Layover Connection Planner
Check how safe your layover connection feels
Layover connection planner — FAQs
What is a “safe” layover time?
There’s no universal number, but many travelers treat 45–60 minutes as a bare minimum for easy same-terminal domestic connections, and 90–150 minutes for big international hubs with immigration or security. This planner uses simple ranges like that to highlight when your layover looks tight or more comfortable.
Why are separate tickets riskier?
With separate tickets, the second airline often doesn’t see that you’re inbound on another flight, and they may not rebook you for free if you miss the connection. The planner therefore bumps up suggested minimums and ideal buffers when you select “separate tickets (self-connection)”.
How do immigration and security affect the plan?
Clearing immigration, customs, or security re-checks can add a lot of variability, especially at busy times. Selecting “international hub with immigration/security” and ticking the terminal/bag box pushes the suggested minimums higher, reflecting that it’s easier to get stuck in a long queue.
Does this tool know my airline’s minimum connection time?
No. The planner is input-only and doesn’t fetch live schedules or airline rules. It gives you a simple risk score relative to generic minimums so you can decide whether a connection seems reasonable for your risk tolerance, budget, and flexibility.
How to use this layover connection planner
This layover connection planner is designed for the moment you’re staring at two flight options and wondering whether that connection is way too tight or comfortably safe. Instead of guessing, you enter a handful of details and get a simple, shareable summary of how your layover compares to a rough suggested minimum.
1. Enter your layover length and ticket type
Start with the layover length in minutes, using scheduled times: the gap between the first flight’s arrival and the second flight’s departure. Then choose whether the flights are on a single ticket (sold together, protected connection) or on separate tickets (self-connection). Separate tickets carry more risk, so the planner builds in a larger suggested buffer.
2. Choose the connection style
Next, pick the option that best matches your connection airport. A small / regional airport usually means shorter walks and faster queues. A large domestic hub might have long walks and busy security but no border checks. An international hub with immigration/security typically requires more time to clear passport control and possibly customs.
3. Add extras like terminal changes or bag re-checks
If you expect to change terminals or re-check checked bags, tick the extra box. The planner then adds more time to the suggested minimum and ideal buffer, reflecting the extra walking, queues, and check-in steps those changes can create.
4. Read the risk level and suggested buffer
Hit Check layover and the result hero tells you whether your connection looks high risk, moderate, or lower risk, plus how much time you have compared with the suggested minimum. The detail columns show your inputs on one side and the planner’s suggested minimum, ideal buffer, and slack or shortfall on the other.
Use the Copy summary button to grab a short text version of the result that you can paste into a note, send to a friend, or use while comparing different flight options. It won’t replace airline rules or real-time information, but it can keep you from accidentally booking an ultra-tight layover you might regret later.
How the layover connection score works
The planner uses a simple rule-of-thumb model rather than exact airline rules. Let your layover length in minutes be L. Based on your ticket type and connection style, it picks a base minimum connection time, M, then adds extra time for terminal changes or bag re-checks.
For example, single-ticket connections at small airports might get a base minimum around 45 minutes, while separate-ticket connections at big international hubs with immigration might start closer to 150 minutes before extras. A terminal or bag re-check adds a fixed extra buffer.
The planner then calculates a recommended minimum:
Recommended minimum = base minimum + extras
and a more cautious ideal buffer by adding a small safety margin on top of that. It also forms a simple ratio:
Score = L ÷ Recommended minimum
When the score is well below 1, the connection looks tight; near 1, it’s borderline; comfortably above 1, it looks safer, especially on a single protected ticket. The planner maps that score to “high”, “moderate”, or “lower” risk labels to keep the output easy to interpret.
These are approximations only. Actual minimum connection times, queue lengths, and airline policies vary. Treat the score as a quick planning guide and pair it with your own experience, budget, and flexibility.