MakeMyTrip vs ixigo: Which App for Last-Minute Flights?
By Diya Verma (Diya Verma flies from Tier-2 Indian cities and chases every possible fare hack — reposition flights, hidden-city ticketing, mileage runs and OTA bundle tricks. She has booked 200+ international trips out of Lucknow, Indore and Jaipur.) · Published · 9 min read
When you need a flight today or tomorrow, you're not shopping leisurely — you need the cheapest confirmed seat, fast. MakeMyTrip and ixigo are the two apps most Indians reach for first in this situation. They're meaningfully different in how they charge, how fast they confirm, and what cashback they offer when you're in a hurry.
TL;DR — Which App Wins for Last-Minute Flights?
For pure speed and lowest convenience fee, ixigo generally edges out MakeMyTrip — their fees tend to run lower (often in the ₹150–299 range per booking versus MakeMyTrip's ₹249–499 range) and their checkout is faster for repeat users. But MakeMyTrip has more consistent UPI cashback offers and a more robust customer support infrastructure if something goes wrong, which matters a lot on a last-minute booking. Neither is always cheaper — you need to check both on the day.
Convenience Fees: The Hidden Cost That Changes the Comparison
The base fare you see on both apps is typically identical — it comes from the same GDS and airline inventory feeds. What differs is what they add on top.
MakeMyTrip's convenience fee has historically been in the ₹249–499 range per booking (not per passenger), though they run 'zero convenience fee' promotions periodically and their fee varies by payment method. Paying via MakeMyTrip wallet, MMTBLACK credit, or certain UPI handles can bring this down significantly.
ixigo tends to charge lower convenience fees in the ₹150–299 range for standard bookings, and they've been aggressive about zero-fee or reduced-fee UPI promotions. For a last-minute one-way domestic booking where every rupee counts, ixigo's lower baseline fee is a genuine advantage.
The catch: both apps vary their fees by date, route, payment method, and which promotion is running when you open the app. The only way to know the true final price is to get to the payment screen on both apps and compare. This sounds tedious but takes 3 minutes and can save you ₹200–300 on a single booking.
Always verify current fees on the respective apps before booking — these change frequently and any specific numbers here could be out of date by the time you read this.
Checkout Speed: Which App Confirms Faster?
For last-minute bookings specifically, how quickly the booking confirms matters. A booking stuck in 'processing' for 20 minutes while the fare changes is a real problem.
ixigo's checkout flow is leaner — fewer upsell screens and fewer mandatory insurance/cancellation add-on prompts before confirmation. If you're a repeat user with a saved UPI handle, you can complete a booking in under 90 seconds.
MakeMyTrip has a more elaborate checkout — they push harder on add-ons (meals, seat selection, cancellation protection, insurance) and you have to navigate past these before confirming. For someone who knows what they want, this is friction. The flip side is that MakeMyTrip's seat selection and meal add-ons at checkout are genuinely useful if you care about those things — but for a pure 'get me on the plane' last-minute booking, it slows you down.
Neither app is slow in absolute terms. But if you're at an airport and need to book a flight for an hour later (it happens), ixigo's streamlined flow is an advantage.
UPI Cashback and Offers: Where the Real Savings Are
Both apps run UPI cashback promotions that can genuinely offset convenience fees and sometimes deliver net savings versus the airline's own website. The offers change constantly — both MakeMyTrip and ixigo update promotions weekly — so I'll give you the framework rather than specific numbers that'll be stale.
MakeMyTrip tends to have deeper relationships with banks (HDFC, ICICI, Axis) and runs bank-specific cashback offers that can be significant for credit card users. If you have an HDFC card, for example, check if MakeMyTrip has a live offer — the effective saving can outweigh the convenience fee entirely.
ixigo's cashback has historically leaned more toward UPI payments (PhonePe, Google Pay linked to specific bank accounts). They've been particularly aggressive around festive seasons and quarter-end promotions.
My workflow for last-minute bookings: check the 'Offers' section on both apps first (takes 30 seconds), identify any live cashback, factor that against the convenience fee on each, then decide. It's a small habit that adds up across bookings.
Customer Support When Things Go Wrong
Last-minute bookings have higher stakes — if the booking fails, the payment debits but no ticket is issued, or the cancellation policy isn't what you expected, you need responsive support.
