$113 Find Cheap Flights from Des Moines to Illinois - Compare and Save

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KAYAK's insights & trends for Des Moines to Illinois flights

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from Des Moines to Illinois to help you find the cheapest flights, the best time to fly and much more.

How much is a round-trip flight from Des Moines to Illinois?

Flight prices are below average for this route right now.

Flights to Illinois from Des Moines usually cost between $339 and $454 in December.
The lowest price found in the past 5 days was $211 on Frontier (Dec 3-Dec 10).

What is the cheapest Des Moines to Illinois flight route?

The cheapest ticket to Illinois from Des Moines found in the last 5 days was to Chicago, at $283 round-trip. The most popular route is from Des Moines (DSM) to Chicago O'Hare Intl Airport (ORD), and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 5 days was $316.

What is the cheapest time of day to fly to Illinois?

The cheapest time of day to fly to Illinois is generally in the morning, when round-trip flights cost $512 on average. Morning departures are around 32% cheaper than evening flights, on average. The most expensive time of day to fly to Illinois is generally in the afternoon, which is peak travel time and where the average cost of a ticket is $1,099.

Can I save money by flying with a layover from Des Moines to Illinois?

Yes, flying with a layover may cost you more time, but you can also save money on the route, with a 1 stop layover the cheapest option at $382 on average.

What is the cheapest month to fly from Des Moines to Illinois?

The cheapest month for flights from Des Moines to Illinois is February, when tickets cost $239 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are July and September, when the average cost of round-trip tickets is $425 and $412 respectively.

What’s the cheapest day of the week to fly from Des Moines to Illinois?

Your flight ticket price will generally be cheaper if you fly to Illinois on a Thursday and more expensive on a Tuesday. On your return trip to Des Moines, you should consider flying back on a Saturday, and avoid Tuesdays for better deals.

How far in advance should I book a flight from Des Moines to Illinois?

To get a below average price on the flight from Des Moines to Illinois, you should book around 4 weeks before departure, which saves you about 42% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 16 weeks before departure.

Good to know

Low season

August

Cheapest flight

$113
Best time to beat the crowds but there is an average 1% increase in price.
Most popular time to fly and prices are also 1% lower on average.
Flight from Des Moines to Chicago O'Hare Airport

FAQs - booking Illinois flights

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from Des Moines to Illinois?

    KAYAK is a travel search engine. That means we look across the web to find the best prices we can find for our users. With over 2 billion flight queries processed yearly, we are able to display a variety of prices and options on flights from Des Moines to Illinois.

  • How does KAYAK's flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy my flight ticket from Des Moines to Illinois?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight from Des Moines to Illinois is likely to change within 7 days, so travelers know whether to wait or book now.

  • What is the Hacker Fare option on flights from Des Moines to Illinois?

    Hacker Fares allow you to combine one-way tickets in order to save you money over a traditional round-trip ticket. You could then fly from Des Moines to Illinois with an airline and back with another airline.

  • What is KAYAK's "flexible dates" feature and why should I care when looking for a flight from Des Moines to Illinois?

    Sometimes travel dates aren't set in stone. If your preferred travel dates have some wiggle room, flexible dates will show you all the options when flying from Des Moines to Illinois up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

Top tips for finding cheap flights to Illinois

  • Looking for a cheap flight? 25% of our users found tickets from Des Moines to the following destinations at these prices or less: Chicago $228 one-way - $376 round-trip; Chicago $286 one-way - $456 round-trip

Reviews of the top 3 airlines serving from Des Moines to Illinois

 
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from Des Moines to Illinois? KAYAK airline reviews give an overall score for each airline based on loads of factors, including comfort, boarding, in-flight entertainment and more, to make your decision easier. See airline scores according to verified KAYAK customer reviews.
8.0
SouthwestOverall score based on 4214 reviews
7.5Entertainment
8.1Boarding
8.0Comfort
8.6Crew
7.0Food
Airline reviews

Delayed over 3 hours, extremely rough landing on all four flights. Would not recommend

2.0 MediocreKevin, Oct 2026
Read more Southwest reviews

Delayed over 3 hours, extremely rough landing on all four flights. Would not recommend

The entire crew were wonderful but 1 flight attendant stood out with his sense of humor on the microphone. I told him as much as I exited the plane.

Maybe different snack selection. To much sodium in them. I know refrigerators are not available but there has to be healthier items.

Wasn't expecting this, but, we actually ended up getting assigned to the first row of seats!!!!! The extra legroom came in handy

Flight was delayed over 3 hours. Planes were dirty. Staff indifferent. And they serve vegan pretzels as snacks.

