OTA Flight Price Comparison Case Study

Executive Summary

Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) such as MakeMyTrip (MMT), EaseMyTrip (EMT) and Agoda compete aggressively on airfare pricing. Yet final fares differ significantly across OTAs due to:

Convenience fees
Hidden charges
Currency variations
Airline partnerships
Commission structures
Dynamic demand-based adjustments

Actowiz Solutions built a real-time OTA fare comparison engine that tracked flight prices across six major OTAs and multiple airlines. The goal was to reveal fare discrepancies, price volatility, peak booking times, hidden fee patterns and best-value OTAs for different routes.

This case study presents deep insights into OTA-level variations for domestic and international routes during December — one of the busiest travel months globally.

Background

Travellers assume all OTAs display the same prices, but this is rarely true. OTAs use their own:

Service fee logic
API partners
Airline contracts
Cashback incentives
Country-wise tax calculations
Markup rules

As a result:

MMT may be cheapest for one airline
EMT may be cheapest for another
Agoda may be cheaper for international carriers due to forex-based pricing

Travel agencies, meta-search platforms, airlines and corporate travel managers required a transparent, data-backed comparison across OTAs.

Actowiz Solutions created a complete OTA pricing intelligence system that pulled fares dynamically, normalized taxes, compared airlines and exposed hidden differences.

Scope of Work

OTAs Monitored

MakeMyTrip
EaseMyTrip
Agoda
Cleartrip
Akbar Travels
Skyscanner (Meta)
Google Flights (Meta reference)

Routes Monitored

Domestic

Delhi → Mumbai
Bengaluru → Delhi
Kolkata → Chennai
Hyderabad → Goa

International

Delhi → Dubai
Mumbai → Singapore
Kochi → Doha
Bengaluru → Bangkok

Airlines Covered

Indigo
Air India
Vistara
SpiceJet
Emirates
Etihad
Qatar Airways
Singapore Airlines
AirAsia
Scoot
FlyDubai

Data Points Collected

Base fare
Final fare after taxes
Convenience fee
Pricing by cabin class
Direct vs connecting flights
OTA discount codes
Cashback amounts
API vs full fare difference
Seat availability
Price volatility patterns

Actowiz Solutions' OTA Price Comparison Framework

Our system was designed for accuracy and consistency across OTAs.

High-Frequency Fare Crawlers

Captured price updates every 20–45 minutes.

Multi-OTA Normalization Engine

Standardized differences such as:

Taxes
Service charge inclusion
Currency conversion (for Agoda)
Time-of-day updates
Partial refunds or dynamic cancellation fees

Cross-Platform Matching Layer

Mapped the exact same flight across all OTAs using:

Flight number
Departure time
Airline code
Origin–destination
Stop duration

Price Comparison Algorithm

Calculated:

Cheapest OTA
Most stable OTA
Highest hidden fee OTA
Lowest convenience fee OTA
Price difference range (%)

Daily + Weekly OTA Insights Dashboard

Delivered:

Fare comparison charts
Hourly volatility
Weekend surge indicators
OTA fairness score
Route-wise savings impact

4. Sample Data Extracted (Illustrative)

Table 1: OTA Pricing – Delhi → Dubai (Direct Flight)

OTA	Final Fare (₹)	Convenience Fee	Notes
MakeMyTrip	18,960	₹650	Higher service fee
EaseMyTrip	18,320	₹350	Cheapest overall
Agoda	18,780	Included	Stable pricing
Cleartrip	19,150	₹550	Expensive
Skyscanner	Redirect	Varies	Meta output

Table 2: OTA Pricing – Bengaluru → Singapore

OTA	Final Fare (₹)	Variation vs Lowest	Notes
Agoda	14,950	Lowest	Best for SEA routes
MMT	15,640	+₹690	Higher fee
EaseMyTrip	15,200	+₹250	Mid-range
AkbarTravels	15,780	+₹830	High markup

Table 3: Time-of-Day Price Pattern

Route	Morning	Afternoon	Evening	Notes
Delhi → Dubai	Low	Mid	High	Evening surge
Mumbai → Singapore	Mid	High	High	4–7 PM peak
Bengaluru → Bangkok	Low	Low	Mid	Smooth cycle
Kochi → Doha	Mid	High	High	Expats travel

Table 4: OTA Hidden Fee Comparison

OTA	Service Fee	Currency Markup	Coupon Impact	Notes
MMT	High	Low	Strong	Highest fee
EMT	Low	Low	Mid	Cheapest OTA
Agoda	Included	High	Low	Forex-based behaviour
Cleartrip	Mid	Mid	Low	Consistent

Key Insights & Findings

A. EaseMyTrip Is Consistently the Cheapest OTA

On 65% of analyzed routes, EMT offered the lowest final fare due to:

Lower convenience fee
Transparent tax inclusion
No extra markup on low-cost carriers

B. Agoda Is Cheapest for International Routes

Particularly Southeast Asia routes due to:

Forex advantages
Lower service fee
Direct airline partnerships

C. MakeMyTrip Charges the Highest Convenience Fee

But provides:

Better UI
More flight options
Strong customer support
Multi-city booking tools

D. OTA Fare Difference Ranges 3% to 18%

A Delhi → Dubai flight may differ by ₹1,200 – ₹3,400 across OTAs.

