Transavia, Ryanair, EasyJet… how much are you charged for your cabin baggage on low-cost flights ?

Depending on the airlines, cabin baggage can cost you up to 75 euros. ILLUSTRATION MAXPPP – Leyla Vidal

More and more airlines are charging their passengers extra for traveling with a handbag and carry-on suitcase.

Preferred each year by many travelers, low-cost airlines are expanding their destinations and representing an increasingly significant share of air traffic. 

To ensure their profitability, they are doubling their inventiveness to scrounge a few euros from their customers through a multitude of options behind which hide additional costs, which can quickly increase the ticket bill .

Up to 75 euros per cabin suitcase

Seat allocation, meals and refreshments, cancellation insurance and also baggage transport are additional costs. On this last point, only Transavia has until now offered flights including cabin baggage. But from April 3, the French low-cost airline is aligning itself with its competitors Ryanair, Easyjet or Vueling, and will charge for baggage in the cabin.

The latter must not exceed 10 kg, for a cost starting from 15 euros depending on the planned journey. The first airline to open the ball on billing for cabin baggage was Ryanair in 2018 on its cheapest flights. The first size of cabin suitcase (10 kg) is charged between 11.99 and 29.99 euros depending on the destination, while suitcases transported in the hold cost between 18.99 and 59.99 euros. < /p>

Pricing by weight

The British company Easyjet has chosen to opt for baggage pricing by weight in 2024: for standard baggage of 23 kg, count from 11.99 euros when booking and 48 euros at the airport. Excess weight is then billed at 18 euros per 3 kg until the maximum weight of 32 kg is reached. In the cabin, however, only small handbags with a maximum size of 45 x 36 x 20 cm which do not exceed 15 kg are authorized; beyond that, you must pay the sum of 7.99 euros. 

Finally, on flights operated by Vueling, you are allowed to take a handbag or backpack with you free of charge, but the Spanish company charges 24 to 59 euros per suitcase 10 kg cabin. A price that can rise to 75 euros at the airport check-in counter. 

Towards an end to overpricing ?

As Capital specifies, if the prices of these supplements are sometimes higher than those of the tickets, it is to fight against delays caused by excess cabin suitcases on board planes. 

If each company is free to set its own pricing conditions, the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) points out abusive billing that is contrary to consumer rights. Furthermore, parliamentarians voted at the beginning of October 2023 for a resolution aimed at ensuring that the rules regarding the size, weight and types of baggage – hand-held and checked – are harmonized on Union soil. European. 

Hand baggage being "indispensable elements of passenger transport", the European Court of Justice considers that they " cannot be subject to an additional price.