The flight was smooth. The Southwest experience has degraded overall, but this one was okay.

The checking experience in Orlando was terrible, almost missed the flight. Too many travelers and Southwest completely understaffed.

no service at all due to turbulence. they should've at least given us snacks, there were only 10 people on the entire flight.

For the first time in a long time, the Wi-Fi actually worked the entire flight! The flight crew was amazing as usual.

Great flight. I didn't get a drink because I was asleep whole on the flight.

Waited on tarmac to take off for approximately 15-25 minutes. When landing, the taxi to our gate took a similar amount of time. This happened on both of my United flights.

Fine except from Chicago to moline three different gate changes and flight times

When booking, the connection times seem fine. But in reality, my two connections were cut short by the first leg being delayed due to issues at the destination (too much traffic going into SFO, ORD) and it became extremely stressful.

Flight and crew were great. Need more legroom and do not allow seats to recline.

We arrived to Chicago nearly 30 minutes early, which was great, but then was on the ground for over an hour because the gate was not available. The issue I had was the pilot estimation was frustrating. First he said he was informed it would be 20 minutes but he said "it will probably be more like 10 minutes". After 30 minutes he came back on the comm and said it would be another 10 minutes, maybe 20. I understand he was only giving estimates but he also layered in his own gut feel. We were never told why we didn't have a gate even after our scheduled entry.

1 flight cancelled Had to fly out of different city Flight at new departure city was delayed 3 hours causing us to miss connecting flights. By the time we did make it to Prague our luggage did not. Had to wait day and a half for luggage to be delivered. Customer service was not good. Agents did not arrive at gate until 5-10 minutes before boarding

It was better than excellent. The staff in Mason City were great. The young woman that pushed my wheelchair did more than could be expected of her. She came from India 17 years ago. I don't remember her name.

Very rough getting into denver. my kid threw up it was so rough.

Liked that we left on time for each flight. Snacks not the best, but we're okay.

I had requested wheelchair assistance prior to flight. The airport staff had no record of it. It was not provided at Cedar Rapids which was a small airport, so I managed on my own. At O'Hare airport the same thing happened. The staff told me they had no record of my request for a wheel chair. But they finally provided it after a delay when I insisted that I needed it.

WiFi broken, very long wait for valet bags, and the typical long wait at O'Hare on a thursday to get clearance to take off and then again long taxi and wait for the gate.

The now boarding notification was not updated in the app until I was actually on the plan. This si a massive fail considering my flight was delayed several times. These types of failures add stress that could be avoided since I no longer feel comfortable leaving the boarding area to get food or visit a lounge. Had I used the notification from the app, I would have missed my flight. The secondly, the process of connecting to wifi on aa flights is clunky and could be streamlined better. the copy and past process feels like MVP, and you are well beyond that stage.

Both flights were late leaving due to repairs/switching gates. The crew and pilots, however, were professional and courteous. Most importantly, we arrived at our destination safely. The seats were comforable. That size should be standard for all economy class. American could improve its boarding process. I am not sure why you need 9 groups for a small regional plane.

It was close to its perfect the flake could be took off early, landed early, didn’t have to wait for my daughter stroller luggage came out quick, very efficient, very good flight

The amount of gate changes and delays is completely unacceptable. This has happened on 3 of 4 trips between Chicago and Dallas in 2026.

The boarding process needs to be fixed. The zone don't work, especially when there is hardly anyone in zones 3, 4,and 5, leaving the majority of the passengers backed up in the aisle, especially because passengers seated near the front are blocking passengers who are seated in the rear of the plane. It would also help if the size of carry on bags was more strictly enforced.

In flight connectivity (via T-Mobile) was often not working.

Terrible. Internet/kiosk glitch prevented baggage checkin. Line at ticket co in Ter was under serviced and did not move. Agents did not call for flight but rather allowed time to pass. Then told each person as they reached the front if line that it was too late to check bags so they’d have to rebook flights. At least 15 people missed the flight as a result of this incompetence.

It was exactly what I expected, actually arriving sooner than scheduled.

Terrible, they canceled my flight due to an issue they had, couldn't fly me into the same place within 24 hrs so had to fly in 2.5 hrs away from my destination and spend even more money. The customer service was terrible (except at the airport in Charleston). Had to call to get my checked baggage fees reimbursed 2 wks later in which one customer service agent was very rude, wouldn't listen and then hung up on me. The second lady I spoke with was actually able to help me with that part thankfully. Would not recommend flying AA.

More options for your flight from Des Moines to Illinois

Complete your trip to Illinois with a hotel stay or car rental