Free vs. Pro: Is Seats.Aero Worth $10 per Month?

Seats.aero is a handy website that helps you find economy, business, and first-class award space from numerous airlines, covering all 3 major alliances — and even some niche airlines.

It’s a valuable resource for points and miles enthusiasts seeking award space on their preferred airline. Seats.aero offers a free version of its app, but you can upgrade your membership to the paid Pro version for $10 monthly.

Is a premium version of Seats.aero worth $10 per month? Let’s find out. Here’s what you need to know about Seats.aero’s free and paid Pro versions.

What Is Seats.Aero? 

Seats.aero is a search tool that helps locate award space for more than a dozen airlines. Think of it as the points-and-miles version of Google Flights.

It searches for and refreshes award availability several times daily. You can check the database to see what awards are available, searching across all 3 major airline alliances: Oneworld, SkyTeam, and Star Alliance. It has powerful features that make searching for award availability on more than a dozen programs incredibly easy.

Seats.aero also allows you to search for specific routes and has award finders for particular premium cabins, such as Delta One and JetBlue Move to Mint. For a rundown on how Seats.aero works, check out our full review of the site.

Now, let’s look at what you get with the free and paid versions of Seats.aero. 

How Much Does Seats.Aero Cost?

Seats.aero’s motto is “free, forever.” While there is a free version that can be very useful, if you want more perks (which we’ll discuss later), you can opt for a Seats.aero Pro membership.

This membership costs $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year, and you can cancel anytime.

Key Differences: Seats.Aero Pro vs. Free

The free version of Seats.aero allows you to search for award availability, but it has some restrictions. Let’s take a closer look at the differences between the free and paid Pro versions.

Searching

The most significant difference between a free and paid membership — and perhaps the most important — is the length of time during which you can search for award availability.

If you’re a paid Seats.aero member, you can search for a full year of award availability. For instance, with a paid membership, I could search for award availability between New York (JFK) and Doha (DOH) on Qantas through the end of August 2026.

With a free membership, you don’t have that option. If you try searching beyond 60 days, you’ll get the following prompt:

That may sound like a minute detail, but it’s a big one, especially if you’re searching for flights with programs with limited award availability or booking travel well in advance. This is especially true for awards like Japan Airlines’ first class.

Advanced Filters

A paid Seats.aero membership gets you access to advanced filters, such as the ability to search for direct flights only, the ability to filter results by fee costs, and the option to show dynamic flights.

This is useful if you’re searching on a popular route or during an extended period, as hundreds of results can appear. Pro members can also exclude programs they don’t want Seats.aero to search for from their search results in the Settings page.

SMS Notifications

Having a paid membership may be useful if you’re looking for limited award space. You’ll be able to receive SMS alerts for your flight alerts, in addition to email alerts. A free membership only offers email alerts, so you might miss out on an award if you check your email infrequently.

You’ll also be able to manage or cancel all of your existing flight alerts.

View Seat Maps and Fare Class Availability

Pro members can view real-time seat maps for any flight, track seat availability, and set alerts for flights. The seat map feature is an easy way to tell if seats are blocked or available.

Additionally, pro members can use the Fare Class Viewer tool to search the available fare classes of any scheduled flight, an extremely powerful tool.

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Finally, a paid Seats.aero membership includes no ads, while you’ll see ads on a free membership.

Final Thoughts

Seats.aero is a powerful tool for anyone searching for award flights bookable with points and miles. The platform gives you access to award availability for nearly 2 dozen programs covering all 3 major airline alliances. 

While a free membership may offer many perks, if you frequently return to Seats.aero, purchasing a monthly or annual membership may be worth it.