In recent months, we’ve seen most major US airlines increase checked bag fees, including Alaska, American, Delta, and United, among others. The truth is that these changes haven’t been unreasonable, for the most part — we’ve largely seen a $5 increase per bag, and it’s the first increase in several years, so in many ways it just covers inflation and wage increases, if that.
Well, JetBlue has just increased its checked bag fees for the second time in recent weeks, and has even introduced the concept of peak and off-peak bag pricing. Let’s cover the details.
JetBlue updates checked bag fees again
As of March 22, 2024, JetBlue has raised its checked bag fees once again, with two new factors determining the pricing:
- You receive savings of $10 per bag if you pay for your checked bag at least 24 hours before departure
- There’s now peak and off-peak pricing, where you’ll pay an extra $5-10 per bag if traveling on peak dates; peak pricing applies on nearly half of dates throughout the year, including on holidays, over summer, and more
Let’s take a look at the new pricing within the United States, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada. Below you can find JetBlue’s bag pricing if you pay less than 24 hours before departure.
Below you can find JetBlue’s bag pricing if you pay more than 24 hours before departure.
As you can tell, there’s now quite a bit of variability for bag pricing for an identical itinerary. For example, an off-peak first bag paid for in advance would cost $35, while a peak first bag paid for within 24 hours would cost $50.
For context, until recently JetBlue charged a flat $35 for a first checked bag, plus $45 for a second checked bag. As before, many passengers receive free checked bags, including JetBlue Mosaic members, those with a JetBlue Credit Card, and select premium customers, including those traveling in JetBlue Mint.
How JetBlue justifies raising checked bag fees
I think the reason JetBlue is raising checked bag fees is obvious, but I still find the explanation to be quite interesting. Zach Griff quotes a JetBlue spokesperson as saying the following:
The cost of transporting bags has gone up significantly due to increased wages and higher fuel costs, and we remain unprofitable since COVID. While we don’t like increasing fees, we are making these adjustments to help get our company back to profitability and cover the increased costs. By adjusting fees for added services that only certain customers use, especially during periods of highest demand for limited space in the cargo hold, we can keep base fares as low as possible and ensure customer favorites like seatback TVs and high-speed Wi-Fi remain free for everyone.
As you can see, the airline explains that it’s increasing checked bag fees to return to profitability. Generally airlines choose what bag fees to charge based on what they think will maximize revenue and profitability, rather than what’s fair. And what the airline can get away with largely depends on what competitors are doing.
With this new bag pricing model, JetBlue is on the very high end of checked bag fees, and it’s also one of the first non-ultra low cost carriers to introduce peak and off-peak pricing for checked bags.
JetBlue is undergoing quite the transformation. The airline has a new CEO, and part of the company’s turnaround strategy is to increase ancillary revenue. Obviously higher checked bag fees are part of that, but the airline is also doing things like adding new “preferred” seat fees, for regular economy seats closer to the front of the plane.
I’m curious to see how JetBlue’s situation evolves, as the airline has a bit of an identity crisis. JetBlue has historically offered a differentiated economy experience, while not being able to command a revenue premium for it. Now the airline seems to be taking more of a middle ground approach, still having free entertainment and Wi-Fi, plus industry leading legroom, while also increasing fees at the same time, and moving more in line with competitors.
I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad strategy, but I do think the airline needs to also lean into its premium offering, with doing things like installing first class throughout its fleet, given many of the markets in which JetBlue operates. There’s nothing wrong with increasingly trying to segment your customer base, but there has to be a strategy behind it.
Bottom line
JetBlue has once again increased its checked bag fees. The airline is charging an extra $10 if you pay for your checked bag within 24 hours of departure, and also has new peak and off-peak bag pricing. The first and second checked bag fees now range from $35 to $70, so that’s quite some variability.
What do you make of JetBlue increasing checked bag fees?
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