Southwest Airlines Animal Policy: Pets, Fees, Carriers, and Service Dogs

Southwest Airlines Animal Policy: Pets, Fees, Carriers, and Service Dogs

As of August 2026, the Southwest Airlines animal policy is Southwest Airlines’ published rules for animals on its flights: small vaccinated cats and dogs may fly in-cabin for a Pet Fare ($125 mainland / $35 Hawaii interisland), while trained service dogs follow U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) rules. Emotional support animals are not service animals. Pets need an under-seat carrier and are barred from cargo, international itineraries, and continental U.S.–Hawaii flights, per Southwest Airlines.

This guide answers the informational search for Southwest Airlines animal policy with fees, carrier limits, destination bans, service-dog paperwork, and day-of-travel steps drawn from primary Southwest and federal sources. It also separates airline pet rules from Animal Passport’s digital livestock identity product, which is not an airline ticket, EU pet passport, or government travel document.

What the Southwest Airlines animal policy covers

The Southwest Airlines animal policy is the airline’s combined framework for (1) in-cabin pets, (2) trained service dogs under the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) regulations administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation, and (3) destination and cargo restrictions in Southwest’s Contract of Carriage. As of August 2026, Southwest Airlines states on its Pet Policy Help Center page that it welcomes small, vaccinated domestic cats and dogs in an appropriate pet carrier in the cabin on domestic flights; pets must be at least eight weeks old; no pets are transported in the cargo compartment; and Unaccompanied Minors cannot travel with a pet.

Southwest Airlines’ Contract of Carriage (passenger) restates those cabin-pet rules and adds operational limits: one pet carrier per passenger; up to two animals of the same species per carrier; a right to limit pet carriers to six per flight on a first-come, first-served basis; no pets on international itineraries; and no pets on itineraries between the continental United States and Hawaii.

Pet fare and optional charges (2026)

Southwest Airlines lists Pet Fare on its Optional Travel Charges page. As of August 2026, the one-way carry-on pet charge is $125 per pet carrier on U.S. mainland routes and $35 per pet carrier between Hawaiian Islands, according to Southwest Airlines’ Optional Travel Charges page. Pricing is subject to change at any time, Southwest Airlines states on both that page and its Pet Policy Help Center.

The Pet Fare must be paid at the Southwest ticket counter with accepted credit cards, and if you cancel your reservation the Pet Fare is refundable, according to Southwest Airlines’ Pet Policy Help Center and Contract of Carriage (2026). Southwest Airlines also lists a pet carrier sold at the ticket counter for $58 per carrier on the same Optional Travel Charges page—that purchase is separate from the Pet Fare.

Claim → evidence: A mainland round-trip with one pet carrier costs $250 in Pet Fare alone ($125 each way), per Southwest Airlines Optional Travel Charges as of August 2026—before your passenger ticket and any destination paperwork.

Eligible animals, age, and species limits

Under Southwest Airlines’ published pet rules, only small, vaccinated domestic cats and dogs qualify as cabin pets. The minimum age is eight weeks, per Southwest Airlines Help Center (2026) and the Contract of Carriage. No other pet species appear in Southwest’s cabin pet acceptance language.

Southwest Airlines’ additional pet guidance notes that air travel can be stressful and that animals with heart disease, anxiety disorders, or brachycephalic airways are more susceptible to complications during flight. Southwest Airlines says you and your veterinarian are best suited to determine whether your pet can travel safely—this article does not provide veterinary advice.

Carrier rules and size limits

Each ticketed customer may bring one pet carrier, and each carrier may hold up to two small cats or dogs of the same species, according to Southwest Airlines’ Pet Policy Help Center (2026). Pets—including head and tail—must remain inside the carrier at all times in the gate area, during boarding and deplaning, and throughout the flight. Carriers must be stowed under the seat while onboard.

