Southwest Airlines Finally Broke What Made It Different — And I’m Out

*sigh* It’s no secret to anyone who knows me that I don’t do well with change, but since the majority of you don’t know me very well, allow me to say it here: I do NOT do well with change.

That goes for many areas of life, but when I’m in already stressful situations (like travel days) that have to be timed precisely, my tolerance for unexpected changes dwindles even further. Which is why I haven’t been thrilled to hear about all of the Southwest Airlines changes — while I’m usually the type to fly with whatever airline is cheapest (#ballinonabudget), I try to fly Southwest when I can because of their unique differences from other airlines. With all these changes, though, I gotta admit — that’s not the case anymore.

Throughout 2025, Southwest has been implementing some massive changes that have been controversial, to say the least. It all started in January when the airline announced it’d be ending its open-seating policy and moving to assigned seating, which was a huge step away from what made flying with them different.

Many people, like myself, who just need to fly somewhere quickly and for a relatively affordable price (meaning we don’t really care where we sit, just get us on the plane), enjoyed this policy. Now that assigned seating is coming into effect in just a few months, when 2026 begins. Passengers can book a reserved seat starting in late 2025, and those seats will begin to become available for flights in early 2026.

That wasn’t all — on May 28th, the company officially ended the five-decade-long “bags fly free” policy that allowed passengers two free checked bags when flying with the airline. This change was criticized by most who heard it, because being told you now need to pay for something that used to be free isn’t very popular. Shocker.

Don’t worry, it gets worse. While it’s rare I travel with more than a personal item and carry-on (honestly, I try to stick to just a personal item to avoid fees when I can), I also try to save on tickets when I can. With Southwest, that often looks like booking the cheapest fares, like those in their “Wanna Get Away” category. So imagine my disappointment when I read that the Rapid Rewards points system was adjusted to give Members booking Business Select prices more points, but those booking Wanna Get Away or Wanna Get Away Plus options will earn fewer points.

Southwest did announce that they’re going to begin offering new Extra Legroom seats, which is great and all, but again, I’m trying to save money and don’t have much interest in paying extra for a seat that’ll give me an extra five inches of legroom. I can totally see how that’s great for some travelers, but for me, there’s no draw there.

Basically, after all these changes, I, among many others, am left going, “why am I even flying Southwest then?” I don’t necessarily have loyalty to any particular airline, but I know many flyers do, and they’ve now said they won’t fly Southwest due to these changes. I plan to fly with them only if it’s my only option (or the cheapest), otherwise, I’ll look elsewhere.

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How do you feel about these changes? Tell us in the comments!

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