The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) released its annual fare report on April 24, revealing that the average domestic itinerary in 2025 cost $387—1.8 percent less than the inflation-adjusted 2024 average of $394. The numbers, based on BTS’s new OD40 survey that samples 40 percent of all airline tickets, challenge anecdotes of relentless price hikes.
![Government data show 2025 average domestic air fare down 1.8 % from 2024]()
Travel managers juggling both domestic and international trips might also streamline visa and passport requirements through VisaHQ, an online expediting platform. The service’s U.S. portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) offers up-to-date entry rules, digital applications and corporate account dashboards, helping companies avoid last-minute itinerary changes that could wipe out the airfare savings highlighted in the BTS report.
Even with fuel costs spiking in late 2025, real fares remain 39 percent below their 2000 peak and 37 percent below 1995 levels. Unadjusted for inflation, however, fares ticked up 0.9 percent year-over-year, suggesting that travelers still feel nominal increases. For corporate travel managers, the data provide leverage in supplier negotiations: while airlines such as United have warned of 15-20 percent hikes this summer, historical averages show carriers absorbing much of the volatility. Companies may point to the BTS trend to resist across-the-board fare-cap surcharges or to expand low-cost-carrier options for domestic shuttles. The report also notes widening spreads among airport tiers—large hubs averaged $412, while mid-size origin airports averaged $392—indicating that relocating employees to secondary cities could further reduce program spend. BTS will publish first-quarter 2026 figures later this year; analysts expect a rebound given current jet-fuel prices.
Travel managers juggling both domestic and international trips might also streamline visa and passport requirements through VisaHQ, an online expediting platform. The service’s U.S. portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) offers up-to-date entry rules, digital applications and corporate account dashboards, helping companies avoid last-minute itinerary changes that could wipe out the airfare savings highlighted in the BTS report.
Even with fuel costs spiking in late 2025, real fares remain 39 percent below their 2000 peak and 37 percent below 1995 levels. Unadjusted for inflation, however, fares ticked up 0.9 percent year-over-year, suggesting that travelers still feel nominal increases. For corporate travel managers, the data provide leverage in supplier negotiations: while airlines such as United have warned of 15-20 percent hikes this summer, historical averages show carriers absorbing much of the volatility. Companies may point to the BTS trend to resist across-the-board fare-cap surcharges or to expand low-cost-carrier options for domestic shuttles. The report also notes widening spreads among airport tiers—large hubs averaged $412, while mid-size origin airports averaged $392—indicating that relocating employees to secondary cities could further reduce program spend. BTS will publish first-quarter 2026 figures later this year; analysts expect a rebound given current jet-fuel prices.
