There are a lot of factors that determine how cheap it is to fly in and out of different states of any region. One of them is enviously the airports and aerodromes from where we travel to and from. For example, Ryanair, the most successful budget carrier of all time said that it would never operate from London’s Heathrow airport and opts to travel out of London’s Stanstead airport.
A study quoted in Simple Flying said that the average ticket price to Tallahassee Regional Airport was $561.69, making it the most expensive airport based on average fares in the US. A Chinese budget carrier named Spring Airlines, once offered passengers to fly between Shanghai and the northern city of Jinan for merely 13 cents (1 Yuan). While the cheapest places to fly from each state isn’t as low as this, one can fly for less than $40. Let’s have a look at the list of the cheapest flights from each US state as reported by Travel and Leisure.
But before taking a look at this, let’s analyze how the cheapest flights from each state was calculated.
Looking for Help with Skyscanner
Travel and Leisure asked Skyscanner “to analyze data from the largest airport in every U.S. state and identify the cheapest domestic and international destinations for March 2026“.
Many of these flights are non-stop flights while others included a stopover. The publication noted that despite all the flights not being non-stop all of them represented “the most affordable options for travelers looking to stretch their dollars further“.
Everyone who has regularly used airfare comparison knows Skyscanner, and they are also cognizant of the fact that it has flexible date searching, among other features. This search aggregator launched in the 2000s, allows you to search for flights fto from a specific airport or a city, and also makes finding cheap flights easier.
Some of its other features include:
- Discovering the cheapest place to fly from your airport
- Flexibility in the search date of flights
- Scanning for flights to multiple airports
- Notification about airfares
- Helps to check smaller online travel agents to find lower fares
In the UK, for example. Skyscanner shows lower fares, reported inews.co.uk:
“…carried out a snapshot comparison of 11 different routes on five popular travel comparison websites, including Google Flights, Skyscanner found the cheapest fare on more than half the routes. Skyscanner too is trying to take on airline algorithms. Like Google, it has mountains of data, which it’s used to predict exactly when travellers should book for the cheapest fare to popular destinations.”
With Skyscanner tried, rested, and reported in the Uk to have shown the cheapest fare, it would be interesting to see how cheap it reports the flights from each of the US states are. Let’s find out.
Cheapest Flights from Every U.S. State
| State | Primary Airport | Cheapest Domestic Destination | Fare (USD) | Cheapest International Destination | Fare (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Birmingham–Shuttlesworth Intl (BHM) | Nashville, TN | 130 | Cancún, Mexico | 247 |
| Alaska | Ted Stevens Anchorage Intl (ANC) | Las Vegas, NV | 135 | Vancouver, Canada | 234 |
| Arizona | Phoenix Sky Harbor Intl (PHX) | Los Angeles, CA | 41 | Calgary, Canada | 75 |
| Arkansas | Bill & Hillary Clinton Natl (LIT) | Denver, CO | 114 | Athens, Greece | 274 |
| California | Los Angeles Intl (LAX) | Las Vegas, NV | 38 | San Salvador, El Salvador | 110 |
| Colorado | Denver Intl (DEN) | Phoenix, AZ | 45 | Mérida, Mexico | 230 |
| Connecticut | Bradley Intl (BDL) | Richmond, VA | 56 | Punta Cana, DR | 159 |
| Delaware | Wilmington Airport (ILG) | Nashville, TN | 262 | London, UK | 245 |
| Florida | Miami Intl (MIA) | New York, NY | 42 | San Salvador, El Salvador | 112 |
| Georgia | Hartsfield–Jackson Intl (ATL) | Orlando, FL | 38 | Vancouver, Canada | 102 |
| Hawaii | Daniel K. Inouye Intl (HNL) | Miami, FL | 39 | Guatemala City, Guatemala | 217 |
| Idaho | Boise Airport (BOI) | Seattle, WA | 61 | Manzanillo, Mexico | 153 |
| Illinois | O’Hare Intl (ORD) | Minneapolis, MN | 48 | Toronto, Canada | 90 |
| Indiana | Indianapolis Intl (IND) | Savannah, GA | 75 | San José, Costa Rica | 210 |
| Iowa | Des Moines Intl (DSM) | Houston, TX | 106 | Paris, France | 281 |
| Kansas | Kansas City Intl (MCI) | Los Angeles, CA | 93 | Cancún, Mexico | 220 |
| Kentucky | Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Intl (CVG) | Charleston, SC | 47 | Punta Cana, DR | 216 |
| Louisiana | Louis Armstrong New Orleans Intl (MSY) | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 49 | San Pedro Sula, Honduras | 130 |
| Maine | Portland Intl Jetport (PWM) | Salt Lake City, UT | 41 | Istanbul, Turkey | 193 |
| Maryland | Baltimore/Washington Intl (BWI) | New Haven, CT | 46 | Guatemala City, Guatemala | 113 |
| Massachusetts | Boston Logan Intl (BOS) | Miami, FL | 50 | Dublin, Ireland | 171 |
| Michigan | Detroit Metro (DTW) | Tampa, FL | 50 | Cancún, Mexico | 157 |
| Minnesota | Minneapolis–St. Paul Intl (MSP) | Chicago, IL | 104 | Dublin, Ireland | 179 |
| Mississippi | Jackson–Evers Intl (JAN) | Nashville, TN | 183 | Madrid, Spain | 360 |
| Missouri | St. Louis Lambert Intl (STL) | Denver, CO | 121 | Punta Cana, DR | 160 |
