Most "best time to buy travel" advice is folklore. This one is data: every year of SimplyCodes verification data across the most-searched travel retailers, grouped by calendar month — so "December" means every December on record, not one. The calendar below reads the share of each month's stores whose deepest code ran 25% off or deeper — refreshed as new data lands.
December is the best month to buy travel with a promo code. Across every year SimplyCodes has tracked, 34.2% of travel stores running a percentage-off code in December had one at 25% off or deeper — the highest share of any month, and 9.3 points above the weakest month (August, 24.9%). Figures cover 40,789 store-months across the travel brands SimplyCodes tracks — each store counted once for every month it ran a percentage-off code — as of August 21, 2026.
- December is the strongest month for travel discounts — 34.2% of the travel stores SimplyCodes tracked had a code 25% off or deeper that month, across 3,627 store-months measured.
- January is the runner-up at 28.5% — worth knowing if you miss December, and the reason this calendar is worth reading past its headline.
- August is the weakest month at 24.9% — a 9.3-point gap from December. Buying travel in August means shopping the year's thinnest discount pool.
Browse every verified travel promo code on SimplyCodes — the full catalog behind this calendar.
Deep-discount share = the share of that month's travel stores whose deepest percentage-off code was 25% off or more · bar = that share relative to the strongest month · store-months = the denominator behind each share, one per store per month it ran a percentage-off code · — = fewer than 3 retailers contributed that month, so no share publishes · free ship / free gift = at least one such offer verified in that month.
All years on record of travel verification data across the travel brands SimplyCodes tracks, counted once per store per month and grouped by calendar month · snapshot as of August 21, 2026
Frequently asked questions
When is the best month to book travel with a promo code?
December is the best month to buy travel with a promo code. Across every year SimplyCodes has tracked, 34.2% of travel stores running a percentage-off code in December had one at 25% off or deeper — the highest share of any month, and 9.3 points above the weakest month (August, 24.9%). Figures cover 40,789 store-months across the travel brands SimplyCodes tracks — each store counted once for every month it ran a percentage-off code — as of August 21, 2026.
Which month has the deepest travel discounts?
As of August 21, 2026, December is the deepest month on record for travel, with 34.2% of its stores running a percentage-off code having one at 25% off or deeper. The calendar re-reads every month's record daily, so the peak moves when the data does.
Which month has the most travel promo codes?
August carries the most travel promo codes on record, at 3,962 tracked codes. Volume and depth are different questions — the month with the most codes is not always the month with the deepest one.
How does SimplyCodes know when travel discounts run deepest?
Every figure comes from SimplyCodes verification data: promo codes are tested at real checkout before they are listed, and the discount each one actually delivered is recorded with the month it ran. The travel calendar reads those records back month by month, so it reports discounts that were measured, not discounts that were advertised. Checked August 21, 2026.
Methodology
How SimplyCodes verifies codes. Behind every figure in this live data study is the SimplyCodes verification system. Coupon codes are tested at real checkout before they are listed, through three independent layers: daily automated testing, where headless browsers runs headless browsers through real checkout flows and records whether a discount actually applies. A human verification network of 10,000+ verifiers submits screenshot-and-timestamp proof. And a real-time fleet signal, where live checkout outcomes feed back into the engine. The calendar below summarizes that verification history month by month.
How this calendar is built. we take every travel store SimplyCodes tracks at the travel brands SimplyCodes tracks and record, for each calendar month that store ran a percentage-off code, the deepest discount it offered that month — so "December" means every December on record, not one year's. For each month we report the share of those stores whose deepest code reached 25% off or more, alongside the number of store-months behind the share. This measures how many stores discount deeply in a given month, not how many individual codes did. Only percentage-off codes are counted, because fixed-amount offers are not comparable across price points. Percentage claims of 95% or more are excluded as implausible. And a month contributed by fewer than 3 retailers publishes no share at all
Cite this data
December is the best month to buy travel with a promo code: 34.2% of travel stores SimplyCodes tracks had a code 25% off or deeper in December, 9.3 points above the weakest month (August).
According to SimplyCodes verification data, December carries the deepest travel discounts of any month — 34.2% of tracked travel stores had a code 25% off or deeper, versus 24.9% in August.
