Which major airlines offer the most seat space in economy? (2024)

Author:

Sandi Hemmerlein

But with the downfall of luxurious airlines like Pan Am (which

) came an influx of cheaper, more accessible flight options that made flying feel less like riding a limousine in the sky and more like taking the New York City subway or a Greyhound bus. Though economy class offerings have made a public transportation mode that used to be reserved only for the

more accessible, it's a ticket class that comes with some downsides.

More passengers are being crammed into tight quarters in airplane cabins—especially in economy class. Worse yet, the seats are getting smaller. In some cases, they've

, according to Forbes.

Too-small seats aren't just uncomfortable; they may also be unsafe. The

has argued that the packed-like-sardines configuration could negatively impact the safety of the flight and the time it might take to evacuate the plane in case of emergency.

Yet, while the Federal Aviation Administration does regulate how many seats are allowed on a plane, the agency

. This means airlines have no consistency, even in the same fare class. One carrier's economy could leave you feeling footloose and fancy-free; another's could leave your knees knocking into the seat before you.

Thanks to varying plane models in any given fleet, a wide range of experiences is also possible within a single airline. Economy is not even a single class in the main cabin nowadays but has gotten carved into

(sometimes just a few individual seats or a couple of rows).

When Alaska Airlines acquired Virgin America in 2016, it

to its fleet—including planes featuring popular, brand-specific

in the interior. As of 2019, all the aircraft were

to remove Virgin branding, although some interior features remain. The entire mixed fleet is pretty consistent in terms of its seat layout and legroom: No matter which plane you board, you'll get a minimum of 30 inches of legroom in economy and, in some cases, as much as 32 inches without paying more.

If width is a priority, stick with the

, the

, or—the most miniature model in the fleet—the

, operated by partner carriers Horizon Air and SkyWest Airlines. Unfortunately, the Embraer lacks in-flight entertainment and other standard amenities for larger planes. When booking online, click "Preview Seats" to see the plane model and seating arrangement before committing to your chosen itinerary.

If all else fails, Alaska's "

" stipulate you could reserve two adjacent seats and receive a refund upon completion of travel, which accommodates not only passengers whose bodies might spill over past the armrest but also those whose long legs need to splay out sideways.

Despite its ultra-low-cost status among budget-friendly airlines, Allegiant Air offers the average legroom in its economy class (about 30 to 31 inches)—with some seats letting you stretch out a little farther, with as much as 3 inches above average. Unfortunately, there's a trade-off involved: Flying Allegiant means squeezing into the narrowest seats sold by U.S. airlines,

.

The Las Vegas-based carrier—a relative newcomer in the U.S. market, founded in 1997—operates all-economy

with no first- or business-class options and zero inflight amenities beyond

.

In 1964, The New York Times reported the maximum seat pitch on American Airlines

. More recently, American has been

onto its planes—and these days, the distance between seat backs on many American flights is as low as just 30 inches. You can do a little better in the legroom category if you upgrade to Main Cabin Extra or Premium Economy—both are better than regular economy but not as good as Business—like on the

Dreamliner. One factor that affects legroom, however, is something you might not think of: The built-in entertainment system (like the one on the

) takes up a lot of space, so flights with streaming-only entertainment offerings are actually roomier, according to SeatGuru.

If you want to maximize your legroom on a Delta flight, you'll need to go beyond the basic fare—but you won't need to leave the main cabin. You could spend a bit extra for 34 inches of seat pitch at the

level—available on the entire Delta fleet and all Delta routes, no matter the plane model or destination.

Or you could do even better and splurge on the

level, typically offered on international flights, with a 38-inch seat pitch. That's impressive, as 38 inches in

is roomier than "flying first" on Delta's

and some of the other wide-body planes, like the

and

.

Premium Select seats also

—making it feel like you've got more space in front of you. It provides other benefits, too, like priority boarding and a dedicated overhead bin.

Frontier's all-Airbus fleet offers below-average legroom on the lower end—with the

offering the most sardinelike experience. Like other budget airlines, Frontier's fleet includes single-class planes—but if you'd like to improve your "coach" experience, you could select Frontier's Stretch seating option when you're purchasing (the only way to guarantee one of these

seats) or at check-in (pending availability).

With Stretch seats, you'll sit in either one of the exit rows or the first three rows of the plane, and you'll get to extend those legs an

. They're also the only Frontier seats that recline. The upcharge for Stretch depends on the type of fare you select and whether your transaction occurs online, via the call center, or in person at the airport. Just note that you can't pick and choose Stretch seats on certain legs of your trip; they're for the entire itinerary.

The standard economy class legroom on all Hawaiian flights averages 30 to 31 inches, but there is a way to get more. On the

, you can opt for 35 inches in Extra Comfort in the main cabin, and on the

, you'll get 36 inches in Economy Comfort. Extra Comfort seats will also feature on the new

planes Hawaiian is taking to the skies in early 2024—promising "maximize seat space" with "more shoulder and hip room," according to a

.

The affordable air carrier JetBlue, based in New York City, has come a long way since its founding in 1998. Back then, all the aircraft were entirely economy class—but now, the

planes (

) give business-class passengers the option of

on transcontinental flights (namely, between New York and California). However, the rest of the fleet is outfitted with

seats and some of the best legroom a U.S. airline can offer.

Of course, those roomier seats come at a higher cost and are available for advance booking or upgrades closer to your travel date. Even in the regular economy-class seats (now called Core) you'll get above-average legroom and

like seatback TV screens featuring live DirecTV, on-demand programming, and satellite radio channels; power outlets in every row; and free high-speed wireless internet for the duration of the flight. But if you want to choose your seat in advance, you must select a Blue fare class or pay an upcharge with Blue Basic.

In Southwest's all-economy class fleet of Boeing 737s, air travelers will find a relative amount of uniformity in seat comfort and roominess—with zero seating upgrades and no calling dibs on seats in advance. Its two larger planes—the

and

, both with a 175-passenger capacity—offer the most legroom, but it's just an inch or two more than the

.

For "

," an additional seat can be purchased ahead of time and refunded later—but even if you take your chances that the flight's not sold out and extra seats will be available, you'll need to consult a departure gate agent upon arrival. Only they can advise whether Southwest can offer a complimentary additional seat and provide you with a boarding document to place on the empty seat next to you.

Spirit Airlines is tied with Frontier for the lowest minimum seat pitch offered among all U.S. domestic airlines. Although this Florida-based carrier doesn't provide business- or first-class seats, it is possible to pay a little extra to reserve a seat with more legroom ahead of time in one of the

, offering up to 6 inches more space. But the Big Front option isn't available on every plane Spirit flies: It's missing from the

model.

However, this could change if the

with fellow low-cost airline JetBlue goes through and Spirit begins flying JetBlue planes (which could finally bring in-flight entertainment to Spirit passengers).

The potential for the most legroom comes from United, whose mainline fleet of 813 planes includes both narrow (single-aisle) and wide-body (dual-aisles) aircraft, with the

topping out at up to 34 inches of legroom in economy and potentially 9 extra inches in Economy Plus on the

plane.

The standard economy seats in Layout 2 of the Boeing 767-300ER are also the widest in the entire fleet. To keep you comfortable and help the time pass more quickly, most United flights offer on-demand in-flight entertainment and access to, at minimum, shared power outlets in every row. And

, to boot.