Airline Boarding Groups: The Master List (Updated July 2024)

When you check in for a flight, either by printing a boarding pass on your computer or by using a mobile device, you’re provided with a boarding group. This lets you know when you’ll be getting on the plane. Getting group 3 on one airline might be great but it could be terrible for another airline.

Regardless of that number, know you’re not getting on the plane when the boarding process starts unless you’re a super-elite frequent flyer or a disabled passenger using a wheelchair. The passengers with loyalty status and ones who paid for first-class will go next. Why not stay seated until your group (or at least the one right before it is called)? Cause you’re gonna have a long wait to have your ticket scanned, and all you’re going to do is stand on the jet bridge for a while before getting on the plane.

Just be patient and don’t be like the people in this video from JetBlue:

Listed in the order of the total number of passengers carried, here are the boarding orders for U.S. airlines.

American Airlines 

Customers who need special assistance and families with children under 2 can ask to board early at the gate.

• ConciergeKey members
• Group 1
  • First
  • Active duty U.S. Military with military I.D.
  • Executive Platinum
  • (Business on a 2-class international plane)
• Group 2
  • Platinum Pro
  • oneworld Emerald
  • (Business on a 3-class plane)
• Group 3
  • Platinum
  • oneworld Sapphire
• Group 4
  • Gold
  • oneworld Ruby
  • AirPass
  • Premium Economy
  • Citi/AAdvantage Executive cardmembers
  • Travelers who bought Priority boarding
• Group 5 (Preferred Boarding)
  • Main Cabin Extra (excluding Basic Economy)
  • AAdvantage^® members who earn 15,000 Loyalty Points
  • Eligible AAdvantage credit cardmembers
• Group 6
  • AAdvantage members
• Group 7-8
  • Main Cabin
• Group 9
  • Basic Economy

Delta Airlines

• Pre-Boarding
  • Customers needing assistance or additional time to board
  • Active duty U.S. Military with military I.D.
  • Delta 360 Members
• Zone 1
  • Delta One customers
  • First Class customers
• Zone 2
  • Diamond Medallion members
  • Delta Premium Select
  • Early boarding for customers traveling with car seats or strollers
•  Zone 3
  • Delta Comfort+
• Zone 4
  • Platinum Medallion members
  • Gold Medallion members
  • Flying Blue Platinum and Gold members
  • Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Gold members
  • SkyTeam Elite Plus members
  • LATAM Pass Black Signature, Black and Platinum Elite
  • WestJet Rewards Platinum and Gold Elite
• Zone 5
  • Silver Medallion Members
  • Delta Corporate Travelers
  • Gold, Platinum and Reserve Delta SkyMiles credit card members
  • Flying Blue Silver members
  • Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Silver members
  • SkyTeam Elite
  • LATAM Pass Gold+ Elite
  • WestJet Rewards Silver Elite
• Zone 6
  • SkyMiles Members in Main Cabin
• Zone 7
  •  Non-Sky-Miles Members in Main Cabin
• Zone 8
  • Basic Economy

Southwest

There are only a few extra things they didn’t mention in the video:

• Boarding positions A1-A15 are reserved for those paying Business Select fares. You can also pay from $30 to $80 for one of those spots 24 hours before the flight, depending on availability. Cardholders of the Southwest Priority Card can have their upgrade fee reimbursed four times a year.
• Southwest A-List Members are assigned a check-in position 36 hours in advance.
• For other passengers, your boarding position is based on when you check-in. If you want a better place in line, you have to pay for Early Bird.
• If an A-list member purchases or changes a ticket less than 36 hours before a flight and receives Boarding Group B or C, they can board the plane between the A and B boarding groups.
• Children aged six or younger and ONE guardian may board between the A and B boarding groups.

