Which Airlines Have The Most Comfortable Coach Seats?

“Oh, goodie! I get to sit in coach for X amount of hours! I can’t wait to stretch out and relax,” said no one ever before flying, because in economy class, luxurious leg room and a sweet ratio of cushion to rump comfort is not what you’re paying for. That being said, some airlines are better at pleasing our behinds than others, according to a new poll released this week.

Fare-comparison site Airfarewatchdog polled people to find which domestic airline has the most comfortable seats in coach — because of course, business or first-class seats are like treating your bottom to a spa day in the air in comparison, but that’ll cost you — and picked JetBlue as the winner, reports the Chicago Tribune.

JetBlue came in at 21% of respondents saying it has the best coach seats, nabbing the crown from the major airlines that didn’t even come in near the top.

Next up was Alaska Airlines (17%), Hawaiian Airlines (14%) and Frontier (13%).

Falling toward the bottom were the rest of the U.S. carriers, who all came in with only single-digit percentages. In order from meh to lowest ranked: Allegiant, Southwest, AirTran, Delta, United, Spirit, American and US Airways.

As one would guess, leg room is a big factor — JetBlue has 33 inches of pitch in its cabins, which is the space between the rows, while 31 inches is the norm for many airlines flying Boeing 737s.

“Apparently, even 1 or 2 inches makes all the difference,” George Hobica, president of Airfarewatchdog said. “JetBlue is famous for giving passengers more legroom than any other domestic airline in all economy class seats, so it’s no surprise that consumers recognize them as having the most comfortable seating.”

Spirit Airlines fared surprisingly well, he added, by not coming in dead last with only 28 inches of pitch.

Other airlines are cutting down on space by slimming the size of their seats with reduced padding, which sure, doesn’t shrink leg room, but is nonetheless not necessarily a boon for your bum.

Poll: JetBlue, Alaska Air have most comfortable seats [Chicago Tribune]

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