- American basic economy now costs more for bags: first bag $50-55 and second bag $60-65 on BE vs standard; effective for tickets purchased as of Apr 9, 2026. - Starting May 18, 2026, basic economy loses complimentary upgrades and systemwide upgrades, and seat assignments on BE become paid (cash or mileage upgrades with dynamic pricing remain). - BE mileage accrual/Loyalty Points stopped in late 2025 and BE no longer counts toward elite status, making BE less valuable for elites.

American Makes Basic Economy Much Worse, Especially For AAdvantage Elites In the past couple of weeks, we’ve seen most US airlines hike checked bag fees, in an effort to increase revenue during a very challenging time (due to high oil prices). American has just matched those checked bag fee increases, but is taking it to the next level, and is making basic economy much worse. American destroys the value of basic economy for elites Nowadays virtually every US airline has some form of a basic economy product, with the concept being that it’s intended to better compete with ultra low cost carriers, and fill seats that might otherwise go out empty. From the perspective of airlines, basic economy isn’t just about offering people lower fares who may otherwise fly other airlines, but instead, it’s about getting existing customers to pay more to avoid basic economy. In other words, basic economy is intended to be punitive, because airlines would ideally have all passengers avoid these fares. American has just announced a series of changes to basic economy: For tickets purchased as of April 9, 2026, checked bag fees will be $5 more for the first and second bag for basic economy tickets compared to standard economy tickets; so a first checked bag will cost $50-55, while a second checked bag will cost $60-65 (depending on whether you pay in advance, or within 24 hours of departure)...