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Cheap flights from San Francisco to Cairns from $1,740

This is the cheapest retur flight price found by a Cheapflights user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight departing on 29/1. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel.
SFO — CNS
17 Jan — 24 Jan1
1 adult
1 adult, Economy, 0 bags

Cheap flight deals from San Francisco to Cairns

Enter your travel dates to find the best prices.

Cheapest flights from San Francisco to Cairns
Explore the most affordable flight options available from San Francisco to Cairns. Find the lowest fares from popular airlines and budget airlines, with prices last updated on 18 December 2025.

Sat 20/1221:45SFO - CNS
1 stop42h 10mCathay Pacific
Sat 3/111:25CNS - SFO
1 stop22h 40mCathay Pacific
Deal found 16/12$6,396
Sat 20/1222:45SFO - CNS
2 stops42h 00mAir New Zealand
Sat 3/109:20CNS - SFO
2 stops63h 45mAir New Zealand
Deal found 16/12$7,208
Sat 20/1221:45SFO - CNS
1 stop19h 50mMultiple Airlines
Sat 3/114:50CNS - SFO
2 stops39h 35mMultiple Airlines
Deal found 17/12$7,808

Find flight deals from San Francisco to Cairns

Discover tips and strategies to find the most affordable flight options for your journey from San Francisco (SFO) to Cairns (CNS). Learn about various techniques such as flexible date searches, comparing prices across and setting up price alerts. Use these methods to find the cheapest flights available for your travel needs. Data last updated 18 December 2025.

Round-trip from

$1,746

Popular in

December

Cheapest in

August

Average price

$2,961
Cathay Pacific
  • Cathay Pacific
  • 31/1-7/2
  • 2 total stops
  • 63h 55m total
  • San Francisco to Cairns
Search Deals
Highest demand for flights based on searches. 11% potential increase in price ($404 potential increase over avg. return price).
Search Deals
Cheapest flight prices on average. 3% potential price decrease ($124 potential savings vs. average return price).
Search Deals
Average for round-trip flights in December 2025
Search Deals

Cheapflights Fare Finder

 
Customise your flight search to find flights from San Francisco to Cairns that fit within your specific budget. Explore options based on user searches and filter the results based on your desired price range. Find flights that match your budget for a cost-effective journey. Over the last 7 days, Cheapflights users made 647,157 searches. Data last updated 18 December 2025.
Use the filters below to find and compare flights from San Francisco to Cairns that are best for you.

Fly from

San Francisco

Fly to

Cairns

Route

Depart

Return

Price

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Thu 29/1

11:25-09:55

1 stop28h 30m

Cairns

Thu 5/2

11:25-16:20

1 stop22h 55m

$1,740

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Sun 17/5

08:13-13:40

2 stops36h 27m

Cairns

Wed 27/5

17:40-10:20

2 stops33h 40m

$1,903

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Wed 28/1

16:30-11:00

2 stops24h 30m

Cairns

Thu 14/5

15:35-21:04

2 stops22h 29m

$1,960

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Sat 16/5

18:50-11:05

2 stops23h 15m

Cairns

Wed 27/5

15:35-21:21

2 stops22h 46m

$1,960

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Wed 28/1

16:30-11:00

2 stops24h 30m

Cairns

Fri 15/5

15:35-21:04

2 stops22h 29m

$1,960

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Mon 11/5

18:00-11:05

2 stops24h 05m

Cairns

Mon 18/5

11:50-21:04

2 stops26h 14m

$1,960

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Mon 11/5

22:05-23:10

2 stops32h 05m

Cairns

Mon 18/5

14:55-12:55

2 stops39h 00m

$1,969

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Tue 20/1

16:03-11:35

2 stops25h 32m

Cairns

Thu 14/5

12:40-16:58

2 stops21h 18m

$2,000

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Thu 11/6

22:20-17:00

3 stops49h 40m

$5,302

San FranciscoCairns

SFO - CNS

SFOCNS

San Francisco

Thu 11/6

11:30-17:00

1 stop60h 30m

$8,823

Flights are sorted by cheapest return flights first.

Deals found on 18/12

Best time to book a flight from San Francisco to Cairns

Have a flexible travel schedule? Discover the best time to fly to Cairns from San Francisco with our price prediction graph.
Estimated return price
Rates are based on past data. Find the cheapest month and day to book your flight based on your travel requirements, then search for cheap deals.

Cheapflights Insights

Everything you need to know about your flight from San Francisco to Cairns

How often are flights from San Francisco to Cairns delayed?

About 14% of weekly flights between San Francisco and Cairns have experienced delays in the past year, with the average delay time being 180 minutes.

What is the most punctual flight time for San Francisco to Cairns flights?

Historically, flights departing in the early afternoon are less likely to be delayed, whereas flights leaving at night tend to experience delays more often.

What day of the week experiences the fewest flight delays on this route?

Tuesday tends to have the lowest number of delays on this route, whereas Wednesday has historically faced a higher average of delays compared to other days of the week.

Which airline has the best punctuality record on San Francisco to Cairns flights?

Over the past year, China Eastern have had the lowest number of delays on this route, with just 13% of flights being delayed.

Related info for your journey

Find useful and relevant information for your journey from San Francisco to Cairns. Access travel guides, tips, and recommendations to enhance your travel experience. Get information about local attractions, weather, transportation options, and more.

  • How long is the flight from San Francisco to Cairns?

    Airlines like Cathay Pacific and Qantas Airways fly from San Francisco to Cairns in about 24h 30m. The time it takes to get you to your destination can typically vary by up to 4h. The distance from San Francisco to Cairns is about 11296 km. When browsing for deals, the options you’ll see will be for both direct flights and flights with stops.

  • Can I find deals for flights from San Francisco to Cairns that include hotel bookings?

    Yes. In addition to deals on San Francisco to Cairns flights, Cheapflights offers holiday packages that include both flights and hotel.

  • How can I find direct flights from San Francisco to Cairns?

    After entering your origin and destination, apply the non-stop filter on the search result page to find direct flights from San Francisco to Cairns.

  • Can I find deals for business class flights from San Francisco to Cairns?

    Yes. Cheapflights offers flight deals from San Francisco to Cairns by cabin class. In addition to browsing deals, you can also filter by cabin class on the search results page after making a search.

See more FAQs

Travelling to a place near Cairns?

Book flights to Cairns if you plan to visit one of these locations
Mission Beach
Trinity Beach

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Why should you use Cheapflights to find cheap flight tickets from San Francisco to Cairns?

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Can Cheapflights find flights from San Francisco to Cairns with no change fees?

Yes! Cheapflights helps users easily find flights from San Francisco to Cairns with no change fees.

Can Cheapflights notify me if prices for flights from San Francisco to Cairns become cheaper?

Yes, and it’s super simple to set up. Click the bell icon next to the flight deals above and provide a valid email address to enable Price Alerts. That’s it!

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