Flying Southwest This Week? You Might Get Free Inflight Wi-Fi

Updated: May 1, 2025, 2:07pm CDT

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What We Know About the Southwest Free Wi-Fi Test
Final Thoughts

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Southwest Airlines is trying out free Wi-Fi on some flights during the first week of May.

Let’s see what this major, and welcome, development entails.

What We Know About the Southwest Free Wi-Fi Test

Southwest passengers know that Wi-Fi costs $8 per flight. But now, there’s a development that may change that.

Southwest has emailed passengers scheduled to take some selected flights to let them know that they will have free Wi-Fi from May 1 until May 5.

Southwest free Wi-Fi app notification — Image Credit: Southwest

The news was first reported by ATX Jetsetter and confirmed by a spokesperson from the airline.

“From May 1-5, 2025, we are offering all Customers free access to inflight internet in order to assess Customer usage of inflight internet and other products like messaging, flight tracker, live TV, and movies,” Southwest emailed in response to a question from UP. Free Wi-Fi during this test won’t be just for members of the Rapid Rewards loyalty program or people who have A-List frequent flyer status.

“During the test, we will monitor the quality of the Wi-Fi experience,” the airline said, “and we will take the findings from this test to continue enhancing our inflight internet offerings.”

Plus, Southwest’s entire fleet of Boeing 737s has Wi-Fi installed.

Southwest also told people who got the free Wi-Fi email that access to apps and sites consuming large amounts of bandwidth will be prohibited. The airline also noted that some types of content will be blocked, and Wi-Fi may not be available for the entire flight. The latter is not new; for example, Wi-Fi is typically not available on Southwest international flights after leaving U.S. airspace.

Southwest, the largest airline in the U.S. by domestic passengers carried, may also be gearing up to follow the Big 3 legacy carriers on this. American, Delta, and United are all working to make Wi-Fi free for everybody, and Southwest would be at a competitive disadvantage if it still charged for something passengers now see as essential.

Southwest is also making many other changes, and among them is the installation of something that is important to have with Wi-Fi: power at every seat. Not all of the airline’s 737s currently have it, but the airline is installing USB-A and USB-C outlets on all of its planes by the end of the year. The first planes to be modified will be the 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 models, followed by the smaller 737-700 after the summer.

Hot Tip:

Southwest is changing many things about how it does business, including switching to assigned seating. For now, though, people can still sit where they want on its planes, which means it pays to check out our primer on ways to get the best seats on Southwest.

Final Thoughts

Southwest is quietly running a test for free Wi-Fi that may be a harbinger of a new policy. While many of Southwest’s recent changes are not positive for most passengers, this one is certainly good news for everybody.