United

• Pre-boarding
  • Unaccompanied minors
  • Customers with disabilities
  • Active members of the military
  • Families traveling with children age 2 and younger
  • United Global Services members and Premier 1K members
• Group 1
  • Premier Platinum members
  • Premier Gold members
  • Star Alliance Gold members
  • Customers seated in premium cabins: United Polaris, United First and United Business
• Group 2
  • Premier Silver members
  • Star Alliance Silver members
  • Customers who have purchased Premier Access® or Priority Boarding
  • United Explorer, Club, and Presidential Plus Cardmembers
• Group 3
  • Economy Plus or United Economy travelers in window or exit row seats
• Group 4
  • Economy Plus or United Economy travelers in middle seats
• Group 5
  • Economy Plus or United Economy travelers in aisle seats
• Group 6
  • Basic Economy
  • Travelers without a boarding group on their boarding pass

Customers who purchased a Basic Economy ticket will be in the last boarding group, except for those who are Premier members, Chase Cardmembers of qualifying cards and Star Alliance Gold members, who will still receive their priority boarding.

Alaska

• Preboarding
  • Guests with disabilities who need help or a little more time to board
  • Families with children under the age of 2
  • Active Members of the military
• Priority Boarding
  • Guests seated in First Class
  • MVP Gold 100K
• Group A
  • Mileage Plan Million Miler, MVP Gold 75K and MVP Gold members
• Group B
  • Mileage Plan MVP members
  • Guests in Premium Class seats
• Group C
  • Eligible Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® and Business cardholders who book their flight with the Alaska card
•  Group D
  • Guests in Main seats located in the back half of the aircraft
• Group E
  • Guests in Main seats located in the front half of the aircraft
• Group F
  • Guests in Saver Seats

• Pre-Boarding
  • Customers with disabilities
• Mosaic and Mint customers
• Group A
  • Even More Space Customers
• Courtesy boarding
  • Active military personnel
  • Customers traveling with small children in car seats and strollers
• Group B
• Group C
• Group D
• Group E
• Group F
• All remaining customers

Spirit

I can’t find anything on the Spirit website about the boarding process, so this is the most up-to-date information I can find.

• Pre-Boarding
  • Passengers needing extra time to board
• First Group
  • Passengers who have paid for a carry-on bag
  • Passengers in the “Big Front Seat” section
• Second Group
  • Holders of the Spirit MasterCard
  • Free Spirit Silver or Gold members
  • Passengers who buy “Shortcut Boarding”
  • Active Military Members
• Third Group
  • Passengers sitting in rows at the rear of the plane
• Fourth Group
  • Passengers sitting in rows towards the front of the plane

Frontier

• Special Services
  • Anyone needing a wheelchair or other boarding assistance
  • Unaccompanied minors
• Zone 1 Boarding
  • Elite Gold Frontier Miles members or above
  • Purchase a bundle with a carry-on bag
• Board First
  • Purchase a carry-on bag
• Courtesy Boarding
  • Families traveling with small children under 3 and any other passenger requiring special assistance.
• Everyone else

Hawaiian

• Pre-boarding
  • Guests needing assistance
  • Unaccompanied minors
• Premium Cabin
  • First Class
  • Business Class
• Zone 1
  • Pualani Platinum Members
• Zone 2
  • Pualani Gold Members
  • Premier Club Members
• Early Boarding
  • Families with children under 2
  • Active duty military personnel
• Zone 3
  • Extra Comfort seats
• Zones 4 and 5
  • Main Cabin seats
• Zone 6
  • Main Cabin Basic seats

Pualani Platinum, Pualani Gold and Premier Club members may be joined in the boarding line by two guests.

If your boarding pass does not have a boarding group, you can board with zone 4.

Final Thoughts

So there it is: the order in which the U.S. airlines board their planes. That is, until one of the airlines changes its process next week. If one thing is sure, some airlines will decide that they have figured out the best way to load a plane the quickest.

In my experience, airlines that don’t charge excessive fees for bags, like Southwest, or the ones who charge for all bags, like Spirit and Frontier, have the quickest boarding times. If the airline is checking every carry-on bag at the gate to see if it’s the correct size (HI THERE, AMERICAN!!!!), it’s going to take a long time to get on the plane.

No matter what you do, please don’t stand up and block the path to the plane as soon as the boarding starts. We have a name for you, and it’s not a nice one.

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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary

Featured Image courtesy Grant Wickes