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More airlines are adding a fourth class to their cabins in an effort to attract travelers seeking the comforts of business class without the inflated price tag. Premium economy tickets became a runaway success with airlines, as corporate fliers were forced to trim travel budgets and vacationers looked for more comfort on long-haul flights.
A premium economy cabin typically offers more spacious seats along with better food, bonus in-flight snacks, free drinks and—in some cases—express check-in. Several international carriers from the U.S., including [British Airways](http://www.britishairways.com/travel/home/public/en_us), [Japan Airlines](http://www.ar.jal.com/en/) and [Scandinavian Airlines](http://www.flysas.com/en/us) already offer such seats, and more are on the way, with [Qantas](http://www.qantas.com.au/regions/dyn/home) adding the option to more planes flying between the U.S. and Sydney and [Air France](http://www.airfrance.us/) debuting premium economy in 2009. So how much will this business-class lite cost you?
- A premium economy ticket typically runs about a third of the cost of a business class fare. Expect business class touches, like noise canceling headphones (Qantas) and even separate check-in and advanced boarding ([Virgin Atlantic](http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/us/index.jsp) and SAS), but not the lie flat seats found in first and business class cabins.
- Premium economy seats can often be found for just a few hundred dollars more than standard economy tickets. On a trip from New York to London in January, a premium economy seat on Virgin Atlantic was $1,015—$395 more than economy, but $2,623 less than business class.
- The price difference between premium economy and fully refundable economy fares is even smaller. A flight from Newark to Stockholm on SAS had premium economy seats for just $300 more than the fully refundable economy seats.
