The 5 Best U.S. Airlines for Frugal Travelers

We all deserve a nice vacay once in a while, and I don’t know about you, but I want to pay as little as possible for it.

WalletHub compiled its latest annual rankings of the best airlines by analyzing U.S. Department of Transportation flight data for the nine biggest national airlines and a regional carrier. The website ranked the most and least affordable airlines based on passenger revenue divided by available seat miles for each airline.

According to this calculation, the best rates equal 3 cents per available seat mile. Meanwhile, the worst was 16.15 cents per available seat mile. To keep things fair, WalletHub also considered costs related to in-flight amenities.

We’ve compiled a list of WalletHub’s findings, although we’ve excluded the regional carrier SkyWest. But if included on our list, it would have taken the No. 3 spot for most affordable airline.

With that in mind, let’s see which airlines are best for travelers on a budget.

5. Hawaiian Airlines

Overall affordability score: 2.95 out of 10 points

Cost per mile to fly: 12.27 cents

Hawaiian Airlines started as Inter-Island Steam Navigation Co. around the turn of the 20th century, providing the largest fleet of steamships serving the then-U.S. territory. A couple of decades later, convinced of the importance of flight service to the islands, it formed Inter-Island Airways. In 1929, sightseeing was offered for $5 in a Bellanca monoplane — the original of which has been restored and regularly flies over Oahu.

Another couple of decades later, changing its name to Hawaiian Airlines, it offered the first scheduled air cargo service, earning the first U.S. Cargo Certificate.

4. JetBlue Airways

Overall affordability score: 2.97 out of 10 points

Cost per mile to fly: 12.25 cents

JetBlue was founded in 1998 with the goal of of providing customers with high-quality travel at a lower cost. Its first flight left from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City and landed in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in 2000.

On top of JetBlue’s lower costs, it also offers free Wi-Fi and complimentary snacks and beverages.

3. Alaska Airlines

Overall affordability score: 3.02 out of 10 points

Cost per mile to fly: 12.18 cents

Alaska Airlines can trace its roots back to 1932, first operating in Anchorage as McGee Airways and Star Air Service. It took on its current name in 1944. By the late 1940s, using surplus military aircraft, Alaska Airlines branched into worldwide charter work, including the Berlin Airlift in 1948.

The airline has publicly promised to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2040.

2. Frontier Airlines

Overall affordability score: 7.69 out of 10 points

Cost per mile to fly: 6.03 cents

Frontier Airlines, although a budget airline, has made it far on this list. Calling itself “America’s greenest airline,” it boasts that its cheaper flights and lower carbon emissions are thanks to having the “youngest fleet in the industry.” The average Frontier plane’s age is about four years.

1. Spirit Airlines

Overall affordability score: 8.30 out of 10 points

Cost per mile to fly: 5.23 cents

Spirit Airlines wasn’t always an airline, beginning as the Clippert Trucking Co. in Michigan in 1964. It didn’t shift its focus to the sky until 1980, when it ventured into air charter operations as Charter One.

Introducing jets to its fleet in 1992, the company was renamed Spirit Airlines and began a strategic shift to its low-cost, “no-frills” approach in 2007.