US largest budget airline sees a staggering 71% spike in ticket prices
The nation’s cheapest airline is getting even more expensive.Frontier Airlines reported in its latest earnings call that the average amount it collected per passenger for airfare jumped 71% in the third quarter.That’s up $67.82 compared to $39.74 from just a year earlier.Here’s the breakdown: Frontier collected $28.08 more per passenger from airfare alone while other fees — like checked and carry-on luggage — played a smaller role.
Revenue from fees and other sources jumped by $3.70 per passenger.The bare-bones airline collected more cash overall as total revenue per passenger climbed from $106.44 to $138.22.However, this doesn’t mean that every ticket price rose by 71%.It simply means they collected more per customer overall.
But the budget carrier is not necessarily profiting from the increase, as soaring fuel costs pushed its quarterly net loss to $104 million.Despite rising airline prices, passengers continue to book.Frontier reported an 18% increase in passengers — up 1.5 million from last year.
The added customers can be linked to the collapse of Spirit Airlines back in May.According to consumer-spending data from Consumer Edge, from May through September 2026, Frontier was able to grab former Spirit passengers.In fact, the airline secured Spirit customers six times the rate its size would predict by offering huge discounts — up to 50% off base fares — to help those who were affected.Frontier also scooped up extra travelers by adding routes and flights in markets that Spirit had previously served, as the low-cost airline had more route overlap with Spirit than any other US carrier.However, the ultra-low-cost carrier said that while higher prices were not negatively impacting customer bookings, Frontier still took a loss.The company reported a net loss of $104 million compared with a $77 million loss from a year earlier as its fuel bill increased by 82% to $425 million.
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