Travelers must document a flight comparison when the most economical method of transportation was not selected or when a flight itinerary includes stops unrelated to university business.
Comparisons should be made during the travel booking process, as those obtained after booking are likely to be less accurate due to dynamic pricing in the travel industry. Learn more in the Topic Overview: Business and Travel Expenses and the Topic Overview: Airfare.
Document a Flight Comparison
Before You Start
Before documenting flight comparisons, travelers should:
- Confirm booking requirements; verify travel requires fare comparison documentation, and verify travel dates
- Prepare screenshot tools; have screen capture capability ready
Learn more in the Topic Overview: Business and Travel Expenses.
- Book your airfare, or alternative travel option, then use the same website (in most cases) to obtain the comparison
If comparable rates are not available on the booking site, go to Egencia
- Set the travel dates to the originally planned business-only itinerary with similar departure and return time windows
- Choose the allowed cabin or fare class per policy (e.g., Economy, Business)
- Search for the most direct route, excluding any personal travel components (if applicable)
Include a broad set of carriers and appropriate fares
If creating the comparison after travel, attempt to match the days of the week traveled and use travel dates consistent with how far in advance the original flight was booked
- Take a screenshot or save the search results as a PDF
- Ensure the screenshot or PDF includes the following details to avoid reimbursement reductions:
- Visible timestamp showing the date and time of the search
- Results of available flight options/details
- Fare differences between options
- Save the screenshot or PDF to include with your expense submission
After the trip concludes, create an expense report to request reimbursement for eligible flight costs. Include the flight comparison as backup documentation and enter a clear business purpose explaining why the comparison was needed.
All flight comparisons are subject to approval by the Business Expense team. The Business Expense team may re-run any submitted flight comparison and reserves the right to adjust reimbursement based on that review. Reimbursement will be the lower of the amount from the Business Expense team's comparison and the amount shown in your submitted comparison. Learn more in the Topic Overview: Airfare.