Seating Game: You Pay to Play

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THERE is a new wave of fees gaining momentum in the airline industry — surcharges for certain seats — but the prices carriers are charging are all over the map.

 

While fees for checked luggage have settled to around $15 to $35 per bag, airlines are still experimenting with how much extra they can charge for seat assignments, which currently range from $5 to $50 or more for a domestic flight.

 

Seat fees generally fall into two categories: the extra $6 to $20 AirTran Airways and Spirit Airlines charge passengers to reserve any seat (rather than be assigned a random seat at check-in); or premiums other airlines are charging for more desirable seats, like those with extra legroom.

 

Continental, Frontier, JetBlue, United and US Airways are pursuing this premium seat approach, while British Airways is doing both; it charges extra to reserve any seat before check-in, and more still for premium seats. In some cases, the so-called premium seats offer a tangible benefit — typically, more legroom — but carriers are also trying to earn a few extra dollars for seats in more favorable locations like those at the front of the plane, and that may be a tougher sell.

 

“Exit rows have extra legroom so I understand trying to sell those seats,” said Matt Daimler, founder of SeatGuru.com, which offers airline seat maps and tips on choosing a better seat (for instance, avoiding ones that don’t recline).

 

Mr. Daimler said he is more skeptical about carriers charging for seats simply because they are at the front of the plane.

 

“The ostensible benefit is you’re getting off the plane quicker,” he said. “But is that worth an extra $8 or so a flight? Not in my opinion. If you have carry-on bags and you want to make sure you get overhead space, being toward the back is better because airlines usually board back to front.”

 

Based on surveys of SeatGuru visitors, Mr. Daimler said extra legroom is the benefit passengers most value when choosing a seat, and that seems to be the main perk airlines are hoping to sell.

 

JetBlue promotes its premium seats as EML seats, which stands for “even more legroom” and promises customers at least four extra inches of legroom if they pay for these seats (typically in rows 2 to 5 and the exit rows).

 

Mateo Lleras, a JetBlue spokesman, said that the airline is testing price points for its EML seats, but they generally cost $10 for short flights, $25 for medium-length flights and $40 for longer flights, like from New York City to Los Angeles.

 

But when I bought a JetBlue ticket on that route recently, and the only seats available at no surcharge were in the middle, I thought $40 for a seat with more legroom was a little steep — particularly since JetBlue charges the same price for a middle EML seat as it does for one on the aisle.

 

I decided to wait and see if a regular aisle seat opened up by the time I checked in online; one did, so I switched at no extra charge. That is the gamble with the new seat shuffle: a better (free) seat might open up during check-in or at the airport, especially if the plane is full and airlines have to release their premium seats to give everyone a seat on the plane.

 

How that process works is a bit murky, and many of the details of these seat policies seem to be closely guarded secrets. Spirit Airlines does not even inform customers until after they have bought a ticket that there will be an additional fee to choose a seat, while representatives from Continental and US Airways refused to reveal the range of seat fees they charge.

 

In general, prices for premium seats are based on the distance of the flight and when you’re traveling, so they may cost more during peak travel times. The fees are typically nonrefundable and do not transfer to a new itinerary if you change your plans; nor do they usually come with advance boarding privileges.

 

Southwest, which still has an open seating policy, has taken a different approach and is selling priority boarding instead. For $10 per flight, Southwest’s Early Bird Check-in service automatically checks passengers in 36 hours before flight time, ahead of the typical 24-hour window.

 

That doesn’t guarantee a spot in Southwest’s “A” boarding group — the first passengers allowed on the plane — but Christi Day, a Southwest spokeswoman, said it usually results in an “A” boarding pass, which means that you board after “A-List” Rapid Rewards members and passengers who have paid for higher-priced Business Select fares.

 

Knowing that I wasn’t going to be near a computer before a recent Southwest flight, I paid for the Early Bird Check-in and ended up being among the first 10 people to board the plane. As it turned out, the flight was half empty, but I didn’t regret spending the extra money.

 

As Ms. Day said, “It takes some of the stress away.” To me, $10 was a fair price for that peace of mind.