Is it really more expensive to fly on weekends? Many travelers have heard that flying on Tuesday or Wednesday is always cheaper, while Friday and Sunday are the most expensive days. In reality, the answer depends on the route, season, and how flexible you are.
This guide explains common pricing patterns for weekend vs weekday flights and gives you simple rules you can use to pick cheaper travel days—without overcomplicating your plans.
General Patterns: What the Data Usually Shows
Although exact prices vary, several trends are common on many routes:
- Fridays and Sundays: Often pricier because they are popular for weekend trips and business travel.
- Tuesdays and Wednesdays: Often among the cheaper days to fly, especially for midweek trips.
- Mondays and Thursdays: Can be moderate to high depending on business demand.
- Saturdays: Sometimes cheaper than Friday or Sunday, but not always the lowest.
Think of weekends as high-demand days and midweek as lower-demand days—airline prices often follow that demand.
Why Weekends Often Cost More
Airlines adjust fares based on when most people want to travel:
- Weekend trips (Friday–Sunday) are popular for short breaks.
- Sunday evenings are busy with people returning from trips or work travel.
- Friday and Monday flights are heavily used by business travelers.
Because seats on these flights fill up quickly, airlines have less incentive to discount them heavily.
When Weekdays Are Cheaper
On many routes, you’ll see better prices when you:
- Depart on Tuesday or Wednesday.
- Return on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Saturday instead of Sunday.
- Start your trip earlier in the week and avoid the Friday evening rush.
For example, a Friday–Sunday weekend trip might cost much more than a Wednesday–Saturday trip on the same route.
Domestic vs International: Does It Change?
The weekend vs weekday pattern can be stronger on:
- Short-haul domestic routes: Often used for quick getaways and business travel.
- Popular leisure routes: Beach destinations, city breaks, and holiday hotspots.
On some long-haul international routes, the difference between days may be smaller, but weekends can still carry higher demand around holidays and peak travel seasons.
Practical Strategies for Cheaper Travel Days
1. Shift Your Departure or Return by One Day
Sometimes moving your flight by just one day can drop the fare significantly. Try comparing:
- Friday departure vs Thursday or Saturday departure.
- Sunday return vs Monday or Saturday return.
If your schedule allows, this is one of the easiest ways to cut costs.
2. Use Flexible Date Search
Instead of only searching exact dates, use tools that show prices across a range, such as a calendar or “+/- 3 days” view. You’ll quickly see:
- Which specific days of your week are cheapest.
- Whether a midweek departure and return offer better value.
3. Consider a Long Weekend with Off-Peak Days
Rather than the classic Friday–Sunday trip, consider:
- Thursday–Monday (sometimes breaks up the highest-demand days).
- Saturday–Tuesday (often cheaper than Friday–Sunday).
- Midweek break (Tuesday–Thursday) if your schedule allows.
These patterns aren’t strict rules, but they often align better with lower fares.
Exceptions: When Weekends Might Not Be More Expensive
There are situations where weekend flights are similar in price—or even cheaper—than weekday flights, such as:
- Routes dominated by business travel during the week.
- Off-peak seasons with generally low demand.
- Special sales or promotional fares that apply to specific departure days.
This is why checking a full week or month of prices is more reliable than assuming one day is always cheapest.
Price vs Convenience: Finding Your Balance
While weekday flights might be cheaper, they’re not always practical. Ask yourself:
- How many extra days off work or school would I need?
- Is the savings worth losing a workday or using more vacation time?
- Would an early-morning or late-night weekend flight bring the cost closer to weekday prices?
For some travelers, saving money is the priority; for others, maximizing free time on weekends matters more.
Combining Day-of-Week with Other Savings Strategies
To get the best overall results, combine smart day-of-week choices with other tactics:
- Book within realistic advance-purchase windows for your route.
- Use price alerts to monitor fares and book when they drop.
- Be open to nearby airports that might have different pricing patterns.
- Compare direct vs connecting flights if you’re flexible on travel time.
Simple Rules of Thumb
While there are always exceptions, these quick guidelines work well for many trips:
- Avoid Friday evenings and Sunday afternoons/evenings when possible.
- Look first at Tuesday and Wednesday departures for lower fares.
- Check if returning on Saturday or Monday is cheaper than Sunday.
- Use flexible date tools to confirm which specific days are cheapest for your route.
Tip: If you’re planning a trip and see that shifting by 1–2 days saves a lot, calculate how much each extra vacation day is “worth” to you. Sometimes an extra day off can more than pay for itself in savings.
Once you’ve decided your ideal travel window, you can use BookingBe to compare prices across multiple days and airlines and quickly spot which departure and return combinations give you the best value.