RDU - DSM

$75 Find Cheap Flights from Raleigh to Des Moines

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from Raleigh to Des Moines departing on 5/27. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel. Click the price to replicate the search for this deal.
1 adult
1 adult, Economy, 0 bags

KAYAK searches hundreds of travel sites at once for deals on flights to Des Moines

 
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Raleigh to Des Moines, as well as popular online travel agencies
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Raleigh to Des Moines, as well as popular online travel agencies
Travelers love KAYAK
41 299 237 searches in the past 7 days on KAYAK

Save 24% or moreCompare multiple travel sites with one search.

Track pricesNot ready to book? Create a price alert for when prices drop.

Bundle and saveSave money when you bundle your flight + hotel.

Filter your dealsChoose cabin class, free Wi-Fi and more.

Everything you should know

Cheapest round-trip
$197
Typical prices: $481-$326
Frontier
Thu 4/30Mon 5/4
RDU - DSM • 1 stop
Cheapest one-way
$75
Typical prices: $151-$232
Multiple Airlines
Wed 5/27
RDU - DSM • 1 stop
Top airlines
Cheapest • from $197 (round-trip)
Best reviews • 8.0 score
Airline reviews
Airline reviews
+1
+1
Airline reviews
Airline reviews
+1
Nonstop flights
Not available
There are currently no direct flights between Raleigh and Des Moines. You'll need at least 1 connection.
Insights
Insights
Insights
Insights
Top layover airports
Cheapest • Avg $389 (round-trip)
Shortest trip • 4h 11m (one-way)
Insights
Insights
Insights
Insights
When to travel
Cheapest • 20% price drop
Most popular
Good to know
Good to know
+1
+1
Good to know
Good to know
+1
Start a new search
KAYAK searches 100s of sites at once to find you the best travel deals.
We hope you love your trip to Des Moines!
Flight Deals
Booking Insights
Flight Deals

Cheap Flights from Raleigh to Des Moines (RDU-DSM)

 
Here are some of the best deals found on KAYAK recently from the most popular airlines for round-trip flights from Raleigh to Des Moines that are departing in the next months. While these flights were available on KAYAK in the last 72 hours, prices and availability are subject to change and deals may expire.
Discover the best prices for you by selecting your travel dates on KAYAK.

Recent round-trip flight deals from Raleigh to Des Moines

Thu, Apr 30 - Mon, May 4
Frontier Logo
9:49 pm - 1:09 pm
RDU
-
DSM
16h 20m
1 stop
Frontier Logo
8:23 pm - 12:28 pm
DSM
-
RDU
15h 05m
1 stop
$197Frontier
Tue, May 26 - Tue, Jun 2
American Airlines Logo
5:30 pm - 11:08 pm
RDU
-
DSM
6h 38m
1 stop
American Airlines Logo
1:37 pm - 9:57 pm
DSM
-
RDU
7h 20m
1 stop
$237American Airlines
Wed, May 13 - Sun, May 17
Multiple Airlines Logo
12:33 pm - 3:15 pm
RDU
-
DSM
27h 42m
2 stops
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:45 am - 10:52 am
DSM
-
RDU
26h 07m
1 stop
$246Multiple Airlines
Wed, May 13 - Sun, May 17
Multiple Airlines Logo
8:59 am - 1:46 pm
RDU
-
DSM
29h 47m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:45 am - 10:52 am
DSM
-
RDU
26h 07m
1 stop
$263Multiple Airlines
Wed, Jul 15 - Sun, Jul 19
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:45 pm - 9:27 pm
RDU
-
DSM
26h 42m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
3:59 pm - 10:43 pm
DSM
-
RDU
5h 44m
1 stop
$268Multiple Airlines
Mon, Jun 1 - Fri, Jun 5
Multiple Airlines Logo
11:47 am - 11:24 pm
RDU
-
DSM
12h 37m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
2:16 pm - 3:00 pm
DSM
-
RDU
23h 44m
2 stops
$270Multiple Airlines
Wed, Jun 17 - Wed, Jun 24
United Airlines Logo
6:15 am - 10:27 am
RDU
-
DSM
5h 12m
1 stop
United Airlines Logo
6:00 am - 2:01 pm
DSM
-
RDU
7h 01m
1 stop
$271United Airlines
Wed, May 27 - Mon, Jun 1
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:45 pm - 10:31 pm
RDU
-
DSM
27h 46m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
9:51 pm - 9:21 am
DSM
-
RDU
34h 30m
2 stops
$274Multiple Airlines
Mon, Jun 1 - Fri, Jun 5
Multiple Airlines Logo
11:47 am - 11:24 pm
RDU
-
DSM
12h 37m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
4:07 pm - 2:12 pm
DSM
-
RDU
21h 05m
1 stop
$280Multiple Airlines
Sat, May 16 - Sat, May 23
American Airlines Logo
6:00 pm - 11:49 pm
RDU
-
DSM
6h 49m
1 stop
American Airlines Logo
1:30 pm - 9:48 pm
DSM
-
RDU
7h 18m
1 stop
$283American Airlines
Booking Insights