Southwest Airlines’ approved pet carrier page requires carriers that are specifically designed as pet carriers, leak-proof, and well ventilated. Official maximum dimensions listed there as of August 2026 are:

• Southwest Airlines Pet Carrier: 15" (L) × 10" (W) × 10" (H)
• Other pet carriers: maximum 18" (L) × 10.5" (W) × 10" (H)

The cat or dog must be completely inside the carrier and able to stand up and move around with ease. Southwest Airlines recommends soft-sided carriers because under-seat space varies by seat type and location, and space may be more limited in aisle seats. Passengers traveling with a pet may not occupy an exit row seat or a seat with no forward under-seat stowage, per Southwest Airlines’ Contract of Carriage.

Pet carriers count as either a personal item or a carry-on item. You may board with a pet carrier plus a personal item, or a pet carrier plus a regular-size carry-on bag, according to Southwest Airlines’ airport pet expectations and approved carrier pages.

How to book a pet on Southwest

1. Confirm your itinerary is eligible (domestic cabin travel; not continental U.S.–Hawaii; not international).
2. Book your passenger ticket through Southwest Airlines channels.
3. Call Southwest Airlines to reserve pet space—pet reservations can only be booked by calling Southwest, according to the Contract of Carriage. Space is limited; Southwest Airlines recommends reserving in advance. Southwest Airlines’ Contract of Carriage lists reservations telephone contact at 1 (800) 435-9792 (1-800-I-FLY-SWA).
4. On travel day, check the pet in at the airport ticket counter and pay the Pet Fare before going to the gate, per the Contract of Carriage.

Southwest Airlines reserves the right to limit pet carriers to six per flight and accepts pets first-come, first-served, according to its Contract of Carriage.

Airport day-of-travel steps

According to Southwest Airlines’ airport expectations article for pets:

• Pay the Pet Fare at the ticket counter with accepted credit cards.
• At security, hold your pet and walk through the screening device while the carrier is X-rayed; carriers are subject to search.
• Keep the pet secured in the carrier at all times in the gate area, during boarding and deplaning, and for the entire flight.
• Board with your assigned boarding group.
• Pet relief areas are available at locations Southwest serves; Southwest Airlines will not hold a flight for a relief-area visit.

Disruptive behavior may lead to denied boarding. Examples Southwest Airlines lists include scratching, excessive whining or barking; growling, biting, jumping, or lunging; and urinating or defecating in the cabin or gate area.

Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and international restrictions

Destination rules are a frequent failure point for travelers searching Southwest Airlines animal policy. Southwest Airlines’ destination pet page states:

• Pets are not allowed on flights to or from Hawaii.
• Pets are accepted on flights between Hawaiian Islands.
• Pets are not allowed on international flights or any itinerary that includes an international flight.
• Customers traveling to Puerto Rico may face specific additional requirements.

Southwest Airlines’ Contract of Carriage separately confirms that no pets are accepted on itineraries between the continental United States and Hawaii, and that no pets are accepted on international itineraries. Always re-check Southwest Airlines’ destination pages before you book, because state and territory animal-entry rules can change independently of airline cabin policy.

Pets vs. trained service dogs vs. emotional support animals

Category	What Southwest accepts	Fee / paperwork	Primary source (as of August 2026 framing)
Cabin pet (cat or dog)	Small vaccinated domestic cats/dogs, 8+ weeks, under-seat carrier	Pet Fare ($125 mainland / $35 interisland Hawaii); phone reservation; ticket-counter payment	Southwest Pet Policy & Optional Travel Charges
Trained service dog	Dogs individually trained to perform tasks for a qualified individual with a disability; dogs only	No pet fare for qualifying service dogs; DOT Service Animal Air Transportation Form required	Southwest service-dog Help Center; Contract of Carriage citing 14 CFR § 382
Emotional support / therapy / ESA	Not accepted as service animals; may travel only if they qualify under the pet program	If eligible as pets, Pet Fare and carrier rules apply	Southwest Jan. 25, 2021 announcement; DOT final rule (Dec. 10, 2020)

Southwest Airlines’ service-dog Help Center states that it welcomes fully trained service dogs individually trained to perform tasks or work for a qualified individual with a disability, and that dogs are the only trained service animals it accepts. Service animals in training, emotional support animals, and therapy animals may qualify to travel as pets under the pet policy if they meet pet rules.

