As airlines suffer a backlash from The Office of Fair Trading on the rising cost of booking by credit card, budget conscious consumers fear that sticking to low cost travel could be a struggle.

Cheapflights.co.uk, the UK’s leading website for price search and comparison, breaks down the credit cards charges of ten top airlines to help keep travellers in the know on where to find the best deals.

“While it is difficult to avoid being charged altogether, it is possible to keep charges to a minimum depending on the type of card used and the airline you are booking with,” said Nadine Hallak, Travel Expert for Cheapflights.co.uk.

“Travellers should keep in mind that budget airlines may not always carry the lowest overall ticket price once all the ‘extras’ have been added, so it is worth shopping around and doing the math as travelling with a flagship carrier can work out to be more cost effective,” added Hallak.

The below list shows Ten Top Airlines and the fees they carry per type of credit card starting with the cheapest:

1) Iceland Express: One per cent of total ticket cost on all cards.

2) Air Europa: £0 on Visa Debit, Mastercard Debit, Visa Credit, Mastercard Credit. NB: American Express is not accepted and there are no baggage fees when flying this airline.

3) British Airways: £0 on Visa Debit/Electron, Switch/Maestro, and Mastercard Debit. BA charges £4.50 on Visa Credit, Mastercard Credit, and American Express.

4) Virgin: £0 on all debit cards and £5.68 on all credit cards.

5) Monarch: £0 on Visa Electron, £3.90 on all other Debit cards, and £5.57 on Credit/Mastercard.

6) Jet 2: £5.56 booking fee and credit card fee of £5.76 on all credit cards. £5.56 booking fee on Debit Cards. £0 on Electron. £5.56 booking fee if using Paypal plus £2.47 Paypal fee on top.

7) BMI Baby: £9 on American Express, Mastercard, and Visa Credit. £6 on Visa Debit, Switch/Maestro, and Solo. £0 on Electron.

8) Flybe: £9 transaction fee plus £1 on top for Visa, American Express, and Mastercard. £9 transaction fee on Visa Debit, Switch/Maestro, and Solo cards. £0 on Electron.

9) Ryanair: £6 each way (on any card whether debit or credit).

10) Easyjet: £12.95 on American Express, Visa and Mastercard. £8 on Visa Debit and Mastercard Debit. £0 on Visa Electron.

Commenting on the hike in charges imposed by most airlines, Iceland Express’ chief executive Matthias Imsland said: “Iceland Express is a low cost airline that strives to remain low cost.

For more information on these or any other airline, visit Cheapflights.co.uk.