Looking at:
- How Skyscanner is unbiased, and therefore clearing your cookies will not affect the price you see on our website
- Why the availability of seats and the time in advance you book the flight both affect the flight price
- How to find the cheapest flights
What are cookies?
A cookie is essentially a data file that’s created by a website and then stored by your internet browser. It’s where preferences such as login details and usernames are stored, so you don’t need to enter them every time you visit a certain site. But it also means when you search for something specific like flights, these preferences are stored by the browser for the next time you visit the site (dates, destinations, number of passengers, for example).
The two main types of cookies are persistent cookies and session cookies. The persistent cookies last longer than the session cookies but usually have a pre-determined expiration date, which often ranges from a few days up to a few months, after which point they’re deleted. Session cookies exist for a much shorter time and only store information for the time you’re searching, and are deleted as soon as you switch off.
Does Skyscanner increase flight prices using cookies?
No. Skyscanner can only show prices that are passed onto us by the airline or travel agent whose prices we are showing you. It’s not possible for a Skyscanner cookie to influence the prices because up until the time you click through to the travel agent or airline’s website to book the flight, your session is anonymous. So, the ticket price you see on our website is the one the airlines and travel agents give us – our partners have an obligation to us to make sure that the flights are available for the prices they give us (and you). Flight prices do go up and down very quickly, but we keep a close eye on the prices shown by our partners, and if we were to spot any behavior that seems unfair, we act immediately.
Will clearing my computer’s cookies allow me to find cheaper flights?
Again, no. Skyscanner is unbiased and as we stated above, the flight prices displayed by us are those given to us by travel providers (airlines and online travel agencies).
So why do flight prices go up?
Airline ticket pricing is very complicated and depends on a few different factors, but it’s worth remembering that the flight prices change (up or down) in real time. Skyscanner does everything we can to make sure the price you see on our website is the price you’ll pay with the travel agent or airline, including all charges and fees. As your date of departure gets closer, the prices might increase because of reduced availability on that particular flight. So fewer remaining seats means higher flight prices? Not necessarily. If there’s lots of available seats left on a flight then our partners might increase the cost of those seats to recuperate some of the money it costs to fly a plane – even when it’s half full.
How do I make sure I get the best and cheapest deals on flights?
Skyscanner has many ways to help you do this:
- If you can be flexible about the dates you travel, search for flights using the “Whole Month or Cheapest Month” options on the Skyscanner search.
- Sign up to receive price alert emails so you’ll know straight away when flights to a specific destination change.
- Don’t mind where you go as long as the sun is shining and the food is good? Use Skyscanner’s Everywhere search tool to show you the cheapest flights to, well, everywhere, depending on what dates you’d like to travel. We’ll show you the cheapest flights to a range of destinations that fit within your chosen dates.
Skyscanner is the world’s travel search engine, helping your money go further on flights, hotels and car rental.
