Frontier Airlines sells the cheapest published base fares between dozens of US city pairs, with a fleet of A320neo and A321neo jets, the Discount Den subscription, and the Frontier Miles loyalty program. The catch shows up at checkout. Carry-on bags cost more than checked bags, seat assignments run $19-$80, change fees apply outside the 24-hour grace window, and the schedule strands travelers when a single canceled flight disappears for two days because the route runs three times a week. These Frontier Airlines alternatives target the same low-fare US travel without the same surprise math.
We picked seven, mixing the head-to-head ultra-low-cost rivals, full-service carriers that compete on bundled fares, and the apps that actually find a cheaper Frontier-equivalent ticket on a different airline.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Free carry-on | Free checked bag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spirit Airlines | Direct ultra-low-cost competitor | Bundle only | Bundle only |
| Allegiant | Smaller US cities to leisure destinations | Bundle only | Bundle only |
| Southwest Airlines | Two free checked bags, no change fees | Yes | Two free |
| JetBlue | Premium economy on a budget | Yes | First bag fee |
| Sun Country Airlines | Upper Midwest leisure routes | Bundle only | Bundle only |
| Hopper | Predict prices, watch fares | N/A | N/A |
| Skyscanner | Compare every airline at once | N/A | N/A |
Why people leave Frontier Airlines
The bag math beats the ticket math. A $39 base fare grows past $200 round trip once a carry-on, a seat, and a return checked bag stack onto the booking. The headline price holds only for travelers flying with a personal item alone.
Schedule frequency makes cancellations painful. Many Frontier routes operate three or four times a week. A canceled Wednesday flight to a sun destination can leave you waiting until Friday or Sunday with no same-day rebooking option.
Customer service is thin. Frontier scaled back call-center staffing in 2022 and steers everyone toward the app chat. Real holds on chat run 30-90 minutes during irregular operations.
Loyalty math is opaque. Discount Den ($59.99 per year) and Frontier Miles each promise savings, but the actual yield depends on hitting specific qualifying purchases, and the cliff resets annually.
The aircraft is dense. Frontier’s slim seats sit at 28-29 inches of pitch with no recline. The 3.5-hour flight that costs $69 is the floor price for a reason.
Which Frontier Airlines alternative should you pick
- Spirit Airlines for the closest fare-by-fare ultra-low-cost head-to-head.
- Allegiant for small US cities to Las Vegas, Orlando, Phoenix, and Florida beach destinations.
- Southwest Airlines when you want two free checked bags and no change fees.
- JetBlue for free Wi-Fi, more legroom, and seatback TVs on a moderate budget.
- Sun Country Airlines for Minneapolis-anchored leisure routes.
- Hopper when the priority is buying the right ticket at the right moment regardless of carrier.
- Skyscanner for comparing every published fare on a route in one search.
Stay on Frontier when the fare difference holds after you add the bag and seat fees, you’re booking a leisure trip with a personal item only, and the route’s frequency means a cancellation won’t strand you.
1. Spirit Airlines, direct ultra-low-cost head-to-head
Spirit Airlines operates the closest mirror to Frontier’s model: bare base fares plus add-ons for everything else. The Spirit Saver$ Club ($69.95 per year) lowers bag and seat fees enough to beat Frontier on routes where both airlines fly. Spirit’s fleet runs A320 and A321 aircraft, with Big Front Seats sold as a domestic first-class equivalent at roughly half what legacy carriers charge.
Frontier Airlines vs Spirit Airlines: similar pricing model, similar fee structure, similar in-flight product. Spirit’s Big Front Seat is the clearest differentiator. Frontier’s Discount Den sometimes wins on Midwest routes Spirit doesn’t serve.
Where it falls short: the on-time performance trails the industry. Maintenance-related cancellations spike in summer thunderstorm season.
Pricing: free app, base fares from $19-49 on short routes. Saver$ Club at $69.95 per year cuts bag and seat fees.
