Wheelchairs and mobility devices
Southwest's own guidance, in plain English. Confirm current details at southwest.com.
Southwest does not charge to check a wheelchair or other mobility aid. That's the headline, and it's worth stating plainly since some airlines treat oversized mobility equipment as just another checked item with a fee attached. Southwest doesn't.
Southwest publishes hard limits: the cargo-door opening measures 48 inches wide by 35 inches high, and a device cannot exceed 500 pounds. Southwest also states that a device taller than 34 inches or wider-and-deeper than 45 inches, even with wheels or other parts removed, cannot be accepted. If your chair is on the larger or heavier end, some power chairs with reinforced frames or large battery packs are, check the actual dimensions and weight against these numbers before you book, not after.
Requesting wheelchair assistance in advance, either through southwest.com or by calling Southwest, gives ground staff time to have the right equipment ready. If you'd rather we set the request on your reservation and confirm it landed, tell us your device's size and weight and your route.
This is a Southwest / US-disability-rules provision that can change, confirm the current process and any equipment limits at southwest.com.
Service dogs, and why an ESA, therapy animal, or animal-in-training doesn't qualify
One category, defined narrowly, with one required federal form.
Southwest accepts trained service dogs only. No carrier is required, a service dog travels with you, leashed or tethered and under your control for the entire trip. Emotional-support animals, therapy animals, and animals still in training are not accepted as service animals on Southwest. If your animal falls into one of those categories rather than being a fully trained service dog, it can only travel under Southwest's ordinary pet policy, a pet carrier and Southwest's standard pet fees apply, the same as any other pet.
The paperwork is specific and worth getting right the first time: Southwest requires the DOT Service Animal Air Transportation Form, and it must be dated on or after the date you purchased your ticket, a form dated earlier, or filled out before you booked, doesn't satisfy the requirement. Present it at the counter or gate. There's no carrier requirement and no advance-notice window published beyond having the form ready, but don't wait until you're at the airport to fill it out for the first time; complete it as soon as you book and keep a copy on your phone or printed.
Service-animal policy carries real rules that vary and change; Southwest sets and updates them. Always confirm current requirements at southwest.com.
Oxygen and medical devices
Southwest's published rule covers portable concentrators specifically, and stays quiet on supplied oxygen, which is exactly where you should call rather than assume.
A portable oxygen concentrator is allowed onboard if it's FAA-approved and you're carrying battery power covering at least 150% of your total scheduled flight time, enough to cover the flight itself plus a realistic delay margin, not just the flight time on paper. Federal rule also requires that the POC user sit in a window seat, so the device and its cord don't block the aisle or another passenger's egress. Request your window seat when you book rather than hoping one's available at check-in.
Southwest's published guidance addresses portable oxygen concentrators specifically. It does not state whether Southwest can carry a passenger who needs a supply of oxygen, a tank or airline-provided oxygen rather than your own POC. We're not going to guess at that gap, and neither should you: if a supplied oxygen need is part of your situation, confirm it directly with Southwest, or call us and we'll find out before you book, not after.
Medical-device and oxygen rules are set by Southwest and by federal regulators, and can change; confirm your exact situation at southwest.com before you book, and call us if you're not sure which category applies to you.
Flying while pregnant
Southwest's guidance is a recommendation tied to a specific week, not a hard cutoff enforced with paperwork.
Southwest advises checking with your physician before flying, and recommends against air travel from the 38th week of pregnancy onward. That's guidance rather than a hard boarding cutoff backed by a required document. Southwest does not publish a formal doctor's-note requirement the way some airlines do for late-term pregnancy. A pregnant passenger may also be asked not to sit in an exit row, since exit-row seating requires being able to perform specific physical tasks, opening a heavy door, assisting other passengers, in an emergency.
"Not published" doesn't mean "guaranteed unchanged." If you're approaching the 38th week or beyond, talk to your physician about whether flying at all is advisable for your specific situation, and confirm with Southwest directly close to your travel date, pregnancy-travel guidance is exactly the kind of policy airlines revisit.
This is Southwest's own published guidance, not a DOT or FAA rule, and it can change. Always confirm your exact week and situation with Southwest and your own physician before you book, we can help you make the call, but only Southwest and your doctor can clear you to fly.
Why a call beats clicking a box
Accessibility, oxygen and pregnancy questions are where a missed detail or an unpublished gap turns into a problem at the counter.
A wheelchair that's a few inches over the cargo-door limit, a DOT form dated before the ticket was purchased, a POC battery that doesn't actually cover 150% once a delay is added, or a supplied-oxygen need that Southwest's page simply doesn't address, these are the details that turn into a refusal at the gate, not a phone call the week before. We check your device's dimensions against Southwest's published limits, confirm your service-dog form is dated correctly, walk through whether your oxygen situation is one Southwest's published policy actually covers, and flag anything unstated so you're calling Southwest to confirm it, not guessing at the counter.
Tell us your situation and your route, and we'll build the request around it instead of leaving it to chance at the airport, for a service fee, quoted before you're charged.
Before you fly, the checklist
A few minutes now can prevent a denied boarding later.
- Wheelchair request made in advance through southwest.com or by phone, don't rely on arranging it at the airport
- DOT Service Animal form completed and dated on or after your purchase date, printed or saved and ready to present
- Mobility device measured against the 48 in x 35 in cargo-door opening and 500 pounds, not assumed to fit
- POC battery confirmed at 150%+ of flight time, window seat requested
- Need a supplied oxygen tank, or flying near the 38th week? Confirm directly with Southwest before you book, don't assume
If you need a supplied oxygen tank rather than your own POC, call before you book, not after. Southwest's published policy simply doesn't say whether it can accommodate that need, and finding out after paying for a ticket is the worst version of this conversation. Everything else on this page, the service-dog form, the wheelchair size limits, the pregnancy timing, is workable with the right lead time. Ask us first.
Frequently asked
Does Southwest accept emotional-support animals?+
What paperwork do I need for a service dog on Southwest?+
Is wheelchair assistance free on Southwest?+
Can I bring my own oxygen concentrator on Southwest?+
Can I fly on Southwest while pregnant?+
Contact options
Reach Southwest directly, or let us add the request and confirm it's set.
Contact Southwest directly
The airline's own official channels, free.
These are Southwest's own channels; confirm current disability, device and pregnancy-travel rules at southwest.com.
More Southwest Airlines help
Related guides.