Delta now sometimes charges you more if you’re traveling alone – add a second passenger and the fare drops. It’s written right into the fare rules for some of their least expensive fares, that you must be accompanied by someone else on the itinerary to be eligible for their lowest price.
This may be a new way to segment business travelers in order to charge them more, but solo travelers are leisure travelers too. This quirk in the airline’s pricing was first reported by Thrifty Traveler.
Delta has begun charging solo passengers more per ticket than travelers booking for two (or more) on select flights.
For example, Delta is charging at least $199 for one passenger on this one-way flight from Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) to Miami (MIA) in early September. But search for two passengers instead, and the price drops significantly: Just $118 per ticket.
[W]hile it’s not widespread, this discount for two-plus travelers – or pricing penalty for those flying solo – doesn’t appear to be a glitch. Delta indicates it’s by design in its arcane fare rules, where airlines carve out requirements and exceptions in order to sell tickets at a certain price.
Airlines have done more than just about any industry to price discriminate, charging different amounts to different customers.
- They will take almost anything for a seat they are going to fly anyway but that would otherwise go unsold. The cost of adding an extra passenger to a flight is almost zero (very little extra fuel, catering and compute). Meanwhile, once a plane takes off with a seat empty, that seat can never be sold again.
- But they don’t want to sell the seat for less than someone is willing to pay. If a customer will pay $499 for a seat, there’s no reason to sell it for $99.
- So they want to sell for $99 to the most price-sensitive customers, while selling the same product to less price-sensitive customers for $499.
The simplest way to differentiate price-sensitive customers from price-insensitive ones is to draw a circle around leisure travelers and business travelers.
Leisure travelers paying out of their own pocket may be very attuned to price. They’ll fly if it’s cheap, won’t fly if it’s expensive, and adjust their trip to get the lowest price. That’s not true in every case, but it mostly works.
Business customers, flying on Other Peoples Money, do not usually care what a ticket costs (small business owners are more commonly like leisure travelers). They care more about schedule than price, suffer from principal-agent problems where they’ll pay more to get their preferred miles since it’s someone else’s money, and there’s usually a theory about how the trip creates more value than it costs – usually by a lot.
Historically, airlines separated out leisure travelers (to offer cheap fares to) and business travelers (to charge exorbitant prices to) based on things like Saturday stays, roundtrip requirements, and advance purchase rules. Those largely went by the wayside for domestic itineraries as ultra-low cost carriers gained prominence and didn’t impose those restrictions. Airlines couldn’t hold price for last minute business travelers when discounters offered the same itineraries cheap.
So airlines came up with basic economy to segment their customers. Price-sensitive customers get inflexible tickets, boarding last so they waste time gate checking carry-on bags and have to sit at baggage claim, and get the worst seat assignments. Meanwhile, business customers pay more and get the usual experience they expect.
Interestingly, American Airlines launched their devalued AAdvantage Business program with the restriction that you could only receive credit for flights if you were alone on the itinerary. They hard-coded the logic that more than one passenger on a reservation meant that it was a leisure trip, not a business trip. And while business travel is more likely to be ticketed separately, even if employees are traveling to the same place at the same time, that’s certainly not exclusively the case.
So Delta could be experimenting with one more way to offer their cheapest tickets only to leisure travelers (traveling together) and keep business travelers from paying less than they’re willing to pay, since they’re booking separate tickets much of the time even when two employees are traveling together.
On the ‘other peoples’ money’ comment, at least those businesses are likely designating that travel as a ‘business expense,’ reducing their reported income and tax liability, so it goes ‘hand in hand.’
At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if all companies (airlines included) price discriminate based on the individual (rather than the relative value of the product or service). Like, with tall the data and software (artificial intelligence certainly helps), they could determine exactly how much you specifically are willing to pay, then charge wildly different amounts based on that consumer (regardless of the relative value of the seat, route, etc.) I’m not saying I ‘like’ any of this, I’m just realizing it’s becoming more of ‘a thing.’
Couldn’t you book two and then later on cancel one of them?
Clickbait much?
