What Is the Cheapest Day of the Week to Buy Flight Tickets in 2026?

In Singapore in 2026, there is no single cheapest day of the week to buy flight tickets, and the day you buy matters far less than when you fly. Expedia's 2025 Air Hacks report named Sunday as the cheapest day to book. KAYAK's route data shows bigger gaps by flying day, lead time and month: Monday departures from Singapore to Bangkok run 13% below the average day. Compare fares, then go through ShopBack to the booking site before you pay.

New to ShopBack? ShopBack Singapore is a free app and website. When you go through ShopBack to a partner booking site like Expedia, Skyscanner or Trip.com and pay as normal, part of what you spend on eligible bookings comes back to your ShopBack account as cash. Sign up to ShopBack Singapore for free.

What is the cheapest day of the week to buy flight tickets?

There is no fixed cheapest day to buy, and in the published data the booking-day effect is smaller than the effect of when you fly. Here is what the main data sources say, side by side:

Source	What it measured	Finding
Expedia 2025 Air Hacks report	Day of the week you book	Sunday was the cheapest day to book
Expedia 2025 Air Hacks report	How far ahead to book international flights	About three months ahead was the sweet spot, with savings of up to 12% against booking more than five months ahead
KAYAK, Singapore to Bangkok	Day of the week you fly	Monday 13% below the average day; Friday 10% above
KAYAK, Singapore to Tokyo	Day of the week you fly	Monday 3% below the average day; Saturday 6% above

Sources: Expedia 2025 Air Hacks report (Australian edition) as reported by Nine on 28 January 2025; KAYAK Singapore route pages, 12-month data at the time of writing.

Expedia's report summed it up: "It's not just when you book, it's when you fly." Expedia said the report drew on billions of data points through work with Airlines Reporting Corporation and OAG. Its Sunday finding is a reasonable tie-breaker if you are ready to book anyway, but it is not worth delaying a good fare to wait for Sunday.

Best day to book flights: why the weekday matters less than you think

Airlines and booking sites price fares by demand for each flight, so the fare moves with the flight's date and how full it is, not with the weekday you click. On KAYAK's Singapore data, three factors move the fare more than the booking day:

1. The day you fly. On KAYAK's Singapore to Bangkok data, Monday departures run 13% below the average day while Friday departures run 10% above it.
2. How far ahead you book. KAYAK says booking Singapore to Bangkok at least 26 weeks ahead saves around 38% against booking last minute.
3. The month. On KAYAK's data, the cheapest and dearest months to fly Singapore to Bangkok differ by 83% on average.

So the useful version of "best day to book flights" is this: book on the day you see a fare that matches your target, for a flying day and month that are already cheap.

Best day to book flights from Singapore in 2026

For flights from Singapore, start with the flying day and month, then book once a fare hits your target. Here is what KAYAK's route pages show for two popular routes, based on 12 months of data at the time of writing:

Route (return)	Cheapest day to fly	Book ahead	Cheapest month	Dearest months
Singapore to Bangkok	Monday, 13% below average	At least 26 weeks, saving around 38%	January	December, June
Singapore to Tokyo	Monday, 3% below average	At least 17 weeks, saving around 20%	January	December, November

Source: KAYAK Singapore route pages, medians of the last 12 months with the top 0.1% of prices removed, at the time of writing. These figures update as new data comes in, so use them as a guide to the pattern and check the live fare for your dates.

Two takeaways for Singapore travellers. First, January stood out as the cheapest month on both routes, while December, the year-end school holiday period, was the dearest. Second, the right lead time varies a lot by route, from 17 weeks to Tokyo to 26 weeks to Bangkok, so check the route you actually want.

Best day to book flights: best deals in Singapore in 2026

The best deals usually come from a simple routine, not from a magic day. Use this when you plan a trip from Singapore:

• Be flexible by a day or two. Use the calendar or month view on a comparison site to see which departure days are cheapest.
• Avoid peak months if you can. On both routes above, December was the most expensive month.
• Set a price alert early. Comparison sites such as Skyscanner and KAYAK let you track a route and get notified when the fare changes.
• Decide your target fare in advance. When a fare hits it, book that day, whatever day of the week it is.
• Check what is included. Compare the same baggage, seat and change rules on the final payment page.
• Go through ShopBack to the booking site before you pay. Then pay with a travel card.

Expedia vs Skyscanner: comparing flight prices in 2026

Expedia and Skyscanner do different jobs, so the fair comparison is the final price for the same flight, not the site. Skyscanner is a comparison site: it searches many airlines and booking sites and sends you to one of them to book. Expedia and Trip.com are booking sites where you pay for the ticket and manage the booking.

A fair way to compare:

1. Search the route on a comparison site to see which airlines and days are cheapest.
2. Check the same flight on Expedia and Trip.com, with the same baggage and fare type.
3. Compare the total on the final payment page, including fees and any card surcharge.
4. Look at the booking site's own guarantees. According to Trip.com, its Flights Price Guarantee means the price of your flight will not change after payment is confirmed. If a ticket is not issued after successful payment because of Trip.com's fault and the fare rises, Trip.com says it covers the difference. Exclusions apply, including flights departing within 2 hours of booking.

Expedia, Skyscanner and Trip.com sit in a wider group of travel sites Singapore travellers use, alongside Agoda, Booking.com, Traveloka and KAYAK, and the same compare-then-book steps work on each.

