9 Disadvantages Of Taking The Emergency Exit Row Seats You Might Not Know About

In a world of ever-shrinking airplane leg room, some savvy travelers say they've stumbled onto a secret hack: the emergency exit row. Depending on the airline and flight, these seats can come with between 4 and 6 inches of additional leg room — a particularly welcome change for the taller passengers among us. It's not exactly business class, but some passengers might consider it the "discount version." It's also a great way to ensure you don't spend your flight seated next to a crying baby since children and passengers caring for kids aren't allowed in the emergency exit rows, according to FAA regulations. But before booking that seat, know that it could come with a few less obvious disadvantages.

Even if you don't end up having to think on your feet in the event of an actual emergency, many experienced passengers say there are plenty of reasons you might want to think twice about booking your emergency row seat. Citing their itemized list of exit row complaints on the FlyerTalk forums, one frustrated flyer wrote, "Exit rows aren't Nirvana to everyone. The worst seat I ever had was on a US 757 flying CLT-LAX one night. Horrid. Absolutely horrid."

If you're a tall person or you just love the idea of having more leg room, the emergency row might still be worth the extra cost. Not every airplane or exit row will have the same pros and cons, so it's always best to research your chosen airline before booking if you're considering shelling out for an exit row seat. But if you're on the fence, here's a breakdown of the biggest emergency exit row disadvantages.

Many passengers book the exit row only to find out their seat doesn't recline. Thanks to an FAA regulation that restricts anything from blocking the exit, the first row of the two forward rows in front of an emergency exit is one of the worst rows on the plane. As one flight attendant explained on r/LifeProTips, it's because a reclined seat here might otherwise interfere with an emergency evacuation.

Writing in the Facebook group Dull Men's Club, one poster confessed finding amusement in these exit row passengers' plights. "I always try to guess how long it takes the people sitting in front of the exit row to realize their seat does not recline," they wrote. Most passengers, they mused, take between 12 and 45 seconds before finally throwing in the towel, or, in some cases, complaining to the flight attendant about it. "There's the rare human that fights with the seat button for 2 or 3 minutes," they added. "This really gets me giggling."

It's much less fun to be the unlucky passenger in those seats who has to learn the hard way mid-flight. Many passengers reported feeling claustrophobic. When one Reddit user seemed to recall how their seat had felt a bit pitched forward throughout the flight, another pointed out that the new headrests on some flights seem to do just that. Writing on the same subreddit, another exit row passenger recalled the time their wife booked a seven-hour flight in these seats. "Freaking nightmare," they recalled. To make sure you've got reclining exit row seats, be sure to check the seat specs on your flight before booking.

There are so many emergency exit row seats on each flight, and you may get lucky and find an emergency room seat in the galley. But then again, there's a good chance you could end up seated within whiffing distance of the lavatory. For travelers who detest having to step out of their row and wait in line for the restroom, this might not seem like the worst idea.

But whenever those "fasten seatbelts" lights go off, the space around this exit row tends to get pretty crowded. You're even likely to have folks encroaching on the space around your seat as they line up for the restroom. "People tend to congregate right in front of you while waiting for the bathroom, stretch their legs, etc.," shared one Reddit user on r/AmericanAirlines. And one Quora user reported that all the extra legroom they had signed up for was quickly taken over by folks waiting for a bathroom break. "Anytime I was in any danger of dropping off to sleep," they reported, "someone would dunt my elbow then do a dance on my feet."

Others noted that the smell from the restroom can absolutely escape into the exit row, especially when the doors don't quite close all the way. One Delta Airlines flyer on Reddit recalled being glad they were wearing a mask at the time. And if that wasn't bad enough, there's also the noise of that door opening and closing as passengers file in and out. "The plastic door banging against the side wall was an endless chorus," one passenger wrote on r/LifeProTips. To ensure this doesn't happen to you, check ahead on the seating chart before booking your exit row seat.

Imagine sitting without your own armrest for a long flight with nothing but the wall to lean on. Once again, while this isn't the case with every exit row seat, it can be on some airlines — as was the case for the frustrated American Airlines customer who complained on Reddit, "Why ... don't they say the exit row window seat doesn't get an armrest lol. First and last time picking an exit row."

