How To Improve Your Boarding Position on Southwest [2024]

Updated: March 5, 2024, 11:43am CST

Edited by:

How To Improve Your Boarding Position on Southwest [2024]

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As a low-cost carrier, Southwest does everything possible to minimize costs and create a lower-fare experience. One of the ways it does this is to put a single economy class of service on its planes. It doesn’t have to worry about premium cabin catering, lounges, or other amenities that traditionally come with cabins up front.

Even with an all-economy class plane, there are ways to make your ride significantly more comfortable and create your own first class experience.

Open Seating Policy

Southwest has an open-seating policy on all of its planes. This means you are not assigned a specific seat on the plane, but all seats are first come, first served. Because of this, it’s imperative to board the aircraft first.

Southwest has 3 boarding groups: A, B, and C. Each group has 60 customers, and the A group boards first, followed by B, and then C. The order you receive is based on your check-in time, at least 24 hours prior to departure. So, if your flight is at 6:01 p.m., you can check in at 6:01 p.m. the day before. You’ll need to be quick in doing so, as many customers are trying to do the same thing simultaneously.

Upgraded Boarding (A1-15)

Southwest Upgraded Boarding — Image Credit: Southwest

You can purchase the A1-15 boarding slots, known as Upgraded Boarding, at check-in for anywhere between $30 and $80, depending on the flight length. So, no matter which boarding group you receive by check-in, you can “upgrade” to a higher boarding position for no more than $80. For flights of a longer length, this can be a significant advantage. However, there’s 1 catch: upgrading to an A1-15 boarding position is entirely based on availability.

Credit Cards That Have Upgraded Boarding Credits as a Benefit

The Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Priority Credit Card and the Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Performance Business Credit Card each come with 4 Upgraded Boardings per year. You’ll be reimbursed the cost to upgrade to the highest available boarding slot within the A1-15 group, when it’s available. While it’s only available on 4 flights, this can still add up to significant savings. You’ll likely want to save the use of these 4 reimbursements for your longest flights of the year, since those will cost the most to upgrade to A1-15.

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Priority Credit Card

U.P. Rating

This card focuses on the Southwest traveler with anniversary points, travel credit, upgrades, and money back on inflight purchases.

Learn More(at Chase's secure site)

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Priority Credit Card

This card focuses on the Southwest traveler with anniversary points, travel credit, upgrades, and money back on inflight purchases.

Welcome OfferEarn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Earn 50,000 points.

UP's Bonus Valuation*:
$650

Annual Fee

$149

APR

21.49% - 28.49% Variable

Credit Recommended

Good to Excellent (670-850)

The Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Priority Credit Card is the most premium personal Southwest card offering from Chase. When you peel back the curtain, it is easy to see why.

Not only does the card offer multiple bonus categories to help you earn more Southwest Rapid Rewards points, but it is also loaded with benefits that are sure to offer quite a bit of value to Southwest flyers.

Here is a full overview of the card to help you decide if it is a good fit for your wallet.

Pros

3x points per $1 on Southwest purchases
2x points per $1 on local transit and commuting, including rideshare purchases

Cons

$149 annual fee
Does not earn transferable points

Read Full Review

Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
7,500 anniversary points each year.
Earn 3X points on Southwest^® purchases.
Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
$75 Southwest^® travel credit each year.
No foreign transaction fees.
Member FDIC

Financial Snapshot

APR: 21.49% - 28.49% Variable
Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Card Categories

Rewards Center

Southwest Rapid Rewards Frequent Flyer Program

Southwest^® Rapid Rewards^® Performance Business Credit Card

U.P. Rating

Southwest frequent flyers will love the upgraded boarding positions, inflight Wi-Fi credits, and bonus points on each cardmember anniversary.

Learn More(at Chase's secure site)

Southwest^® Rapid Rewards^® Performance Business Credit Card

Southwest frequent flyers will love the upgraded boarding positions, inflight Wi-Fi credits, and bonus points on each cardmember anniversary.

Welcome OfferEarn 80,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.
80,000 points

UP's Bonus Valuation*:
$1,040

Annual Fee

$199

APR

21.49%-28.49% Variable

Credit Recommended

Good to Excellent (670-850)

The Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Performance Business Credit Card is a phenomenal option for business owners who are Southwest frequent flyers. It helps you earn more points on all of your business expenses, offers upgraded boarding certificates and Wi-Fi credits, and helps you reach higher levels of Southwest elite status.

Pros

4x points per $1 spent on Southwest purchases
3x points per $1 spent on Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partner purchases

Cons

$199 annual fee
Doesn’t earn transferable rewards

Read Full Review

Earn 80,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
9,000 bonus points after your Cardmember anniversary.
Earn 4X pts on Southwest^® purchases.
Earn 3X points on Rapid Rewards^® hotel and car rental partners.
Earn 2X points on rideshare.
Earn 2X points on social media and search engine advertising, internet, cable, and phone services and 1X points on all other purchases.
4 Upgraded Boardings per year when available.
Member FDIC

Financial Snapshot

APR: 21.49%-28.49% Variable
Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Card Categories

To help ease the sting of being in coach, you’ll also get 25% back on inflight purchases, great for grabbing an alcoholic drink onboard. The cards also come with a 1,500 tier qualifying points towards A-List status for every $5,000 you spend annually, making it even easier to earn A-List status, which comes with additional perks.

