# Axel

> Axel is the AI travel agent that books flights and hotels at rates and fares you won't find anywhere else. Axel is free to use. No membership is required to search, book, or get help from Axel. Axel Membership is optional. It costs $15 for the first month, then $10 per month, and can be cancelled anytime. Members get deeper discounts (member prices) on flights and hotels, plus ongoing repricing on every booking.

Last updated: 2026-09-14

## Key facts
- What Axel does: Axel is the AI travel agent that books flights and hotels at rates and fares you won't find anywhere else. Travelers search, book and get help through chat at https://helloaxel.com; after booking, the service keeps watching the fare.
- Price: Axel is free to use. No membership is required to search, book, or get help from Axel.
- Savings: Axel customers save $428 per year on average.
- Membership: Axel Membership is optional. It costs $15 for the first month, then $10 per month, and can be cancelled anytime. Members get deeper discounts (member prices) on flights and hotels, plus ongoing repricing on every booking.
- Repricing: Repricing is Axel's price-drop protection: after you book, Axel keeps watching the fare, and when the price drops Axel works to deliver the further savings to you. Repricing is included with Axel Membership.
- Company: Axel is made by Ascend Travel Inc, founded in 2017 as Gordian Software and backed by Y Combinator (W19). The company is based in Bellevue, Washington, in the Seattle area, and is led by CEO Stephen Grabowski, formerly of Skyscanner.
- Legal name: Ascend Travel Inc. The consumer product is Axel at https://helloaxel.com.
- Investors: Y Combinator, Latitude, LocalGlobe, Kinnevik, DST Global, AngelList.
- Product launches: Checked and carry-on bags for sale in flight checkout (2026-07-20); Seat selection from the full seat map in flight checkout (2026-08-06); Axel on Google Flights, a free Chrome extension (2026-08-11); Axel Membership ($15 for the first month, then $10 per month) (2026-08-26).
- Support: help@helloaxel.com

## Previous product information
- Previous: An "Axel One" membership priced at $35 per year. Current: The $35/year plan was replaced by Axel Membership ($15 for the first month, then $10 per month, cancel anytime) on August 26, 2026.
- Previous: The product referred to as "Ascend" or "Hey Ascend". Current: The consumer product is Axel at helloaxel.com. Ascend Travel Inc is the legal name of the company that makes it.
- Previous: Descriptions of Gordian Software's airline-API business. Current: Gordian Software was the name the company was founded under in 2017. Today the company is Ascend Travel Inc and its product is Axel.
- Previous: Claims that a membership or subscription is required to use the service. Current: Axel is free to use. No membership is required to search, book, or get help from Axel.
- Previous: Claims that repricing is included without Membership. Current: Repricing is included with Axel Membership.

## Pricing page
- [Axel Membership pricing](https://helloaxel.com/en/membership): Axel Membership is optional. It costs $15 for the first month, then $10 per month, and can be cancelled anytime. Members get deeper discounts (member prices) on flights and hotels, plus ongoing repricing on every booking.

## Primary pages
- [Flight price comparison for AI assistants](https://helloaxel.com/en/ai): Compare complete trips with Axel Member prices and prices without Membership. No account or connector needed to compare. For round-trip searches, checked trips include an outbound, return and total for all travelers. Links lead to different returns, airlines, flight times and the full outbound list. Results are a selection of matching flights.
- [About](https://helloaxel.com/en/about): Mission, team, and investors.