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

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

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

This analysis is based on the cheapest round-trip price found on KAYAK in the last 12 months by searching for a flight from Raleigh to Des Moines departing in April.

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

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from Raleigh to Des Moines, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the median of all values for each month.

The cheapest month for flights from Raleigh to Des Moines is December, where tickets cost $333 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are February and June, where the average cost of round-trip tickets is $677 and $452 respectively.

Good to know

Low seasonFebruary
Cheapest flight$75
Best time to beat the crowds but there is an average 61% increase in price.
Most popular time to fly and prices are also 13% lower on average.
Flight from Raleigh to Des Moines

When to book flights from Raleigh to Des Moines

Are your dates flexible? Find out the best times to travel from Raleigh to Des Moines based on our flight data from the last year. Discover the cheapest month and even day to fly.
Estimated round-trip price
KAYAK looks at all historical flight data for each date to provide a predicted price for one-way trips or round-trips with a duration up to 40 days. While we try to provide actual minimum prices for each date, some prices are predictions and actual prices may differ.

FAQs for booking flights from Raleigh to Des Moines

  • What is the cheapest flight from Raleigh to Des Moines?

    In the last 3 days, the lowest price for a flight from Raleigh to Des Moines was $130 for a one-way ticket and $197 for a round-trip.

  • Do I need a passport to fly between Raleigh and Des Moines?

    No, a passport isn't needed to fly from Raleigh to Des Moines. However, local authorities might ask for an official ID.

  • Which airports will I be using when flying from Raleigh to Des Moines?

    Raleigh and Des Moines are both served by 1 main airport. You will leave Raleigh from Raleigh-Durham and will be arriving at Des Moines.

  • Which aircraft models fly most regularly from Raleigh to Des Moines?

    We unfortunately don’t have that data for this specific route.

  • Which airline alliances offer flights from Raleigh to Des Moines?

    Star Alliance, SkyTeam, and oneworld are the airline alliances operating flights between Raleigh and Des Moines, with Star Alliance being the most commonly used for this route.

  • Which is the best airline for flights from Raleigh to Des Moines, Southwest or Delta?

    The two airlines most popular with KAYAK users for flights from Raleigh to Des Moines are Southwest and Delta. With an average price for the route of $406 and an overall rating of 8.0, Southwest is the most popular choice. Delta is also a great choice for the route, with an average price of $413 and an overall rating of 7.9.

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

    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 Raleigh to Des Moines.

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

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to Des Moines from Raleigh 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 Raleigh to Des Moines?

    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 to Des Moines with an airline and back to Raleigh with another airline. Booking your flights between Raleigh and DSM can sometimes prove cheaper using this method.