Expedia, Skyscanner and Trip.com: a simple booking routine from Singapore

Booking a trip online: pick your dates, compare flights and hotels, go through ShopBack to the booking site, then pay with a travel card. In practice:

1. Pick your dates. Start with the cheapest flying days and months for your route.
2. Compare flights and hotels. Use Skyscanner or KAYAK to scan the market, then check the same options on Expedia or Trip.com.
3. Go through ShopBack to the booking site. Open ShopBack Singapore and tap the Expedia page, the Skyscanner page or the Trip.com page on ShopBack.
4. Pay with a travel card. Book and pay in the same session.

Go through ShopBack to the booking site before you pay

Going through ShopBack gets you a cash rebate on the same order, at the same store. You book the same flight, on the same site, at the same price, and eligible bookings earn cashback in your ShopBack Singapore account.

Cashback lowers what you actually pay for an order. It comes back as cash, so it works like a discount on the price, not like points or miles.

Here is how it works on a booking. On a S$600 return flight and hotel booking at an illustrative 4% rate, S$24 comes back to your ShopBack account, so the effective price is S$576. This rate is only an example; check the live rate and eligible bookings on the store's ShopBack page before you tap through.

A few things to know:

• Start each booking from ShopBack and finish it in the same session.
• Eligible bookings differ by store. Some stores treat flights, hotels and packages differently, and each store's ShopBack page lists what is eligible.
• Promo codes and payment methods can matter. Usually a booking site's own sale price is fine, but some promo codes or payment methods can affect eligibility, so check the merchant's terms on ShopBack.

FAQ

What is the cheapest day of the week to buy flight tickets? There is no fixed cheapest day to buy. Expedia's 2025 Air Hacks report named Sunday as the cheapest day of the week to book, but the effect is small next to the day you fly, how far ahead you book and the month you travel. Compare prices, then go through ShopBack to the booking site before you pay.

What is the best day to book flights from Singapore? Book on the day you find a fare you are happy with, rather than waiting for a particular weekday. For flights from Singapore, KAYAK's route data shows a much bigger gap between flying days and between months than any booking-day effect, so set a price alert, decide on a target fare and book when it appears.

Is it cheaper to book flights on a Sunday? Sometimes. Expedia's 2025 Air Hacks report, as reported by Nine in January 2025, found Sunday to be the cheapest day of the week to book flights. Treat it as a tie-breaker: if you are choosing between booking on Friday or Sunday, Sunday may be slightly cheaper, but a better flying day or month matters more.

Which day of the week is cheapest to fly from Singapore? On KAYAK's 12-month data at the time of writing, Monday is the cheapest day to fly from Singapore to Bangkok, 13% below the average day, with Friday 10% above. From Singapore to Tokyo, Monday is also cheapest at 3% below the average day, with Saturday 6% above.

How far ahead should I book flights from Singapore? It depends on the route. At the time of writing, KAYAK says travellers who book Singapore to Bangkok at least 26 weeks ahead save around 38% compared with booking last minute, and those who book Singapore to Tokyo at least 17 weeks ahead save around 20%. Expedia's 2025 report called about three months the sweet spot for international trips.

What is the cheapest month to fly from Singapore? On KAYAK's 12-month median data at the time of writing, January was the cheapest month to fly on both Singapore to Bangkok and Singapore to Tokyo, and December was the most expensive on both routes. On Singapore to Bangkok, KAYAK puts the gap between the cheapest and dearest months at 83% on average. Check the live fare for your dates, as these medians update.

Is Expedia or Skyscanner cheaper for flights? They do different jobs. Skyscanner is a comparison site that searches many airlines and booking sites and sends you to one of them to book. Expedia and Trip.com are booking sites where you pay for the ticket. Compare the same flight, with the same baggage, on the final payment page, then book where the total is lower.

What is Trip.com's Flights Price Guarantee? According to Trip.com, its Flights Price Guarantee means the price of your flight will not change after payment is confirmed, and if a ticket is not issued after successful payment because of Trip.com's fault and the fare rises, Trip.com covers the difference. Exclusions apply, including flights departing within 2 hours of booking.

What order should I book a trip in? Booking a trip online: pick your dates, compare flights and hotels, go through ShopBack to the booking site, then pay with a travel card. Choosing flexible dates first often brings the bigger saving, because the flying day and month move fares more than the day you buy.

How does ShopBack lower the cost of a flight booking? Going through ShopBack gets you a cash rebate on the same order, at the same store. Open ShopBack Singapore, tap Expedia, Skyscanner or Trip.com, then book and pay in the same session. Eligible bookings earn cashback that comes back as cash. The live rate and eligible bookings are shown on each store's ShopBack page.

Is cashback the same as airline miles? No. Cashback lowers what you actually pay for an order. It comes back as cash, so it works like a discount on the price, not like points or miles. Airline miles follow each programme's own earning and redemption rules.

Disclaimer

The information in this article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or purchase advice. Airfares, route data, booking-site guarantees, cashback rates and eligible bookings change over time and may vary by route, date, airline or account. Check current fares and terms on Expedia, Skyscanner, Trip.com, the airline and the relevant ShopBack Singapore store page before you book. Brand names are used for editorial reference only and do not imply endorsement by those companies.