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Southwest Airlines·None
How Southwest seat selection works by fare, extra legroom options, upgrade routes, and the family seating rules that let children sit with a parent free.
Key Travel Facts & Insights
Southwest has moved from open seating to assigned seating. Seat selection now happens at booking, with the best seats attached to higher fare brands and Rapid Rewards tiers — a fundamental change from the boarding-position model Southwest ran for fifty years.
Extra legroom seats are offered in the forward cabin and at exit rows, sold as a paid upgrade.
There is no premium cabin to upgrade into. Upgrades on Southwest mean a better seat location or an earlier boarding position, not a different class of service.
Southwest seats children 13 and under with an accompanying adult at no additional cost. Family boarding remains available between boarding groups for children six and under.
Southwest operates: Basic, Wanna Get Away Plus, Anytime, Business Select.
Southwest has moved from open seating to assigned seating. Seat selection now happens at booking, with the best seats attached to higher fare brands and Rapid Rewards tiers — a fundamental change from the boarding-position model Southwest ran for fifty years.
Southwest seats children 13 and under with an accompanying adult at no additional cost. Family boarding remains available between boarding groups for children six and under.
There is no premium cabin to upgrade into. Upgrades on Southwest mean a better seat location or an earlier boarding position, not a different class of service.
Fare rules, baggage allowances and change policies differ by route and fare brand. Our consultants confirm the exact terms attached to your itinerary before you pay — and handle the change or refund if plans move.