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

    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 to Des Moines from Raleigh up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

Reviews of the top 4 airlines serving from Raleigh to Des Moines

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from Raleigh to Des Moines. Airline scores are aggregated from all reviews left by passengers on KAYAK after flying with an airline. KAYAK doesn’t show reviews that are older than 5 years. Learn how KAYAK collects reviews.
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from Raleigh to Des Moines? 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 4330 reviews
7.5Entertainment
8.0Comfort
8.1Boarding
8.6Crew
7.0Food
Airline reviews

Southwest is kind of a slum airline. It’s gotten more expensive over the years for less and less service. I am a Southwest Chase Visa card holder and was forced to choose a seat in the 26th row in the middle seat. However my wife who is a rewards member but doesn’t hold a card or anything else, gets randomly assigned a normally paid seat in row 6! How does that work?

4.0 OkayDavid, Apr 2026
COS - DAL
Read more Southwest reviews

Southwest is kind of a slum airline. It’s gotten more expensive over the years for less and less service. I am a Southwest Chase Visa card holder and was forced to choose a seat in the 26th row in the middle seat. However my wife who is a rewards member but doesn’t hold a card or anything else, gets randomly assigned a normally paid seat in row 6! How does that work?

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

The seat was not comfortable. 1D. My back was sore all night and the next day.

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

Great flight from Seattle to Phoenix and to Chicago-Midway from Phoenix

The new boarding process was easy and straightforward. Very pleasant.

The flight was okay. The pilots did an amazing job and kept us updated on the flight. The flight attendants were okay. They found time to be chatty with each other rather than focus on the guests. One of the attendants was a little less warm when asking about my bag I had on my lap that I was using during latter part of the mid- flight. Mind you, it was not the departure descent. I’m respectful to each and every attendant, it was the tone in her voice reminding me to place my carryon bag on the floor. I hope to have a better experience next time.

The entire travel day was a disaster from beginning to end. Woke up at two in the morning to make it to San Juan airport in time for a 5:30 am flight to Milwaukee which connected in Baltimore. Massive delays lead to me missing original connection out of Baltimore. Sixteen hours of delays/rebooking/layover time later, arrived in Milwaukee to find that only one of two checked bags made it there (despite the fact that Southwest brought another 737 jet to San Juan to fly us out to our original Baltimore connection—-not squeezed into another booked flight). The flight from Baltimore to Milwaukee was barely half full, so there was no logical reason to ship my bags out of Baltimore on a different flight to Chicago to then ship to Milwaukee. Southwest decided that my bags should not have been on the same connecting flight I WAS ON to Milwaukee, and then proceeded to accidentally leave my larger bag with the important items in Chicago. Terrible logic and support all around. Extremely angered and disappointed with SW. What a clownish operation your company has become!

It was as expected and I was grateful for the wheel chair help and ease of use.

One of the best airlines for fast boarding, on time arrivals, and top notch service!

Crew was nice, meal was good. Entertainment had to be rebooted 3 times and still did not work. Turns out there was residue on screen, it needed to be cleaned to prevent the touchscreen buttons from continuously activating. I had entertainment for the last 45 minutes of a 5 hour 45 minute flight. Really unacceptable for first class. Flight attendent indicated your cleaning solution creates this problem. Seems as if this is widely known, you should be using a different product or cleaning better. Really really disappointing which simply added to the wi fi on your planes with reliably never ever works.

The baggage belt was not updated on the Delta App and was displayed on the wrong belt board. Was not expecting this to happen.

The plan was delayed and left DC 90 minutes late. However, it showed a 20 minute delay on the delta app, then a 12 min delay. It turned out to be an hour delay. I found out where the plane was with flightaware. Stop keeping customers in the dark about what is going on.

Everything went smoothly, although the usual gripes about airline travel were still present: the boarding process is inefficient, the snack selection is limited, and so on. Since there was extra space on the flight, the gate agent rearranged many people's seats to put people on the aisles and windows, leaving the middle seats empty, as much as possible, which was pretty great.

Landed without a gate ready. Plane is extremely old and dirty.

All the amenities was wonderful, if they could keep their prices that low. I'd fly with them all the time.

Very old plane with no inflight entertainment. I purchased the internet pass and it was nearly unusable.

My tray was broken so i had no place to work or eat except my lap. Flight attendant said I would get an email with some credit or miles, it was a complete waste of time as I could only function at about 20% of normal. I have not received anything yet.

