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, American, and JetBlue. Same pet and same cabin, but a 4x price gap 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. Same dog, same cabin. The airline is the only thing that changed.
Most pet owners book by schedule and price, then meet the pet fee at checkout. In-cabin means the pet rides in a soft carrier under the seat in front of you, not down in cargo, and that service is identical whether you pay $74 or $300. It just swings 4x by carrier.
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WestJet charges $37 one-way, so $74 round-trip for the under-seat carrier every airline makes you buy anyway. Allegiant is $50 one-way ($100 round-trip). Both undercut Delta’s $95 one-way, the number most travelers assume is the going rate.
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The middle tier clusters around $100-$125. Delta charges $95, Alaska $100, Southwest $125. Spirit charged $125 too, matching Southwest despite selling itself as the budget option. JetBlue used to sit here at $125. Then it raised the in-cabin fee to $150 each way and jumped to the top tier.
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American, United, and JetBlue all charge $150 one-way. That is $300 round-trip. Fly two pets on a family trip and you have spent $600 in pet fees on one domestic round-trip, before a single seat or checked bag.
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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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