How far ahead should you book a flight? The ‘magic number’ you need to know before booking a flight

A lesser-known travel hack has been revealed to help thousands of travellers score the best deal before booking a flight.

It’s essential to know the ‘magic number’ of days before a flight opens to secure the cheapest price.

According to CheapAir’s annual study, the price of a flight changes on average every 4.5 days and each change averages $33 up or down.

The number differs across all airlines, but can usually be checked simply by visiting the website. Often airlines release seats between 330 to 362 days in advance. 

Qantas releases it’s award flights 353 days before departure for those wanting to book using Frequent Flyer points, while Singapore Airlines releasing dates 355 days prior. 

As for Virgin Australia, customers can book and choose seats 336 days before travel at time of booking.

Singapore Airlines also has a ‘Secure My Flight’ page where customers can reserve the desired itinerary before deciding to buy a ticket, which comes at a non-refundable fee of $20. 

The handy feature freezes a booking without worrying if the fare price increases. 

According to the website, if your flight is eligible, a ‘Secure My Fare’ button will appear after you’ve selected your flight and fare type. 

Travellers should book domestic flights at least 21 weeks in advance and international flights 22 weeks in advance. 

It comes after a woman listed the best ways to save money when travelling – including packing snacks, a water bottle and booking flights ahead of time. 

Téa Angelos, from Brisbane, Australia, shared the handy tips in a sequence of two videos with thousands on TikTok.

The 25-year-old founder of education company Smart Women Society recommends booking flights at least six weeks in advance, using cashback services and signing up for travel sales alerts to get the best deals.

When booking flights, it’s best to sign up to airline email lists to make use of deals and sales.

Wednesday tends to be the cheapest day of the week to fly and it’s best to use services such as Webjet to compare fares when booking.

Rather than buying overpriced food at the airport, Téa ensures she always packs snacks, food and a filled water bottle in her carry-on luggage.

She also avoids spending money on check-in luggage to save both time and money at the airport.

Hotel and accommodation prices can also be compared using multiple platforms. 

‘Check the actual hotel website as they sometimes offer special deals/discounts,’ Téa wrote.

When travelling overseas, travel cards often have little to no fees to use compared to credit cards, which often charge foreign exchange fees.