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Hidden fees, trap-like sizers, commissioned agents… We have broken down the mechanics of the most profitable baggage tax in Europe. And discovered why a handful of travelers never pay it again.
But before we dive into the investigation, for the curious, here is the workaround found by over 3000 travelers: a bag with compression technology
You may have never realized it. But if you have taken a Ryanair flight (or even EasyJet, Transavia, or WizzAir) in the last 6 years, there is a high chance you have unknowingly funded one of the most discreet and profitable revenue streams in European aviation.
Not the ticket. Not the paid seat. Not the €7 sandwich.
The sizer.
That blue metal frame placed just before the boarding gate. The one you walk past while picking up your pace, hoping no one stops you.
We investigated. Here is what we found.
The Ryanair business model is an open secret in the industry: the ticket earns almost nothing. What earns money is everything else. And when it comes to "everything else," baggage is king.
Here is how it works, in practice.
You book a flight for €29. You’re happy. You pack your suitcase, the one you’ve been using for three years, bought for about twenty euros at a supermarket. It fits "just about" within the advertised dimensions. You tell yourself it will pass.
And then, at the boarding gate, an agent asks you to slide your bag into the sizer. A wheel sticks out. Just one. "It doesn't fit completely, sir. €70. Card only 🙂"
No negotiation. No second chances. In front of 30 people staring at their shoes, praying they won't be next.
Your €29 ticket just cost you €99. And you aren't an isolated case. You are the norm.
What our investigation brought to light is the incentive mechanism behind these checks.
Ryanair has removed the monthly bonus cap for agents who identify baggage that doesn't conform to the sizer. In other words: the more non-conforming luggage an agent identifies, the more money they make.
You aren't a traveler. You are a walking commission.
And Ryanair is not alone. The system has become a low-cost industry standard:
Ryanair: a bag rejected at the boarding gate means fees of €45 to €70, payable by card only. On some routes, the risk of paying up to €75 is real if the luggage exceeds the sizer.
EasyJet: you book your bag online for €35, but at the boarding gate, the classic scenario is between €48 and €63 in fees, with the bag placed in the hold with no other options.
Wizz Air: its teams literally scan the lines in search of suitcases without "Priority" tags. If they catch you, it is often a €60 last-minute fee, by credit card only.
Three airlines. The same pattern. The same mechanic: make the ticket attractive, and recover the margin on baggage "incidents" that are anything but accidental.
Here is the exercise no low-cost airline will invite you to do. We are doing it for you.
Take an average French traveler: two low-cost round trips per year. Four flights.
If you get caught even once per trip—which is being very optimistic given the figures above—that gives you:
4 flights × €60 in fees = €240 per year. For nothing.
For a metal frame and a wheel that sticks out.
Over three years, that's €720. Over five years, €1,200. Sums evaporated into a system designed for you to pay without realizing it, flight after flight.
And the most perverse part: physical checks at the sizer are standard before boarding the plane. If your bag doesn't fit completely, it is rejected. Protruding wheels are systematically penalized.
It’s not bad luck. It’s a business model.
But does that mean there is no escape?
While following the thread, we discovered something interesting.
There is a category of travelers who never pay at the sizer again. Not because they are cheating. Not because they are lucky. Because they made a simple calculation and solved it once and for all.
Here is the calculation: the recurring expense (baggage fees) is infinite. It comes back every flight, for life. The one-time expense (a bag made specifically to fit) is paid only once.
That is the entire logic behind a cabin bag.
A bag whose dimensions are calibrated to the millimeter for the sizer—not "roughly," exactly. Wheels included (since there aren't any), handles included. You place the bag in the bin, it slides in, the agent waves you through. Every single flight.
It’s not a question of luck. It’s a question of centimeters.
Over 3,000 travelers have understood this. And they aren't going back.
The bag costs €149.90, sometimes on sale for €129.90.
Let’s look at that against the numbers.
Just one refusal: €70. Two refusals in a year: €140.
The bag is paid for. Completely. In two trips.
From the third flight where you pass through without paying, the bag costs you nothing. It starts earning you money. Every additional flight is €60 to €70 that you keep in your pocket instead of giving to the metal frame.
BUT ABOVE ALL, PEACE OF MIND.
While fees are a constant drain, the bag is an investment that pays for itself in two trips and protects you for years:
Here is what those who use it say:
The system is simple, and it is formidable: low-cost airlines earn a massive portion of their revenue from "ancillary fees." Baggage is the number one lever. Sizer checks are designed to catch as many passengers as possible. Agents are financially incentivized to identify non-conforming bags.
That won't change. Baggage fees increase regularly, not the other way around.
What can change is your response.
Option 1 — You continue as before. You book the cheapest ticket, you cross your fingers at the gate, and statistically, sooner or later, you pay another €60 or €70. Again. And again.
Option 2 — You invest once, in a bag made to pass, and you shut off the tap for good. The next agent at the sizer waves you through, and you think back to all the times you took out your card for nothing.
Whether it’s to track an order, get advice on our products, or simply say hello — our team will get back to you as soon as possible.
We generally reply within 24 hours.
