What are the prime seats in economy when flying?

In this series, the Dinogo Planet team tackles your travel queries and shares insights to help you navigate your trips effortlessly. This week, John Walton, our aviation expert and airline enthusiast, addresses a question about securing a great seat on a flight.

Question: While booking flights online, I often wonder if there’s a better seat choice in economy. I frequently end up in seats that don’t allow me to relax. Are there any seats that are preferable? Or ones I should steer clear of?

Answer: I can relate to your discomfort… often quite literally. As a frequent flyer myself, I know that selecting a seat can be quite tricky. Aside from the classic “window or aisle” debate, here are some lesser-known tips and potential pitfalls to consider.

Is it worth the extra cost to pay for an economy seat?

To secure a decent seat nowadays, you’ll likely need to pay for it. Otherwise, you might be assigned a middle seat or one right by the bathrooms. Weigh the benefits of shelling out some cash against saving it for other expenses.

When selecting your seat in economy, steer clear of anything near a restroom. The bulkhead seats in the front are often where babies end up, so if you’re noise-sensitive, choose a seat further into the cabin.

Many seat map websites are outdated and contradictory, and the airline’s own seat selection pages might lack crucial details. Plus, different airlines can have varying configurations on the same aircraft, so seat 11A could be great on one flight but awful on another. If the seat is important to you, do your homework and check multiple sources.

Choose based on the aircraft

When booking your flight, you’ll often find that Airbus planes have wider seats compared to Boeing ones. While this isn’t a hard rule, it tends to hold true about four out of five times based on my experience.

Center aisle for long flights

For long-haul wide-body flights, opt for center aisle seats: if you prefer an aisle, choosing one in the middle section is usually best, as those adjacent middle seats are the last to be occupied — and you'll have fewer passengers climbing over you compared to a side window seat.

Everything you need to know about exit row seats

Be selective about first-row 'bulkhead' and exit row seats: located at the front of the cabin or near emergency exits, these seats can offer extra legroom, but may come with drawbacks like limited recline or fixed seat pitch. Some bulkhead seats might even feel more cramped than regular seats because you can't slide your feet underneath them.

Watch out for the absent window

Certain rows lack windows to accommodate cabling or air ducts, notably Ryanair’s seat 11A on their Boeing 737-800 fleet. This typically occurs just in front of or behind the wing or at the rear of the aircraft. Be vigilant while booking and consider a quick online search for '[your airline name] no window row.'

'Endless legroom' seats

On some aircraft, the arrangement of seats in relation to emergency exits means that there's only an aisle and middle seat next to the exit, granting the window seat behind it an entire seat's worth of legroom in front. Additionally, some Airbus A380s with crew rest areas downstairs feature an emergency escape hatch where a seat would normally be, resulting in extra legroom for the seat behind it (for example, 62D on Singapore Airlines). Review the entire seat map to ensure you don't overlook these options!