Booking flights in COVID times

Book directly with the airlines. Read terms and conditions thoroughly before you book. You may have different t&c based on the cost of your ticket. If you book the cheapest you may not have as much flexibility as if you book a higher cost ticket.

Inserting another company between you and your carrier is setting yourself up for communication issues if there are problems.

I think you will find most recommend booking direct with the airlines even before COVID but even more so now with COVID.

Always book directly with the airlines
No question

I have never seen a good reason (good enough for me) to book on any third-party site, even in the best of times. I am firmly in the "always book flights directly with the airline" camp.

If you are chasing the absolute cheapest flight options to the exclusion of any other consideration, you might save a few bucks going through some third party, but there are always trade-offs, which can be (and often are) significant. When something goes sideways (as it does more frequently these days with all kinds of disruptions and adjustments), things can get ugly, and then you are on your own, left twisting in the wind. No thank you, not something I want to experience while traveling.

Booking direct with the airline removes layers of bureaucracy, filtering, communication finger-pointing, and other extra hassles. That has always been worth something to me, even more so nowadays.

Thank you for your answers. They were very helpful.

At the risk of being flagged for a 'late hit' ( piling on)

Or is it better to just book directly with the airlines?

YES