JetBlue is upgrading Basic Economy by adding a free carry-on bag to the airline’s Blue Basic fare beginning on September 6th, 2024. Prior to this announcement, customers needing to bring a carry-on bag had to purchase one of the airline’s other fare options or upgrade to an Even More Space seat (JetBlue’s version of extra-legroom Economy).
With this change, every passenger on JetBlue, from Blue Basic to its award winning Mint Business Class, can bring one carry-on and one personal item onboard. Marty St. George, JetBlue’s President and hilarious Twitter guy, had this to say about the change:
“Carry-on bags are an important part of travel to customers, and when presented with a choice between JetBlue’s award-winning service and another carrier’s basic offering, we want JetBlue to be the easy winner. We’re always looking for ways to evolve our offering in response to customer preferences. This is a win-win as we improve the customer experience and keep JetBlue competitive in our industry.”
Marty St. George, JetBlue President
All carry on bags must meet the airline’s size and weight restrictions in order to be allowed onboard. The airline also notes in its press release that, due to space constraints onboard some aircraft, customers may have to gate check carry-on luggage at no charge.
JetBlue Fare Options
JetBlue currently has five fare options, four of which have “Blue” in the name so it can get somewhat confusing. With the change to Blue Basic fares, the differentiation between the fare options has narrowed somewhat.
For passengers traveling on Blue Basic fares, they are unable to make changes to their ticket or fly standby on another flight. Additionally a $100-200 cancellation fee applies depending on the flight. Seat selection can be purchased for an additional fee and passengers flying in Blue Basic must board last, so the chances are high you’ll have to gate check your bag on full flights.
For the full breakdown of JetBlue’s fare options, head over to JetBlue.com.
Summary
JetBlue is adding a free carry-on bag to Blue Basic fares beginning September 6th. With this change every JetBlue passenger, regardless of fare class can bring a carry-on and personal item onboard. Additional Blue Basic restrictions including cancellation fees and no changes still apply.
