My $2,500 business-class upgrade offer dropped to about $800

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If you've ever priced out long-haul business class, you know how shocking the cost can be. While many of us dream of lie-flat seats and premium service, paying several thousand dollars (or hundreds of thousands of miles) for a luxurious experience isn't always in the cards.

That's why it can make sense to book the flight you can afford and keep an eye on upgrade offers after booking. Depending on the airline, upgrade pricing can change significantly over time. And if you're lucky, you may find an offer you just can't refuse.

My family's recent trip to the U.K. is a perfect example of why I constantly check upgrade offers on long-haul flights.

We flew from Chicago to Manchester, England (with a stop in London) on the way there, then returned from Glasgow, Scotland to Chicago (via London) on the way home. After booking our main-cabin economy flights with American Airlines, I started monitoring upgrade offers right away.

Initially, the airline wanted around $2,500 per person to upgrade to lie-flat business class each way. Over time, though, upgrade offers dropped to around $1,500 per person, then began fluctuating between roughly $900 and $1,300 per person. Some days the offers were lower, and some days they climbed back up.

After checking repeatedly for months, I finally found upgrade offers I was willing to pay. My husband and I upgraded both directions for $805 per person on one leg and $818 per person on the other. I also upgraded both of my kids for the overnight leg to London for $813 each, although they stayed in economy on the daytime return trip. Their flights were on a separate itinerary, so they got totally different upgrade pricing than we did.

For me, those prices were barely at the threshold where I'm willing to pull the trigger. The cost worked out to around $100 per hour, which is my general rule of thumb for "affordability" when it comes to upgrading to lie-flat business class on long-haul flights. Another Points Path contributor, Harrison Pierce, has a $50-an-hour rule, though, so there’s no set formula. Decide a benchmark for yourself and use that to evaluate whether an upgrade offers reasonable value.

It's always worth checking your itinerary for upgrade offers because airline pricing changes all the time. The first offer you see after booking may look terrible, but there’s no guarantee it will stay that way. On American, you'll find upgrade offers by opening your reservation in the American app or on aa.com. The airline sometimes emails offers too, but not always, so it's worth checking directly instead of waiting for one to land in your inbox.

As your departure date gets closer, you may receive an offer you're actually willing to pay for. Airlines are often trying to fill premium-cabin seats, and upgrade pricing can change based on demand, inventory, and other factors that aren't always obvious to travelers.

Some airlines also offer multiple upgrade options. Depending on the carrier and your fare type, you may be able to upgrade with cash, miles, or a combination of the two. Having several ways to move into a premium cabin can increase your chances of finding a deal that makes sense.

Perhaps most importantly, checking doesn't obligate you to do anything. If an upgrade offer is too expensive, you can simply ignore it and stick with the ticket you originally booked.

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Of course, this strategy won't always work. Not every airline offers paid upgrades, and not every traveler will receive upgrade offers after booking. On American, for example, you can't use miles to upgrade an award ticket or a Basic Economy fare. Even when upgrade opportunities are available, the pricing may never fall to a level you're comfortable paying.

There’s also the possibility that you'll end up flying long-haul economy after spending months checking for a better deal.

Even so, I think it's worth the effort. Since upgrade offers can change dramatically over time, a quick check every week or so could be the difference between spending a long overnight flight in economy and stretching out in comfort.

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