Book LATAM’s Basic fare and you do not get a carry-on bag. You get a personal item and nothing else. The 12 kg roller bag most travelers assume comes with any ticket only appears once you move up to Light.
Once you know that, LATAM Airlines baggage policy follows a familiar pattern for a carrier that competes hard on price. Everything above the personal item costs something, whether that is a higher fare tier or a paid add-on. For the plain basics that apply across most international carriers, see our general carry-on rules guide.
LATAM Airlines baggage policy by fare: what Basic actually skips
LATAM sells four fare families for US travelers: Basic, Light, Plus, and Top. Basic includes a personal item only. LATAM’s own wording is blunt: in the cabin ‘you can carry one handbag, but not a 10 kg suitcase.’
Light adds a real carry-on bag to the cabin, though checked bags still cost extra. Plus includes one or two checked bags up to 23 kg each, depending on route. Top includes two checked bags of 23 kg each, plus more flexibility for changes.
Carry-on bag: size and weight
The carry-on limit is 55 cm high by 35 cm long by 25 cm wide, according to LATAM’s own baggage page. LATAM states the limit only in centimeters. Bring a metric tape measure, or run your bag through our size checker before you leave.
Weight depends on cabin. Economy carry-ons max out at 12 kg, or 26 lb. Premium Economy and Premium Business allow 16 kg, or 35 lb.
Personal item: the one bag Basic always includes
Every LATAM fare, even Basic, includes one personal item. The maximum size is 45 x 35 x 20 cm, or 17.8 x 13.8 x 7.9 in. That measurement includes pockets, wheels, and handles, and the item cannot weigh more than 10 kg, or 22 lb.
If your personal item does not comply, do not wait until the gate. Try our bag finder tool to find something that fits LATAM’s numbers exactly.
Checked baggage: how LATAM measures it
LATAM caps checked baggage at 158 linear cm, adding height, length, and width together. That works out to roughly 62 linear inches, though LATAM does not publish the inch figure itself. Under LATAM Airlines baggage policy, that 158 cm ceiling applies everywhere LATAM flies.
A free checked bag only shows up on Plus and Top fares. Each one can weigh up to 23 kg, about 50.7 lb. On Basic or Light, a checked bag becomes an add-on you buy separately.
American Airlines still lets a Basic Economy flyer check a bag for a fee. LATAM requires stepping up to Plus or Top instead.
A quiet perk: LATAM Pass Platinum bonus bag
LATAM Pass members at Platinum level or above get one extra checked bag at no charge. It can weigh up to 23 kg. The catch: your ticket needs Light fare or higher, and LATAM must operate the flight.
What travelers actually report about LATAM’s carry-on rules
The published carry-on limit is one thing. What happens at the gate is another. Travelers report a real gap between the two.
Many flyers describe repeated trips through Peru and Chile with no carry-on ever measured or weighed. Others describe the opposite: a sizing cage right at the gate on a full flight, catching bags that sailed through the day before.
The recurring confusion is not about size at all. It is about whether Basic includes a carry-on in the first place. Travelers consistently report one answer from the website and another from a check-in agent.
The fix is usually a small fee, charged per flight, to add a carry-on. Basic never includes one no matter what an agent says. Travelers told otherwise are being upsold, not corrected.
What we could not verify: exact fees
LATAM’s fee pages for extra, overweight, and oversize baggage did not return usable dollar figures during our research. The pricing appears to load through an interactive tool rather than static text. So we could not confirm a first bag, second bag, overweight, or oversize fee in dollars.
Rather than guess, we left those fields blank. Check LATAM’s live fee tool before you fly. Our editorial policy explains how we handle a gap like this.
The bottom line
LATAM Airlines baggage policy rewards planning ahead more than most US carriers. Basic gets you a seat and a personal item, nothing more. Move up to Light for a real carry-on.
Move up again to Plus or Top for a free checked bag. Either way, confirm the exact fee on LATAM’s site before you pack. Or run the numbers first with our baggage cost tool.
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