If you don’t have one of these 2 Southwest co-branded credit cards, you might consider using a Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card or a Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, both of which earn 2x Capital One miles on every purchase. You can then use these miles to cover travel charges from your statement (within 90 days) at a rate of 1 cent per mile.

You can also utilize the up to $200 airline credit you receive on The Platinum Card^® from American Express. You’ll need to select Southwest Airlines as your preferred airline at the start of the year, but when you do, you’ll have up to $200 to use on any miscellaneous fees associated with Southwest travel. Both EarlyBird Check-In (which we’ll review later) and Upgraded Boarding count for this purpose.

Who Should Purchase Upgraded Boarding?

If you’re purchasing Upgraded Boarding during the check-in process, there’s a risk it may not be available if other customers have purchased all of these slots via Business Select fares (more on these fares shortly). If it’s available, you’ll need to decide whether the upgrade cost is worth it based on the length of the flight. And remember, the longer the flight, the higher the upgrade cost.

Our Take

While it’s risky to wait and see if the A1-15 slots will be available for purchase, the cost to upgrade will almost certainly be worth it to guarantee extra comfort on the plane by having priority access to better seats.

Bottom Line:

The key to getting a good seat on Southwest Airlines is being among the first people to board the plane. Being in the A1-15 boarding group almost guarantees one of the best seats on the plane.

Business Select

Southwest’s closest offering to first class is its Business Select product, its most expensive fare.

Take, for example, this Washington, D.C. (DCA) to Dallas (DAL) flight. You’ll see that Business Select is more than $100 over the cheapest fare, but it has some benefits.

Southwest Fare DCA DAL — Image Credit: Southwest Airlines

A Business Select fare includes:

The option to fully refund the ticket back to your original form of payment
Priority boarding from A1-15, based on check-in time; you’re guaranteed to receive any of those 15 slots
Free inflight entertainment, including Wi-Fi
Complimentary premium drink on flights over 176 miles
12 Rapid Rewards points earned per dollar spent on the airfare

Business Select won’t earn you a specific seat on the plane, but because you’re guaranteed to board during the first 15 people, you have a very high likelihood of getting the preferred seat you want, which may include seats in the bulkhead or exit row.

Who Should Purchase Business Select?

If the cost difference isn’t that much from lower fares, it can be worth purchasing as it guarantees you A1-15 boarding. Remember, however, that because it guarantees A1-15, only 15 of these fares are available for sale on the plane.

Our Take

Business Select can be pricey depending on the journey, but if having a guaranteed boarding slot within the A1-15 group is essential, you’ll want to purchase Business Select.

Hot Tip:

Even though you purchase a Business Select fare, passengers with disabilities are allowed to board first, though they aren’t allowed to sit in an exit row. Consider this if you have a specific seat in mind that you want to sit in.

EarlyBird Check-In

If you don’t have time to check in on your own 24 hours prior to your flight or want to secure an earlier boarding position, EarlyBird Check-In is for you. You can purchase this service for $15 to $25 per direction of travel, and Southwest will automatically check you in for your flight in the order you purchase the service.

The excellent advantage of this service is that if you check in with EarlyBird, you’ll always receive a higher boarding group than those without EarlyBird Check-In. Remember that many passengers may purchase EarlyBird, so you may still receive a lower boarding position. We don’t recommend using EarlyBird if you’re trying to secure a chance at a specific seat. You likely will only be guaranteed a window or aisle seat, which is almost always preferable to a middle seat.

Credit Cards That Have EarlyBird Check-In as a Benefit

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Premier Credit Card and Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Plus Credit Card each offer 2 EarlyBird Check-In reimbursements per year. This will save you from purchasing EarlyBird Check-In at $15 to $25 for 2 flights (the reimbursement is for a single person, not a group or multiple flights). Remember, EarlyBird Check-In doesn’t guarantee you a specific boarding spot, but only puts you ahead of those who did not utilize the service.

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Premier Credit Card

U.P. Rating

Earn Southwest points on every purchase, plus anniversary points, Tier Qualifying Points, and points toward the Companion Pass!

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Premier Credit Card

Earn Southwest points on every purchase, plus anniversary points, Tier Qualifying Points, and points toward the Companion Pass!

Welcome OfferEarn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Earn 50,000 points

UP's Bonus Valuation*:
$650

Annual Fee

$99

APR

21.49% - 28.49% Variable

Credit Recommended

Good to Excellent (670-850)

Another week, another flight. Flying weekly can get tiring, but you know that every flight gets you closer to taking some great vacations with your significant other or your favorite travel buddy.