| Montana | Bozeman Yellowstone Intl (BZN) | New York, NY | 86 | Nassau, Bahamas | 370 |
| Nebraska | Eppley Airfield (OMA) | Tampa, FL | 91 | Cancún, Mexico | 203 |
| Nevada | Harry Reid Intl (LAS) | Fresno, CA | 40 | Vancouver, Canada | 56 |
| New Hampshire | Manchester–Boston Regional (MHT) | Charleston, SC | 50 | Dublin, Ireland | 276 |
| New Jersey | Newark Liberty Intl (EWR) | Atlanta, GA | 49 | Milan, Italy | 161 |
| New Mexico | Albuquerque Intl Sunport (ABQ) | Seattle, WA | 75 | Querétaro, Mexico | 198 |
| New York | LaGuardia (LGA) | Chicago, IL | 56 | Edinburgh, Scotland | 210 |
| North Carolina | Charlotte Douglas Intl (CLT) | Houston, TX | 60 | Punta Cana, DR | 216 |
| North Dakota | Hector Intl (FAR) | Phoenix, AZ | 94 | Vancouver, Canada | 230 |
| Ohio | Cleveland Hopkins Intl (CLE) | Philadelphia, PA | 65 | Rome, Italy | 335 |
| Oklahoma | Will Rogers World (OKC) | Las Vegas, NV | 100 | Dublin, Ireland | 218 |
| Oregon | Portland Intl (PDX) | Salt Lake City, UT | 41 | Mexico City, Mexico | 124 |
| Pennsylvania | Philadelphia Intl (PHL) | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 39 | Guadalajara, Mexico | 137 |
| Rhode Island | T.F. Green Intl (PVD) | Charleston, SC | 51 | Montego Bay, Jamaica | 186 |
| South Carolina | Charleston Intl (CHS) | Providence, RI | 55 | Cancún, Mexico | 134 |
| South Dakota | Sioux Falls Regional (FSD) | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 86 | Lisbon, Portugal | 261 |
| Tennessee | Nashville Intl (BNA) | Minneapolis, MN | 61 | Nassau, Bahamas | 208 |
| Texas | Dallas–Fort Worth Intl (DFW) | Washington, D.C. | 82 | San Luis Potosí, Mexico | 84 |
| Utah | Salt Lake City Intl (SLC) | Portland, OR | 41 | Vancouver, Canada | 178 |
| Vermont | Burlington Intl (BTV) | Orlando, FL | 100 | Montego Bay, Jamaica | 252 |
| Virginia | Richmond Intl (RIC) | New Orleans, LA | 86 | San Pedro Sula, Honduras | 123 |
| Washington | Seattle–Tacoma Intl (SEA) | Phoenix, AZ | 44 | Dublin, Ireland | 176 |
| West Virginia | Yeager Intl (CRW) | Tampa, FL | 68 | Bogotá, Colombia | 281 |
| Wisconsin | Central Wisconsin (CWA) | Fort Myers, FL | 369 | Madrid, Spain | 291 |
| Wyoming | Jackson Hole (JAC) | San Diego, CA | 120 | San José, Costa Rica | 204 |
Source: Travel and Leisure
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Are These Really the Cheapest Flights from Each State in the US?
As the cheapest flight prices from each state in the US (in the table above) were compiled from Skyscanner, it might not be the cheapest fare available, as Google (with its Google Flights) positions itself as a tool for finding the lowest fares.
Google Flights relies on powerful search algorithms that scan pricing data from dozens of airlines almost instantly.
Advantages and Limitations of Google Flights
Rather than a simple list, here’s a side-by-side breakdown of what Google Flights does well — and where it falls short:
| Strengths | Limitations |
|---|---|
| Price calendar highlights the lowest fares months in advance | Error and mistake fares are rarely, if ever, surfaced |
| Displays estimated carbon emissions for each itinerary | Limited OTA participation means some exclusive discounts are missing |
| Enables direct booking with airlines, avoiding middlemen | Not designed for flash sales or ultra-niche deal hunting |
| Fast, uncluttered interface focused on price transparency | Less useful for travelers seeking package deals |
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Google Flights Price Guarantee Explained
Google Flights also offers a price guarantee on select itineraries, though it doesn’t apply universally. Flights that qualify are marked with a badge featuring a dollar sign in Google’s signature colors, signaling Google’s confidence that the fare will not decrease.
According to Google, the guarantee works as follows:
“When you select a price-guaranteed booking option on Google Flights, the Price guarantee pays you the difference between the flight price at that time and the lowest ticket price for that exact itinerary as seen on Google Flights between then and departure. To get a payout, the price difference must be greater than $5 USD. You can receive up to $500 USD total per Google Account across all eligible itineraries in a given calendar year. You can have up to three confirmed price-guaranteed bookings at any one time. If eligible, you’ll receive money back after the first flight in the booked itinerary has taken off.”
Eligibility Rules for the Price Guarantee
To qualify for Google Flights’ price guarantee, users must meet several conditions:
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Google account must be set to the United States as the country or region
-
Currency must be displayed in USD
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Flights must be one-way or round-trip departures from the U.S.
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A U.S. billing address and U.S. phone number are required during checkout
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All in All
Would the list of the cheapest fares from each US state been different if Google Flights was used instead of Skyscanner? Very likely.