faresfair

The drip index · from live fares, every six hours · this month's Drip Report

Who drips the most?

How far each airline's advertised fares sit under what you'll actually pay once you add a cabin bag, a checked bag and a seat, plus the card fee. No meals, no flexible fares: just the basics most people need.

  1. 01Etihad Airways EY

    +17% typically $332 more

    Typical example: Sydney → London, advertised $1,925, with the basics $2,256. From 56 fares. See its fees and sources.

  2. 02Cathay Pacific CX

    +10% typically $168 more

    Typical example: Sydney → Seoul, advertised $1,665, with the basics $1,833. From 400 fares. See its fees and sources.

  3. 03Qatar Airways QR

    +8% typically $162 more

    Typical example: Sydney → London, advertised $1,993, with the basics $2,155. From 301 fares. See its fees and sources.

  4. 04Air Canada AC

    +5% typically $354 more

    Typical example: Sydney → Los Angeles, advertised $7,684, with the basics $8,038. From 11 fares. See its fees and sources.

  5. 05Fiji Airways FJ

    +4% typically $49 more

    Typical example: Canberra → Nadi, advertised $1,282, with the basics $1,331. From 230 fares. See its fees and sources.

  6. 06ANA NH

    +3% typically $100 more

    Typical example: Sydney → London, advertised $3,453, with the basics $3,553. From 102 fares. See its fees and sources.

  7. 07Singapore Airlines SQ

    +0% typically $0 more

    Typical example: Sydney → Bali, advertised $1,286, with the basics $1,286. From 400 fares. See its fees and sources.

  8. 08Malaysia Airlines MH

    +0% typically $0 more

    Typical example: Sydney → Singapore, advertised $1,771, with the basics $1,771. From 400 fares. See its fees and sources.

  9. 09Philippine Airlines PR

    +0% typically $0 more

    Typical example: Sydney → Ho Chi Minh City, advertised $1,182, with the basics $1,182. From 118 fares. See its fees and sources.

  10. 10Thai Airways TG

    +0% typically $0 more

    Typical example: Sydney → Bangkok, advertised $1,127, with the basics $1,127. From 56 fares. See its fees and sources.

  11. 11JAL JL

    +0% typically $0 more

    Typical example: Sydney → London, advertised $2,865, with the basics $2,865. From 52 fares. See its fees and sources.

  12. 12China Southern Airlines CZ

    +0% typically $0 more

    Typical example: Sydney → London, advertised $1,745, with the basics $1,745. From 12 fares. See its fees and sources.

How it's measured

Every fare the deals board finds, from Canberra and Sydney, on four dates ahead. For each one we add the cheapest way to get a 7 kg cabin bag, a 20 kg checked bag and a chosen seat (an extra, or a fare type that includes them), plus any card and booking fee. Only fares where every one of those has a price count, from the airline's live answer or its own published fees. Each airline's figure is the median, so one odd fare can't move it.

A full-service airline that includes bags and seats scores near zero. That's the point: the lower, the more honest the advertised price.

Is this legal?

Mostly, and that's the problem. Australian Consumer Law says the advertised price must be the minimum total: taxes and any fee you can't avoid, or that's pre-selected for you, must be in it. Extras you choose yourself, like a bag or a seat, don't have to be. So a fare can be advertised without the things nearly everyone needs.

Hidden unavoidable fees are another matter: the Federal Court found Jetstar and Virgin Australia engaged in misleading drip pricing over booking and service fees.

Sources: ACCC: Price displays · ACCC: Court finds Jetstar and Virgin engaged in misleading drip pricing.