Size matters...How much leg room airlines average with coach seating:
Bottom Line: More than 3/4's of those who fly are flying coach. As you likely know, if you fly with any regularity, the coach experience can be vastly different. Variables with the coach experience include - the size of the plane you're flying on, the age of the plane, the airline you're flying with and the policies/technology offerings of that plane. So how do airlines stack up with regard to the most basic measure of coach comfort (leg room)? Here's the breakdown...Average leg room across coach flights (mostly complied by CNN Money):
- JetBlue: 34 inches
- Alaska: 33 inches
- Virgin American: 32 inches
- Delta, American, Southwest: 31 inches
- United: 30 inches
- Spirit: 28 inches
So clearly not all coach is created equal - even in the most basic way. There's a 21% difference in leg room between the most accommodating and the least. And that's before all of the other creature comforts are added into the mix.