When booking travel, it often helps to know the right time to lock in your plans.
For example, knowing which day of the week is the cheapest to book your plane ticket can net meaningful savings.
Upgraded Points recently analyzed airfare costs from Google Flights for 10 of the busiest domestic flight routes over four weeks, examining as many as 44,000 flights to gather insight into day-of-week costs for eight popular U.S. airlines.
The study found that Mondays and Tuesdays are typically the cheapest days to book when average airfares are around $213. Fridays and Saturdays often see a spike in price, with the average approaching $240.
However, the data varies by carrier. Here are the best and worst times of the week to book your flight based on your airline.
Alaska Airlines
The cheapest day to book with Alaska Airlines is Thursday when the average ticket price is $274.69. Compare that to $309.38 one day later on Friday and $310.45 on Saturday.
American Airlines
Conversely, Thursday is the most expensive day to book with American Airlines, as tickets average $285.60. However, by booking just one day later on Friday, customers can net about $14 in savings as the Friday average drops to $271.85, the second-cheapest day for American Airlines flights.
American Airlines Boeing 737. (Photo Credit: Carlos Yudica/Adobe)
The cheapest day is Sunday with an average of $271.47.
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines customers can save some significant cash by booking on Thursday when the average ticket cost is $181.05. That figure climbs to $216.67 on Friday.
Frontier Airlines
Tuesday is the cheapest day to book with ultra-low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines with an average cost of $129.72. By Friday and Saturday, that average cost is approaching $159.
JetBlue
Booking with JetBlue earlier in the week, specifically on Sunday, is the way to go. The average airfare on this day is $227.31, nearly $60 cheaper compared to Friday. Waiting until Monday or Tuesday to book will only cost an extra $10 on average.
Hawaiian Airlines flight. (Photo via Hawaiian Airlines)
Hawaiian Airlines
Tuesday is the best time of the week to book with Hawaiian Airlines as the average ticket falls to $143.46. Meanwhile, booking on a Saturday will cost you an average of $243.84, which is more than a $100 difference.
Spirit Airlines
Monday is the cheapest day of the week to book with budget carrier Spirit Airlines. The average ticket cost is $135.80 to start the week. That's almost a $30 difference from Saturday's average of $165.21.
United Airlines
Travelers booking with United Airlines will want to secure their ticket on a Sunday, when the average airfare is $281.66, down almost $18 from the most expensive day on Thursday. If Sunday isn't an option, booking with United on a Monday or a Wednesday should result in a lower fare.
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