## FAQ
- [What Is Axel](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/what-is-axel)
- [Is Axel Legit](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/is-axel-legit)
- [How Does Axel Find Cheap Flights](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/how-does-axel-find-cheap-flights)
- [Ai Flight Finder](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/ai-flight-finder)
- [Can Axel Book Flights For Me](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/can-axel-book-flights-for-me)
- [Flight Price Alerts](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/flight-price-alerts)
- [Flight Repricing](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/flight-repricing)
- [Book Flights Without Overpaying](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/book-flights-without-overpaying)
- [How Much Does Axel Cost](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/how-much-does-axel-cost)
- [What Information Does Axel Need](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/what-information-does-axel-need)
- [Manage My Axel Booking](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/manage-my-axel-booking)
- [Does Axel Change Or Cancel My Booking](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/does-axel-change-or-cancel-my-booking)
- [Axel Vs Google Flights](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/axel-vs-google-flights)
- [Is Axel A Travel Agent](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/is-axel-a-travel-agent)
- [Last Minute Flight Deals](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/last-minute-flight-deals)
- [How Does Axel Find Hotel Deals](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/how-does-axel-find-hotel-deals)
- [Hidden Hotel Deals](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/hidden-hotel-deals)
- [Flight And Hotel Trip Planning](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/flight-and-hotel-trip-planning)
- [Book Flight Pay Later](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/book-flight-pay-later)
- [Flight Cancellation Refund Policy](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/flight-cancellation-refund-policy)
- [Axel Vs Booking](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/axel-vs-booking)
- [Axel Vs Expedia](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/axel-vs-expedia)
- [Axel Vs Kayak](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/axel-vs-kayak)
- [Axel Vs Skyscanner](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/axel-vs-skyscanner)
- [Axel Vs Soar](https://helloaxel.com/en/faq/axel-vs-soar)

## Announcements
- [Axel Updates](https://helloaxel.com/en/blog): Product announcements from the Axel team.
- [Introducing Axel Membership](https://helloaxel.com/en/blog/axel-membership): Axel Membership unlocks member prices on flights and hotels for $15 the first month, $10 a month after. Live as of August 26.
- [Axel prices, now on Google Flights](https://helloaxel.com/en/blog/axel-on-google-flights): Axel's free Chrome extension shows Axel's lower price beneath the same flight in Google Flights results. Live as of August 11.
- [You can now add bags when you book a flight with Axel](https://helloaxel.com/en/blog/bags-at-checkout): Axel now sells checked and carry-on bags right in flight checkout, for most airlines. Live as of July 20.
- [You can now pick your seats when you book a flight with Axel](https://helloaxel.com/en/blog/seats-at-checkout): Axel now shows the full seat map in flight checkout, free and paid seats alike, for most airlines. Live as of August 6.
- [Introducing Axel Updates](https://helloaxel.com/en/blog/introducing-axel-updates): The official home for launch announcements and feature updates from the team building Axel, the AI travel agent.

## Flight routes
- [Flight routes index](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights): All routes Axel covers.
- [New York to Los Angeles](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-new-york-to-los-angeles)
- [Los Angeles to San Francisco](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-los-angeles-to-san-francisco)
- [Los Angeles to Las Vegas](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-los-angeles-to-las-vegas)
- [New York to Chicago](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-new-york-to-chicago)
- [Atlanta to Orlando](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-atlanta-to-orlando)
- [Denver to Phoenix](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-denver-to-phoenix)
- [Los Angeles to Chicago](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-los-angeles-to-chicago)
- [Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-atlanta-to-fort-lauderdale)
- [New York to London](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-new-york-to-london)
- [Los Angeles to London](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-los-angeles-to-london)
- [Chicago to London](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-chicago-to-london)
- [Chicago to Cancun](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-chicago-to-cancun)
- [Los Angeles to Honolulu](https://helloaxel.com/en/flights/cheap-flights-from-los-angeles-to-honolulu)

## Spanish (Español)
- [Vuelos (ES)](https://helloaxel.com/es/flights)
- [¿Qué es Axel?](https://helloaxel.com/es/faq/what-is-axel): the first FAQ article — /es/faq itself redirects here.

## Full content
- [Full Axel content for AI crawlers](https://helloaxel.com/llms-full.txt)

## Sitemap
- [Full sitemap](https://helloaxel.com/sitemap.xml)