Cheap Flights | Psreporter

 This may have been a trick some dodgy travel agents tried in the past, but those days are long gone.

 It's always possible that a flight you were eyeing goes up just because of how frequently the prices change. Or maybe someone else has booked the same flight, triggering a change to a new price bucket.

 It's possible to see affordable flights as early as a year before, especially when using the Google Flights calendar tool. Yet, booking as soon as the flights are released isn't always the best strategy.

 How airlines price their tickets is complicated, but it is a long game. They don't usually actively manage their fares for domestic flights until 3-4 months before departure and as many as five months for international flights.

 So waiting in the metaphorical line for airlines to open shop and release tickets could mean paying the standard price, and that's certainly not how to find cheap flights to anywhere.

 This may have been true back in the days when airlines loaded their flight tickets once a week, probably on a Tuesday afternoon, and if you booked early, you were more likely to get one of the cheaper flights.

 Nowadays, fare changes no longer happen once a week and can fluctuate after just a few minutes even. Instead, fares are based on complex algorithms that consider the best price based on the season, time, popularity, human psychology, etc.

 So marking down Tuesdays as the flight booking day isn't a thing anymore, but knowing the right time to book when hunting for the cheapest flight can make a difference (we'll get into it in a bit).

 You might be tempted to search for the cheapest ticket with low cost airlines. This is fine if you're in a hurry, have no flexibility, and are okay with budget airlines' no-frills policies.

 But if you don't look beyond the walls of budget airlines, you're potentially missing out on deals with better airlines. It doesn't take too long to compare prices between different airlines, especially with the number of tools available.

 While these are the most common myths we hear, we know there are many more floating around, but, it's time to get back to the facts.

 They say a worker is only as good as their tools - that's true for cheap flight hunting too! The sites we're going to run through each have unique valuable ways to help you spot super affordable flights. Here's a rundown on how to use them for the best results.

 Google Flights is our go-to tool to find the cheapest flights to anywhere. We've used it so much that we've made an in-depth guide on how to master the Google Flights features to find insanely cheap flights.

 The main highlights are the Explore Page which shows you a world map with (nearly) real-time prices for your itinerary (so you also find the cheapest place). You can use the filters here to filter out airlines, durations, stops, connecting flights and even filter by interests.

 It's also the gateway to finding the cheapest price on hotels, vacation rentals, and things to do while you're there.

 The second feature is the handy calendar tool that shows up once you've selected your destination. It shows the cheapest dates in green and sometimes suggests even cheaper options.

 Protip: Set the filters you'd like to have from this page and head back to the mapping tool. Google Flights automatically applies the filters - making your search for great deals a lot easier!

 Google Flights' main con is the airline listings - they don't have ALL of them. While you'll see most full-service airlines and budget airlines. A few airlines don't show up or may not list their prices on searches, like Southwest.

 When this happens, you may need to go directly to the website or look at what OTAs offer.

Cheap Flights

 OTAs or Online Travel Agencies are the middlemen of the flight world. While a few popular ones are aggregated by Google Flights, you'll find many more on other aggregator sites like Skyscanner and Momondo.

 Unfortunately, we've heard many travelers are skeptical of OTAs since they question if it's still safe to book with an online travel agent. But they're definitely worth checking, especially for expensive long-haul flights as their prices can be a lot lower than what airlines offer. To make things easier for you, we've ranked the top OTAs for you, but here's where you can find their deals.

 Using Skyscanner is pretty straightforward. Just add in your departure city, destination, travel dates, and you're all set. They also have flight filters, e.g. choosing nonstop flights only, flexible tickets only, and adding nearby airports.

 What makes them stand out from other OTA aggregators is their flexibility. For example, you can choose to see the "cheapest month" or "whole month" when selecting dates.

 Plus, the "search everywhere tool" shows a list of flight deals around the world, directly answering your questions about how to find cheap flights to anywhere. But, sometimes the prices aren't accurate, so it's best to use it as a starting point.

 Next up, Kayak and Momondo. We're talking about them together because they have the same parent company and many similarities. They both pull from large OTA databases, including popular OTAs like Expedia and much lesser-known ones. This is great for finding the lowest fares, but it makes them a little slower.

 Momondo has upped their filter game lately. Apart from choosing which OTAs you'd like, you can also select the flight quality. This could mean choosing flights with wifi, hiding red-eye tickets, or mixing & matching fares.

 Momondo has upped their filter game lately. Apart from choosing which OTAs you'd like, you can also select the flight quality. This could mean choosing flights with wifi, hiding red-eye tickets, or mixing & matching fares.

 The mix & match fares, also known as “hacker fares”, are a combination of separate airline tickets. This sometimes leads to lower prices but could mean different refund policies.

 Not sure if you're getting the cheapest flights? The "Our advice" section at the top corner lets you know if a price is likely to drop in a few days. It works similarly to Google Flights' price graph by calculating recent price data. But sometimes the stickman appears, which is code for "IDK yet."

 On the other hand, Kayak takes the best of both worlds from Google Flights and Momondo. The interface is very similar to Google Flights. Plus, they have the flight quality and OTA filters like Momondo.

 One unique feature is their fee assistant, which calculates the flight price to include baggage fees. So, let's say you plan to carry a checked bag - simply choose your destination and dates, click on the checked bag icon - bada bing bada boom, no surprises!

 Checking for alternative prices on flight search engines is a must to find the cheapest flights available. Even if you have miles/points or are part of a frequent flyer program, it's still worth checking. These airlines ain't loyal, and your wallet shouldn't be either.

 Sidenote: To up your chances of getting a great deal, try combining these tools into a single workflow by using a comparison tool. We've released a free browser plugin that converts Google Flights pages to equivalent searches in Skyscanner, Momondo, and Kayak for easy comparison. You can grab it on the Google Chrome Store and Firefox/Mozilla Edge.

 Booking via Online Travel Agents (OTAs), instead of buying your ticket directly from the airline, will often make your flight cheaper, but not always!

 Online Travel Agents sometimes get 'exclusive' fares from specific airlines, allowing them to sell add-ons like checked bags for far less than the airline sells them, even if the base ticket price is the same. This is especially true for most long-haul flights with traditional full-service airlines like British Airways, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, etc.

 European budget airlines, like Ryanair, Easyjet & Wizzair, almost always offer the cheapest fares on their website. On the US side, it's uncommon to find cheaper OTA's for full-service airlines like JetBlue and United Airlines.