When do flight prices drop – if they actually do?

When it comes to flight prices, there are a bunch of things that affect the cost – and yes, the prices can fluctuate on a daily basis. The airlines use advanced, dynamic price setting that is decided by for example demand/supply, seat availability and cancellations. In other words, the cost of a specific flight price can rise (or fall) depending on how many people have booked a seat by the time you are looking for your flight options. Flight prices often drop a few months before departure, mid-week or during sales. But it’s not guaranteed since there are so many factors that affect the price, including which route you are interested in.

In general, the time of your booking does not affect the prices as much as the actual date of travel. The best way to find a cheap flight is to choose a date or time of travel that is less popular. You will also most likely get away cheaper if you can be more flexible with your travel date. The flight prices can vary a lot during the week depending on which weekday you choose to fly – have a look at the chart below to see the flight price fluctuations. 

Does it get cheaper closer to the date?

This depends on whether it is a popular flight or not. In the case of less traveled routes, the prices can drop closer to the departure date. There can also be last minute offers if the airlines wish to fill all seats close to departure. On the other hand, the most popular routes can have a price that rises the closer you get to the day of the flight, due to the demand. Below you find a simulated example of how the flight price can fluctuate on a typical well traveled flight route.

Compare flight prices to get the best deal

There are several different ways of comparing and finding the best flight prices. Listed below you find three of the most common options.

• Airline official websites: If you know which airline you prefer, a good way to find their lowest prices is to visit their official website. This way you won’t get any middlemen which makes it easier to handle if something was to happen to your flight. The downside of this option is obviously that you won’t access information about other airlines, meaning you can miss out on lower prices offered by other operators.
• OTA (Online travel agencies): Many people choose to book their flight through an online travel agency, also known as an OTA. These agencies cooperate with airlines and act as a middlemen between you and the operator. There are both pro’s and con’s with using an OTA to book your flight. Here you can compare different airlines to each other, which can give you a better chance in finding a better price. Normally (if on a round-trip) you can also book a route with two different airlines. With that being said, the OTA’s do not always present all available airlines on your wanted route – only the ones they cooperate with. They also charge an extra fee since they get a cut of the ticket price.
• Flight price comparison sites: If you sort of combine the two options previously mentioned, you get a flight price comparison site (such as Flightprices.com). Here we search both airline and travel agency prices online to be able to present the best and cheapest option. For each route we give you all available prices giving you links and showing the price both with certain airlines and different travel agencies. This way you won’t miss out on any offers and can see the cheapest price available no matter how you prefer to book your ticket.

Flight prices during the year – which period to choose

As previously mentioned, the flight prices are heavily impacted by the demand of travelers, meaning some periods are normally more expensive than others. Below you can see a rough estimate of the flight prices when traveling from the UK during different times of the year. The pricing can be affected by a number of different things, with everything from holidays to number of flights offered during different times of the year. The color of each week determines if its a low cost (green), medium cost (orange) or high cost (red) period to fly.

Holidays in the UK that might affect the flight prices

• February half-term – School break
• Good Friday to Easter Monday – Easter long weekend
• Early May Bank Holiday – National holiday
• May half-term & Spring Bank Holiday – Week-long school break
• Summer holidays – Peak season
• Summer Bank Holiday – Last summer long weekend
• October half-term – School break
• Christmas and New Year – High demand period

Note that the half-term breaks can vary in different parts of the UK.

Don't forget to plan your full trip 

Besides the timing, there are some other things to keep in mind when trying to find the cheapest possible trip. One of those is to not forget the additional fees for things like luggage, specific seating, meals and other amenities. These are not always included in the initial pricing (especially when it comes to low cost airlines). When choosing your flight, think about all costs from stepping outside your door to reaching the hotel (or wherever you might stay). Everything from transfer to parking and availability are things to take into consideration when trying to find the lowest cost.