8 Websites That Will Actually Help You Snag a Cheap Flight Deal

Kayak might not be a new travel site, but it’s a solid one. While it has similar search functionality to something like Google Flights, it also allows you to search for “hacker fares,” or two one-way tickets that will ultimately end up being cheaper than a round-trip fare. They’re not the kind of trips you’ll want to take if you’re loyal to one airline or can get easily flustered when faced with different airports or procedures, but if you’re flexible and freewheeling, you can shave some money off your final ticket price. They’re especially good for out-of-the-way destinations, like Kona, Hawaii, or Palm Springs, California, where some airlines may not offer multiple round-trips every single day.

A flight, car rental, and hotel search engine that essentially just aggregates deals from online, Skyscanner may seem pretty straightforward at first glance, but with a little creative clicking, you can really find some great deals on the site, including ones that aren’t always shown on comparable outlets like Google Flights. Got vacation time coming up in June, but not sure where you want to go? Check the “Explore Everywhere” option in their engine, and you might find a great fare to a place you never even knew you wanted to go. Interested in Paris but can’t afford to go during the summer tourist season? Choose “Cheapest month” on the search bar, and you’ll see flights and fares at their lowest.

Want to jet off for a quick weekend away? Momondo’s “Travel Deals” page could be a good first stop before you decide where to go. The site tells you the best price to various locations from your home airport, plus gives you the window in which that fare is available. For instance, if I’m flying from L.A., I can get to Salt Lake City for $54 round-trip in October, or to New Orleans for just $107 round-trip in November. If you can travel light and don’t care if you’re window or aisle, you should be able to get away for relatively little green.

A controversial travel method not especially beloved by the airlines, Skiplagging is where you book a cheaper trip to somewhere (London, let’s say) with a stop in your desired destination (such as Amsterdam, for example) along the way. You hop off in Amsterdam, carrying just what you can carry on the flight and fit under your seat, and when you don’t show up for the London leg, the airline is none the wiser. Airlines don’t love it because it costs them money and leaves them with seats they wish they could sell twice, but it can result in some really great deals. It’s not for the faint of heart (especially as you run the risk of having your carry-on checked to your final destination if overhead bin space is limited), but if you’re brave, travel light, and don’t mind a little deal-inspired deception, sites like Skiplagged can help you navigate the best fares.

Kiwi helps travelers grab cheap flights through a variety of varsity-level tricks, like the aforementioned skiplagging. Kiwi’s also great for multi-city searches, like if you want to fly into Paris before hopping down to Lyon and zipping over to Lisbon. The site’s Nomad tool lets users throw in some rough parameters, and it’ll plan the cheapest route in a flash.

Formerly known as “Scott’s Cheap Flights,” Going offers to deliver “cheap flights directly to you,” all without searches. Simply input your home airport or airports into the site’s free flight alert page, and you’ll get daily emails with deals. Pony up the site’s $49 annual “premium” fee, though, and you’ll also get access to “error fares,” like flights to Paris for just $200 or a round-trip I saw once that would get you from Chicago to Abu Dhabi for just $99. Those go quickly, and airlines sometimes cancel bookings if they realize they could lose money, but sometimes they really do honor the fares, making for truly amazing values. Additionally, the “elite” membership ($199) gives users business access and first-class fare deals, which can be harder to come by online.

Some of my best trips have been booked through Going. You have to be flexible in terms of when you want to travel and open to going anywhere. Just remember: Book quickly when you see the price. You typically have 24 hours to cancel a purchase, should you snag a flight deal only to find that every hotel in that destination is already booked up.

Two more quick-generating flight deal aggregators, Secret Flying and The Flight Deal, are similar to Going in their global deal-scouring potential. Some of the deals can be a little obscure, like a recent offering that would take you to Cape Verde from Manchester, England, for just $30, but if you can focus on where you want to depart from and can be flexible in terms of your travel dates, you’ll find lots of great options. For instance, when we looked, we found tickets from New York to Morocco for just $378 round-trip and an error fare offering flights from New York to Singapore for $171 each way. Even if you live in Chicago and must snag a cheap ticket to New York to get that deal, it’ll still be much cheaper than booking direct from your home airport.

If you’re a mileage junkie, check out the Daily Drop. A deal site that aggregates both cheap fares and flight-for-points deals, the site can get you to Europe from Los Angeles for just 8,000 points each way, or show you business class fares to South America for just 50,000 points. You’ll have to upgrade to the site’s $149 annual pro plan to get access to the really good stuff, but if you’re an avid traveler or are just looking to save a little scratch on a big upcoming adventure, it’s well worth the investment.