A Major U.S. Airline Is Rolling Out Dynamic Pricing for Baggage Fees Based on ‘Peak’ and ‘Off-Peak’ Flight Dates

By temporary On Apr 3, 2024 40

Several U.S. airlines have been raising baggage fees for passengers, with some, such as American Airlines, offering customers a lower price if they pay ahead of time instead of at the airport.

Now, JetBlue is trying a new strategy — a dynamic method of baggage pricing that charges passengers more depending on the date.

For example, the airline offers a $10 discount on checked bags if customers opt to pay for their checked baggage online at least 24 hours before their flight departs.

In February, JetBlue increased its checked bag prices to a base fee of $45 for the first checked bag and $60 for the second. These will be the prices for dates deemed “Off-Peak” on domestic flights, all Blue, Blue Basic and Blue Extra tiered tickets.

The prices jump to $50 for the first bag during peak dates and $70 for the second bag.

Dynamic prices are in play for flights that are booked on or after March 22, 2024, with peak dates in 2024 and 2025 currently listed as: April 11 – 24; June 20 – September 3; November 21 – December 2; December 19 – January 6; February 13 – February 24; and April 3 – April 28.

“The cost of transporting bags has gone up significantly due to increased wages and higher fuel costs, and we remain unprofitable since COVID,” a spokesperson for JetBlue told Travel + Leisure. “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.”

Blue Plus, Mint and Mosaic tiered tickets have the first two checked bags included in the ticket price.

The increases come amid an industry trend of increasing checked bag fees — the top 20 airlines in the world made a reported $33 billion in baggage fees in 2023 alone.

JetBlue was down just under 4% in a one year period as of Tuesday afternoon.