Southwest to introduce assigned seating giving customers greater control over travel experience

Up in the Air // Jul 2025

Southwest Airlines is introducing the option for travellers to select their seat at the time of booking for flights beginning on 27 January 2026, as part of efforts to deliver a smooth and efficient customer experience.

Southwest Airlines – a Corporate Partner of the FTE Digital, Innovation & Startup Hub – is introducing the option for customers to select their seat at the time of booking for flights beginning on 27 January 2026.

“Our Customers want more choice and greater control over their travel experience,” said Tony Roach, Executive Vice President Customer & Brand, Southwest Airlines. “Assigned seating unlocks new opportunities for our customers – including the ability to select Extra Legroom seats – and removes the uncertainty of not knowing where they will sit in the cabin. This is an important step in our evolution, and we’re excited to pair these enhancements with our legendary customer service.”

Southwest customers will be able to choose from various fare bundles, some that offer the opportunity to select a seat during the booking process, as well as access to the different seat types – Extra Legroom, Preferred, and Standard. Customers will also be able to purchase a seat upgrade to elevate their travel experience.

As Southwest begins to operate with assigned seating from January 2026, the airline will also begin a new group-based boarding process designed to deliver a smooth and efficient customer experience on every flight. The boarding process is optimised for assigned seating and will prioritise customers into groups based on seat location, beginning with Extra Legroom seats in boarding Groups 1-2. Premium fares and Southwest’s most loyal customers – Tier Members and Credit Cardmembers – will board earlier in the process. Customers will be able to purchase Priority Boarding beginning 24 hours prior to departure to be among the first to board.

Hear more from Southwest Airlines at FTE Global – the “CES of Aviation” taking place in Long Beach, California, on 9 to 11 September 2025. Sree Samudrala, Director of Artificial Intelligence & Automation, Southwest Airlines, is participating in ‘The FTE AI Symposium – Part 2: A deep-dive into Agentic AI and the move towards Artificial General Intelligence’, and Andrea Goodpasture, Managing Director- Airport Affairs, Southwest Airlines, is speaking in a session titled ‘The future of business & commercial strategies for airports – are we at the threshold of airports evolving to become digital companies that run experiential businesses, and what would the new business models and organisational structures be behind that?’ Meanwhile, Kevin Kleist, Head of Emerging Trends, Southwest Airlines, is participating in three sessions titled ‘How do we now revolutionise the gate and boarding experience, and other key airport pinch-points?’, ‘Crowdsourced Safety: What 4,400 Photos Can Teach AI (and us)’, and ‘Pilot stories: What are hard lessons learned, and secrets, to a successful innovation journey?’

View the full FTE Global 2025 conference agendas >> Join us at FTE Global – the “CES of Aviation” – in LA, 9 to 11 September 2025 – registration live >>