In our digital world, it’s not that difficult to find cheap flights if you know where to look. Despite this, sometimes we don’t have the time to do our research and wait for a good flight to pop up in our search results. This is especially the case when you’re faced with last-minute emergencies that require you to find a plane ticket as soon as possible.

For many travelers, finding an affordable last-minute plane ticket can feel like an incredibly difficult game. That being said, it isn’t impossible if you know the right tips and tricks to narrow your search. To help you figure out the most efficient ways to travel at low cost on a moment’s notice, here’s our list of how to find cheap last-minute flights.

Be flexible on departure time

If you’re someone who already searches for cheap plane tickets, you’re likely familiar with this rule. By keeping your general departure date and time open, you can make sure that you get the best deal possible. However, in urgent situations, it’s understandable that you don’t have the same amount of time as you might have on a flexible vacation. But this doesn’t mean that you should only be searching for one departure time.

If you want to keep your options open, you should be looking for as many departure times as possible. For example, if you don’t have to get somewhere until the nighttime, looking for any early morning to mid-afternoon flights can help you come up with a good list of inexpensive options. You’ll be sure to score some deals if you’re up for leaving at undesirable hours such as between midnight and 6 in the morning.

Be comfortable with transfers

If you’re someone who prefers non-stop flights, you might want to expand your options when trying to find the cheapest prices. Many budget airlines are incredibly efficient at servicing as many customers as possible and frequently combine flight paths to sell more tickets. For this reason, you should stay on the lookout for flights with connections, which might just provide you with some of the best deals available.

Be flexible about airports

Many cities are serviced by multiple airports, or have nearby cities with their own airports. If you want to get the lowest airfare, you should look around for prices at different airports. Even though you may not be arriving in the most convenient part of the city, the money that you will save on the plane ticket will likely be worth the trouble.

For example, instead of flying into John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City, look into flights that arrive at Newark Airport in New Jersey. Even though it’s in a different state, Newark is a similar distance to Manhattan as JFK and can often mean significantly cheaper rates.

Be flexible on your destination

For those unfamiliar with affordable flight finding methods, this might seem like an odd tip. After all, why would you want to land in an area that you’re not traveling to? There are actually many benefits to changing your flight’s destination. For example, it’s certainly possible that there’s a very cheap flight to a city that’s close to your final destination, which may be only a inexpensive train ride away from where you eventually want to end up. If you’re planning on renting a car anyway, perhaps picking up the car in a different city can be a way to save money as well.

Now for the disclaimer: For this to work out, you need to make sure that any additional travel costs (train, rental car, ride share etc.) don’t outweigh the cost savings on your plane ticket. This method certainly isn’t infallible, but depending on where you’re headed and how close the other airport is, it could wind up saving you money. We would still recommend that you keep this in mind to make sure that you get the best possible deal on last-minute flights.

Call the airline

If you aren’t able to find any specific deals, you should call the airline you want to fly with. Who knows? There might be some seats that are not appearing online or some last-minute cancellations that may open up. If you’re unable to find success with one airline, calling a few others can also be a good idea.

Do you have any pointers on how to find cheap last-minute flights? Share them with us in the comments!