Airlines have added more than 50 new fees over the past year, new data from the website TravelNerd show.
The finance-oriented site found dozens of “direct fee increases“ on already existing charges, as well as 28 new baggage-related fees levied in January 2013 compared to January 2012.
The fees add an estimated $36.1 billion annually to airlines’ bottom lines, according to TravelNerd.
Increasing fees for the same service are a big part of the uptick. For example, Spirit Airlines’ premium seat fee, which was $25-$75, is now as much as $199 depending on the flight.
The only good news, TravelNerd reports, is that the increases are generally modest. “The majority of fee increases were within $5-$10,” the site writes.
While some fees are nearly unavoidable, travelers can prepare for them. A newly released Airfarewatchdog super-survey of U.S. airlines’ charges is a good place to start.
