The Frontier UpFront Plus upgrade worked out to roughly $23 an hour on a recent Denver-to-Cleveland flight, but the traveller who paid for it says it is only worth considering on one specific kind of trip.
Ash Jurberg, writing for Business Insider, booked a 6:45 a.m. Frontier Airlines departure from Denver, which required a 3:30 a.m. wake-up call. Knowing he would be exhausted, he turned to the carrier’s premium cabin option: UpFront Plus, which places passengers in the front two rows and guarantees the middle seat beside them stays empty.
How the $23-an-Hour Maths Works Out
Frontier’s base fare covers one personal item and nothing else. Carry-ons, checked bags, and seat selection all cost extra, which pushes many passengers towards one of the airline’s bundles.
On this trip, the Economy Bundle was $25 and covered a carry-on. A checked bag on top of that was an additional $65, bringing the cost of bags alone to $90 if purchased separately. The Business Bundle, at $159, folded in a carry-on, two checked bags, priority boarding, no change or cancellation fees, and the UpFront Plus seat itself.
Because $90 of that $159 covered bags he needed regardless, the seat effectively cost $69. Spread across a three-hour flight, that works out to about $23 an hour. The total spend, including the base fare and taxes of $93.98, came to $252.98, meaning extras outweighed the ticket price itself.
For comparison, The Points Guy, which reviewed UpFront Plus separately, found the Business Bundle added $49 to a $34 base fare on its test flight, with the same inclusions: a full-size carry-on, up to two checked bags, and the Board First boarding group.
Frontier launched UpFront Plus on 12 March 2024, with the first flights available from 10 April 2024. An introductory offer put the standalone seat price at $49 per passenger, per segment for early travel dates. It has since shifted to dynamic pricing, and Jurberg observed the price climbing on his route as his departure date approached.
Is a Frontier UpFront Plus Upgrade Worth the Money?
In practice, the experience had clear limits. Once airborne, no additional service came with the seat. Water from the galley was free; a bottle cost extra. There were snacks and drinks for purchase, but Jurberg bought none. The UpFront Plus seat arrives slightly pre-reclined and cannot be adjusted further. Legroom is roughly four to five inches more than standard rows, which Jurberg, at 5’9″, found noticeable but not a selling point on its own.
What the upgrade delivered was an empty seat beside him, priority boarding past a crowded gate, and an overhead bin reserved for the front row. He was asleep before the aircraft crossed Colorado and woke up somewhere over Ohio, having slept for close to two hours. He arrived in Cleveland, checked in, and went straight to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame without needing a nap.
Cleveland Hopkins International Airport lists Denver among Frontier’s nonstop destinations, making the route a straightforward option for travellers in the Mountain West heading to northeast Ohio.
Jurberg’s verdict is conditional. On a mid-morning or afternoon departure, he says he would have skipped the upgrade entirely. On a flight under two hours, he considers it similarly hard to justify. The case for paying hinges on an early wake-up, a full day of plans at the destination, and a genuine need to sleep rather than simply sit in more space.
The Frontier Airlines Business Bundle remains the most cost-efficient route to an UpFront Plus seat for passengers who also need a carry-on and a checked bag. Buying the seat alone is possible, with the standalone price typically starting around $50, according to the original review. The airline’s bag options page outlines current luggage fees, which vary by weight and booking date.
Travellers considering the upgrade should note that the product is already changing. According to the Frontier Airlines seating FAQ, First Class seats are being introduced throughout 2026 and will gradually replace UpFront Plus as they become available, offering a new 2×2 layout at the front of the aircraft. Whether that changes the value calculus, and what First Class will cost relative to the bundle structure, will be the next question for budget travellers weighing an early-morning departure.