I flew Delta instead of my preferred low-cost carriers, and I’m still not convinced doing so is worth the higher airfare

While I did get a openly carry-on, which is not offered on low-cost carriers, I still had to gate-check it. This is, again, because I had a basic fare, so I boarded last and by the one of these days it was my turn to get on, the overhead bin space was full. This won’t always happen, but I understood that risk going in.