MakeMyTrip has the stronger customer support infrastructure of the two — larger team, 24/7 chat support, and a reasonably functional escalation path. Their refund processing, while not instant, is generally more predictable than smaller OTAs.
ixigo's support is more limited — they've faced criticism for slow refund resolution at times. For straightforward bookings that go smoothly, this doesn't matter. For anything involving a cancellation, change, or dispute, MakeMyTrip is the safer bet.
This is a real trade-off: ixigo might save you ₹200 in fees but cost you more in stress and time if the booking hits a snag. For routine same-day/next-day bookings on reliable routes with IndiGo or Air India, either is fine. For riskier bookings (SpiceJet, thin routes, travel during disruptions), MakeMyTrip's support infrastructure is worth the slightly higher fee.
What About Fare Accuracy? Does Either App Show Lower Fares?
Both MakeMyTrip and ixigo pull from largely the same inventory sources. For domestic Indian airlines, the fares are almost always identical to each other and to the airline's own website — airlines enforce fare parity. Any apparent difference is almost always a reflection of different convenience fees or active cashback offers, not different base fares.
Where OTAs can sometimes show slightly different availability is on very last-minute bookings (hours before departure) where airline websites occasionally show capacity-controlled fares. In my experience this is rare and inconsistent — don't count on it.
For finding the best fare across flexible dates, OTAs including ixigo's train+flight combo view can surface options you might miss booking directly. But for a single-date last-minute domestic booking, the base fare will be the same across platforms.
Also worth checking: FlightGPT for an AI-assisted comparison that scans multiple sources, or our EaseMyTrip vs Cleartrip fee comparison if you want to widen the comparison field.
The Verdict: When to Use Which
Use ixigo when: you want the fastest checkout, you're paying UPI and there's an active ixigo cashback, the booking is straightforward (reliable airline, trunk route), and you're comfortable handling any post-booking issues yourself.
Use MakeMyTrip when: you have a bank/card-linked offer that outweighs the fee difference, you want stronger customer support backup for a riskier booking (SpiceJet, tight connection, flex travel period), or you're buying add-ons like seat selection and want a smoother integrated flow.
And honestly — check both. It takes two minutes and on last-minute bookings where you're already paying premium fares, the ₹200–400 fee difference is meaningful. See our Northeast thin-route guide for context on why last-minute fares are already high before fees are added.
Frequently asked questions
Does ixigo always have lower convenience fees than MakeMyTrip?
Usually, but not always. ixigo's baseline fees tend to run lower (around ₹150–299 range vs MakeMyTrip's ₹249–499 range), but both apps run promotions that can change the comparison. Always check the final payment screen on both apps before confirming — the live fee is what matters, not the general baseline.
Can I get zero convenience fee on last-minute bookings?
Both apps offer zero-fee promotions periodically — usually for specific UPI handles, bank cards, or during promotional windows. MakeMyTrip has run zero-fee campaigns for MMT wallet or MMTBLACK users; ixigo has done the same for certain PhonePe or Google Pay users. Check the 'Offers' tab on each app when you open it — these aren't always advertised prominently.
Which app is better for same-day flight bookings?
For pure same-day checkout speed, ixigo's leaner flow is an advantage. But if the booking encounters any issue (failed payment, booking pending), MakeMyTrip's support team is easier to reach and resolve issues with. For low-risk same-day bookings on reliable airlines, either works fine.
Is the base fare the same on MakeMyTrip and ixigo?
Almost always yes for domestic Indian flights — airlines enforce fare parity across channels. The difference in final price comes from convenience fees and any active cashback offers, not from different base fares. If you see a significant fare difference (not just fee difference), double-check you're comparing the same flight, date, and fare class.
What if my booking fails on ixigo and payment is debited?
This happens occasionally on any OTA. On ixigo, the refund for a failed booking typically processes within 5–7 business days back to your payment source. If it takes longer, raise a complaint through their app's support section. If you're on a last-minute booking where a failed attempt and a 5-day wait is catastrophic, MakeMyTrip's more robust support may be worth the slightly higher fee.
Should I book directly on the airline website instead?
For last-minute domestic bookings, booking direct on the airline's site (indigo.com, airindia.com) means no OTA convenience fee — though some airlines charge their own booking fee or payment gateway fee. The fare will be identical. Booking direct also avoids any OTA layer if there's a cancellation or change — you deal directly with the airline. The trade-off is less comparison ability and a slightly clunkier interface for some airlines.