Southwest Airlines Gets a Clear Answer From Customers After Major Changes

Southwest Airlines is not the same airline it was even two years ago, as the company has undergone an absolutely massive overhaul with eyes on boosting profits and competing with legacy carriers like Delta, United, and American. However, it seems to have pulled off that transformation without losing customer support.

While the airline did face some customer complaints as a result of these many changes as well as some heavy skepticism from the experts, the reality is that the moves have been pretty undeniably successful, boosting the bottom line for the airline without drastically hurting customer satisfaction.

Here's a look at the several high-profile changes the airline has made over the past few months as well as how the airline has performed in the aftermath of those changes. Despite previous concerns, the answer from customers has been clear.

Southwest's Transformation

Once a budget-friendly airline that catered to the everyday traveler, Southwest Airlines made several changes to boost profits, appeal more to premium travelers, and compete with legacy carriers like Delta, United, and American.

Here's a rundown of some of the more high-profile changes that Southwest has made in recent years.

• No More Free Bags. For years, Southwest offered two free checked bags for each passenger, but that policy is now over as Southwest officially introduced checked baggage fees in May of 2025.
• Assigned Seating. Southwest long used a democratic open-seating policy to board its planes, allowing customers to simply choose whichever seat they wanted, boarding the plan in the order in which customers checked in. Beginning in January of 2026, however, Southwest moved to an assigned seating policy.
• Premium Seating Options. In addition to the open-seating policy, Southwest added premium seating options for the first time in its history. While the seats are not a true first-class option by any means, they do provide extra legroom for customers sitting in them.
• Free In-Flight WiFi. For years, Southwest charged travelers a fee for in-flight internet access. However, that changed last fall as the airline officially began offering free in-flight WiFi. That service is set to improve even further after Southwest recently announced a partnership with SpaceX's Starlink.
• Less Empasis on Nonstop Flights. For years, Southwest Airlines has primarily utilized a point-to-point system for its flights, connecting cities with direct flights regardless of distance. Southwest has been moving toward more of a hybrid model that utilizes more of a hub-and-spoke approach, routing passengers through large central hubs that connect smaller cities. While this might not be preferred by customers, it is more economical.

Customer Send a Clear Message

While there was plenty of skepticism from experts at the time when Southwest was implementing these changes and not all of the changes went as smoothly as the airline would have hoped, the message from customers has been loud and clear.

Despite initial complaints from customers after some of the more unpopular changes, the reality is that the changes have indeed boosted profits considerably and customer satisfcation remains high.

After implementing these changes, Southwest returned to profitability in the first quarter of 2026 after reporting massive losses the previous year, even amid an exceptionally challenging environment for the travel industry following the tariff uncertainty throughout 2025.

"Southwest Airlines Co. returned to profitability in Q1 2026, reporting net income of $227 million (diluted EPS $0.45) versus a net loss of $149 million a year earlier. Operating revenue rose 12.8% to $7.249 billion, a first‑quarter record, driven largely by new ancillary products such as bag fees and assigned and extra‑legroom seating," Stock Titan wrote after the airline's recent earnings numbers.

But it isn't just the profits that have soared; Southwest's customer satisfaction has remained high, as well.

Earlier this year, J.D. Power named Southwest Airlines the top airline in the economy and basic economy market in its 2026 North America Airline Satisfaction Study for the fifth straight year. Additionally, in its annual Best U.S. Airlines study,The Points Guy rated Southwest Airlines as the third-best airline in the country , behind only Delta and United and notably ahead of American.

Needless to say, the customers have spoke with their wallets and their reviews, and it seems like these changes were ultimately a good thing for Southwest.

More Changes on the Horizon

While the transformation has been a net positive for Southwest Airlines so far, the airline is not done making changes as it continues to position itself to compete with airlines like Delta, United, American, and the other top airlines in the United States.

Southwest has continually indicated that it plans to expand its international offerings, possibly even including long-haul flights to Europe, and the airline's leadership has teased the possibility of more premium options like airport lounges and true first-class seating.

If Southwest continues on this trajectory, it might not just improve the airline, it could truly make a run at becoming the top domestic carrier in the country.

"If Southwest bolsters its offerings with lounges (as rumored) don't be surprised if it makes a run at the top spot," wrote The Points Guy's Sean Cudahy.

We'll have to see if the trend continues. For now, however, it's clear that Southwest is heading int the right direction, and the continued customer support makes that clear.

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jun 20, 2026, where it first appeared in the Travel section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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This story was originally published June 20, 2026 at 2:04 PM.