NONSTOP

Direct Flights from St Louis to Chicago

Chicago · Illinois

Nonstop service from STL to ORD and MDW on American, Southwest, United. Here's the schedule at a glance — plus what to do once you land.

Airlines
American, Southwest, United
Nonstop flights
~18/dayacross 2 airport pairs
Distance
258 mi
Flight time
~1hgate to gate
Elevation
680 ftabout the same as home
Days operated
Daily (all week)
Great-circle flight path from St Louis (STL) to Chicago (ORD), 258 miles nonstop.STLORD

Which airports fly this route

Affiliate link — we may earn a commission if you book.

  • STLORDChicago O'Hare International
    American, United~13/dayDaily (all week)258 mi
    Find flights ↗
  • STLMDWChicago Midway International
    Southwest~5/dayDaily (all week)251 mi
    Find flights ↗

How rare is this nonstop?

Chicago is one of the best-connected places in the country: 205 cities fly there nonstop, St Louis among them.

How long to go to Chicago for, from St Louis

1h in the air, 258 miles: short enough that a single night in Chicago is worth it, and a day trip is not absurd.

With roughly 18 departures a day, you are not tied to one flight: if a meeting overruns or the weather turns, there is another one behind it.

About Chicago

Chicago Skyline from Millenium Park. Shot from the BP Bridge over the Pritzker Pavilion, Chicago.
Photo by Peter Fitzgerald · CC BY-SA 4.0

Chicago is the home of the blues and the truth of jazz, the heart of comedy and the idea of the skyscraper. Here, the age of railroads found its center, and airplanes followed suit. "Stormy, Husky, Brawling / City of Big Shoulders," Chicago is a Heartland boomtown, its ethos defined by urban planner Daniel Burnham's immortal vision: "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood." It is one of the world's great cities and the third largest city in the United States, behind only New York City and Los Angeles.

Summary from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA).

Top things to do in Chicago

  1. The Art Institute of Chicago is a private, nonprofit art museum in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, United States.
  2. Millennium Park is a public park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois, United States, operated by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE).
  3. The Field Museum of Natural History is a private–public natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world.
  4. The Griffin Museum of Science and Industry is a private, non-profit science museum located in Jackson Park, the Hyde Park neighborhood, Chicago, Illinois.
  5. The Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, West Asia and North Africa (ISAC), formerly known as the Oriental Institute (OI), is a research institute and museum of the University of Chicago, located in Hyde Park, Ch…
  6. Essanay Studios, officially the Essanay Film Manufacturing Company, was an early American motion picture studio. The studio was founded in Chicago by George Kirke Spoor and Gilbert M.
  7. The Adler Planetarium is a municipal public museum for astronomy in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is operated by the Chicago Park District, a municipal government agency of the City of Chicago.
  8. Grant Park is a large urban park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. Located within the city's central business district, the 319-acre (1.29 km2) park's features include Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain,…
  9. Indiana Dunes National Park is a national park of the United States located in northwestern Indiana managed by the National Park Service.
  10. Buckingham Fountain is a Chicago Landmark in the center of Grant Park, between Queen's Landing and the end of Ida B. Wells Drive. Dedicated in 1927 and donated to the city by philanthropist Kate S.
  11. Shedd Aquarium is a public aquarium in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is one of the oldest continually operating non-governmental aquariums in the U.S.
  12. The Barack Obama Presidential Center is a museum, library, and education project in Chicago to commemorate the presidency of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States.

Attraction descriptions from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA); place data from Wikidata (CC0).

Chicago weather, compared with St Louis

8° cooler than St Louis on average across the year, on daytime highs:

January
Chicago 31°F · St Louis 41°F · 9° colder
April
Chicago 59°F · St Louis 68°F · 9° colder
July
Chicago 84°F · St Louis 90°F · 5° colder
October
Chicago 62°F · St Louis 69°F · 7° colder

January bottoms out near 31°F — a real coat, not a layer.

Average daily highs, 1991–2020 station normals from Meteostat (CC BY 4.0), measured at the nearest weather station to each city.

Planning a trip to Chicago

Best time to visit
The best time to visit Chicago is May–June and September–October, when daytime highs are a comfortable 62–80°F.
How long to stay
Chicago rewards a longer visit — a full week lets you explore its many sights, from Art Institute of Chicago, Millennium Park, and Field Museum of Natural History and beyond.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a direct flight from St Louis to Chicago?
Yes — you can fly nonstop from St Louis (STL) to Chicago (ORD, MDW) on American, Southwest, United.
Which airlines fly nonstop from St Louis to Chicago?
American, Southwest, United fly nonstop between St Louis (STL) and Chicago (ORD, MDW).
Which Chicago airport can I fly to nonstop from St Louis?
Chicago has 2 airports with nonstop service from St Louis: ORD (Chicago O'Hare International) on American, United; MDW (Chicago Midway International) on Southwest.
How many nonstop flights are there from St Louis to Chicago?
There are about 18 nonstop departures per day (roughly 126 per week) from St Louis to Chicago.
How far is Chicago from St Louis?
Chicago is about 258 miles from St Louis by air.
What is there to do in Chicago?
Popular things to do include Art Institute of Chicago, Millennium Park, Field Museum of Natural History, Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago), and more.

More nonstop destinations from St Louis near Chicago

Airports near St Louis