American Airlines Joins the Fray, Hikes Price of Checked Bags

American Airlines followed the lead of nearly every other major U.S. airline on Thursday, raising checked bag fees, a move that it says will help it “in light of the current operating environment,” a reference to the rise in jet fuel prices over the past few weeks.

Going forward, the first checked bag for domestic flights including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada and short-haul international flights is $50. The second checked bag for those flights will cost travelers $60 and the third $200. Those who prepay for their first and second checked bag on aa.com or through American’s mobile app will receive a $5 discount, paying $45 and $55, respectively.

The price for those traveling on American’s Basic Economy tickets is also going up to $55 for the first bag and $65 for the second starting for tickets purchased on May 18. Basic Economy passengers can prepay for a $5 discount.

American is now the last of the Big Three airlines, and one of the last major U.S. airlines in general, to increase the cost of checking a bag—JetBlue started the wave in late March, United followed on April 3, Delta on April 8, and Southwest and Alaska joined the club just this week. American, United, and Delta are all charging essentially the same amount now, including a $5 discount if travelers prepay, though Alaska notably eliminated its prepayment discount when its new fees took effect on April 10.

There’s been a ton of volatility in the price of oil this week, but overall airlines have had to deal with essentially a doubling in those prices—global average jet fuel prices jumped from roughly $96 per barrel in late February to nearly $197 per barrel by late March. On April 9, the Argus U.S. Jet Fuel Index hit $4.25 a gallon. Most airlines’ 2026 budgets were built on fuel averaging around $2.50 to $2.70 per gallon, which created a need for them to add revenue to remain profitable.

While many European and Asian carriers opted for temporary fuel surcharges, American carriers all moved to increase bag fees as a way to make up the difference. Delta this week also announced it was cutting some of its capacity, particularly some less profitable, red-eye and off-peak flights, in order to make up the difference.