A Chicago-based TikTok creator shared how she recently stumbled on a travel hack that can get you a seat upgrade for under $10.
Eliza (@ttyliz) begins her video by explaining that she bought a basic $80 round-trip Frontier ticket for her upcoming weekend trip. Then she checked her email. “I got an email asking if I wanted to upgrade my seats,” she recalls.
At first, she shut the offer down since she was trying to plan her trip on a budget. “But I got another email saying you can bid [on a] first-class seat,” she continues.
Intrigued, the content creator says she placed a bid for $9. Despite receiving an alert that warned her the bid was “poor,” she submitted it anyway.
Eliza standing her ground worked out in her favor.
“Guess who just got an email saying their bid was approved?” she asks with a smile. “I’m gonna be flying Frontier first class on my 6am flight to Atlanta.”
She wants her experience to encourage others to try it out for themselves.
“Go ahead, and test your luck. See if the world is in your favor because you might just win that $9 bid,” she adds. “Thank you, Frontier. See you in the morning.”
What Did Viewers Think?
Eliza’s video garnered over 418,000 views. Frontier is known for being a no-frills, low-cost carrier. So viewers were a bit taken aback to hear it carries “first-class” options.
“What’s frontier first class? You’re the copilot now?” one quipped.
“‘Frontier’ and ‘first class’ just don’t belong in the same sentence. LOL! But congrats on your $9 upgrade-I love it!” another exclaimed.
Others were simply confused by the whole bidding part.
“Wait did I miss the app that you can bid on??” one viewer asked.
“I did not know you could gamble on upgrades now,” a second said.
Meanwhile, those who have tried it out for themselves have been met with mixed results.
“Literally the same thing just happened to me. $9 for better seats and there were still open seats! No one else must have bid!” one commenter shared.
“I just got approved for my upgrade with frontier too!!” another revealed.
“I always bid the lowest amount and never gotten it but i’m holding out,” a third said.
@ttyliz this is ur sign to lowball your flight companies when they offer you a seat upgrade bid !!! $9 first class baby !! #fyp #frontier #capitalism #flighthack #lucky
Eliza Clarifies Seat Details
In a follow-up video, Eliza shares some more details about the seat she was upgraded to—and it’s essentially just a roomier seat. She says she didn’t receive any other perks.
“It’s basically the equivalent of Comfort Plus for Delta,” she explains. “I really did think that I would at least get a carry-on or maybe they would give me a [beverage] and a snack. I had so much leg room, and there was not a soul next to me.”
Eliza also further details how she scored the upgrade.
“Two days before you check in for your flight, I got an email from Frontier, asking if I wanted to upgrade my seats,” she says, noting she ignored the first offer. “The day before, they tried again. So clicked the email, and it [gave] you the option to bid on a more comfortable first-class seat.”
She also only had the upgrade on her flight to Atlanta.
“Technically, I could have gotten it for all four of my flights, but I misread the email that I ever got asking me to bid on the return home,” she says. “So, on the return home, I sat like a peasant in the back of a plane in a window seat between two big … men. But on the following weekend, I bid for both there and back. I won both.”
How winners get chosen is unknown to the content creator. “I’m wondering it’s really about the money at all and more about when you bid or if it’s [a] random draw, or more like lottery style. I don’t know,” Eliza says.
Does Frontier Have ‘First Class’?
Frontier currently offers something called “UpFront Plus seating.” This is likely what Eliza got upgraded to since she mentioned in a comment she was in the first row. These are roomier seats in either the aisle or window rows. The middle row remains empty, and these seats take up the first two rows on the plane.
However, the airline has plans to revamp these seats with new “first-class” seats at the end of 2025.
Which Airlines Allow Customers To Bid For Upgrades?
According to The Points Guy, the following airlines will sometimes also allow customers to bid for seat upgrades:
- Aer Lingus
- Air Canada
- Air New Zealand
- Hawaiian Airlines
- Etihad Airways
- Lufthansa
- Singapore Airlines
- Virgin Atlantic
If you don’t receive this offer via email, you may be able to find it online when you check your flight. The Points Guy also notes that many carriers will allow customers who win such bids additional perks, so Eliza wasn’t wrong in assuming she’d also get a carry-on allowance.
How To Get Upgraded Seats On Frontier Flight
Of course, you don’t have to place a bid in order to upgrade your seat. You can simply upgrade your seat, but you’ll be paying the full price of the upgrade, which reportedly starts at $49.
Frontier shares steps on its website:
- Open the Frontier app and check in.
- When the upgrade window opens, click “Manage.”
- Select “add seats, bags, or services.”
- Hit “Upgrade Your Seat Now” under the pencil icon.
- Choose from any of the seating options available.
- Click “continue” at the bottom of the page.
BroBible reached out to Eliza via TikTok comment and direct message. BroBible also reached out to Frontier via press email.