Are Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats Worth the Cost?

Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats are larger seats in the front of Spirit Airlines planes. They provide a 36″ pitch and 18.5″ width – a full 6″ of additional legroom compared to Spirit’s regular seats. But are Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats worth the cost?

One of our affordable luxury travel hacks is flying on discount airlines but buying the best possible seats. We’ve done this all over the world. On AirAsia in Asia. On RyanAir in Europe. And on Frontier and Spirit Airlines in the US.

And in our opinion Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats are definitely worth the cost!

Spirit Airlines in General

Spirit Airlines is an American ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) headquartered in Miramar, Florida. It is the seventh largest commercial airline in the United States.

Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the United States and in the Caribbean and Latin America. The airline operates bases at Atlantic City, Chicago O’Hare, Dallas Fort Worth, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, and Orlando.

Spirit Airlines Route Map
Spirit Airlines Route Map

And like all ultra low costs carriers, Spirit’s pricing structure is based on providing a cheap base fare and allowing customers pay for perks like checked bags, cabin bags, priority boarding and/or better seats.

There are two way to look at this – one positive and the other negative.

Positive: Spirit only makes you pay for the perks you want to use. 🙂

Negative: Spirit charges a low base fare but then has fees for everything! 🙁

Set Your Expectations Accordingly

No matter how you look at it, though, the general idea is that a ULCC takes away perks that are included on full-service airlines and then you buy those perks back one by one or in a bundle.

Also like ULCCs all over the world, Spirit has a reputation for poor customer service and cramming as many passengers onto an airplane as possible.

ULCCs can be frustrating because their bundle and a la carte approach to perks like seat assignments, carry on baggage and other things legacy carriers include in the ticket price makes it hard to comparison shop all-in flight prices. Then again, even legacy carriers have gone fee-crazy these days charging for bags, certain seats, etc.

But Spirit offers very cheap base prices, so even factoring in add-ons like Big Front Seats you can get a bargain flying on Spirit compared to United, Delta, American or even Southwest!

So despite the hassles we do end up flying on Spirit Big Front Seats as an affordable luxury travel hack. You just need to set your expectations pretty low and you won’t be disappointed!

Wondering how we find cheap coach and business class flights? Check out our Cheap Fare Guides:

How To Use Google Flights to Find Cheap Business Class Flights (And Cheap Economy Flights Too!)

Passive Ways to Find Cheap Business Class Flights

What are Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats?

Spirit Airlines is infamous for its industry-low 28-inch pitch on all its planes. That’s less legroom than any other US airline!

And Spirit’s seats are ‘pre-reclined’ which is a fancy way of saying that they have no recline ability at all. So much for the ‘recline or don’t recline’ debate: Spirit says NO RECLINING!

Regular Spirit seats also have tiny tray tables that really aren’t even big enough for a laptop.

This means Spirit’s seats are some of the least comfortable in North America. You’ll definitely want to stock up on travel comfort products and hacks for your flight!

So Spirit Big Front Seats turn the least comfortable budget airline experience into a very comfortable experience! You get 2-across wide seating with plenty of legroom and a normal-sized tray table.

Big Front Seats can be purchased for a charge during or after a booking, based on availability, at spirit.com.

spirit big front seat

Big Front Seats are the first 3 or 4 rows of seats on the airplane. So in addition to a bigger seat you also get to be the one of the first passengers off the plane.

One limitation to keep in mind: customers who require a seat belt extension may not occupy any seat equipped with an inflatable seat belt – and that includes many Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats.

So there are lots of advantages to Big Front Seats. Plus, if you buy a bundle you’ll also get baggage allowances and priority boarding for you and your BAE!

spirit big front seat boarding

The Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats Experience

The best way to understand what Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats are like is to think about having a domestic US airline first class seat on United, America or Delta that doesn’t recline and comes with none of the domestic first class service add-ons like having a meal or alcoholic drinks included.

Instead of the smallest 3-across seating in the US you get roomy 2-across seating with lots of legroom.

It’s a domestic first class seat without the first class service!

Spirit makes it clear very that all their planes are single-cabin planes. So don’t expect any special treatment or service when you buy a Spirit Big Front Seat. If you want food, you’ll have to buy it like everyone else on the plane. Same with coffee, soda or alcohol.

All you are buying is, well, a bigger seat in the front of the plane (a Big Front Seat…how’s that for accurate branding!?).

spirit upgrade seat
Spirit Big Front Seats are Pretty Big
spirit big front seat
Especially Compared to Regular Spirit Seats Which Have the Least Legroom of any US Carrier!
Spirit Upgrade Seat
Big Front Seats Allow you to Stretch Out
spirit big front seat legroom
Or Cross Your Legs
Spirit Upgrade Seat
Spirit Airlines Big Front Seat
spirit big front seat
The Glass Partition in Front of Row 1 Adds to the Spacious Feel of the Big Front Seats

Cost to Upgrade to Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats

The cost to upgrade to a Spirit Airlines Big Front Seat depends on what type of Spirit ticket you buy, whether you buy a Spirit ‘bundle’ and where/when you buy the upgrade.

So you won’t know exactly how much a Big Front Seat will cost until you try to buy it.

Generally speaking, though, if you buy Big Front Seats in advance it will cost you $12 to $150.

If you get on the plane with a regular seat assignment and realize that you don’t want to sit in the most uncomfortable airline seats in America you can check to see if there are any empty Big Front Seat at the front of the cabin. If so, you can ask a flight attendant to upgrade onboard. Depending on flight length it will cost you $25 to $175 which you’ll pay directly to the flight attendant.

Generally speaking, though, the best value is to buy Big Front Seats at time of booking or up to 24 hours before the flight.

Are Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats Worth the Cost?

Since every Big Front Seat sells for a different price depending on your ticket, bundle and where/when you buy the Big Front Seat it’s hard to provide a definitive answer about whether the price of a Big Front Seat is worth the cost.

Of course, the value of a Big Front Seat also depends on how long your flight is.

But in our opinion the answer is YES! A million times YES! Big Front Seats are definitely worth the cost.

The ability to move from one of the most uncomfortable airline seats in the US to what amounts to a domestic first class seat for tens of dollars is a deal we take every single time.

spirit big front seat
Look How Sad Those People Are In Regular Spirit Seats!

To us Big Front Seats are definitely worth the marginal cost!

It’s a lot of comfort for the money.

Bottom Line – Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats

Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats are a great affordable luxury travel hack. You get plenty of legroom for a comfortable flight – often for less than a cramped seat on a legacy carrier.

That’s value and comfort for the money!

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Are Spirit Airlines Big Front Seats Worth the Cost

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