No news here. Simple business – the more you buy, the lower the unit price. Grocery stores do the same thing. We don’t see a ‘single person surcharge’ when buying a single can of soda. We see a lower price if you buy in bulk. This is the same concept. Sell two seats for overall higher sales while giving a small discount on the per unit cost.
This is nothing new.
At Delta you get to enjoy Premium Greed.
Does the same pricing variance apply when you book with Skyrubles?
Charging OPM flyers more seems like a win-win for everyone involved.
Delta gets more money, and the sad sap who has to fly for work gets more miles and “spend” for their “status”
Does Ed pay more when he’s not accompanied by his BFF? During an IT meltdown? Asking for a friend…
Doesn’t matter unless you are blindly loyal. I always search fares for the three domestic airlines I am willing to fly. Who ever hits the right balance of schedule, routing, aircraft and fare gets my business. Delta can charge whatever they want.
I don’t like Delta, and intentionally never fly them. This just gives me another reason to fly any other airline. I am *always* a solo traveler. Doesn’t matter if it’s business or holiday. I get a surcharge if there is a reason (cruising) but the airline is still selling seats.
This goes into the “how much can we nickel and dime our customers” bucket. Greedy much?
of course, Parker.
BOGO and BO get the second half off type pricing exists in many industries.
These types of fares don’t exist in many markets but hub to leisure destination markets on certain days/flights does make sense, esp. when competing with ULCCs of which DL has several with large operations from its hubs, including MSP.
DL used to have the worst revenue management of the industry but now probably has the best – they manage to get the highest RASM and also run the highest load factors.
@ Gary — AA has been doing this for quite a while, at least on award ltickets.
@ Tim — Nice try. Delta is simply copying AA here.
I started noticing the same “single person surcharge” on American Airlines airlines ticket pricing a couple months ago. This occurred when I was shopping sometimes for myself alone, and sometimes for two of us.
Gene,
let Gary know. He wrote the article.
and, yes, DL’s revenue management is far superior to AA’s right now.
This seems counterproductive. 3×3 seating means lots of single seats open due to so many traveling in pairs. Those orphaned seats are less valuable, you’d think they’d want to get rid of them at a discount, i.e. giving singles a discount.
Where’s @Matt these days?
“For a 70 percent savings, please consider Delta (with a travel companion)…”
Fun. One more way in which those of us who are not coupled will be charged more for things.
From Delta – we are so INCLUSIVE!
Wow. I’m sure someone at Corporate got a raise, but this isn’t a cruise ship where 1 room fits 2 people. This is fine – fly another airlines, should be easy based on the rate increase alone!
The main thing I learned is when casually looking at fares, I should actually include the number travelling, rather than leave the number at ‘1’, as that can make a difference.
The only thing that’s surprising here is that the bloggers are just now catching on. AA and UA have been doing this for almost a year now, DL copied within the past few months.
@whocares — Ah, yes, ‘culture war’ distraction… that’s what this is… good one! /s
Companion fares have been around forever. This article is nothing more than a slow news day. Going to Florida in the summer? Kids fly free were in the 1990s.
(Argh. And no way to edit the previous post. Let’s try that again.)
So do a lot of businesses these days. Especially if teleconferencing is a valid alternative, which is increasingly the case.
Oh the good thugs @ Delta
If Delta were a bunch of street criminals you might get it
Rather then use a weapon to extort money from you they just direct you to their website
I already find the Delta usually charges noticeably more the AA or UA for the places that I most often go. I only fly Delta when other options don’t make sense.
Concept may not be novel and goes beyond airline industry but still mildly annoying to the consumer. I travel solo a lot and I’m okay with it? Rather it not be a thing obviously but it is what it is.
@1900 — Haha well done! Where is @Matt indeed…
How catholic to put a tax on divorces and widows
I am a travel industry veteran of 37+ years and you really should not be misleading people like this. This is not a surcharge so you should call it what it is. It is a promotional fare when 2 people are traveling together.
dw,
and yet AA and UA have been doing the same thing.
and this is about hub captive markets where ULCCs are present. Not a terrible surprise that the big 3 are using their size in their hubs to their advantage.
bob smith,
and DL clearly gets the higher prices it seeks based on its revenue premium to the industry.
