There is a persistent myth that airline websites track your searches and raise prices every time you look. Clear your cookies, they say. Use incognito mode. The airline will not know you are interested and the price will drop.

This is mostly not true. Multiple investigations — from ProPublica, from consumer advocacy groups, from Google Flights’ own engineering team — have found no evidence that airlines and booking sites dynamically raise prices based on your search history. Prices change constantly because of inventory management algorithms that have nothing to do with you personally. That fifteen-dollar jump you saw after searching three times was probably a coincidence, not a conspiracy.

Here is what actually gets you a better price.

Use Google Flights price tracking

Search for your route and dates, then toggle the “Track prices” button. Google Flights will email you when the price drops significantly. It also shows a price history graph so you can see if the current price is unusually high or low for that route. This alone saves more money than any cookie-clearing ritual ever could.

Be flexible with dates

This is the single biggest pricing lever. Flying on a Tuesday or Wednesday is almost always cheaper than flying on a Friday or Sunday. Google Flights and Skyscanner both have a “flexible dates” view that shows a price grid across multiple days. A one-day shift can save hundreds of dollars on long-haul flights. Fly the day before or after a holiday, not the holiday itself.

Book at the right time

The sweet spot for domestic flights is one to three months in advance. For international flights, two to eight months. Closer than that and prices rise as seats fill up. Earlier than that and you are paying a premium for the airline to hold your seat for a long time. There are exceptions — holiday travel, major events, and popular routes — but this is the general rule.

Consider nearby airports

Sometimes flying into a smaller airport an hour away saves more than the cost of the train or rental car to get to your actual destination. Google Flights lets you add nearby airports to your search. Check the “include nearby airports” box and see if a different airport changes the price significantly.

Do not book through third-party sites if you can avoid it

Booking directly with the airline costs about the same and gives you way more flexibility if something goes wrong. If your flight is canceled, the airline will help you at the gate. If you booked through a third-party site, they will tell you to contact that site. At 2 a.m. in an airport, that is a nightmare. The twenty dollars you saved is not worth it.

I track prices with Google Flights, book directly with the airline, and fly midweek when I can. I have never cleared a cookie for a flight search and my prices are fine. The myth is persistent because it feels good — like you are outsmarting the system. The actual way to outsmart the system is to be flexible and book at the right time.