Purchase a Business Select fare or upgrade to Business Select: Customers who purchase a Business Select fare will get guaranteed A1-A15 boarding. If a Customer did not originally purchase a Business Select fare but wants guaranteed A1-A15 boarding, they can upgrade their flight to Business Select.

Getting into the coveted "Group A" boarding on Southwest Airlines—which allows you to pick the best seats and find overhead bin space first—can be achieved through a few different strategies. The most reliable way is to purchase a Business Select fare, which guarantees a position between A1 and A15. If you have already booked a different fare, you can purchase Upgraded Boarding starting 24 hours before your flight if positions A1–A15 are still available. Another popular option is EarlyBird Check-In, an add-on that automatically checks you in 36 hours before departure, significantly increasing your chances of an "A" spot. Finally, frequent flyers who earn A-List or A-List Preferred status are automatically assigned a boarding position 36 hours in advance. For everyone else, the key is the "24-hour T-minus" rule: manually checking in on the Southwest app at the exact second the 24-hour window opens is the best "free" way to secure a position, though even then, Group A is never a guarantee.