Which Airlines Offer the Most and Least Legroom?

Which airlines offer the most and least legroom? This question begs an answer from curious travelers everywhere, and Upgraded Points, a company aimed at demystifying the world of travel and credit cards, recently released its new research findings that analyzed economy seat pitch across the 10 busiest domestic flight routes.

Findings include JetBlue is the leader in legroom, with an average seat pitch of 32.3 inches, with Southwest Airlines a close second at an average of 31.8 inches of legroom. A tie at third sees both Delta Air Lines and Alaska Airlines offering 31 inches of legroom. The rest of the list reads in this order: American Airlines, 30.2 inches; United Airlines, at 30.1 inches of legroom; Hawaiian Airlines, with 29 inches; and Spirit Airlines and Frontier, both averaging 28 inches.

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“Legroom is a crucial aspect of passenger comfort, especially during longer flights,” said Keri Stooksbury, editor-in-chief, Upgraded Points. “Our goal is to empower travelers with information that helps them make informed decisions while traveling. So, we’re happy to shed some light on which airlines prioritize more space for their passengers.”

Some facts stood out about specific aircraft, as well. The Embraer 190 leads the industry with an average pitch of 32 inches, and Boeing’s 767, 777 and 787 all offer 30-inch seat pitches. With the least amount of legroom, the Airbus A320neo boasts just 28 inches of pitch; however, some Airbus models, like the A320, can offer up to 34 inches.

Upgraded Points used the Google Chrome extension Legrooms for Google Flights to determine the average legroom and collected data on all listed flights on the 10 busiest U.S. domestic routes in November 2023. After recording the seat pitch for economy seats on each of the flights, they calculated averages for each airline and aircraft. Learn more here.