Southwest adopts assigned seats

Southwest has ended the open-seating system that defined the airline for decades and now assigns seats on flights departing January 27, 2026, and later. (southwest.com) The new system adds a seat map during booking on Southwest’s website and app, with three seat types: Standard seats in the back, Preferred seats near the front, and Extra Legroom seats at the front and exit rows. Extra Legroom seats offer up to five more inches of pitch on some Boeing 737 aircraft. (southwest.com) Seat choice now depends on fare and loyalty status. Basic fares get a Standard seat assigned at check-in, while Choice, Choice Preferred, and Choice Extra fares include progressively better seat-selection access during booking. (southwest.com) The boarding process changed with the seats. Southwest says boarding is now organized for assigned seating, with Extra Legroom customers boarding first in Groups 1 and 2, Choice Preferred customers in Groups 3 through 5, and Basic customers boarding last. (southwest.com) This is one of the biggest changes in Southwest’s business model since the airline started flying in 1971. The company said on July 25, 2024, that it would drop open seating after customer research found 80% of current customers and 86% of potential customers preferred assigned seats. (southwestairlinesinvestorrelations.com) Southwest also said open seating was the top reason travelers gave for choosing a competitor when they stopped flying the airline. The company paired the seat change with premium seating plans, saying roughly one-third of seats across the fleet would offer extended legroom. (southwestairlinesinvestorrelations.com) The shift also rewires what passengers used to compete for at check-in. Under the old model, boarding position largely determined whether a traveler could grab a window, aisle, or exit-row seat; under the new one, that choice moves to the booking flow or, for Basic fares, to check-in and the gate. (southwest.com) Passengers who skip seat selection can still get assigned seats later, but the timing is tighter than before. Southwest says customers can change assigned seats, if eligible and if seats remain, up to 60 minutes before a domestic flight and 90 minutes before an international flight. (southwest.com) The result is a Southwest trip that now looks much more like the rest of the United States airline industry: pick a fare, open a seat map, choose where to sit, then board by group instead of racing for an empty row. (southwest.com)