Without doing your pre-booking research, you might not learn if you'll get an armrest until you end up on the flight. Writing on the Facebook group American Airlines AAdvantage Members, one frustrated flier expressed surprise at the absent armrest in exit row seat 14F on an Airbus A319. "It does add some room not to have the arm rest," they conceded. Other passengers in these seats reported that, while it is possible to get comfortable, it can feel a bit weird. Some exit row seats might offer a little bit of armrest, but it's not quite the full armrest experience. "I'm on a 737 and there's about a 1/4 of an arm rest attached to the door. Its like a little nub lol," shared one Reddit user. Other fliers on Reddit found the "nub" version even more irritating, with one passenger remarking that it made comfortably leaning against the door an impossibility.

If a lack of armrest is a deal-breaker for you, avoid booking those seats unless you know for sure. Since standard seat specifications don't necessarily tell if there's an armrest on each airline seat, your best bet is to ask around in frequent fliers' message boards and Facebook groups, or look for images of the plane interior you'll be flying on. It's not always a sure thing, though.

If you're on a short flight or your phone is enough to keep you entertained for the ride, storing your carry-on bag in the overhead bin isn't typically a big deal. But for some passengers, the ability to access certain items mid-flight can be a major factor in their comfort or even a health issue — just another reason they may want to avoid booking certain exit row seats.

Since the FAA doesn't explicitly ban underseat storage, as long as the exits are not obstructed in some way, policies on U.S. domestic airlines tend to vary. However, many other countries have a strict ban on the practice, meaning there's a good chance you won't be able to stash your bag under the seat when flying internationally. For travelers who haven't spent much time outside of the U.S., this can come as something of a shock, with many fliers expressing surprise at this policy after flying abroad in places like the European Union or India. Even more frustrating, you may not be told until after the overhead compartments are full when the flight attendant is checking the rows. While some will allow items to be stashed underseat during the flight (after takeoff and before landing), they still have to be stowed overhead when first boarding.

Some frequent fliers say the extra room is hardly worth the inconvenience of having to wait for an hour only to quickly rummage through one's bag for what they need. "Not being able to access your pack with electronics, say, bose headphones in a jiffy is more of a pain especially when some of these planes have a tiny overhead compartment that's marked for crew use," one user said on r/UnitedAirlines.

If you're planning to sit in the emergency exit row, you might want to wear a cardigan or a sweater to the airport. Many fliers say it's one of the coldest seats on most flights. That's because emergency doors don't have the same kind of insulation the rest of the plane does, making exit row seats one of the coldest seats on a plane. As warm and toasty as it might feel in some parts of the cabin, the air just outside can easily be around −65 degrees Fahrenheit (−55 degrees Celsius). While the door mitigates some of it, some of the frosty air can seep in through, making the flight miserable for some passengers.

Complaining on r/Delta, one passenger recalled getting moved to the exit row on a 767-300 after an unexpected flight change. While they appreciated the extra leg room, they thought the extreme cold made their five-hour flight practically unbearable. "I am currently sitting in 21A wearing pants, a flannel long sleeve shirt, a scarf, a long jacket, two delta blankets, and my husband's jacket. This seat is freeeeeeezing...Bring your parka!"

Commenting on a Facebook post by the travel company Going, one woman recalled suffering through a nine-hour overnight flight next to a door so cold she couldn't even touch it. Despite the flight attendant loading her up with every spare blanket on the flight, the commenter couldn't get comfortable. "Something wasn't right with the seal and the door was FREEZING! I mean teeth chattering, shaking with cold!" she wrote. The bottom line? If you're taking an overnight flight, the emergency row probably isn't your best bet for a comfortable trip.

If you're concerned about seat space as well as leg room, you may find that some emergency doors can encroach on your personal bubble. Depending on where you're seated, the space already tends to be tighter than standard airline seats to accommodate the side tray table (since there's no seat in front to store these in). Fliers seated near the door will also likely find that it bulges into their seat space just enough to make any hope of naps impossible.

