When is one of the best time to ebook flights for the most cost effective airfare in 2023?

Editor’s note: This post has been updated with new information.

Another summer of exorbitant travel prices is nearly upon us.

Let’s face it, travel is expensive. While we aim to provide strategies for securing the cheapest airfare, your ability to find that elusive airline deal boils down to a few factors.

In a normal year, flights during the summertime and holidays are notoriously expensive. Now factor in that this is a year when inflation, limited flights and high travel demand have driven up the cost of air travel.

Have you ever heard that booking a flight on a certain day of the week will yield the cheapest results?

Perhaps you’re thinking of a cousin who claims he found a great deal when he checked on airfare prices at 12:01 a.m. on a Wednesday. Maybe you have a friend who swears by setting a reminder on her phone for 1 p.m. on a Thursday when she’s shopping for flights.

Indeed, there is no shortage of rumors (and “studies”) out there, but does the time of day you purchase flights actually make a difference in what you pay? Could it help you save at a time when so many other expenses are piling up?

TPG spoke to airfare experts about how timing influences airfare prices to help you maximize airfare savings.

Staying ahead of the best travel tips for 2023 is easy when you download the free TPG app!

There used to be some truth to the concept that certain days were better for finding flight deals. However, research shows that this is more of a myth nowadays, per booking app Hopper. The app found that this applied to less than 2% of routes and yielded savings of just 6%.

“There is no one day or ‘golden rule’ about when to book that applies to all travel,” Hayley Berg, lead economist at Hopper, said. Hopper relies on eight years of data and 70 trillion flight prices to recommend the best time to book specific routes and dates. “There’s a common myth that “booking on a Tuesday” will guarantee a traveler the best price. The reality is prices change so often and depend on the route, the travel dates, etc, that there isn’t one day that guarantees you the best price.

For domestic trips, TPG recommends starting to monitor prices 3-4 months before your departure date and expect to book 1-2 months in advance. For international trips, we recommend starting to monitor prices 6-7 months in advance and expect to book 3-5 months in advance.

There may not be one day to ensure cheaper airfare, and you might find airfare prices fluctuate Monday through Friday, according to Bob Harrell, an airfare consultant who analyzes airline pricing.

Airlines look at customer demand and monitor booking trends to decide whether to open or close certain types of fares and whether to raise or lower existing fares, Harrell says.

So, how can you use this information to your advantage when buying airline tickets?

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Berg told TPG, “We recommend using a price monitoring tool to get real-time updates on price changes to book at the right time.”

“Most domestic trip airfare will fall between one and three months before your departure before rising rapidly in the last three to four weeks before takeoff,” Berg said. “This means there is a sweet spot where airlines will be offering lower prices on average and are more likely to offer promotional discounts and ultra-low fares.”

You’re generally going to want to book international travel further in advance than you would domestic travel — start gauging these flight prices six to seven months in advance while planning on booking three to five months in advance.

“When you’re traveling internationally, planning ahead is key to getting the cheapest airfare,” Berg said. “Travelers often book international flights too far in advance or too last minute, overpaying significantly for their tickets.”