Why Airlines Are Charging More to Check a Bag

28.02.2024 - 01:29 / skift.com / Spirit Airlines / United Airlines / Meghna Maharishi

Checking in a bag is becoming an increasingly expensive endeavor. 

At American and United, the first checked in bag now costs $40 at the airport. JetBlue quietly increased its baggage fees earlier in February to $45 for checking in the first bag less than 24 hours before departure. And Frontier Airlines charges $75 for luggage that weighs anywhere between 41 and 50 pounds. 

Delta so far has kept its baggage fees at $30 for the first bag, and Southwest is the only major carrier that doesn’t charge passengers for the first two checked-in items. 

Blame it on inflation and rising operating costs. 

Nearly every airline that upped baggage fees said inflation, higher fuel costs and operating costs led to the price increases. 

Many airlines saw record revenues and profits post-pandemic. But that growth may be waning as airfare inflation cools and costs, such as new labor contracts, continue to rise. Increasing bag fees is just one strategy airlines are turning to maintain those revenues.

JetBlue said it increased baggage fees as part of its strategy to return to profitability after suffering the losses of the Northeast Alliance and its failed merger with Spirit Airlines. 

“The cost of doing business has gone up significantly due to increased wages, higher fuel costs, and other inflationary pressure, and we remain unprofitable since COVID,” JetBlue said in a statement. “While we don’t like increasing fees, it’s one step we are taking to return our company back to profitability and cover the increased costs of transporting bags.”

American raised its bag fees for the first time in nearly five years, using a two-tiered fee strategy similar to that of United. For those who check in a bag at the airport, it’ll cost $40. The customers who check in bags online will only pay $35.

The changes at American were part of a wider overhaul of its booking process, which included only allowing travelers to earn frequent flyer miles on flights booked directly with the carrier or through certain online travel agencies. 

“American Airlines routinely evaluates our ancillary offerings as part of the normal course of business,” a company spokesperson said. “Due to inflation, fuel costs and increased operating costs, the new fees for first and second checked bags on all American Airlines routes within the U.S., including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.”

But these increases are not universal — American is lowering fees for certain overweight bags. For items that weigh anywhere between 50 to 53 pounds, customers will pay an extra $30 instead of the previous $100 fee. 

United also increased baggage fees for the first time in four years by $5. Like American, bags checked in at the airport will cost $40; luggage