To save money on the flights, you like to use Southwest Airlines.

So why not get the Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Premier Credit Card to help you earn extra Rapid Rewards points?

Pros

3x points per $1 on Southwest purchases
2x points per $1 on Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partners

Cons

$99 annual fee
Does not earn transferable rewards

Read Full Review

Earn 75,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
6,000 anniversary points each year.
Earn 3X points on Southwest^® purchases.
Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
2 EarlyBird Check-In^® each year.
No foreign transaction fees.
Member FDIC

Financial Snapshot

APR: 21.49% - 28.49% Variable
Foreign Transaction Fees: $0

Card Categories

Rewards Center

Southwest Rapid Rewards Frequent Flyer Program

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Plus Credit Card

U.P. Rating

This card makes it easy to earn unlimited points and qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass.

Learn More(at Chase's secure site)

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Plus Credit Card

This card makes it easy to earn unlimited points and qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass.

Welcome OfferEarn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Earn 50,000 points

UP's Bonus Valuation*:
$650

Annual Fee

$69

APR

21.49% - 28.49% Variable

Credit Recommended

Good to Excellent (670-850)

If you spend a lot of time in the air, it’s important to get a great deal on your plane tickets.

Southwest Airlines can help you get those deals.

One way to save is by using the Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Plus Credit Card. This card helps you earn points for all your spending, and earning more reward points is always a good thing for a busy traveler!

Pros

2x points per $1 on Southwest purchases
2x points per $1 on local transit and commuting, including rideshares

Cons

$69 annual fee
Does not earn transferable rewards

Read Full Review

Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
3,000 anniversary points each year.
Earn 2X points on Southwest^® purchases.
Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
2 EarlyBird Check-In^® each year.
Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
Member FDIC

Financial Snapshot

APR: 21.49% - 28.49% Variable
Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Card Categories

Rewards Center

Southwest Rapid Rewards Frequent Flyer Program

In addition to the EarlyBird Check-In certificates, you’ll also receive 10,000 points towards a Companion Pass each year, which helps you earn it even faster. Like other Southwest cards, you’ll also save 25% on inflight purchases. You’ll also receive an anniversary bonus of miles which you can then use towards purchasing Southwest airfare.

Similar to A1-15 boarding, EarlyBird Check-In fees can also be covered using miles from a Capital One miles-earning card or a card that offers a statement credit for airline fees or travel.

Who Should Use EarlyBird Check-In?

You should purchase EarlyBird if you don’t care about a specific seat on the plane but want to sit in any aisle or window seat. It’s perfect for those who don’t want to be occupied checking in for their flight exactly 24 hours prior to departure.

Our Take

EarlyBird Check-In doesn’t actually have any guarantees, so there is a risk in purchasing this. There have been many instances where passengers purchase EarlyBird Check-In but end up in a B-boarding group because so many people have purchased the service. What is likely, however, is receiving an aisle or middle seat since most passengers in the higher groups will not want to choose a middle seat, but this is the only thing that can be assured with EarlyBird Check-In.

Hot Tip:

One big risk in purchasing A1-15 or any product that tries to ensure an earlier boarding group is it relies on you being at the gate on time. If you have a connecting flight and arrive late to your onward gate, for example, the boarding process may have already started, and you’ll need to board with whatever group they are currently on. This might mean that you may not get a preferred seat. When this happens, you can contact Southwest to see if the airline will provide a refund.

Final Thoughts

If you have the opportunity to purchase an Upgraded Boarding group on Southwest Airlines, we advise that you do it. Since the pick of seats onboard is a free-for-all, you’ll want to ensure you have a decent seat. For most, EarlyBird Check-In can ensure this. However, if you have your eye on a specific seat, you’ll want to consider purchasing A1-15.

If you’re a semi-regular Southwest flyer, having a Southwest Airlines co-branded credit card can be an easy way to board the plane earlier thanks to free EarlyBird Check-In or Upgraded Boarding positions.

The information regarding the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card^® from American Express, click here.

Featured Image Credit: Stephen M. Keller via Southwest Airlines

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Class Y on Southwest Airlines?

Y class on Southwest Airlines (or any airline, for that matter), is an unrestricted, full-fare economy class ticket. Traditionally, these tickets are fully refundable and come with little or no restrictions.

Does Southwest Airlines have first class service?

No, Southwest does not offer any first class service or have any premium cabins. While there are better economy class seats you can sit in onboard (such as exit rows or the bulkhead), the service is the same for all passengers.

Does Southwest have economy class?

Yes; in fact, Southwest only has economy class and does not offer any sort of premium product.

What does business class on Southwest mean?

Southwest does not offer an actual business-class seat, but it does offer a Business Select fare, which includes priority boarding, an onboard free drink, and complimentary Wi-Fi.

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About James Larounis

James (Jamie) started The Forward Cabin blog to educate readers about points, miles, and loyalty programs. He’s spoken at Princeton University and The New York Times Travel Show and has been quoted in dozens of travel publications.

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