Switching from Frontier: install Spirit, compare the all-in price including bags and seat, and weigh Saver$ Club if you fly Spirit more than three times a year.
Bottom line: the right call when the fare-by-fare math wins Spirit over Frontier on the same route.
2. Allegiant, small cities to leisure destinations
Allegiant Air flies a different route map than Frontier or Spirit, connecting roughly 130 small and mid-sized US cities to leisure destinations like Las Vegas, Orlando, Phoenix, Punta Gorda, and Myrtle Beach. The Allways Rewards program returns points on flights, hotels, and bundle bookings. Allegiant’s A319 and A320 fleet runs two or three flights a week on most routes.
Frontier Airlines vs Allegiant: Allegiant rarely overlaps with Frontier’s route map. When both airlines serve the same city, Frontier usually wins on price and Allegiant on departure timing convenience.
Where it falls short: mid-week schedules with no daily frequency. Aircraft are older A319s on legacy routes.
Pricing: free app, base fares from $39-59 on short leisure routes. Bundle add-ons cover bag and seat.
Switching from Frontier: install Allegiant for routes connecting small US cities to sun destinations. The leisure-only network means flexible date searches surface large savings.
Bottom line: the right call for travelers in mid-sized US cities heading to leisure destinations.
3. Southwest Airlines, two free checked bags
Southwest Airlines stands out from Frontier on the bag math. Two free checked bags ship on every fare, no change fees apply, and Rapid Rewards points don’t expire. The Boeing 737 fleet runs at higher utilization than ultra-low-cost carriers, with Wi-Fi available on most aircraft. Southwest’s open-seating model recently shifted toward assigned seating starting 2026.
Frontier Airlines vs Southwest Airlines: Frontier wins on headline base fare. Southwest wins on the all-in price once bags enter the math, and on schedule reliability when something goes wrong.
Where it falls short: no premium cabin. Limited international footprint (Caribbean and Mexico only).
Pricing: free app, Wanna Get Away fares from $59-99 on short routes. No bag or change fees.
Switching from Frontier: install Southwest, compare the all-in fare with two checked bags included, and book when the gap closes to within $30-50 round trip. The schedule reliability pays back the small premium.
Bottom line: the right call for travelers with two checked bags or a schedule sensitive to cancellations.
4. JetBlue, premium economy on a budget
JetBlue runs a fleet of A220, A320, and A321 aircraft with free Wi-Fi, free seatback entertainment, free unlimited snacks and soft drinks, and the most legroom in basic economy of any US carrier. Mosaic status (50 segments or 50K base points) earns free changes and same-day standby. JetBlue’s TrueBlue points don’t expire and transfer to a small set of partners.
Frontier Airlines vs JetBlue: Frontier wins on base fare. JetBlue wins on the experience once you actually sit down. The Even More Space upgrade ($30-100) buys an additional 4-6 inches of pitch.
Where it falls short: route network skews East Coast and transcontinental. Smaller mid-American footprint. Recent operational reliability has been mixed.
Pricing: free app, Blue Basic fares from $79-129 on short East Coast routes. Free carry-on for non-Basic fares.
Switching from Frontier: install JetBlue for East Coast leisure or business travel where the in-flight product matters and the per-seat cost gap closes against Frontier with seat and bag fees.
Bottom line: the right call when in-flight experience matters more than the absolute lowest fare.
5. Sun Country Airlines, Minneapolis-anchored leisure routes
Sun Country Airlines flies Boeing 737-800 aircraft on roughly 100 routes anchored at Minneapolis-Saint Paul, with seasonal service to Florida, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Hawaii. The model sits between ultra-low-cost and full-service: base fares are competitive with Frontier and Spirit, but seat pitch is 31-32 inches rather than 28, and overhead bag policies are more generous in the bundled fares.
Frontier Airlines vs Sun Country Airlines: Sun Country’s seat pitch is meaningfully more comfortable. Frontier’s route network outside Minnesota is larger. The two airlines rarely overlap directly except on a handful of MSP routes.
