Airline seats: How families can sit together for free when booking - and save £100

UK travellers are often told to expect to pay extra to guarantee family seating, but in many cases it’s not strictly necessary. We examine when airlines will seat you together without charge, which carriers are more likely to split groups, and tips to improve your chances of sitting as a family.

A 2023 Which? Travel study found families paying more than £100 for seat allocation were often paying unnecessarily — many airlines will seat groups from the same booking together by default, even if no paid selection is made.

That said, not all airlines behave the same. Budget carriers such as Ryanair and Wizz Air are the most likely to split up groups that do not pay for seating.

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It’s important to note: there is no legal right to sit next to your family or children on a flight. Airlines are guided by rules and policies, but passengers who skip paid seat selection do run a risk of being separated.

What the regulations and guidance say about children’s seating

According to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), airlines should aim to seat children and infants close to their accompanying adults (ideally in the same row, or one row away) when possible.

But the CAA’s guidance is not legally binding. Airlines can legally separate even under-fives from their parents, even though this would be against CAA guidelines.

That means any guarantee about “always sitting together” comes down to the airline’s policy (and how full the flight is).

How UK airlines handle family seating

Here’s a run-through of the policies of major UK and European carriers when it comes to seating children and families:

British Airways: Says children under 12 will always be seated with an accompanying adult. If you don’t choose seats in advance, BA will “do our best” to seat your group together, possibly in adjacent rows or across the aisle.

TUI: Also guarantees children under 12 will be seated with at least one adult in their booking (even without paid seat selection).

Jet2: Commits to “always endeavour to seat children and infants under 12 next to their accompanying adults”. And if not possible, no more than one row away.

EasyJet: States its system tries to seat families together; if that fails, for children under 12 it will ensure they are “close” to an adult.

Wizz Air: Automatically assigns adult and child (up to age 14) seats next to each other during check-in.

Ryanair: Implements a stricter policy. If you don’t reserve a seat, your seat will be randomly allocated during check-in, and the airline says it is “unlikely” the random seats will be adjacent.

For children under 12, Ryanair requires that at least one adult in the booking pays for a seat reservation. Up to four children per adult in the booking can then receive a reserved seat free of charge beside that adult.

Ryanair has faced repeated complaints that groups who decline paid seating are being separated, and the airline denies deliberately doing this (insisting it is random allocation).

Tips to improve your chance of sitting together for free

Book everyone in one reservation

Airlines are more likely to try to keep you together if all travellers are in the same booking rather than separate ones.

Check in as early as allowed

Free seat assignments are typically made during check-in. The earlier you check in, the better the chance of favourable allocation.

Consider leaving seat selection until later

Some airlines keep the “good seats” (aisle, window) reserved for paid customers until close to departure, leaving more options for random allocation. This is riskier but can pay off, especially on less-full flights.

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Ask for swaps at the gate or onboard

If you're separated, staff may help you swap seats (if airline policy allows). You can also ask fellow passengers politely to trade. Some passengers are willing if the swap isn’t too disadvantageous.

Use loyalty status or bundled fares

If you have elite status or book a fare class that includes free seat selection, this can help you avoid having to pay extra. Also, airlines sometimes gift free selection for parents or during promotions.

Contact the airline ahead of your flight

If you have a child or special requirement, calling ahead can sometimes help you get confirmation or priority seating.

When free seating won’t cut it and paying may be necessary

On heavily booked or peak flights, particularly with low-cost airlines, the free seat allocation pool shrinks quickly. At that point, the only reliable way to guarantee sitting together is to pay for reserved seats at the time of booking.

Ryanair is the clearest example: if you’re travelling with children under 12, at least one adult must pay for a seat, or seats will not be guaranteed.

It’s also worth noting that some seats (e.g. extra-legroom or exit rows) always attract a premium, and these are rarely left unreserved.

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