E. Evening Is the Most Expensive Booking Time

Especially between 5 PM – 9 PM.

F. Weekend Searches Trigger Higher Fares

MMT and Agoda displayed higher weekend spikes compared to EMT.

G. Airlines With Dynamic Pricing Show Biggest OTA Differences

Indigo → Higher OTA variance
Emirates → Lower OTA variance

Deep Dive: Route-Level Behaviour

Delhi → Dubai

EMT cheapest
MMT adds high service fee
Agoda stable but not lowest

Bengaluru → Singapore

Agoda dominates on price
MMT surcharge varies day-to-day

Mumbai → Bangkok

EMT cheapest early morning
Agoda cheapest late night

Kochi → Doha

Huge weekend surges
Airline availability impacts OTA fares instantly

Actowiz Solutions' Technical Workflow

Real-Time OTA Price Intelligence Engine

Tracks:

Airline price movement
OTA convenience fee variations
Hidden markups
Cashback & coupon effects

Time-Series Analysis

Identifies:

Best booking window
Daily high and low points
Peak volatility zones

OTA Comparability Layer

Normalizes:

Final fare
Tax breakdown
Currency conversion (Agoda)

Competitor Benchmarking

Confirms:

Cheapest OTA
Most stable OTA
Highest fee OTA

Daily Reports + Alerts

Delivered automatically to clients.

Business Impact

OTAs Improved Pricing Strategy

Understanding where competitors were cheaper helped optimize margins.

Travel Agencies Provided Better Customer Advice

Using real-time price intelligence, agencies guided customers on:

When to book
Which OTA to choose
Which routes were spiking

Airlines Understood OTA Competitiveness

Airlines improved:

API delivery
GDS routes
Commission strategies

TMCs Reduced Corporate Travel Costs

Corporates saved 6–12% per trip.

Stronger Competitive Intelligence

Travel platforms positioned their fare strategy more accurately.

Why Actowiz Solutions Was the Right Fit

Actowiz Solutions offered:

High-frequency real-time travel price extraction
Advanced OTA fare comparison engine
Multi-airline, multi-route coverage
Deep analytical interpretation
Clean, structured datasets
Expertise in dynamic travel pricing behavior

Actowiz Solutions is a trusted leader in flight price intelligence, OTA benchmarking, and travel data analytics.

Conclusion

OTA-level fare differences significantly impact customer decisions and travel planning. With Actowiz Solutions’ real-time OTA price comparison system, travel companies gained:

Clear fare visibility
Understanding of OTA competitiveness
Real-time surge insights
Better booking window intelligence
Comprehensive price transparency

This case study shows how structured airline pricing data drives smarter decision-making for OTAs, airlines, and travel agencies.

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OTA (MakeMyTrip, EaseMyTrip, Agoda) Price Comparison – Real-Time Benchmarking

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Executive Summary

Background

Scope of Work

OTAs Monitored

Routes Monitored

Domestic

International

Airlines Covered

Data Points Collected

Actowiz Solutions' OTA Price Comparison Framework

High-Frequency Fare Crawlers

Multi-OTA Normalization Engine

Cross-Platform Matching Layer

Price Comparison Algorithm

Daily + Weekly OTA Insights Dashboard

4. Sample Data Extracted (Illustrative)

Table 1: OTA Pricing – Delhi → Dubai (Direct Flight)

Table 2: OTA Pricing – Bengaluru → Singapore

Table 3: Time-of-Day Price Pattern

Table 4: OTA Hidden Fee Comparison

Key Insights & Findings

A. EaseMyTrip Is Consistently the Cheapest OTA

B. Agoda Is Cheapest for International Routes

C. MakeMyTrip Charges the Highest Convenience Fee

D. OTA Fare Difference Ranges 3% to 18%

E. Evening Is the Most Expensive Booking Time

F. Weekend Searches Trigger Higher Fares

G. Airlines With Dynamic Pricing Show Biggest OTA Differences

Deep Dive: Route-Level Behaviour

Delhi → Dubai

Bengaluru → Singapore

Mumbai → Bangkok

Kochi → Doha

Actowiz Solutions' Technical Workflow

Real-Time OTA Price Intelligence Engine

Time-Series Analysis

OTA Comparability Layer

Competitor Benchmarking

Daily Reports + Alerts

Business Impact

Why Actowiz Solutions Was the Right Fit

Conclusion

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