US Premium Economy Compared
Three US carriers sell a true premium economy cabin on their widebodies: Delta Premium Select, United Premium Plus, and American Premium Economy. They're a real step up from extra-legroom economy, with wider seats, more recline, and a separate cabin. But the seat you pick inside that cabin still matters, and the cabins aren't identical. Here they are rated seat by seat from the live database, across 524 premium economy seats. (This is the widebody product, not narrowbody Comfort+/Economy Plus, which is covered in the extra-legroom guide.)
American Airlines: Premium Economy
| Aircraft | Seats | Legroom | Avg | Best | Avoid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A321XLR (Flagship Suite) | 12 | 37" | 7.7 | 12D | 11C 6/10 |
| Boeing 777-200ER (777-223ER) | 24 | 38" | 6.7 | 14A | 13J 5/10 |
| Boeing 787-9 (Flagship Suite) | 32 | 38" | 6 | 16A | 15E 4/10 |
| Boeing 787-8 | 28 | 38" | 4.6 | 9A | 8E |
| Boeing 787-9 | 21 | 38" | 4.4 | 10L 6/10 | 9E |
| Boeing 777-300ER (Flagship) | 28 | 38" | 3 | 19H 5/10 | 16L |
Delta Air Lines: Premium Select
| Aircraft | Seats | Legroom | Avg | Best | Avoid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A330-200 (Standard (Zodiac Cirrus D1)) | 21 | 38" | 6.1 | 20A | 22D 5/10 |
| Airbus A350-900 (4-Class International) | 48 | 38" | 5 | 23A | 20E |
| Airbus A350-900 (Premium Heavy International (35H)) | 40 | 38" | 4.6 | 24J 6/10 | 20E |
| Airbus A330-900neo (Delta One Suites) | 28 | 38" | 4.4 | 23A | 20D |
| Boeing 767-300ER (76K) | 18 | 36" | 4.3 | 21A 6/10 | 22E |
| Boeing 767-400ER | 20 | 38" | 4 | 23C | 22F |
Frontier Airlines: Premium Economy
| Aircraft | Seats | Legroom | Avg | Best | Avoid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A321-271NX (A321neo ACF) | 26 | 33" | 5.7 | 18F | 3B 4/10 |
Spirit Airlines: Premium Economy
| Aircraft | Seats | Legroom | Avg | Best | Avoid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A321-271NX (IATA: 32Q) | 42 | 32" | 4.9 | 5A 6/10 | 4E |
United Airlines: Premium Plus
| Aircraft | Seats | Legroom | Avg | Best | Avoid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 777-300ER (Polaris) | 24 | 38" | 6.7 | 20A | 21F 5/10 |
| Boeing 767-300ER (76L) | 22 | 38" | 5.8 | 20A | 23K 4/10 |
| Boeing 787-10 | 21 | 38" | 5.8 | 21J | 20E 4/10 |
| Boeing 787-9 (Polaris) | 21 | 38" | 5.2 | 21A | 20F |
| Boeing 767-300ER (Polaris) | 24 | 38" | 4.8 | 22A 6/10 | 23F 4/10 |
| Boeing 777-200ER (Polaris International) | 24 | 38" | 4.3 | 21A 6/10 | 20K |
Picking a seat inside premium economy
The cabin is small, usually three to five rows, so the differences come down to the bulkhead row, the last row, and window alignment. The bulkhead (first row) gets extra legroom but loses underseat storage. The last row backs onto economy or a galley. Window alignment varies by aircraft, which is why some "window" seats rate lower than others in the same cabin.
Across carriers the products are close on paper. The rating differences above come from cabin position and per-seat quirks, not the product tier itself, so the best move is to pick the highest-rated seat in whichever cabin your route puts you in rather than choosing the airline on the product name alone.
Every cabin above is rated seat by seat from the live database. Tap an aircraft for the full scored map. How we rate seats →