Stop overpaying airline fees.

Airline fees aren’t “random.” They’re designed to punish common behavior: airport payments, boxy bags, and Basic Economy traps. We track published rules and add counter-move insights so you can avoid the charges.

Browse Airlines Sizer Rules Card Break-Even Math Methodology

2026 Industry Benchmarks

Real-time aggregate data across 82 verified carriers.

Updated: Feb 2026

Avg. First Checked Bag

$35.00 — $40.00

Standardization is nearly complete among legacy carriers. Paying at the airport now adds a $20+ surcharge.

Avg. Carry-On (Budget)

$45.00 — $65.00

ULCCs (Ultra-Low-Cost Carriers) have shifted pricing to make overhead space more expensive than checked luggage.

"The Basic Tax"

+$75.00

The average cost to add 'standard' benefits (bag + seat) to a Basic Economy ticket after booking.

Feb 2026 Briefing

TSA Alert
Partial Shutdown: DHS funding lapse is causing checkpoint staffing shortages. Build +90 mins for domestic departures.
Legal Update
Transparency Rule: 5th Circuit Court vacated the DOT fee mandate. Airlines are again hiding total costs until checkout.
New Fees
REAL ID: Non-compliant travelers now face a $45 TSA verification fee at checkpoints as of Feb 1.

What this site is

A fee “decoder”: published fee rows where available plus airline-specific traps that trigger charges.

What you get

Fee tables, carry-on/sizer enforcement patterns, and card break-even math tied to bag fees.

What we don’t do

No legal guidance. When we cite fees, we link to the carrier-published source to ensure verifyable data.

Database Preview

A sample of the 82 indexed carriers.