With a great sigh from passengers across the U.S., Southwest Airlines recently began charging for checked bags. It marked the end of an era in the United States, since they were the one and only airline that didn’t charge for checking your first two bags. Unfortunately, greed took over and that was the end of that.
A Brief History of Checked Bag Fees
Now-defunct UK budget carrier Flybe was the first airline in the world to start charging passengers for checked bags in 2006 (when they started, they charged £2 if you booked your checked bag in advance or £4 if you waited until you did it at the airport). Of course, monkey see monkey do, and other low-cost and ultra-low-cost carriers began charging for checked bags too.
Full-fare airlines started taking notice and by 2008, American Airlines became the first airline in the US to start charging ($15 at the time) to check a bag. Of course, all the other airlines followed suit, except for Southwest, which finally joined the fray on May 28, 2025.
Airlines That Still Include Free Checked Bags
There are several ways to check a bag and not pay for it:
- having the right co-branded credit card
- having a credit card that reimburses you for fees such those for checked luggage
- having elite status with the airline in question
- if you’re flying internationally and/or on a certain class of fare (this is even still the case in the U.S.)
That being said, there are no more commercial airlines in the U.S. that allow you to check bags for free if you don’t have the options I just listed. However there are a handful of carriers in other countries that still don’t charge you for checking your bag(s) for domestic routes. Here are some of them:
Air India
Air India offers a free checked baggage allowance with every fare. However the weight/size of that free checked bag will vary based on where you’re traveling and what type of fare you purchased.
Airnorth
Airnorth is a regional airline based in Australia. All of their flights include free checked baggage. However, like other airlines on this list, how much you can check will vary. Unlike other airlines, they base their variance on which of their planes you’re on.
- Embraer E120 – free up to 15kg
- Embraer E170/E190. – free up to 20kg
Barrier Air
Barrier Air is a small commercial airline based out of New Zealand. They state on their website that, “Each Premium and Economy ticket includes 20kg checked-in baggage (Great Barrier Island, North Shore, Tauranga & Whitianga flights) or 23kg checked-in baggage (Kaitaia & Kerikeri flights).”
Blue Islands
Based in the Channel Islands, Blue Islands advertises that each passenger can take one item of hold baggage up to 23kg with the Blue Fly fare type, and two items of hold baggage of up to 23kg each with the Blue Plus fare type.
Egyptair
Egyptair offers a free checked baggage allowance with every fare. However the weight/size of that free checked bag will vary based on what type of fare you purchased.
El Al
Israel’s El Al airline offers a free checked baggage allowance with every fare. They make it clear that the allowance is only for 1 bag and the bag can only be up to 23 kilos. Furthermore, the benefit will be given only up to 6 hours before the flight.
Emirates
Emirates touts themselves as having “one of the most generous baggage allowances in the world.” Your free baggage allowance is based on either the total amount of weight (varying from 20kg to 50 kg, depending on your class of travel). or on how many pieces of luggage you have.
Ethiopian Airlines
Ethiopian Airlines’ rules for allowing free checked bag(s) are based on where you’re traveling to/from. However, in some traveling circumstances, they still allow you to check bags for free.
Loganair
Loganair offers a free checked baggage allowance with every fare. However, the weight/size of that free checked bag will vary based on what type of fare you purchased.
Qatar Airways
Checked baggage is included on all Qatar Airways flights.
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines’ rules for allowing free checked bag(s) are based on where you’re traveling to/from. However, in some traveling circumstances, they still allow you to check bags for free.
Turkish Airlines
Turkish Airlines’ rules for allowing free checked bag(s) are based on where you’re traveling to/from. However, in some traveling circumstances, they still allow you to check bags for free.
Caveat: U.S. Military Members
Although no U.S.-based airline offers free checked bags for civilians anymore, several offer free checked bags for active military members (sometimes only if they’re on travel orders) and sometimes their family members. Here’s what each of the larger airlines allows (or not):
But for the rest of us? The good ol’ days are over.
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2 comments
JSX still has 2 free checked bags, though I realize it in a different category than the other airlines.
Some other ones with free checked bags on all routes – ANA, EVA, JAL, Starlux, Asiana, and Korean. They all fly to the US, but not all of them have domestic flights. It’s pretty decent, too – a minimum of 20kg/44lbs or 1x 23kg/50lbs, depending on the fare/route.
Also, not sure why SQ is on your list since they don’t have domestic flights. ;-p