Documentation: travelers must present a completed digital or printed U.S. Department of Transportation Service Animal Air Transportation Form at the ticket counter or gate on the day of travel. The form must be dated on or after the date the ticket was purchased. A vest, harness, ID card, or registration certificate is not accepted in place of the form, according to Southwest Airlines (2026).

At the federal level, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s final rule “Traveling by Air with Service Animals,” published in the Federal Register on December 10, 2020, defines a service animal as a dog, regardless of breed or type, that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability, and allows airlines to treat emotional support animals as pets rather than service animals. Southwest Airlines announced on January 25, 2021, that effective March 1, 2021, it would accept only trained service dogs and would no longer transport emotional support animals as such—consistent with that DOT rule.

Onboard, a trained service dog must be harnessed, leashed, or otherwise tethered; must sit at the passenger’s feet or in the lap if no larger than a child under age two; and may not block exits, occupy a seat, or encroach on a neighboring seat, according to Southwest Airlines. Exit-row seating is not allowed for passengers with service dogs. Southwest Airlines’ Contract of Carriage cites 14 CFR § 382.72–§ 382.80 and states it accepts a maximum of two trained service animals per qualified individual with a disability.

What Southwest does not offer under its animal policy

• No cargo or checked-pet transport for cabin pets (Contract of Carriage).
• No pets for Unaccompanied Minors (Help Center).
• No Rapid Rewards points for pets (Southwest additional pet information).
• No oxygen or first-aid procedures for pets that become ill in flight; in an emergency, an oxygen mask will not be available for the pet; Southwest assumes no liability for the health or well-being of carry-on pets (Contract of Carriage).

Cremated pet remains may be carried onboard as a carry-on item, must be screened at security, and cannot be accepted as checked baggage, according to Southwest Airlines’ additional pet information page.

Animal Passport vs. airline and official pet travel documents

Searchers sometimes confuse airline animal policies with government pet travel schemes or digital ID products. Animal Passport (publisher of this guide) is a digital animal and livestock passport that uses muzzle biometrics—a nose print unique like a fingerprint—captured by phone. The record can bind owner, breed, estimated age, body condition, and vaccination history; age can be estimated from a dental photograph with a confidence score; and body condition is scored 1–5 from a side-profile photo. The product was used in livestock flood rescue in Pakistan in August 2025 so farmers could reclaim animals when paper tags washed away.

Animal Passport is not a Southwest boarding credential, not an EU pet passport under the PETS scheme, and not a government-issued travel document unless an official authority separately says so. Airline acceptance of animals is governed by carriers such as Southwest Airlines and by authorities such as DOT under the ACAA—not by a private biometric livestock ID app. For more livestock-identity reporting, see Animal Passport blogs.

Practical checklist before you fly Southwest with an animal

1. Verify species (cat/dog only for pets), age (8+ weeks), and vaccination status with your veterinarian.
2. Measure your carrier against Southwest Airlines’ published maxima (18" × 10.5" × 10" for non-branded carriers).
3. Call Southwest Airlines early—six carriers per flight is the published cap.
4. Confirm destination eligibility (no continental U.S.–Hawaii pets; no international pets).
5. Budget Pet Fare ($125 or $35 each way per carrier) paid at the counter.
6. If flying with a trained service dog, complete the DOT Service Animal Air Transportation Form after booking.
7. Plan security handling (hold pet; X-ray carrier) and locate pet relief areas without expecting a flight hold.

Last updated August 2026 by Animal Passport editorial, based on Southwest Airlines Help Center pages, Southwest Airlines Optional Travel Charges, Southwest Airlines Contract of Carriage, Southwest Airlines’ January 25, 2021 service-animal announcement, and the U.S. Department of Transportation final rule published December 10, 2020. Fees and rules change—confirm on Southwest.com before travel.