Is it better to book flights directly with airline or credit card?

While booking a flight directly with an airline is often your best move, it's not always your best move. With many travel credit card programs, you have the ability to use points for flights or earn bonus points when booking through their respective sites.



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Cost and convenience When it comes down to it, booking directly through the airline is almost always more convenient. If the price changes after you buy your ticket, many airlines will get you the difference back.

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How to Find Cheap Flights in 2023: The Ultimate Guide
  • Pick your destination and dates based on price.
  • Use the best flight search sites to find cheap flights.
  • Find the cheapest place to fly with the Google Flights Explore Map.
  • Be flexible—even by a few days—to save more on flights.


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Every time you purchase an airline ticket with your credit card, you could earn valuable bonus points or miles toward your next award trip. And you can't forget about the perks that make your flights go smoother and protect you when things go wrong, such as airport lounge access and trip delay reimbursement.

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The main negative aspect of airline credit cards is the lack of redemption options. Since you'll only earn a single frequent flyer currency, you can only redeem miles with that specific airline and its partners.

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It can provide protection Depending on which type of credit card you have, you might get some valuable travel protections by booking your trip with it. For example, some cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card provide lost luggage reimbursement, travel accident insurance and travel emergency assistance services.

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The Best Airline Credit Cards
  • JetBlue Plus Card: Best For JetBlue Benefits.
  • Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card: Best Mid-Priced Delta Card.
  • Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card: Best for Southwest Airlines Benefits.
  • Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®: Best For American Airlines.


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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.

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Those who buy on Sunday instead of Friday (the most expensive day to shop for plane tickets) will save on average 17% on domestic flights and 24% on international ones.

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Benefits of direct flights If you are looking to save some money, a direct flight is the best choice for you. Direct flights are usually cheaper than non-stop flights, and depending on the route, passengers will have to disembark, go through airport security and board on the same aircraft.

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You'll Get the Best Price, Without Any Hidden Fees Reality is, hotels tend to offer the best rate when guests book directly with them. At the same time, hotels are very clear about their prices in order to avoid any misunderstandings that might affect the guests' experience.

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Some airlines offer payment plans, but they might just offer one option. We offer lots of payment plan options, including Klarna, Affirm, and Afterpay, which you can use no matter which airline you book to fly with.

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Yes, it is better to have a credit card for travel, particularly if you're traveling abroad. Credit cards are more secure than cash, have better rewards than debit cards, and provide better currency exchange rates than you'll find at banks and currency kiosks.

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Mastercard is better for international travel than Visa because Mastercard is accepted in more countries and territories (over 210) than Visa (200). Both are widely accepted nearly everywhere you're likely to travel, though, and each network supports credit cards that are excellent for traveling abroad.

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If you are heading abroad for your trip, you will want to avoid foreign transaction fees. Although both credit and debit cards are subject to this 2-4% upcharge, getting a credit card without a foreign transaction fee is a bit easier than finding a debit card with no foreign fees.

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