Without a doubt where you fly from can make a huge difference in how often you find cheap airfare which is why I’m always preaching to look at alternate airports.
Going.com just released its 2026 Top Airports and Airlines for Flight Deals, analyzing thousands of deals sent to its members over the past year. The data covers more than 45,000 routes from U.S. airports, and the rankings take into account not just ticket prices but the frequency of deals and how deeply fares are discounted.
For domestic flights, Denver (DEN) comes out on top. According to Going, competition is a major reason. United, Southwest, and Frontier all have a significant presence in Denver, creating the kind of fare wars travelers love. Denver’s central location and status as one of the country’s busiest connecting airports don’t hurt either.
Top 10 airports for domestic flight deals
Top 10 airports for domestic flight deals- Denver (DEN)
- New Orleans (MSY)
- Orlando (MCO)
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL)
- Los Angeles (LAX)
- Charleston (CHS)
- Raleigh-Durham (RDU)
- Tampa (TPA)
- Portland (PDX)
- Las Vegas (LAS)
Internationally, Boston Logan (BOS) dethroned New York-JFK for the top spot. Boston’s location relatively close to Europe helps produce competitive transatlantic fares, while its role as a JetBlue base generates plenty of deals to the Caribbean.
Top 10 airports for international flight deals
Top 10 airports for international flight deals- Boston (BOS)
- New York-JFK (JFK)
- Newark (EWR)
- Chicago O’Hare (ORD)
- Los Angeles (LAX)
- Raleigh-Durham (RDU)
- Orlando (MCO)
- Miami (MIA)
- Washington Dulles (IAD)
- Austin (AUS)
Going also revealed the airports where deals are hardest to find. For domestic travel, Honolulu (HNL), Kahului (OGG), and Anchorage (ANC) came in at the bottom. Internationally, the bottom three were Kahului, Anchorage, and Oakland (OAK).
According to Going, Kahului and Anchorage typically see only about 0–2 deals per week, with average roundtrip fares well into the $500s.
And it’s not just about airports. Going ranked the full-service U.S. airlines offering the most domestic flight deals:
- American Airlines
- Delta Air Lines
- Southwest
- United Airlines
- Alaska Airlines/Hawaiian Airlines
- JetBlue
Going analyzed deals sent between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026, scoring airports based on average airfare (30%), average savings on full-service airlines (35%), and deal volume (35%). The big takeaway? Competition matters which is no surprise. When multiple airlines, especially low-fare carriers, battle for passengers at the same airport, travelers tend to be the winners.
Which airport have you found consistently has the cheapest fares?
