Google presents money-saving feature to book cheaper flights; How it works

“For searches with reliable trend data, you’ll now see when prices have typically been lowest to book your chosen dates and destination," Google said in the blog post.

How does the Google Flights feature work?

New insights might tell you that the cheapest time to book similar trips is typically two months before departure, and you're currently in that sweet spot. Otherwise, the traveller might learn that prices have typically dropped closer to takeoff, so they may decide to wait before booking, the blog post reads.

It says price tracking can do most of the heavy lifting for travellers who want to wait for lower rates before booking. Once you enable price tracking, the traveller will be automatically notified if flight prices drop significantly.

“You can set up tracking for specific dates, like your best friend’s destination wedding in February. Or, if you’re more flexible, you can turn on “Any dates" price tracking to receive emails about deals anytime in the next three to six months. To enable this feature, make sure you’re logged into your Google account," it said.

On some flight results, travellers will see a colourful price guarantee badge, meaning the fare they see today won't be lower before departure, it added.

Google says that the best time to book flights for Christmas is early October. “Average prices tend to be lowest 71 days before departure — a big change from our 2022 insights, which found that average prices were lowest just 22 days before departure. And the typical low price range is now 54-78 days before takeoff." The best time to book flights from the United States to Europe is 72 days or more before departure.