The door can even push into that coveted leg space as well, rendering any gains you may have earned completely moot. As one Quora user reported, "On some exit rows with full-size exit doors, the exit door may protrude into the window seat's legroom (you'll have to sit with your legs slanted towards the aisle)."

And resting your feet on it simply isn't an option. On some flights, fliers say this bulge can go all the way to the floor while curving into passengers' space, making it difficult to rest one's feet upon it. Since there's no way to know what you're getting into when you're booking, it might be best to avoid the seat next to the exit row wall altogether.

If you're the type of flier who prefers to watch the Netflix movie saved on your phone, the placement of your monitor might not be much of an issue for you. But some passengers don't love the emergency exit row view screens.

Passengers seated in emergency row seats behind the bulkhead may find their monitors mounted directly to the bulkhead. But for most emergency exit seat passengers, their monitors can be found inside of the armrest on their seat, where they can be accessed by flipping a latch or pushing a button. The arm attached to the monitor rotates upward, where the screen can then be swiveled into the passenger's field of vision for viewing. "The only issue is that this cannot be, by FAA regulations, up. It has to be stowed for takeoff and landing," YouTuber CaptainZTravels explained. 

But that's not the only complaint some passengers have about emergency row view screens. Many fliers observed that the space required for stowing the screen can make the seats feel more cramped. Passengers also observed that these screens block access to one side of the seat when in use. Worse, the screen's natural angle makes it difficult to shift around and get comfortable while watching. "If it's a long haul, get ready for your neck to be crooked as the screens are positioned very awkwardly," one Redditor cautioned.

If you're planning to fly with a pet in your carry-on, hopefully you've done your research. It's important to follow both your airline's guidelines and TSA requirements for pet screening regardless of where you sit. Sadly, whether you're traveling with a pet or a service animal, you'll need to pass on booking emergency exit-adjacent seats since animals aren't allowed in these rows.

Even if you avoid booking these seats, there's a slim chance you could be reassigned to them unknowingly. The United States government journal Federal Register emphasizes maintaining flexibility in such a case, advising, "When an aircraft is changed at the last minute, seating may be reassigned automatically. Automatic systems generally do not recognize special needs, and may make inappropriate seat assignments." And passengers have reported seeing pet owners in the exit row seats, like the United Airlines passenger who somehow made it into the emergency row with a small dog in a carrier.

Whether pet or service animal, any non-human mammal in the emergency row is a potential obstacle, and it's hard to imagine they wouldn't make it difficult to perform your duties as an exit row passenger. If you do somehow end up in an emergency exit row seat with a furry companion, the onus is on you to bring this to the flight attendant's attention for everyone's safety. And, as one Reddit user wrote, "I'm pretty sure a dog cannot assist in the event of an emergency. They don't have opposable thumbs."

This should probably go without saying, but if you're booking an emergency row seat, you'd better be prepared to use it. As straightforward as that might seem, even if you'd like to think you can handle helping others evacuate in an emergency, there's always the chance that the pressure could prove too much for you.

Some passengers can find the pressure anxiety-inducing, something that is incompatible with flying in this row for obvious safety reasons. It's a job meant to save lives, and it should be taken every bit as seriously. If you're sitting in an emergency row, pay careful attention to the flight attendant's instructions and be sure to study the emergency instructions card in case you should need it. And don't be afraid to change your mind at the last minute. Writing on r/FlightAttendants, one airline worker explained they've got no shortage of folks who are eager to take the free upgrade.

If you know you don't plan to help and choose to sit in an exit row anyway, or so much as joke about not helping, there could be real consequences for violating FAA regulations. You could even end up like the Frontier Airlines passenger who found herself kicked off a flight and escorted away by police after joking that she had no plans to help with evacuation. As The Independent reported, moments before her May 2024 arrest was captured in viral TikTok video recorded by travel blogger Travel With Tia, the passenger was overheard saying, "Oh, I'm not going to save anybody. If something happens, I'm going to save myself." Unsurprisingly, she missed her flight.