Glossary · Travel distribution
NDC (New Distribution Capability)
NDC (New Distribution Capability) is an IATA programme and XML-based data exchange standard that lets airlines build and send their own offers — fares, bundles, ancillaries and rich content — to travel sellers through any channel, instead of relying only on fares filed and priced in a GDS.
Reviewed 30 Oct 2026
What NDC changes
IATA describes NDC as a data exchange format based on offer and order management, for airlines to create and distribute relevant offers. The programme dates from the early 2010s; IATA lists Resolution 787 of October 2012 among the resolutions supporting it.
In the older model the airline files fares and a GDS assembles the price. With NDC the airline answers the shopping request itself, so it can price dynamically, bundle seats and bags, and show the same descriptions and images it uses on its own site.
Filed fares vs NDC offers
| Filed fares via GDS | NDC offer | |
|---|---|---|
| Who builds the price | The GDS, from filed fares and rules | The airline, per request |
| Ancillaries | Limited | Bags, seats and bundles in the offer |
| Content | Text codes | Rich content: descriptions, images, brand names |
| Comparability across sellers | Same filing, same price logic | Can differ by seller and channel |
What NDC means for price collection
Two sellers can show different offers for the same flight, and the price increasingly depends on what is bundled. Collect the fare brand, included baggage and seat terms with every price, and compare like with like; see airline ancillary prices, airline fares and dynamic pricing.
FAQ
Questions
Something not covered? Write to contact@arcproxies.io.
Is NDC an API?
NDC is a standard: a set of message schemas for offers and orders. Airlines and technology providers implement it as APIs, which sellers connect to under an agreement with the airline or an aggregator.
Who created NDC?
IATA, the International Air Transport Association, which runs NDC as an industry programme for the development and adoption of an XML-based data transmission standard.
Does NDC mean fares differ between booking channels?
It can. Because the airline builds each offer at request time, it can present different bundles or prices to different sellers and channels, which makes recording the channel part of any fare comparison.
Can I get NDC data without an airline agreement?
Not through NDC itself; access is for sellers and partners with agreements. Logged-out collection sees the offers airlines and agencies display publicly on their websites, which is a different and openly visible dataset.
Sources & review
Last reviewed by the ARC Proxies team. Prices are read from the live catalog at build time.
- [1]IATA: New Distribution Capability (NDC)
In practice