Southwest Fare Classes: Basic, Choice, Choice Preferred and Choice Extra

• Flight credits expire counted from the date the fare was booked and ticketed. A Transferable Flight Credit can be transferred once, to another Rapid Rewards member.
• Choice Extra adds one complimentary premium drink on select flights of 251 miles or more.
• Inflight WiFi is free for Rapid Rewards members on WiFi-enabled aircraft; others pay $8 per device where it is sold.

Southwest moved to assigned seats, and to boarding Groups 1 through 8, on flights from January 27, 2026. There is one cabin with three seat types: Extra Legroom at the front and in the exit rows, Preferred (standard legroom, near the front) and Standard (standard legroom, in the back).

• Boarding order: preboarding, then paid Priority Boarding and active-duty U.S. military, then A-List Preferred, then Group 1 (A-List members and Choice Extra), Group 2 (Extra Legroom seats on Choice and Choice Preferred), Groups 3-4 (Choice Preferred), Group 5 (Rapid Rewards credit cardmembers without an earlier group), Groups 3-7 (Choice) and Group 8 (Basic).
• Everyone on the same reservation boards in the same group. A-List, A-List Preferred and cardmember boarding benefits cover up to eight more passengers on the reservation.
• A-List: a Preferred or Standard seat free at booking, and a free upgrade to an Extra Legroom seat within 48 hours of departure, when available. A-List Preferred: any seat, Extra Legroom included, free at booking.
• Basic seats are assigned at check-in, except for A-List and A-List Preferred members and some Rapid Rewards credit cardmembers, who can choose earlier.
• Seats not included in a fare can be bought: Southwest lists paid seat upgrades at $4 to $250 per segment, and Priority Boarding at $10 to $75 per segment, sold from 24 hours before departure.

Qualifying flights are Southwest-operated flights paid with dollars, LUV Vouchers, gift cards or flight credits, and Cash + Points bookings (points only on the part of the base fare paid in dollars). Reward flights and Companion Pass travel do not qualify.

• Flights count as qualifying one-way flight segments. TQP are tier qualifying points; eligible Southwest Rapid Rewards credit cards also earn TQP for every $5,000 spent.
• Status lasts for the rest of the year in which it is earned and all of the next calendar year.
• Companion Pass: one designated person flies with you free of airline charges (taxes and fees from $5.60 one-way) whenever you buy or redeem points for a flight, for the rest of the year it is earned plus the next full year. You can change the companion up to three times each calendar year. Southwest Rapid Rewards cardmembers get one boost of 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each calendar year.
• A-List and A-List Preferred members get same-day standby on any fare, Basic included (taxes and fees may apply), but not free same-day change unless the fare includes it. A-List Preferred also gets up to two complimentary premium drinks per leg on select flights of 251 miles or more.
• Points do not expire. Points in an account are forfeited if the member closes it.

• No cancel fee on any fare. Cancel at least 10 minutes before the original scheduled departure, or the travel funds (and points) may be forfeited.
• Basic: non-refundable except as allowed by Southwest's 24-hour cancellation policy. Cancelled in time, it becomes a flight credit valid 6 months from the date booked and ticketed. It can be changed only by upgrading it to Choice, Choice Preferred or Choice Extra. On a round trip with a Basic leg, you can cancel only both legs, or upgrade the Basic leg first.
• Choice: non-refundable; cancelled in time, it becomes a Transferable Flight Credit valid 12 months from the date booked and ticketed. Changes cost only the fare difference, if any.
• Choice Preferred and Choice Extra: cancelled in time, 100% of the ticket value is refunded to the original form of payment (a flight credit used to pay comes back as a Transferable Flight Credit). If you do not cancel, the funds become a Transferable Flight Credit. Changes cost only the fare difference, if any.
• Same-day change and standby: free on Choice, Choice Preferred and Choice Extra, for another flight that day between the same airports; government taxes and fees may apply. Make the change or list for standby at least 10 minutes before your original flight, and in the app or on mobile web at least 60 minutes (domestic) or 90 minutes (international) before the new flight. Basic fares get neither, except that A-List and A-List Preferred members can list for standby.

• A third or later checked bag is $150. Bags are up to 62 inches (length + width + height) and 50 lb; overweight and oversized bags cost more.
• Every fare includes one carry-on bag up to 10 x 16 x 24 inches and one personal item.
• A-List and A-List Preferred bag benefits cover up to eight more passengers on the same reservation. Rapid Rewards credit cardmembers get the first checked bag free for themselves and up to eight more passengers, with the Rapid Rewards number on the booking.
• Checked bag benefits do not apply on flights booked with a partner airline. Interisland Hawaii flights have their own, lower fees.

Does Southwest use fare class letters?

Southwest does not publish any. Its fare pages, and its booking policy for travel agents, list the fares by name only: Basic, Choice, Choice Preferred and Choice Extra.

Which Southwest fares are refundable?

Choice Preferred and Choice Extra. Cancel at least 10 minutes before the original scheduled departure and the ticket value goes back to the original form of payment. Choice and Basic are non-refundable and cancel to a flight credit, which lasts 12 months on Choice and 6 months on Basic from the date the fare was booked and ticketed.

Can I change a Southwest Basic fare?

Only by upgrading it to Choice, Choice Preferred or Choice Extra. Those three fares can be changed for the difference in fare, if there is one. No Southwest fare has a cancel fee.

How much are Southwest's checked bags?

For U.S. mainland travel booked and ticketed, or changed, on or after April 9, 2026: $45 for the first bag and $55 for the second on Basic, Choice and Choice Preferred, and $150 for a third or later bag. Choice Extra includes two free bags. Travel booked and ticketed before April 9, 2026 keeps the earlier $35 and $45.

Which boarding group does each Southwest fare get?

With assigned seating, which began on flights from January 27, 2026: Choice Extra boards in Group 1, Choice Preferred in Groups 3-4, Choice in general boarding (Groups 3-7) and Basic last, in Group 8. A-List Preferred members board before Group 1 and A-List members in Group 1.

Do Rapid Rewards points expire?

No. Southwest's Rapid Rewards terms say points do not expire. If a member closes the account, the points in it are forfeited.

Sources, checked Oct. 4, 2026: Fare types and benefits | Fare information and rules | Assigned seating | Same-day change and standby | Optional travel charges | How to earn points | Rapid Rewards tiers | A-List | A-List Preferred | Companion Pass | Rapid Rewards terms | GDS ticketing policy