The Tuesday flight rule is dead

The Tuesday flight rule is dead

Airlines reprice in real time now, so the day you book barely moves the fare. Here is where the savings actually live, and where the traps are.

Marieke van der Velde

The wing of an airliner seen from a passenger window above the clouds, no identifiable people and no readable airline branding, for the piece on how to actually find a cheap flight now

Photo Blake Guidry / Unsplash

The Tuesday flight rule is dead. Airlines reprice in real time now, so the day you book is close to noise: Google's four-year analysis puts the cheapest booking day just 1.3 percent below the priciest.

Here's where the savings actually live:

Fly Monday through Wednesday, about 13 percent cheaper than a weekend departure.
Take a layover over a nonstop, roughly 22 percent off on average.
Buy inside the window, cheapest around 39 days out for domestic. The sources disagree on international, so treat it as a range and buy earlier for peak season.
Let Google Flights watch the price for you.

Skip the tricks that put your bag or your record at risk. A split ticket is a loan against your next morning, and skiplagging invites a fight. That's most of the saving, and none of the drama.