Can I buy a roundtrip ticket for a one-way trip? Technically, you can buy a roundtrip ticket and only use it to go one-way, but airlines frown upon this. And, you can only skip the return flight. If you miss a segment of your trip, the airline may cancel the rest of your ticket without giving you a refund.

Yes, you can book a round-trip ticket and only use the "outbound" portion, but in 2026, airlines have become very aggressive in monitoring this practice, known as "Throwaway Ticketing." Historically, round-trip fares—especially for international travel—were often cheaper than one-way fares. If you skip the return leg, the airline considers this a violation of their Contract of Carriage. While they cannot "force" you to fly the return, they may cancel any further flights on that itinerary immediately. A high-value "pro-tip" for 2026 is that if you frequently skip return legs, the airline's "Revenue Integrity" software may flag your frequent flyer account, potentially resulting in the loss of miles or even a ban from the airline. On domestic U.S. routes, this is rarely an issue because most domestic fares are now priced as two one-way segments combined, but for international "Legacy" carriers, it is safer to book two separate one-way tickets if you have an uncertain schedule.