Some flight attendants at ultra-low-cost carriers make more than United crew. Here's how much they earn.

• Flight attendants at ultra-low-cost carriers earn a base pay of between $22 and $68 per hour.
• Allegiant cabin crew earn higher base pay than those at United, as UA contract negotiations drag on.
• Veteran cabin crew at Frontier make the least among most US airlines.

Ultra-low-cost carriers often lure passengers with rock-bottom fares, in part by paying flight attendants less than those at legacy carriers.

But pay for entry-level flight attendants at these airlines has ticked up to compete with the Big 3 airlines, American, Delta, and United, and in one case, surpassed it due to the nearly six-year United negotiations.

The moment may not last. United's flight attendants are widely expected to secure significant raises once a new contract is finalized — which would once again widen the pay gap between legacy and ULCCs that has been the norm.

Based on ultra-low-cost carrier labor contracts reviewed by Business Insider, Allegiant flight attendants start at about $30 an hour and reach a top base pay of roughly $66 after 12 years of service. That will increase to $31 and $68 when the contractual annual raise hits in April.

Competitors Spirit and Frontier — each with around 4,000 cabin crew — start at roughly $22 and $25 per hour, respectively, and both top out at about $60 per hour. But Frontier's maximum rate is unusually slow to kick in, taking 19 years to reach, compared to the more typical 13 years.

Frontier's 13-year base pay is about $50 an hour. Glassdoor puts the median annual pay among US flight attendants at about $68,000.

These base rates don't account for taxes, per diem, or other forms of compensation, such as overtime, holiday, and night-flying premiums.

Per diem is a small hourly stipend paid for time spent away from a crew member's home base while on trips and typically runs about $2 to $3 an hour, depending on the airline. Airlines also offer flight attendants free personal flights as part of their employment benefits.

By comparison, Delta and American pay their new hires around $37 an hour, with top earners making at least $83, and they get boarding pay. The ULCCs don't pay during boarding, and neither does United.

Still, those at United earn more than Spirit and Frontier, paying first-years about $28 and veteran crew about $67, but those base rates are outpaced by Allegiant.

Allegiant and its roughly 1,700 flight attendants ratified a new five-year contract in April 2024, securing an average wage increase of 41% over the life of the deal. As a result, most Allegiant crew earn a higher base rate than their United counterparts.

The gap varies — roughly $1 to $8 an hour, depending on seniority — but can add up to several thousand dollars in extra annual income. United's roughly 28,000 flight attendants, by contrast, haven't seen a raise since 2020.

Contract negotiations have stretched into 2026 after United union members rejected a tentative agreement in July 2025 that would have boosted pay by 44% over the life of the proposed five-year contract, and offered boarding pay.

Still, United crew members can boost their pay significantly by picking up extra hours and working premium international trips.

Allegiant told Business Insider that its merger with Sun Country wouldn't change its flight attendant contract until the deal is done. After that, it will continue talks with the National Mediation Board and union leadership "about the process that makes the most sense for both our employees and the company."

Spirit and Frontier's contracts are up for renegotiation, meaning crew members are earning outdated pay during the process. Spirit's Chapter 11 bankruptcy forced flight attendants to temporarily accept pay cuts, but their base pay remains the same.

Here are the lowest and highest base wages at the three ULCCs, per their contracts. The figures reflect the minimum hourly guarantee for lineholders, who are flight attendants with fixed monthly schedules.

Reserve crew, who are on standby to cover flights at a moment's notice, usually have a higher guarantee, so the lineholder base represents the minimum pay a flight attendant can typically expect hourly and yearly. All annual estimates are before tax or extra earnings.

Overall, crew often spend more time on duty than they are paid for, as their regular hourly wage generally applies only to time the plane is in motion — not to layovers, deplaning, or delays while the plane is at the gate.

Allegiant

• New hire: $30.11 per hour, or about $27,100.
• Year 13+: $65.97 per hour, or about $60,000.

Allegiant's minimum guarantee is 75 hours a month for reserves and lineholders, in most cases. Come April, when the contractual raise kicks in, Allegiant's entire base pay scale will be higher than United's.

Allegiant's rates will max out at roughly $33 and $72 by April 2028, or about $30,000 and $65,000 a year. United's base pay, by contrast, ranges from about $24,600 to roughly $57,000.

Frontier

• New hire: $25.50 per hour, or about $18,400.
• Year 13: $49.97 per hour, or about $36,000.
• Year 19: $60 per hour, or about $43,200.

While reserve crew members have a pay guarantee of 75 hours a month, Frontier lineholders don't have a minimum. But lines generally fall between 60 and 120 hours, with 60 hours serving as the expected low end. Frontier's pay scale goes up to year 19.

Spirit

• New hire: $22.51 per hour, or about $19,500.
• Year 13+: $60.44 per hour, or about $52,200.

Spirit's reserve crew and lineholder minimum is 72 hours. Its flight attendants recently agreed to temporarily reduce their pay amid the airline's second bankruptcy.

An amended contract shows that, as of January 1, crew now earn less overtime and holiday pay and face a cap on per diem, among other cuts, saving Spirit $15 million annually. The airline also furloughed about 1,800 cabin crew in December.

Legacy crew have more opportunities to boost their earnings

A United spokesperson previously told Business Insider that many of the airline's flight attendants earn more than $100,000 a year because they have the flexibility to work extra hours and the seniority to secure higher-paying trips, particularly international ones.

For example, Allegiant is a fully domestic airline that does not operate long-haul routes, which at United typically pay about $2 more per hour and generate slightly higher per diem.

Allegiant also largely relies on an out-and-back schedule, with flight attendants usually returning to their home base the same day — a core part of its ultra-low-cost strategy to cut hotel and per diem expenses. United and Spirit's scheduling relies on more frequent overnights.

Frontier recently shifted to a model similar to Allegiant, with roughly 90% of its planes and crews returning to base each night. While this appeals to flight attendants who value being home, it has been controversial because it reduces earnings opportunities.

Airlines also differ in minimum monthly guarantees. United reserve crew members receive 78 hours, compared with 75 at Allegiant, though Allegiant lineholders get four more guaranteed hours than United lineholders.

United crews also receive a nice bonus every year through profit sharing. It was 5.3% of eligible earnings in 2024, and 9% in 2025 — a benefit largely absent at ULCCs.