Hopper claims to be an innovative technology that'll save you money on flights, hotels, and rentals, but do their services match up to their competition? Find out what people are saying about the app, what their main features are, and if they're worth the download here.
Disclosure: Pilot is supported by our users. We may earn a small commission fee when you click on affiliate links on our website, and all recommendations are independently reviewed.
As a fellow traveler myself, I've fallen in love with travel deals sites and providers that helps you cut costs on that expensive flight ticket you need for your trip. While there are many ways to find cheap travel deals online, and it can be overwhelming sometimes to decide on the one for you to use!
Don’t worry, we’re here to help provide an honest review of the travel apps and websites and tell you if they're really as "helpful" or "handy" as they'd like to put it.
Just like our review of Momondo or Thrifty Traveler, we'd like to make sure travelers know what they're signing themselves up for when they're looking at cheap flights online. After all, with the tremendous amount of cheap flight offers out there, it's easy to get caught with some that aren't real or are straight-up scams.
One provider, in particular, that’s frequently mentioned in the travel circles is Hopper app. Hopper has made its name in the travel industry, but is it any good? Read on for our take on this well-known app!
What is Hopper?
Hopper is an app designed to help you find the best prices on hotels and flights (in fact, their goal is for you to “spend less, and travel better”). They focus on predicting fares and nightly rates so you can choose when to travel so it fits best within your budget.
The Hopper app was created in 2015 by Frederic Lalonde, an ex vice president at Expedia. Based in Montreal and Boston, Hopper has since received over 20 million downloads.
It’s only available on mobile apps, but you can easily send the app to your phone using their website! You can download the app on both iOS and Android devices.
The Hopper app saves an average of $50 on domestic flight and $120 on international flights per user, ranking #1 travel app in over 35 countries.
But just because it's the #1 travel app doesnt mean it's the one for you. Let's learn a little bit more on what people are saying about the app.
What are people saying about Hopper?
With the service only being provided on mobile apps, it’s important to look at what Hopper's customer service is like before you dive headfirst into purchasing a flight or a week in a hotel through them.
If you have any concerns or problems, you must make any requests directly through your booking on the app. That is the only way to contact the support team directly. This means that you essentially have to make a purchase to speak with anyone.
Do note that if you purchase a flight through a low-cost carrier, you’ll need to contact them to manage your bookings.
Is the Hopper app legit?
Can you trust Hopper flights, hotels, and car rentals? Are the deals Hopper shows legit?
In short, you can trust Hopper! If you’re traveling on a very tight budget, Hopper can be a great app to scan for cheap flights and hotels.
That being said, many online comments have indicated it’s an app best used to see what the best rates are, and then to book directly with the airlines or hotels themselves. This protects you should anything happen where you need to contact customer service, or should any other difficulties arise.
There's plenty of other travel deal sites you can check out to expand your options when finding cheap flights!
What are the Hopper Complaints about?
On Trustpilot, Hopper reviews have an average rating of 3.3 stars out of 5 from over 2,400 users. The majority of the reviews either receive an excellent review, or a bad one, so it seems that customers have had very polarizing experiences.
One recurring complaint has to do with the prize freeze feature on Hopper. Several reviewers commented that despite paying a deposit to freeze their fare at the low rate they wanted, they were ultimately charged more after returning to pay the remainder of the fare. If these reviewers then requested a refund, they were only offered Carrot Cash, rather than the money itself.
Carrot Cash is Hopper's internal reward system, with 1 Carrot Cash being equivalent of 1 USD. The downside to getting Carrot Cash instead of real money back is that you'll only have the option to reuse that money within their app and nowhere else.
Another recurring complaint is that Hopper doesn’t offer the lowest fares available and that they won’t price match if you were to find a cheaper fare elsewhere after already booking through them. Either that or they throw in hidden fees so your fare is actually more expensive than you thought it would be. Many reviewers recommend cross-checking Google Flights, or airlines directly to see how their fares compare.
Reviews also speak to poor customer service, especially in regards to canceled flights.
What are the features of Hopper?
In addition to helping predict pricing trends, Hopper comes with the ability to freeze a fare or price if you need more time to plan.
This allows you to price “freeze” a fare you like in place by paying a deposit. You can then return later (before the freeze expires) and pay the remainder of the fare. It’s important to note with this feature that the price freeze only applies to the specific flight you pay the deposit for, and that the deposit is nonrefundable if you decide not to book that flight.
For hopper hotels, prize freeze allows you to freeze a rate based on either best availability or room type. If the price increases, Hopper will then cover the price difference up to the maximum limit listed on your price freeze policy.
You can also make any trip flexible by using Hopper’s Flexible Dates and Refundable Ticket plans. This can give you more security as you plan the trip of your dreams, especially in the current uncertain times.
Is Hopper worth it?
Based on the Hopper app reviews, the app has an average rating of 3.8/5 stars on the Google Play Store and 4.8/5 stars on Apple's App Store at the time this blog was written.
The Hopper app functions similarly to their website, offering travel deals up to 40% discount on flights, hotels, and rental services. You'll also be able to receive personalized recommendations, helpful information on airports and hotels, and compare prices based on specific filters.
However, the Hopper app reviews often mention the lack of a sound system for customer support.
Many users have reviewed the Hopper app, saying how inconvenient it was to contact customer support through email and receive responses from different agents. Re-booking is often through email as well, which decreases many users' experience with the app. Other issues mentioned in Hopper's app reviews are unfavorable travel packages and bugs.
So, is the hopper app any good? Well, we think that they're definitely an option you should consider!
While there have been many negative app reviews on Hopper, the general consensus is that the app is super helpful! Hopper is great at the core of what it does: finding cheap flight deals, hotel deals, and car rental deals. Hopper customer support, while through email, has also been a pleasant experience for the majority of user's experience.
Given that Hopper is free on both platforms, we recommend you giving it a try!
Our Rating: 3.5/5
Pros:
- Easily search multiple flights and hotels
- Set push notifications for certain routes or dates
- Easy to monitor and navigate with app
- Price freeze with non-refundable deposit
Cons:
- Hard-to-reach customer service
- Hidden fees or charges
- Fare offered is not always the lowest
- Carrot Cash refunds
Pair cheap flights with Pilot!
Hopper is a useful app to research flight fares and nightly hotel rates.
Based on reviews and user experience though, it is best to use it purely as research, and to then go book directly with providers. Especially with pandemic uncertainty, booking with third-party vendors can be a risk, and Hopper is no exception.
.png)
Whether you decide to use Hopper for your next trip, or not, we want to help you make it perfect. Plan your next adventure with Pilot now!
Pilot is your brand new travel planner that helps you discover and build travel itineraries connecting you to resources everywhere. Make the planning experience more fun by collaborating with your travel buddies! Pilot makes it fun and easy to share and relive your favorite travel memories with many useful features!
Did we mention that it's completely free? Try it out now!