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Cars & travel.

16 July 2021

Which airline has the best seats?

Fed up with folding yourself in half when you fly? We reveal the airlines with the widest seats and most generous legroom
W
Which?Editorial team
Seat squeeze 475548

Plane seats are getting smaller. This won’t come as a surprise to anyone who’s played armrest wars in cattle class, knees painfully wedged against the seat in front. 

As well as seats and legroom, aisle space is also shrinking, all in the name of cramming more people on to flights.

Back in the 1950s, you could expect a 40-inch seat pitch (the distance from your headrest to the one in front, and the best indicator of legroom). Compare that to the current 31 inches on British Airways and Virgin long-haul flights and the grazed knees suddenly make sense.

If you’re after extra legroom, you’ll need to pay a pretty penny for the privilege (£50 minimum with BA).

Long haul airlines

Airline
Seat pitch (inches)
Seat width (inches)
Overall seat comfort
Air Canada
31-35
17-18
American Airlines
31-37
16.2-18.5
BA
30-31
17-18
Emirates
32-34
17-18
Etihad
31-33
17.5
KLM
31-35
17.5
Singapore Airlines
32-34
17.5-19
Thomas Cook
29-31
17-18.2
Tui Airways
33
17-18
Virgin Atlantic
29-31
17.5-18
Using the table: Seat pitch The distance between two seat rows – an indicator of legroom. Data from SeatGuru. Seat width The distance between the armrests of a single seat. Data from SeatGuru. Seat comfort Rated out of five by Which? members in 2017.

Short haul airlines

Airline
Seat pitch (inches)
Seat width (inches)
Overall seat comfort
BA
29-34
17-18
Easyjet
29
18
Jet2
29
17
Ryanair
30-34
17
Tui Airways
28-34
17.2-18
Using the table: Seat pitch The distance between two seat rows – an indicator of legroom. Data from SeatGuru. Seat width The distance between the armrests of a single seat. Data from SeatGuru. Seat comfort Rated out of five by Which? members in 2017.

Airlines

  1. Best and worst airlines
  2. Best and worst budget airlines
  3. Cheapest airlines for popular destinations
  4. How to save on flights
  5. Which airline has the best seats?
  6. How to save on premium economy fares
  7. Ten airlines rated worst for food
  8. Best and worst airlines for premium economy
  9. Best and worst airlines for business and first class
  10. Carbon offsetting: How to reduce the impact of flying

Airlines

  1. Best and worst airlines
  2. Best and worst budget airlines
  3. Cheapest airlines for popular destinations
  4. How to save on flights
  5. Which airline has the best seats?
  6. How to save on premium economy fares
  7. Ten airlines rated worst for food
  8. Best and worst airlines for premium economy
  9. Best and worst airlines for business and first class
  10. Carbon offsetting: How to reduce the impact of flying

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