Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
The verdict on

KAYAK

60
User verdict / 100 High confidence Divided

KAYAK remains a popular choice for finding travel deals and organizing trips, but recent user experiences highlight significant issues with inaccurate pricing, broken links, and poor customer support, contradicting the developer's claims of a 'tuned up' and 'seamless experience'.

4.8★ lifetime (490,307) Free to download since 2009 by Kayak Software Corp updated 0.2 mo ago recent negative 33% 120 reviews across 4 regions
Price Accuracy Booking & Links Customer Support Search & Filters Trip Organization
5★496
4★89
3★50
2★54
1★261
recent reviews across 4 regions, vs the 4.8★ lifetime average

KAYAK is a travel app designed to help users find flights, hotels, and car rentals, and organize their travel itineraries. While many users praise its ability to find good deals and consolidate travel information, a significant number of recent reviews report problems with price discrepancies, non-functional booking links, and unresponsive customer service.

What users like

  • Effective for finding good deals on flights and car rentalsR2R5R17R22
  • Useful for organizing and tracking travel itinerariesR33R35R89R97
  • User-friendly interface for searching and comparing optionsR2R7R13R31

What users complain about

  • Advertised prices often do not match the final booking price, leading to frustration and perceived bait-and-switch tacticsR1R4R12R15
  • Links to purchase tickets or rentals frequently do not work or redirect to problematic third-party sitesR16R19R23R54
  • Poor or non-existent customer support for booking issues, cancellations, or refundsR6R14R26R36
  • Filters and search options are often buggy, inconsistent, or lack essential functionalityR4R8R11R21
  • Issues with booking confirmations, lost information, or unexpected cancellationsR18R29R72R81

Latest update · v290.0.0

What the developer says changed (the verdict above weighs this against what reviewers report):

We've been busy paving the runway for your next great escape! We're excited to present the latest version of our app, tuned up and bugs squashed, providing you a smooth and seamless experience.

Recurring themes

Price Accuracy negative
Many users report that the prices displayed on KAYAK are often inaccurate, with the final price being significantly higher or different once redirected to the booking site. This leads to a feeling of being misled or 'bait-and-switched'.R1R4R12R15
Booking & Links negative
Users frequently experience non-functional links when trying to book, or are redirected to unreliable third-party websites that cause problems with cancellations, refunds, or even fraudulent activity. Some also report issues with booking confirmations not being received.R16R19R23R29
Customer Support negative
A recurring complaint is the lack of accessible and effective customer support. Users report being unable to reach a human, getting ghosted, or being caught in a loop between KAYAK and third-party vendors when issues arise.R6R14R26R36
Search & Filters negative
Many users find the search functionality and filters to be buggy, inconsistent, or insufficient. Specific complaints include inability to filter out basic fares, issues with layover and airport filters, missing major airlines, and difficulty changing search perimeters or saving flights.R4R8R11R21
Trip Organization positive
Users appreciate KAYAK's feature for organizing all travel reservations (flights, hotels, car rentals) into one dashboard, making it easier to manage and track trips.R33R35R89R97

Who it's for

KAYAK is for users who want to compare prices across various travel providers and organize their trip details in one place R33R35. It is particularly useful for those who are comfortable with potential price discrepancies and dealing with third-party booking sites, and who prioritize finding the lowest initial price R17. It is NOT for users who require reliable customer support, expect exact price accuracy from the initial search, or prefer direct bookings to avoid third-party complications R26R36.

Evidence note: Recent reviews show a strong negative trend regarding price accuracy, broken links, and customer support, which contradicts the lifetime rating and developer's update notes. The positive reviews often highlight the app's core function of price comparison and trip organization, but these are increasingly overshadowed by functional issues.

