Average ticket prices in September continued to climb, according to the latest Airlines Reporting Corp. report.
The average price in September for a U.S. domestic roundtrip ticket was $669, up from $558 in September 2025, and up from $624 in August 2026. This figure also was the highest since the pandemic, topping the prior peak in June 2026 at $629.
The September average price for a domestic economy-class ticket increased 21 percent year over year to $608. The average price for a premium-class ticket was up 14 percent to $1,562. Each were up 7 percent month over month.
Despite higher prices, air demand continued to grow. September total U.S.-based agency air tickets sales and the year-over-year change in the number of trips sold by corporate agencies and settled by ARC increased.
The number of September trips sold by agencies with at least 70 percent self-reported corporate and government business increased 6 percent year over year. It is the eighth consecutive month of increase for the metric.
Total air ticket sales in September exceeded $10.2 billion, an increase of 17.5 percent year over year. Total passenger trips for the month increased 1.8 percent year over year to more than 25.7 million. U.S. domestic passenger trips were up 2.1 percent to nearly 16.7 million, while international trips were up 1.3 percent to nearly 9.1 million.
September New Distribution Capability transactions accounted for 21.2 percent of total ARC-settled transactions, up 7 percent year over year. For the month, 1,264 travel agencies reported NDC transactions.
"Demand for travel remains strong despite geopolitical uncertainty and inflationary pressure, with over 77 million airline trips ticketed through travel agencies in the third quarter," ARC chief commercial officer Steve Solomon said in an email.
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