Finding cheap airline flights has come a long way over the years. Thanks to travel search engines, you can now find, compare, and book cheap flights all within minutes. This is miles ahead of where you were decades ago when it took calls to your local travel agent (and hefty service fees paid) in order to find cheap airline flights. However, travel search engines have grown so much over the years that it can be difficult to find cheap flights unless you search each site individually.

Cheap flights are out there, but you need to know how to look for them. Understanding how cheap airline flights are priced is important if you really want to save money on your next booking. First, travel search engines have access to external databases that are created by the different airlines. These databases contain flight information for different flights including the number of seats available, the price for each seat, travel time, etc. The airlines input the information into these databases for the travel search engines to be able to search for cheap airline flights.

When you enter your search criteria into a travel search engine, that search engine will search all of the databases set up by the airlines. They will then return the results to you (in addition to a small fee that will be included in the price) and you will have the opportunity to book the cheap flights that you want. Different travel search engines charge different fees for conducting the search which is why you may receive a different price from Expedia than Priceline for the same flight from the same airline.

Now that you understand how travel search engines add a small fee onto cheap airline flights, you also need to know that different travel search engines often cut deals with different airlines for cheaper prices. For instance, Expedia may negotiate a deal with American Airlines to be able to sell airline tickets for $5 cheaper than other travel search engines. This is an advantage for Expedia as they can show that they have the lowest price for cheap flights for American Airlines in an attempt to have you book through them instead of other travel search engines.

Knowing that different travel search engines can charge different prices is important for understanding how to find cheap airline flights. If you want the best deal, you will have to go to each travel search engine individually and conduct the same search to see how they compare. This is, however, if you do not want to take part in the new technology of travel search engines that is revolutionizing the way you search for cheap flights.

Travel search engine companies such as TravelFox have launched what is referred to as a metasearch engine. This metasearch engine is completely different than what is used by Expedia. While Expedia searches the individual airline databases, TravelFox searches all of the travel search sites. Instead of going to Expedia or Priceline, you can go to TravelFox and enter your search criteria. TravelFox will then search your request among Expedia, Priceline, and 50 other travel search sites and return the information on who is offering cheap airline flights. You can then compare the rates from Priceline and Expedia without having to go to each individual site. Once you find the deal you are looking for, you can click through to the site that you want (e.g., Expedia) and your search will be waiting for you there with all of the cheap flights already loaded on the page.

If you are looking for a new and effective way to search for cheap flights without going to numerous different sites, then using a metasearch engine is the way to go. Using a site such as TravelFox is an effective way to save you time and money when you need immediate access to cheap airline flights.

About Author / Additional Info:
Find out more about cheap flights and travel search engine companies by visiting http://www.travelfox.com/.