Frequently asked

Are the prices on KAYAK accurate?
No, many recent reviews indicate that prices advertised on KAYAK are frequently inaccurate and often increase significantly when users are redirected to the booking website R1R12R15.
Does KAYAK offer good customer support?
No, numerous users report poor or non-existent customer support, with difficulties reaching a human for assistance with cancellations, refunds, or booking issues R6R14R26.
Can I filter out basic fares or specific airlines on KAYAK?
Users report issues with filtering options; specifically, the ability to filter out basic fares has been removed, and some major airlines are missing from search results R4R49.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R2] 5/5 · US Fun trips that make a difference in our world.: I love using kayak for checking and booking flights! So easy to use w lots of options
  2. [R5] 5/5 · US The best: They are the best with the prices and everything
  3. [R17] 5/5 · US Better prices than even booking on airline websites: Kayak is the only third party travel App I use for flights and hotels . Kayak allows me to search multiple airlines and combines departs and returns from 2 diff airlines to get best nonstop prices. After I choose it sends me to the airline(s) Website to book . Free 24 hr cancellation still apply . No BS. Love KAYAK have been using it for ove
  4. [R22] 5/5 · US Outstanding: I was shocked and excited to get my fav 5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ hotel for what normally would’ve been a lil over 180
  5. [R33] 5/5 · US Organization of trips: I use Kayak to keep everything organized and make sure I’ve made all the reservations necessary for the trip. It’s also great to review past trips.
  6. [R35] 5/5 · US Kayak organizes traveling: Kayak keeps all brands of travel companies reservations in one place so I don’t have to look at each site and wonder which airline or which car rental company am I booked on! Love it
  7. [R89] 5/5 · US Very Helpful!: I’m flying Alaska Airlines but they booked my flight with Hawaiian Airlines so I wasn’t getting any notifications or updates regarding my flight from the Alaska Airlines App. My flight was delayed and my gate changed at the last minute so I found myself running to the opposite side of the airport after I checked Hawaiian’s website. I should’ve put my flight information into the Kaya
  8. [R97] 5/5 · US Love Kayak Trips: It’s a great search engine for sure but the trips function is amazing. You consolidate all random travel into one dashboard. I use it always.
  9. [R7] 5/5 · US Exelente: De mucha ayuda para comprar y seguir vuelos
  10. [R13] 5/5 · US Great app: This works better than any other travel app I’ve had yet
  11. [R31] 5/5 · US Great App: User friendly , brings all other travel websites under one platform . Love it
  12. [R1] 2/5 · US Marketed price not accurate: Price aggregators without real prices offer no value
  13. [R4] 1/5 · US Kayak can’t filter basic fares: App is pointless if it is always showing basic fare tickets. Why did Kayak remove the option to filter out Basic fares? Is this some sort of deal with the airlines to deceive people into thinking flights are cheaper than they are?
  14. [R12] 1/5 · US It’s really bad and fake price price: They are a liar
  15. [R15] 1/5 · US App doesn’t work: Tried to book 4 different listing but keep getting baited and switched for higher cost listing
  16. [R16] 3/5 · US Iinks not working: Some links do not work when one goes to purchase the tickets. It happens very often.
  17. [R19] 1/5 · US Referral to fraudulent website: The website become a referral to fraudulent websites in India who tried extort more money for tickets from Americans
  18. [R23] 1/5 · US Lame service works poorly: All these lame sites flips around to various different sites they don’t complete. I don’t know how to get back. This is completely lame and a waste of time.
  19. [R54] 1/5 · US Not real help: Kayak is searching for best price but that is often fake. Links to other sides offering fare often do not work or fares are fake. The worst is VheapOAir that advertise prices that are not real and charge customers for everything. The advertising price is often with luggage which disappear on CheapOAir and has to be purchased again. Kayak should be ashamed of their bad service and s
  20. [R6] 1/5 · US Refund: They’ve took 36 dollars out my account. No one is answering the phone. How am I supposed to speak with someone when there’s an issue. It told me free cancellation but still put a hold on my money. Terrible service!
  21. [R14] 2/5 · US Trips: I am having an issue with forwarding trips and the customer support is ghosting me. Terrible service. I have been using the app since it’s beginning and I’m very disappointed.
  22. [R26] 1/5 · US Can’t cancel or handle negotiations: Tried to cancel, was unable to negotiate with anyone. Hotel said the broker needed to handle, broker said hotel was unreachable. I called the front desk and they said they couldn’t be called. Agent said they tried multiple times but couldn’t get through. Book directly or else you will be totally screwed if anything comes up. It isn’t worth saving a couple bucks
  23. [R36] 1/5 · US Free Cancellation?: I booked a room for 28 days on Kayak for an upcoming job. A day and a half later (3 days before check in and well within free cancellation deadline) I attempted to cancel, the Kayak app said I need to cancel at the hotel itself. I call the hotel and the manager says I can't cancel third party reservations there. Can't reach a real human at Kayak.😡
  24. [R8] 3/5 · US Worse than the website different results: Missing features and doing the same search on the website gives better results
  25. [R11] 2/5 · US Change location: Request location change: I have tried to change the perimeter of my search; nothing works please help.
  26. [R21] 1/5 · US Kayak has become USELESS: I am a pro user of this app and can no longer use it because it hides hotel, mixes in rentals, and doesn’t give me at all a picture of what’s available. When you check “no rentals” it still crams your feed with disgusting Airbnbs. KAYAK SUCKS.
  27. [R18] 1/5 · US Annoying: I’ve experienced multiple instances where my flight reservation was canceled after booking due to a reported fare change. This has been frustrating and has made the booking process feel unreliable. If the advertised fare is not actually available, it should not be displayed as the booking price.
  28. [R29] 5/5 · US My flight didn’t go through: I booked a flight and hit the send button and waited next day nothing showing I did everything right went over it 3 times and it didn’t materialize what happened KAYAK???
  29. [R72] 3/5 · US It’s not like it used to be: Bought flight tickets and didn’t get any confirmation number or anything. I am not sure if they will charge me or anything. They don’t have any phone number to call or support email.
  30. [R81] 3/5 · US Flight confirmation unclear: I’ve booked a flight but cannot find confirmation receipt. My bank account shows the charge as pending but I’m not sure how to know if I’ve truly purchased the flight. I would love to be able to talk to someone!
  31. [R25] 2/5 · US Price is incorrect: Tried to rent a car. The Kayak app shows incorrect price. After choosing a car, it gets you to the rental company website and the actual prices are higher. Disappointed.
  32. [R49] 1/5 · US Missing major airlines in search: Unless you are paying attention, you don’t realize the results are not complete. Missing major airlines like American. Makes this app not very useful.

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store