I Checked 21 Airline Pet Fees. The Spread Is $74 to $300.
Round-trip in-cabin pet fees range from $74 on WestJet to $300 on United and American. Same pet, same cabin, 4x price difference depending on the airline.
Editor’s note (May 2026): This data essay was published before Spirit Airlines ceased operations on May 2, 2026 (Chapter 7 liquidation). Spirit’s pet fee below reflects its policy while it operated and is kept as a historical snapshot; Spirit is no longer bookable.
The same 15-pound dog in the same under-seat carrier costs $74 round-trip on one airline and $300 on another.
Most pet owners book flights by schedule and price, then discover the pet fee at checkout. The fee varies 4x depending on the carrier, and nothing about the service changes between the cheapest and most expensive.
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WestJet charges $37 one-way. That is $74 round-trip for the exact same under-seat pet carrier every airline requires. Allegiant is $50 one-way ($100 round-trip). Both are lower than Delta’s $95 one-way, which most travelers assume is standard.
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The middle tier clusters around $100-$125. Delta charges $95, Alaska $100, Southwest $125, JetBlue $125. Spirit also charges $125, which means Spirit’s pet fee matches Southwest’s despite Spirit being the “budget” option.
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American and United both charge $150 one-way. That is $300 round-trip. For two pets on a family trip, that is $600 in pet fees alone on a single domestic round-trip.
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Nine airlines charge under $100 one-way. WestJet, Allegiant, Eurowings, Gol, Breeze, Sun Country, Air Canada, Delta, and Frontier. The cheapest five are all under $75.
The airline with the lowest base fare is not the cheapest airline to fly with a pet.
Related: carry-on size checker and best airline for flying with pets in cabin.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which airline has the cheapest pet fee for in-cabin travel?
How much do American and United charge to fly with a pet in cabin?
Do all airlines allow pets in the cabin?
Travel research publisher and senior staff engineer
Caden Sorenson runs Travel Vient, an independent travel research and tools site covering airline carry-on policies, packing lists, and head-to-head airline, cruise, and destination comparisons, with everything cited to primary sources. He's a senior staff engineer with 15+ years of experience building iOS apps, web platforms, and developer tools, and a Computer Science graduate from Utah State University. Based in Logan, Utah.
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