Short trip, no food and therefore no expectation for much interaction with staff who were pleasant and professional. My critique is on comfort of the seats. Exit rows and comfort seats do not provide enough personal space for 3 side-by-side seats, especially when in the middle row. Some passengers are not considerate of the middle seat and there should be signs that state something to the effect of: "please consider giving middle seats use of the armrests."

My flight yesterday evening was delayed 3.5 hours with no water or food service. Poor experience

The flight was significantly delayed. The inbound flight from EWR was delayed departing because of mechanical problems. My original departure from CLT was 5:28 pm but due to the delay of the inbound flight, after arrival, deplaning, cleaning, boarding, we did not push back from the gate until 9:00 pm. Once in the air, the flight was smooth and what was originally supposed to be an arrival in ORD at 7:30 pm local time turned out to be 9:35 pm.

My bags were misplaced!!! Im in a foreign country with no bags

The entertainment options on the seat back video boards were nice.

The flight I was supposed to be on was supposed to take off at 1:50 from State College. It was delayed over and over and over again until somehow I had to rebook on a flight that was supposed to have left State College at 8 am that morning but didn't end up taking off until almost 6 pm. Not only was this completely unacceptable, the "token from United" was a 15 dollar meal voucher that has to be used by today. I would personally like some miles added to my account for this inconvenience. I was in transit for 8 hours from the time I arrive at State College Aiport to when I got home. I was supposed to be home at 3 pm and I returned at 8 pm. Unacceptable. I have not been on an on Time united flight in nearly 5 years.

Crew was friendly. Seats are too narrow, particularly when a big person is in the adjacent seat, but I understand this is due to smaller planes usually flight into Lincoln. I have experienced several flight delays going out and coming into Lincoln airport, I say maybe 50% or higher of the flights I've taken out of this airport have been delayed.

newer aircraft, ability to connect my headset via blue tooth for entertainment.

Great flight. Boarded efficiently. Arrived early at CLT. There was no in flight entertainment on this aircraft. Great crew.

The seat was comfortable. There was a lot of turbulence. If it weren't for that,it would have been okay.

It was a red-eye, but the flight felt surprisingly quick. The seats were very comfortable, and that made resting much easier. I also want to thank the gentleman seated next to me, who graciously moved so my mom could sit beside me. We slept almost the entire way. The cabin crew was respectful in not disturbing us, while also being courteous and professional throughout. Thank you, United.

Packed in plane small uncomfortable seats elbow to elbow nobody wants to be in that situation for the money they paid

Got home at 3am after deboarding the plane. No compensation offered by American

The "on the ground" A/C was not working. It was so hot while waiting to get in the air, a passenger from the rear of the plan declared "I just can't!" and waited in the gangway until time to close the doors. It was miserable. But the crew were champs and had an amazing attitude. I know they were as miserable as we were but didn't let that affect their performance.

When I booked my flight a month ago - I selected a seat. That seat was NOT the one I ended up with when I checked into my flight the day before. This is the second time this has occurred. So, I checked my next flight on Wednesday and Thursday and no seat was assigned. Poor, very poor customer service.

Cleared standby and gave up my seat. Terrible policy and boarding experience

Message about flight cancelation was received late due to being in the air. No explanation, just canceled and booked on morning flight. We had to stay in the airport overnight because there was no transportation offered to get to the hotel that AA had available. Actual inflight was fine.

Ceiling fell down and had to have maintenance come and duct tape it up. No WiFi on the flight.

I appreciate that I finally got the seat I paid extra for this time. Thank you

American Airlines did everything they could with the high Spring Break crowd. I was frustrated to be changed from 1st class to a middle seat at the back of the plane. This has happened before, not sure booking 1st class and paying the extra actually works.

Plane from partner PSA was filthy. Plastic needs to be thoroughly cleaned. Really disgusting to look at and wonder about cleanliness of parts less visible.

Arrived early picked up my bag in a few minutes- great trip - thank you

Everything you need to know for your flight from Raleigh to Des Moines

Information on your arrival and departure airports