How do you find cheap flights?

1. Be flexible on dates: the day you fly matters more than the day you book

Expedia's 2026 Air Hacks report found the cheapest day to depart on US domestic trips was Tuesday and the most expensive was Sunday, a gap of about 14%. The cheapest day to book, by contrast, was Friday versus Sunday, a gap of only about 3%. That is the whole argument in two numbers: moving your departure by a day or two is worth several times more than timing your purchase.

Use the calendar or date-grid view on Google Flights or any meta-search site, set a flexible week, and look at the whole month. Midweek departures and returns, and flights that avoid Friday and Sunday, are consistently cheaper on leisure routes.

Season matters even more. Expedia's 2026 data named January as the cheapest month for US domestic flights. For the destinations we cover, our best-time guides flag shoulder months: Croatia in late May or September instead of August, for example; see the best time to visit Croatia.

2. The cheapest day to fly is not a Tuesday booking trick

The old advice to book on Tuesday came from airlines loading fare sales early in the week. A 2024 analysis of more than 44,000 Google Flights fares on 10 busy US routes did find Tuesday slightly cheapest on average, but Monday was nearly tied, Wednesday and Thursday were close, and the best day varied by airline. Expedia's 2026 report put Friday first. When studies disagree on which day wins, the difference is too small to plan around.

Incognito mode is a myth. A Consumer Reports test of 372 searches found incognito and normal browsers returned the same price 88% of the time, with incognito cheaper about 7% of the time and more expensive about 5%, which is noise. An economics study from Berkeley, Yale and the University of Chicago, using one large US airline's pricing data, found an individual customer's searches had no effect on the price; total bookings on the flight did. Prices change because seats sell, not because you looked twice.

3. Book in the right window, then set a fare alert

Booking too early and too late both cost money. Expedia's 2026 data put the cheapest average window for economy tickets at about four to six weeks out, but that is an average across all routes: peak dates and long-haul trips reward booking earlier because cheaper fare classes sell out. We cover the timing by route type, including long-haul versus regional hops, in how far in advance to book international flights.

The practical tool is price tracking. Set an alert on your exact route and dates (Google Flights, Kayak, Hopper and most airline apps offer one) as soon as you know roughly when you want to go. Google Flights also shows whether the current price is low, typical or high for that route, which is the fastest way to know if a fare is actually a deal.

4. Search alternative airports and positioning flights

Check every airport within reach at both ends. London has six, Tokyo has Haneda and Narita (compared in Haneda vs Narita), and Osaka's Kansai often prices differently from Tokyo for a Japan trip that covers both.

A positioning flight means getting yourself cheaply to a hub with better long-haul prices, then booking the long leg from there. On our own 526-day route, the regional hubs mattered: Bangkok, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur connect much of Southeast Asia on budget carriers, which is how routes like Singapore to Bali stay cheap. The catch: on separate tickets a delay on the first flight is your problem, not the airline's, so leave a long buffer, ideally an overnight, and never do it with checked bags you can't collect and re-check.

5. Compare the total cost on budget airlines

A budget-carrier fare is a starting price. Add a checked bag, a carry-on if it is not included, seat selection and, on some carriers, airport check-in fees, then compare against the full-service fare with bags. Airlines raised bag fees again in 2026, so this comparison changes more often than it used to.

Where budget carriers win clearly: short regional hops with hand luggage only, such as within Southeast Asia or within Europe. Where they often lose: long trips with a full suitcase, and any itinerary where a missed connection on separate tickets would strand you. Also check the airport itself; some budget carriers use secondary airports far from the city, and the transfer can erase the saving.

6. Error fares, sales and points

Error fares (mistakes in published prices) do happen, and deal newsletters catch many of them. Book only refundable hotels around one, don't make other bookings until the ticket is confirmed and issued, and accept that the airline may cancel it.

Airline sales are more reliable: sign up to the newsletters of the carriers that fly from your home airport.

Points and miles can cut the cost of the long-haul leg, which is the expensive part of most international trips. Earn them on spending you would make anyway, and compare the cash fare against the points price plus taxes and surcharges before redeeming; on some carriers fuel surcharges on award tickets are high, which matters more in a year of expensive fuel.

Finally, money saved on the ticket goes further if you spend the trip somewhere cheap once you land; see how to travel on a budget and the cheapest countries to visit in Asia.

Frequently asked questions