Earlier this week, JetBlue announced it would raise the fees it charges for checked bags “due to the rising cost of fuel.” We anticipated that all major US carriers would eventually follow in short order, similar to what happened in 2020, the last time bag fees went up across the board. That’s exactly what happened, and it didn’t even take the rest of the week.
Today, Alaska became the last of the big US carriers to announce it would increase the price of checked bags, making the first week of April an official bagpocolypse.
Summary of new checked bag fees
The following chart shows the current bag fees for major American airlines. When there are two numbers, the first indicates the cost when purchasing in advance of check-in, and the second price is for payment at the airport:
| Carrier | 1st Bag | 2nd Bag | 3rd Bag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | $45 | $55 | $200 |
| American | $45/$50 | $55/$60 | $200 |
| Delta | $45 | $55 | $200 |
| JetBlue Off-Peak | $39/$49 | $59/$69 | $125 |
| JetBlue Peak | $49/$59 | $69/$79 | $135 |
| Southwest | $45 | $55 | $200 |
| United | $45/$50 | $55/$60 | $200 |
Quick Thoughts
There are three constants in life: death, taxes, and airlines rushing to follow each other’s fee increases like an old-school Black Friday door rush. In this case, each carrier raised the cost of the first and second bags by $5-$10, while that cursed third bag goes up by even more, hitting a whopping $200 (except for JetBlue)
Each airline cites increases in fuel costs as the reason this is necessary. However, there’s no reason that checked bag prices need to go up. A temporary fuel surcharge or bag surcharge would accomplish the same thing. However, these increases are here to stay, regardless of what happens with fuel prices. Absolutely no one expects them to eventually go back down. They’re here to stay.
It also serves the dual purpose of making the airline’s various and sundry credit cards even more appealing, as they often waive the first checked bag fee. For a family of four with multiple checked bags, that could now be a savings of something approaching $200.
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“I’m never flying again”
Any stats on what percentage of people actually pay these bag fees? I’m a zillion mile traveller, and have never paid a domestic checked bag fee. Who would? It’s generally not a good idea to travel with all your household possessions. A carry on and “personal item” should be more than enough luggage for any normal human, and it’s a hassle to cart more than that with you anyway.
I could see some special reasons to check bags (camping, transporting wine, etc) but those would be pretty uncommon, and wouldn’t really be “worth it” if you didn’t get those checked bags for free.
I do agree that this will encourage more credit card signups to waive bag fees as there will be some humans who disagree with my assessment of “necessary” luggage.