The Best Low-Cost Airlines in Canada 2024

Once you have made the decision to go with air travel, things start to get tricky. How much luggage are you taking with you? What airline do you wish to fly with? What is your budget? Should you buy flight insurance? Are you willing to sacrifice luxury for cost? There are so many factors to consider. With so many different airlines out there, it can be hard to know which one to choose. While the destination may cut down on part of this decision for you, it is important to do your research so you can get the most for your money. This is where budget airlines come in. 

Differences Between Canadian low-cost airlines

While it is always exciting to find low-cost flights, it is important to do some research on the airline before you book. Even though all of the airlines are registered with the Canadian Transportation Agency, they aren’t all equal.

While some airlines are cheap, they tend to have many delays and cancellations, which can affect your trip. The other airlines, however, may have luxuries you don’t need and don’t want to pay for. Depending on the amount of money you are willing to spend and what you are looking for in a flight, there are a variety of airlines to choose from. Here are a few of the most popular airlines and what they offer to their customers.

Air Canada Rouge

Air Canada created Air Canada Rouge and offers cheaper, more competitive prices than Air Canada flights to domestic, international, and warm-weather destinations. It is considered to be Air Canada’s budget airline, which allows it to offer cheap fares in comparison to Air Canada's prices. It offers services in parts of Canada, Mexico, Europe, the US, and South and Central America.

They have a premium economy section that’s better than most average economy sections but still not quite up to the standards of business class. It offers things like extra legroom and wider seats, which can be difficult to find with other airlines. On the other hand, it doesn’t offer in-flight entertainment. They do offer iPad rentals for $10 if you need them. You are also able to purchase food with Air Canada Rouge; however, not all locations qualify for this.

The amenities that Air Canada Rogues offer, as well as the number of destinations this airline offers, put it a step above other discount carriers and is the preferred option for longer flights. It isn’t the right fit for everyone, but a great low-cost option if you still want some luxury in your travel. It is considered to be one of the best low-cost airlines.

Porter Airlines

Porter Airlines is another ultra-low-cost carrier to consider if you are looking for cheap tickets. They offer one-way tickets for an average of $150, sometimes even lower than that. That being said, they only offer flights to destinations in major Canadian cities, the United States, and the Americas. They even operate out of larger airports such as Calgary International Airport and airports in Quebec City.  However, they are headquartered at Toronto’s island airport, Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. 

Even though it is low-cost, it offers free wine, beer, snacks, and refreshments. It also has loyalty programs for frequent flyers, which is something that most other low-cost airlines don’t offer.

Canada Jetlines

Canada Jetlines is a relatively small airline that is based out of Mississauga, Ontario. It currently operates scheduled flights in the Americas as well as the Caribbean and only launched in September of 2022. They only offer select destinations, have a fleet size of 4 and employ 200 people. The current destinations for this airline are:

• Calgary
• Halifax
• Toronto
• Vancouver
• Orlando
• Miami
• Las Vegas
• Cancun
• Montego Bay
• Georgetown

Flair Airlines

Flair Airlines was established in 2017 and focuses on being an affordable airline. Currently, they have over 35 North American and Canadian destinations and are continuing to expand. Their priority is safe and reliable travel with no compromises.

The feature they advertise about their prices is that they are unbundled. This means you can select the basic price and make any additions that you would like. You are not obligated to have any luxuries that you don’t want or would rather save money on.

All of the flight prices include government taxes and airport improvement fees. There is a $15 plus tax charge for all bookings done through the call center, whereas online booking is free. They include 1 small carry-on item (personal item) that’s free, but no free checked bags. This includes things like purses, laptop cases, and briefcases. Carry-on bags are between $29-$49 plus tax if added online, or they cost $59 plus tax if this is done at the airport. All additional bags come with a cost as well that goes up with the more bags that you add. However, there are bundles you can select for your luggage that are significantly cheaper depending on how much you need to travel. A basic bundle that has a carry-on bag and checked baggage allowance ranges between $49.3-$83.30. The Big Bunch includes this but also offers priority boarding and cancellation up to 3 hours prior, which is $62.40-$94.40.

On top of all of this, there are some small cancellation and flight change fees. It is important that you make the right selections when booking your flight in order to ensure that you won’t be spending any more money than you intended to.

Is It Reliable?

Because Flair is a smaller airline, the risk of cancellation is much higher than taking a flight with a larger airline. They have fewer planes, so if a flight is cancelled, it can be more difficult to obtain a different flight, which can impact your trip. That said, as long as your flight isn’t cancelled, Flair is a great airline to fly with. Just remember, the risk of cancellation or changed flight times does happen with these smaller airlines, so it might be something to factor into your plans.