Where it falls short: schedule frequency is low outside peak season. Hub concentration means most flights connect through Minneapolis.
Pricing: free app, base fares from $59-99 on regional routes. Bundle pricing adds bag, seat, and priority boarding.
Switching from Frontier: install Sun Country if you live in Minnesota, Wisconsin, or the Dakotas. The route map fits leisure travel for that geography better than Frontier’s national network.
Bottom line: the right call for travelers anchored to Minneapolis-Saint Paul.
6. Hopper, predict prices and watch fares
Hopper is a meta-search app rather than an airline. The price-prediction engine forecasts whether the current fare on a route is likely to rise or fall in the next 30, 60, or 90 days, with watch-fare alerts pushing notifications when a tracked route drops. Hopper also sells optional fare-freeze and price-drop guarantees as premium add-ons.
Frontier Airlines vs Hopper: Frontier is the airline; Hopper is the buying tool. Use Hopper to find the cheapest fare across every airline on a Frontier-served route, then book directly with the carrier to keep change rights intact.
Where it falls short: the optional Carrot Cash and bundled rebooking products can muddy the cost picture. Direct-airline support handles irregular operations more cleanly than an OTA.
Pricing: free app. Price-freeze and price-drop guarantees cost a few dollars per booking.
Switching from Frontier: install Hopper, set up watch alerts for the next three trips, and book through the airline once the forecast suggests fares aren’t dropping further.
Bottom line: the right call for travelers who want to buy at the right moment regardless of carrier.
7. Skyscanner, compare every airline on a route
Skyscanner is a meta-search that pulls every published fare on a route, including ultra-low-cost carriers Google Flights sometimes misses. The “Everywhere” search returns destinations sorted by cheapest available fare from a chosen origin, which surfaces leisure trips at fares ultra-low-cost airlines like Frontier specifically optimize for.
Frontier Airlines vs Skyscanner: Frontier sells one airline’s seats; Skyscanner compares them all. The right workflow uses Skyscanner to find the lowest fare and then books through the airline app to keep change and refund options direct.
Where it falls short: booking through partner OTAs adds intermediary risk on cancellations. Some Skyscanner-surfaced fares disappear or change at checkout.
Pricing: free app, no membership.
Switching from Frontier: install Skyscanner, run an Everywhere search from your home airport for flexible dates, and book the lowest-priced flight directly with whichever airline owns it.
Bottom line: the right call for travelers who want the cheapest fare on a route without caring which airline operates it.
How to pick the right Frontier Airlines alternative
Pick Spirit when the fare-by-fare comparison wins on a specific route. Pick Southwest when you have two checked bags or a tight schedule that needs reliability. Pick Allegiant when your origin city is small and the destination is leisure-focused. Pick JetBlue when the seat actually matters. Pick Sun Country if you live in the Upper Midwest. Pick Hopper or Skyscanner when the cheapest ticket across all carriers is the goal.
The pragmatic move: keep Frontier installed for the rare moments its base fare really is the cheapest after fees, and use Hopper or Skyscanner first on every new booking. The savings from carrier-shopping usually beat any single-airline loyalty math.
Common questions
Is Frontier or Spirit cheaper for the same route? Both airlines price within a few dollars of each other on overlapping routes. The all-in price after bag and seat fees varies trip to trip. Always price both before booking.
Which Frontier Airlines alternative includes free checked bags? Southwest is the only US airline that ships two free checked bags on every fare. JetBlue includes the carry-on but charges for checked bags outside premium fares.
Can I transfer Frontier Miles to another airline? No. Frontier Miles don’t transfer to partner airlines or hotel programs. The points must redeem inside the Frontier ecosystem.
What is the cheapest Frontier Airlines alternative for a family of four? Southwest typically wins for families because two free checked bags per person eliminate the per-bag math that makes Frontier expensive. Sun Country and JetBlue can match the fare when seat-pitch comfort also matters.
