the far end. Where a route carries enough flights for a page of its own the chip goes there; otherwise it goes to the destination airport.

MSP in one number

Minneapolis Saint Paul / Wold Chamberlain (MSP)

Rank 17 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: Before 6am. Hardest month: July.

July 2023–June 2026 · 355,458 departures flown

82.3% of departures left on time

Questions about MSP

What is the best time of day to fly out of Minneapolis Saint Paul / Wold Chamberlain?
Before 6am. Departures in that band left on time 93.7% of the time across 6,076 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 4–6pm band was the weakest at 74%.
Is the early flight out of MSP really more reliable?
6–8am departures from MSP left on time 91.3% of the time across 41,731 flights; 6–8pm departures, 75.3% across 51,110. That is a gap of 16 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of MSP?
July: 74.4% of the departures that flew left on time, with 33,489 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 88.4%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
Which airline is most on time at MSP?
Endeavor Air — 86.8% of its 11,393 departures from MSP left on time. JetBlue Airways sat at the other end at 63.1% over 560 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
How often are flights cancelled at MSP?
0.9% of scheduled departures were cancelled over July 2023 through June 2026. Cancellations are counted against everything scheduled, not against everything that flew — a rate that looks small still adds up to real people in a rebooking line.