Air Transat

Air Transat is what is called a 4-star leisure airline. This is based on the airport quality, onboard products, staff service, seat amenities, food, beverages, IFE, and cleanliness. While Air Transat may not be the cheapest airline out there, they make up for it by being named the world’s best leisure airline. They are also ranked as one of Canada’s best employers.

Air Transat is a Canadian airline that was founded in Montreal in 1986 and has been Travel-Life certified since 2018. They offer flights to 60 international destinations and carry around 5 million passengers every year. Service is one of their main priorities, making them one of Canada’s most popular airlines, even though they might be slightly more costly. Even though they operate around the world, their major hub is Montreal’s international airport.

Air Canada

Air Canada is one of the largest major airlines in Canada; however, it isn’t in the low-cost airline category. Just like Air Transat, Air Canada is in Montreal, and they are known for the premium services that they offer like:

• Signature Service
• Premium Economy Cabin
• Preferred Seats
• Signature Suite
• Maple Leaf Lounges
• Air Canada Café (in-flight meals)
• Concierge

Of course, this added level of comfort does come with a price. On top of all of these things, Air Canada offers Wi-Fi, and they have culinary and wine talent for the food and drinks. They also have online and App services that allow for:

• Self-Service
• Flight Bookings
• Check-in
• Realtime updates
• Itinerary Management

However, if you aren’t looking for luxury and comforts, Air-Canada offers Air Canada Rouge, as discussed earlier in this post.

Other New Cheap Airlines

If you’re looking for a cheap airline to fly with, you don’t have to look very far. There are so many new different airlines emerging all of the time, all over the world. Which airline you choose to fly with just depends on your departure location, destination and budget. Some of these new airlines are only available in parts of Canada as well, not the whole country.

Vancouver

If you’re looking to fly internationally to vacation destinations from Vancouver at a low rate, then your best bet is probably Flair. Domestically, Porter is probably going to be your cheapest option. Anyone you choose though is going to have lower rates than the larger airlines.

Toronto

If you’re looking for flights out of Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, you can choose any of the airlines above. That said, there’s also a new airline in Canada that offers flights from different parts of Canada on European routes at a discounted rate. One of the places they offer this is Toronto. They’re relatively new to Canada, so their prices are currently in USD, and they’re offering different locations all the time as they begin their expansion into Canada.

Former Low-Cost Airlines

When looking at the discount airlines we’ve discussed, you may notice that a few are missing. These are Swoop and Lynx. They are missing because they are no longer operating airlines. Here are some facts about these former airlines. 

Swoop Airlines

Another low-cost airline that you may have heard of was  Swoop. They kept costs low, so they were able to offer savings to their customers. They started by just charging the basic fare of the seat cost, and then you could add any additions you would like, such as luggage. They also offered seats with extra legroom at a cost. Again, this was optional. They did have food and drink for sale on their flights as well, but they did encourage customers to bring their own refillable water bottles that could be filled at water stations once they had passed security.

They offered flights to parts of Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Caribbean destinations, and were adding more all of the time. Also, all of their flights were straight to the destination and had no layovers which was preferred by many travelers.

The one thing Swoop did tell you, though, is that they did not offer credits or refunds for missed flights or any of the optional selections. They were also strict on their check-in times. So, even if you were running just a few minutes behind, you would miss your flight.

Swoop recommended that you arrive 2 hours before your domestic flight and 3 hours before international. The gates for a domestic flight closed 45 minutes before and 60 minutes before for an international flight. They ceased operations on October 20, 2023.

Lynx Airlines

This airline only started in 2021 and was the newest low-cost airline. With Lynx being such a new airline, it only offered flights to destinations within Canada. These included:

• Vancouver
• Kelowna
• Victoria
• Calgary
• Edmonton
• Winnipeg
• Toronto
• Hamilton
• Halifax
• St. Johns

Their platform focused on low-cost, affordable options. There were no hidden fees, and they had a new fleet of Boeing 737s. If you wanted more specialized features like priority boarding or seat selection, you could pay an extra charge, or you could just stick to the basics. While they weren’t available for trips to sunny destinations like most airlines, they were a great option for Canadians looking to travel domestically. They stopped operating on February 26, 2024.

Make the Most of Your Trip

Whether you decide to fly with an airline like Air-Canada or Flair Airlines, vacation packages and travelling costs money, it can never hurt to have access to a little extra or extend your vacation. For whatever reason, you may need extra money for your trip, Spring Financial can help. We offer personal loans ranging from $500 to $35,000 that you can apply for in just 3 minutes. Once you have applied, we can get you the money as soon as a few hours later. We offer good rates, and all of our loans are open, so you can pay them off at any time without penalty. Apply online today or give us a call at 1-888-781-8439. at 1-888-781-8439.