The Best Time To Buy Plane Tickets - Forbes
Everyone knows the best day of the week to buy plane tickets is Tuesday … or maybe it's Sunday. Either way, there's surely a best day of the week to buy flights, right?
Common wisdom is full of advice about when to book flights. The trouble is that much of this is based on assumptions, old information and good ol' self-fulfilling prophecy.
Let's set all of that aside and look at data from two recent studies revealing the best day of the week to buy airline tickets and how far in advance you should book your flights.
What Is The Best Day Of The Week To Buy Airline Tickets?
Historically, travelers have been advised to book flights on Tuesdays to get the best flight deal. And there was a time when this was true. A decade ago, airlines generally launched new sales on Tuesdays, and airlines were generally quick to match each other's prices. This could lead to cheap flight deals on Tuesdays. That is if an airline launched a new sale.
However, this advice no longer holds true. Airlines don't just release sales on Tuesdays, and airlines don't always match their competitors' sales. Now, the advice on what is the best day of the week to buy airline tickets depends on which study you read.
According to a recent study by Expedia, the cheapest day to book flights is Sunday. When comparing Sunday flight prices to Friday, Expedia found that travelers save 5% on domestic flights and 15% on international flights. For the past four years, Sunday has been the best day of the week to book flights.
Another recent study done by Google found that flight prices on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays were 1.9% cheaper on average than flights on Saturdays and Sundays. However, Google's conclusion in releasing its study results: "There isn't much value in purchasing your tickets on a certain day of the week."
And we concur with this advice. The best day of the week to buy airline tickets is the day when a flight deal pops up. And that will not be reliably on one day of the week or another.
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Best Time To Book International Flights
According to a study conducted by Expedia, data shows that you want to book at least six months in advance for international travel. The study found you'll save an average of 10% by booking six months in advance instead of two months or less.
Google's flight price study analyzed two different types of international flights. For flights to Europe, Google found that the best deals were found 129 days out—but could be anywhere between 50 and 179 days before departure. Flights to Mexico and the Caribbean didn't require as much advance booking. Statistically, the best day to book flights was 59 days out, but the lowest fares were found anywhere between 37 and 87 days before departure.
Another reason to book international flights in advance is to take advantage of price drops. Basic economy fares are still generally non-changeable on most airlines. However, standard economy fares can now be freely changeable on many U.S. airlines.
That means you can lock in what might seem like a decent deal well ahead of your flight. Then, watch for fare drops. If the price does decrease, you can change your flight and generally claim a voucher for the price difference. While a voucher isn't as good as cash, you can utilize this voucher to save out-of-pocket costs on future flights.
Best Time To Book Domestic Flights
Good news procrastinators: Studies show that you don't want to book flights that far out to get a good deal. The Expedia study found that the sweet spot is 28 to 35 days before departure while the Google study found prices bottomed out 44 days before departure. However, both studies agree that you don't want to wait until the last minute. Book at least 21 days before departure.
There May Not Be a Best Day To Buy an Airline Ticket
Not to be cheeky, but the best day to buy airline tickets is when the price is cheap. Think about this from the airline's standpoint. If everyone knew which day of the week or date on the calendar was the cheapest, do you think they would offer their best flight deals on that date? Or, would they maximize profits by perhaps charging a bit more on that date?
Instead, airlines put airfares on sale when they're looking to fill seats. Perhaps a route just launched and the airline doesn't want seats to go out empty. It might put fares at firesale levels. We saw that when Norse Atlantic Airways launched flights, selling flights to Europe for just $120 each way.
Or, maybe an airline priced flights too high for too long and has a lot of empty seats on a flight that's departing soon. You better believe that the airline will drop prices on that flight to fill up those empty seats.
I realize how unsatisfying this answer is. The good news: There are some real ways to actually save on flights. And we are going to cover those tips next.
The Real Ways To Score the Cheapest Flights
Now that we've debunked the "best day to book flight" theory, let's talk about the real ways you can save when booking flights.
Book Changeable Flights and Rebook
During the height of the pandemic, most U.S. airlines eliminated change fees on standard economy tickets. This change opened the door to a new way of ending up with the cheapest flight: Book early and rebook at a cheaper rate when your price drops.
Here's the strategy: Start by booking a flight as soon as you know when you might travel. Make sure to select a fare that's freely changeable or cancellable. Then, track the price of that flight. If you catch a fare drop, change your flight with the airline to claim a flight voucher for the difference.
Capital One Travel Price Drop Protection
Qualifying Capital One credit cardholders have a powerful tool on their side for finding cheap flights: the Capital One Travel portal.
Capital One partners with flight data service Hopper to analyze billions of flight prices daily to predict when it's a good time to buy your flight. When you search for flights, Capital One Travel will provide a recommendation on whether you should book now or wait.
Capital One and Hopper are so confident in their model that travelers get free price drop protection if the Hopper-powered price predictor tool recommends that you book now. Through this service, you'll automatically get a refund of up to $50 if the price drops during a set time period after you book your flight.
Even better, Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card cardholders get up to $300 in annual travel statement credits and earn 5 miles per dollar spent on flights booked through Capital One Travel.
Track Flight Prices for Price Drops
Whether you aren't ready to commit to purchasing a flight or you're looking for price drops, you have a couple of free options for tracking flight prices. The two tools I use are Google Flights' price tracking tool and Capital One Travel's price watch tool.
To use Google Flights, just search for a flight through Google Flights. At the top of the results, you should see two options for tracking prices. One option sets up a flight price tracker only for flights that day. The other option will track flight prices on this route for any date—if your travel dates are flexible.
If you're only interested in prices for a particular flight, select that flight from the results and click the Track prices button to track the price for just that flight.
Google Flights will periodically email you with updates on your tracked flights and routes. These emails can prompt you to book your flight—or rebook your flight at a lower price.
Or you can manually check back on how flight prices are changing over time by opening your tracked flight prices dashboard.
Alternatively, eligible Capital One cardholders can use the Capital One Travel "watch this trip" option to get emails about price changes and when you should book.
Subscribe to Flight Deal Services
If you're flexible on where you go, all of this advice so far isn't going to help you much. Instead, we recommend subscribing to flight deal services that will alert you when there's a cheap flight from your preferred departure airport(s). Some top flight deal subscription services include:
- Scott's Cheap Flights.
- FareDrop.
- Thrifty Traveler Premium.
- Dollar Flight Club.
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Bottom Line
Studies have been conducted and the results are ambiguous. You might be able to save money by booking flights on Sundays. Or maybe you'll save a bit by booking midweek.
One thing is clear: Getting cheap flights is no longer about booking flights on the "right" day. Instead, you'll want to use tools and trackers to find the best flight price. Once you book a flight, continue to check flight prices for drops if you've booked a fare with no change fees. That's where you can really rack up some savings on your flights.