As a solo traveler, this may become a disappointing trend. Per the comments, it appears that this has been happening but just now being noticed/reported. I certainly wasn’t aware of it. But there’s little I can do as a solo traveler other than price shop. Still it seems like one more cheap shot by the airlines (which should come as no surprise).
So as a solo traveler I can buy 2 seats for $238 which is only $39 more and get an empty middle seat. Sounds good
@ Dr. C — Apparently one now needs to check all possible combinations of the number of travelers when searching for the lowest fare. For a party of three, you’ll need to check for 1, 2, or 3 people per booking!
@ 1990 — When airlines begin charging based on your travel patterns, credit score, status, race, gender, political party registration, or whatever else Elon Musk stole from the federal government’s databases, I will consider using OTAs to book our flights.
Nothing like punishing the single traveler. As a one man consulting shop I always travel solo. Little guys like me always pay the freight for everybody else here in the good old USA.
@Jim Except the airline will fill the seat with a standby passenger since your partner is a no-show as far as they are concerned. They get your money, as well as that of the standby passengers.
After Delta Air Lines started charging 70% more for their solo flyer penalty surcharge unless you book a ticket for a companion on your flight, I always considered purchasing an extra ticket for an emotional support human companion.
2 things
1. Easyjet have done the lower fares for two in the past – very annoying for single travellers
2. Does this mean the influencer Jaelynn Chaney can purchase 2 seats at a great rate, rather than demanding the airline give her the extra seat free?
Having been a Diamond for 15 years with Delta, I am about over them. My wife and I are planning an Asia trip next winter. Lufthansa, Swiss International and Emirates were all at $17,000 for round trip first class. The same itinerary on Delta priced at $37,000. Made my decision pretty darned easy.
This reminds me of cruise ship pricing based on double occupancy per cabin.
While it seems logical for cruise lines to do this, I don’t like airlines doing this.
How about treating passengers with honest, fair, straight forward pricing? Is this too much to ask from greedy publicly traded airlines? They can still stick it to us and jack up the fares being offered as we get closer to departure date….
Looks like a hidden charge to make Delta mileage credit worth less.
If you want to book a SkyMile trip and a companion ticket you have to buy the companion ticket first with cash before you can use miles for your ticket. You must then call and have the two tickets linked together.
If the solo ticket is priced at almost the price of 2 tickets, what is the value of the miles?
If they’re trying to segment between business and leisure travelers, why does the accompanying passenger have to be an adult? Why wouldn’t a child trigger the same cheaper fare? Families traveling for leisure are some of the *most* price-sensitive customers, because they have to buy so many tickets, right?
Yet another reason to avoid Delta. Along with ancient planes of 40+years.
Uncomfortable seats.
Overcrowded ATL. (By comparison, LAX, ORD, DFW, JFK are no problem).
Faux southern hospitality.
Tim Dunn’s mother can take him along now on Delta flights
Travel companies, Hotels and Cruise ships have been adding the Solo Tax for years.
It does suck for the solo trips like weddings, memorials,, students holidays. But everyone is richer than the sellers.
How is this legal or ethical. Some people like myself travel solo for work. I can’t bring along my spouse or co worker and I get punished. Customers pay for luggage, ticket changes and now solo flyers are charged more. Total BS.
This is not brand new. They’ve been doing it for awhile now. In December I noticed I could book for two for almost the same price as one.
I’m sooooooooo tired of paying more for things because I’m single. I can understand a cruise based on double occupancy even though I don’t like it, but on a plane IT MAKES NO SENSE. It does not cost more to fly two people who purchased separate tickets than it does to fly two people who bought tickets at the same time. That’s not supply and demand fare bucket pricing; it’s outright discrimination. They can try to say that it’s a discount for buying two tickets but it’s not if the end result is singles paying more and it’s never advertised as a discount for two.
Wow. I had not heard of this before and I always travel solo. Due to small home base airport, I don’t have a lot of airline choices. AA is my go to at this time.
I have never understood solo surcharges and feel like I’m getting ripped off. I’ve only paid it once and now look for single travel without the surcharges.
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