U.S. Airlines May Be Charging Passengers More for Solo Tickets

While traveling alone can be enticing and relaxing, new data reveals it might also be more expensive. 

U.S. airlines are allegedly charging single passengers higher fares than couples or families, according to a new report from the booking site Thrifty Traveler. The travel data team recently compared the price of a single-ticket purchase versus that of two or more tickets. In multiple instances, the single-ticket purchase was more expensive per passenger.

In one example, the report showed how a United Airlines flight from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD) to General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) cost $269 for a one-way ticket for a person traveling alone. But when the same route was booked for two people, the price dropped to $181 per person. The team also noted that a single fare on an American Airlines flight that was priced at $422 dropped to $266 per person when multiple tickets were booked.

“It’s just another way for airlines to continue ‘segmenting’ their customers, charging business travelers paying with a corporate card more while offering a better deal to families on the exact same flight,” Thrifty Traveler executive editor Kyle Potter said in the article.

The report also notes that the phenomenon doesn’t appear to be a widespread occurrence, and may be a limited-time test, or may only appear on select routes.

After the report was released, dozens of flyers and aviation enthusiasts confirmed the findings independently. 

Jeff Rossen, a consumer correspondent and the host of the Rossen Reports, shared his experience of seeing higher fares for single tickets on social media.

“I picked a random round-trip flight, and the first one I picked, boom … a giant $240.93 price difference,” Rossen told Travel + Leisure. “Same flights. Same cabin.”

He also said booking websites may use other clues to potentially generate higher fares and prices for certain customers.

“Airlines can track your search history and apply different prices based on it,” Rossen said. “So, clear your cache and cookies before logging into the airline. Better yet, search in incognito mode to avoid price hikes targeting you.”

At the time of publication, neither American Airlines nor United Airlines provided a comment to T+L. In the meantime, if you’re traveling alone, experts recommend setting up price alerts to save some cash. Alternatively, you could consider flying into other nearby (often smaller) airfields that may be less expensive.