At what time of year are flights cheapest?

Winter is the bargain season to travel, and you can also wait longer to purchase your airline tickets than in any other season. If you like, in the winter months you can wait up to 26 days before departure to get a good flight deal. The spring and fall shoulder seasons offer the next lowest prices for travelers.



In 2026, the cheapest time to fly remains the "dead zones" of the travel calendar, specifically the period from mid-January to early March and the late autumn window from mid-September to early November. During these periods, the post-holiday slump and the start of the school year significantly drive down demand. For domestic U.S. travel, January 22 is statistically projected to be one of the cheapest single days to fly. Mid-week departures—specifically Tuesdays and Wednesdays—consistently offer fares that are 20% to 40% lower than Friday or Sunday flights. If you are looking for international deals, the "shoulder seasons" of May and October provide the best balance of low price and pleasant weather. Conversely, flying during "Spring Break" (late March), peak summer (July), and the Thanksgiving/Christmas window will almost always be the most expensive. To find the absolute lowest prices in 2026, travel experts recommend booking domestic flights 1–3 months in advance and international trips 4–6 months ahead, using fare alerts to catch sudden "flash sales."

People Also Ask

Spring break. For domestic flights in March and April, Google said, prices are typically lowest 23 to 59 days before departure, hitting their lowest price 38 days out. Summer vacation. For domestic flights in July or August, prices are typically lower 14 to 44 days out, hitting rock bottom 21 days before takeoff.

MORE DETAILS

Is there a cheapest month to fly? If you're looking for a bargain month to travel, February is your best bet. Flights in January closely follow February for being most affordable. At the other end of the spectrum, December and July are the first and second most expensive months to travel, on average.

MORE DETAILS

“If it's an off-peak season — not middle of summer, Christmas or New Year's — then booking about one to three months in advance is typically when cheap flights have the highest likelihood of popping up,” he said. “When you're talking about international travel, two to eight months in advance.”

MORE DETAILS

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.

MORE DETAILS

The general rule is that for domestic flights, travelers should start searching for flight tickets one to three months in advance. For international flights, the best prices are typically available from two to eight months in advance. Prices can also vary widely among airlines.

MORE DETAILS

Time your booking right
“For domestic flights, if you're talking peak season, it's about three to seven months in advance,” he says. “For international flights — [it's] four to 10 months.”

MORE DETAILS

The late fall and winter months—from mid to late October through mid-to-late March—are often the cheapest time to fly to Europe (though fares can spike in December).

MORE DETAILS

Although the general trend is for flights to get more expensive as time goes by and more seats are sold, from time to time the airlines will make adjustments and release more seats at the lower buckets. This is why fares sometimes move down, as well as up, even without an explicit fare decrease by the airline.

MORE DETAILS

Expedia's report also notes travelers can look forward to a 3 percent decrease in booking airfare in 2024, compared to the higher prices of 2022.

MORE DETAILS

It mostly comes down to supply and demand. Demand is contributing to higher prices as travel continues to surge post-pandemic, Berg said. Sustained strong demand in 2023 continues to put additional pressure on prices, especially to and within regions where travel has only recently reopened like parts of Asia.

MORE DETAILS

Is it cheaper to book a flight at the last minute? We've said this before, but it's worth repeating at the outset—no, it's really not cheaper to book a flight at the last minute. Yes, last minute travelers used to score the occasional fare so low it might have induced shock, but that's no longer the case.

MORE DETAILS

The cheapest months to travel are:
  • November – early December.
  • Late January – March.


MORE DETAILS

The cheapest day to book your ticket is Saturday and Sunday, but the cheapest day to actually fly on is Tuesday. And the cheapest time of day to physically book your ticket is between 6AM and 12PM.

MORE DETAILS

Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the cheapest days to fly domestically. The cheapest days to depart if you're flying within the U.S. are midweek — generally Tuesday or Wednesday. For economy tickets, Tuesdays are about 24% lower than peak prices on Sundays, which translates to savings of about $85 per ticket.

MORE DETAILS

A good rule of thumb is to start looking roughly 6 months before your specific travel dates, and not wait much later than 3 months before you're planning to get into the skies.

MORE DETAILS

For domestic trips, TPG recommends monitoring prices three to four months before your departure date and expecting to book one to two months in advance. For international trips, we recommend starting to monitor prices six to seven months in advance and expect to book three to five months in advance.

MORE DETAILS

It mostly comes down to supply and demand. Demand is contributing to higher prices as travel continues to surge post-pandemic, Berg said. Sustained strong demand in 2023 continues to put additional pressure on prices, especially to and within regions where travel has only recently reopened like parts of Asia.

MORE DETAILS