What Is The Cheapest Day To Book Flights?

There is no single day that guarantees the lowest fare every time, but research does show that certain days can sometimes offer better prices.

If you have ever searched for flights on a Monday, checked again on Wednesday and then watched the price change by Friday, you will know that flight pricing can feel like a guessing game. 

Airlines constantly adjust fares according to demand, availability, routes and travel dates, meaning the cheapest option can change from one flight to the next. Knowing the general patterns can help, but finding a genuinely good flight deal is usually about spotting the right fare when it appears.

Is Sunday The Cheapest Day To Book Flights?

Sunday can be a good day to check flight prices, with recent booking data showing that international travellers could save up to 17% compared with booking on a Friday. That sounds like a sizable saving, but flight prices do not follow a fixed weekly pattern.

A Sunday fare might be cheaper for one route but make little difference on another. Prices can change depending on the airline, destination, time of year and how many seats are left, so there is no need to hold off booking a great deal simply because it is not Sunday. Think of Sunday as a useful day to compare prices rather than a guaranteed way to get the cheapest flight.

Does The Day You Book Flights Really Matter?

It can, but probably not as much as many flight booking myths suggest.

Airfares are affected by a huge number of moving parts. Airlines are watching how quickly seats are selling, how much demand there is for a particular route and how many seats remain in each fare category. Prices can therefore change at any point rather than following a simple weekly pattern.

This is why checking flights repeatedly and waiting for a particular day of the week is not necessarily the best strategy. You might save a small percentage by booking on the statistically cheaper day, only to find that the fare you were watching has disappeared in the meantime.

The bigger opportunity is often finding a flight that is genuinely priced below its usual level.

Is It Cheaper To Book Flights At Night?

There is no reliable rule that says booking at a particular time of day will guarantee a cheaper flight.

You may have heard that airlines release cheap seats late at night, early in the morning or at a particular hour, but modern airline pricing is much more complicated than that. Prices can change automatically throughout the day as availability and demand shifts.

Rather than setting an alarm for a specific time, it makes more sense to concentrate on the fare itself. If you find a flight at a price you are genuinely happy with, there is little reason to ignore it simply because it happens to be a Tuesday afternoon.

What Is More Important Than The Day You Book?

Your travel dates can make a much bigger difference than the day you actually purchase your ticket.

For example, travelling when demand is lower can open up more affordable fares, while school holidays, bank holidays and popular summer dates can push prices higher. Being flexible by even a day or two can sometimes reveal completely different prices.

The same applies to your departure airport. If you can compare several airports within reasonable travelling distance, you may uncover fares that would never appear if you searched from just one location.

This is particularly useful for UK travellers, where there are numerous airports serving the same broad areas. Looking at London airports alongside regional airports can give you a much wider picture of what is available.

How Far In Advance Should You Book Flights?

Again, there is no magic number that works for every destination. For some journeys, booking months ahead makes sense, particularly if you need to travel on specific dates or during a busy period. For others, waiting can sometimes uncover a better fare.

What Is The Best Way To Find Cheap Flights?

Instead of trying to work out whether Monday, Tuesday or Sunday is the magic day to book, it can be more useful to look for fares that are unusually cheap in the first place.

That is where Secret Flight Club comes in! Rather than expecting you to constantly check airline websites and compare prices yourself, Secret Flight Club tracks thousands of routes and looks for discounted fares, limited time sales, hidden airline discounts and error fares. Our expert team then hand picks flight deals and sends them directly to members, making it easier to spot an opportunity when it appears.

Our service currently highlights flight deals of up to 81% off, with deals available across popular short haul and long haul destinations.

Rather than waiting for a particular day and hoping the price drops, Secret Flight Club takes much of the guesswork out of finding great fares! With flight deals delivered to you, you can see when genuinely good opportunities come up and make your move before they disappear.