Need help booking?
Unpublished phone-only deals available
PAO to SFO: distance & flight time
Palo Alto (Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County) → San Francisco (San Francisco International Airport)
18 mi
29 km · 16 nm
31m
estimated nonstop flight time
Same time
time difference · heading northwest
See live PAO→SFO fares Phone-only fares on this route — call free
Flight time details
18 miles nonstop takes roughly 31m gate to gate, flying northwest. Add 45–90 minutes per connection if there's no nonstop service. Both airports share the same local time, so schedules read exactly as flown.
The two airports
- PAO — Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County · Palo Alto, United States
- SFO — San Francisco International Airport · San Francisco, United States
Distances are great-circle ("as the crow flies") — the same basis airlines use for frequent-flyer miles.
Alternate airports can cut this fare
Flying from or into a nearby airport is the #1 trick our agents use to beat online prices. Call and we'll compare every combination on one call.
Near PAO
- SFO · San Francisco International Airport18 mi away
- NUQ · Moffett Federal Airfield5 mi away
- SQL · San Carlos Airport8 mi away
- SJC · Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport12 mi away
Near SFO
- SQL · San Carlos Airport10 mi away
- HAF · Half Moon Bay Airport10 mi away
- OAK · Metropolitan Oakland International Airport11 mi away
- NGZ · Alameda Naval Air Station12 mi away
Frequently asked questions
How far is PAO from SFO?
The flight distance from Palo Alto (PAO) to San Francisco (SFO) is 18 miles (29 km, 16 nautical miles), measured along the great-circle route airlines actually fly.
How long is the flight from PAO to SFO?
A nonstop flight takes about 31m gate to gate. Actual time varies with winds, routing and season — eastbound transatlantic flights, for example, are usually faster than the return.
Are there nonstop flights from PAO to SFO?
Nonstop service on PAO–SFO depends on the season and the day of week. Run the fare search on this page with the nonstop filter applied to see current direct options; when there is no nonstop, a single connection through a carrier hub adds roughly 2–4 hours to the 31m nonstop estimate.
What is the cheapest way to fly from PAO to SFO?
Compare live fares online, then call CheapoTrav — our agents have unpublished consolidator fares on PAO–SFO that never appear on search engines, with no booking fees.
Why are some PAO to SFO fares phone-only?
Consolidator contracts let us sell certain PAO–SFO tickets below the price airlines permit us to publish online, so those fares can only be quoted over the phone. Call the travel desk and an agent will check phone-only inventory for your dates.