The Best Day and Time to Book Flights to Save Money

We've said it before and we'll say it again — when it comes to booking flights, there is no magical day of the week or time of day that will guarantee you a good deal. But can you play the odds to increase your chance of finding a good deal? According to Expedia, yes. We dug through Expedia’s 2024 Air Travel Hacks report and spoke to Expedia travel expert Christie Hudson for some helpful tips for scoring cheap flights.

Best Day of the Week to Book Flights

The most important thing to understand when searching for cheap airfare is that airlines use dynamic pricing to set rates. That means a complex algorithm determines what the airfare should be based on real-time demand — and that means flight prices can change at any moment, often multiple times a day. That's why there's not technically one single day that's the "best" day to book.

That said, there's a bit of a caveat here. Even though you can't predict when prices will drop, you can look at data to see which day of the week tends to have the lowest prices, which is exactly what Expedia has done in its Air Travel Hacks report. "Airfare pricing is incredibly dynamic. It used to be that Tuesdays were the best day to book, but after analyzing millions of bookings over the last two years, Sunday came out 13 percent cheaper," says Hudson. "I've tested this theory dozens of times myself, and it tracks." A recent study by Upgraded Points also found that the cheapest day to book can also vary by airline.

Now, that doesn't mean that every flight will be cheaper if booked on a Sunday. That 13 percent figure is just an average — and it's specifically for international flights. Domestic flights, on the other hand, are only 6 percent cheaper on average if booked on a Sunday. So is it worth taking a look at flights on a Sunday? Sure. But it's also a good idea to monitor prices throughout the whole week, since you never know when prices might drop.

Best Time of Day to Book Flights

Now this is where you're pretty much out of luck when it comes to gaming the system. Before airline revenue management systems were automated, there might've been a specific "drop time" when an airline would change fares. But given the dynamic pricing model, airfare can change at any moment. So there's truly no reason to look for flights at a specific time of day. What you can do, however, is set price alerts for a flight, which will give you real-time notifications about price changes. Expedia's alerts even use data to predict whether or not pricing will drop further.

Tips for Finding Cheap Flights 

Book your flight early.

More important than booking flights on a specific day of the week is booking flights during the "ideal booking window." According to Expedia's Air Travel Hacks report, international flights should be booked 60 days out and domestic flights should be booked 28 days out for the best savings. For international flights, that might save you around 10 percent compared to those who booked even earlier, and for domestic flights, that might save you 24 percent compared to those who book at the last minute.

Fly on a Thursday (or a Monday, or a Tuesday).

Another way to find cheap airfare is to choose your travel dates wisely. "The Air Travel Hacks report says Thursdays are generally the cheapest and Sundays are the most expensive day to start your trip. This can vary by season, however," says Hudson. "Based on our Summer Travel Outlook, which analyzed bookings from summer 2023, during the summer months people who departed on Monday (international flights) or Tuesday (domestic flights) saved around 15 percent compared to those that departed on Thursday and Friday." Consider looking at a flight price calendar to see if bumping your trip up or back a few days might net you a big savings on airfare. Just remember that you might lose out by paying more for accommodations.

Track flight prices after you book a flight.

This is perhaps the best hack of them all. After you book a flight, continue to monitor your specific flight's prices. If the airfare drops, you can rebook your flight and pocket the difference in airfare as an airline e-credit. Or you could automate the process and potentially snag a genuine refund. "Expedia's Price Drop Protection is my secret weapon when it comes to booking airfare. You can add it onto your flight booking and get an automatic refund if the flight fare decreases on Expedia after you’ve booked," says Hudson. "To date, I've gotten back hundreds of dollars. There’s a nominal fee for Price Drop Protection, unless you’re a Gold or Platinum One Key member booking on the app."

Don't be fooled by basic economy fares.

Yes, basic economy is the cheapest fare class, but it's highly restrictive. You won't be able to choose your seat in advance, nor will you be able to change or cancel your flight. But beyond that, one of the biggest downsides to basic economy is that you have to pay for additional services. "It may be cheaper initially, but once you’ve added in seat selection or baggage fees, the savings might not be as significant," says Hudson. Definitely do the math before booking basic economy (or, as we'd suggest, just avoid booking basic economy altogether.)