There’s nothing we here at Dollar Flight Club love more than helping you find cheap flights. We’d love to tell you that simply switching your flight search to Google Flights in an incognito browser will instantly find you $300 mistake fares to Europe in business class. However, the idea of finding deals with incognito mode is sadly, a myth.
Yes, the flight you were eyeing occasionally increases in price an hour after you were looking at it, but this is not because you’re being monitored by Google Flights or Skyscanner.
Flight prices change because airline prices constantly fluctuate, based on an extremely complicated algorithm.
However, using a VPN for cheaper flights is not a myth, it can be a useful tool to change your point of sale to see alternative airline pricing. Your VPN could help you search from countries with cheap flight options.
Let’s take a more detailed look at using incognito mode and a VPN for cheaper flights.
The myth of incognito mode
Finding cheap flights in incognito is one of the biggest myths in the world of cheap flights. Many travel bloggers claim that Google and other search engines track your flight search history and inflate the prices for itineraries you’re interested in.
Experts agree that this is not true and flight price changes occur for other reasons, not because of search monitoring.
I went ahead and tested a few routes in Google Flights in my normal browser and incognito mode—the prices were exactly the same in all four searches.
I made sure to diversify my searches as well: one-way, roundtrip, international, domestic, etc…
Don’t waste your time using incognito mode. Instead, learn how airlines price flights and how to find the best deals yourself.
Your flights can change in price an hour after your initial search because of the airline’s use of fare classes.
American Airlines has a staggering number of fare classes:
- Basic economy: B.
- Main Cabin: O, Q, N, S, G, V, M, L, K, H, Y.
- Premium economy: P, W.
- Business class: I, R, D, C, J.
The farther you go in the alphabet, the more expensive the fare is. So, in economy/main cabin, Y fares will be more expensive than O fares.
This explains how you could be looking at a flight, and, an hour later, the price is higher. It’s likely that all of the fares you were looking at sold, and the airline is now selling tickets at a higher fare class.
Flight prices are constantly changing, not because you’re being tracked, but because of the complicated airline algorithm utilizing 15-plus fare classes.
How to use a VPN for cheaper flights
While using incognito mode is a myth, using a VPN for cheaper flights is not! Many who suggest incognito mode also suggest VPNs, but that is assuming that Google is tracking your flight search history and increasing prices accordingly.
You should use a VPN for cheaper flights not to avoid being tracked, but to change your point-of-sale location.
One of the amazing features of VPNs is to be in America, but make a website think you’re in the Philippines (or any other country). VPNs, for example, can help you access Netflix films that may only be available in Europe. If your device appears to be in Europe, you’ll be able to access European Netflix.
This is important for cheap flights because occasionally, airlines or online travel agencies can price flights differently in different parts of the world.
For example, some travel experts claim setting your VPN to the country you’re traveling to can reduce the price. If you’re traveling to Japan from the US, try setting your VPN to Japan and see if the flight prices drop.
Unfortunately, this is not the most reliable trick and can sometimes lead to higher prices. However, if you’re serious about finding the best deals and countries with cheap flights, getting a VPN and playing with the location could be a smart move.
How to actually find cheap flights
As discussed at length on this site, there are many tried and tested ways to find cheap flights. However, they typically do not utilize VPNs or incognito mode.
Our guide to finding cheap flights emphasizes the importance of:
- Being flexible with your dates and location.
- Using price tracking tools on sites like Skyscanner and Google Flights.
- Traveling on the cheapest days/times of the day.
Finding cheap flights can be an arduous task. The easiest way to find cheap flights is to subscribe (for free) to Dollar Flight Club, no VPN necessary. You’ll get the best deals from your home airport delivered to your inbox daily.
If you’re not interested in spending hours scanning the internet yourself, let us do it for you.
