Is Southwest Airlines a good company to work for?

Southwest Airlines has an overall rating of 3.9 out of 5, based on over 5,836 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months. 72% of employees would recommend working at Southwest Airlines to a friend and 52% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Southwest Airlines have been left by employees working as Intern , First Officer and Internship .

Does Southwest Airlines pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Southwest Airlines employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.0 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Southwest Airlines. This rating has decreased by 1% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Southwest Airlines?

72% of Southwest Airlines employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Southwest Airlines 3.8 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.8 for culture and values and 3.8 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Southwest Airlines?

Flight Attendant (723) , Ramp Agent (528) , Customer Service Representative (187) , Customer Service Agent (167) , Operations Agent (110) , Intern (99) , Manager (70) , Customer Service Supervisor (56) , CSA - Customer Service Associate (54) , Ramp Supervisor (53) , Airline Pilot (50) , Captain (47) , Analyst (46) , Customer Service (43) , Senior Software Engineer (38)

What are the pros of working at Southwest Airlines according to real employee reviews?

"401k benefits are great and so are retirement options." ((in 767 reviews)); "The culture here is great and I don't fear for my job because they rule with LUV and not through fear." ((in 498 reviews)); "very friendly and great people to work with" ((in 371 reviews)); "Flight benefits are great if you're the kind of person who loves to travel with no guarantees." ((in 304 reviews)); "It is very fun and the pay is great." ((in 278 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Southwest Airlines according to real employee reviews?

"Poor Management too much headquarters oversight with little consideration for front line employees" ((in 169 reviews)); "The only cons I can think of are the long hours and weather conditions at times." ((in 98 reviews)); "Bad managers can be a bane." ((in 42 reviews)); "salaries are low and they try to sell travel/401k match to make up for it" ((in 40 reviews)); "Most of the supervisors have never taken calls in the Southwest call centers and therefore are unable to relate to the stressful calls." ((in 35 reviews))

What are employees saying about Southwest Airlines layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Southwest Airlines layoffs and their outlook for job security at Southwest Airlines in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Southwest Airlines locations?

Dallas , Denver , Chicago , Phoenix , Houston , Los Angeles , Atlanta , Baltimore , Oakland , Las Vegas , Orlando , Bwi Airport , San Antonio , Oklahoma City , Austin , Nashville , San Jose , San Diego , Fort Lauderdale , Saint Louis , New York , Tampa , Indianapolis , Sacramento , San Francisco , Kansas City , Albany , Boston , Washington , Minneapolis

Southwest Airlines reviews

3.9

72% would recommend to a friend

(5,210 total reviews)

Robert E. Jordan

50% approve of CEO

52% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.0

Diversity & inclusion

4.0

Compensation and benefits

3.8

Culture & values

3.8

Work/Life balance

3.8

Career opportunities

3.1

Senior management

Southwest Airlines has an employee rating of 3.9 out of 5 stars, based on 5,210 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Southwest Airlines employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Transportation & Logistics industry (3.5 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

5K reviews

2.0

Jan 11, 2016

Ramp Agent First 2 Months Review

Ramp agent

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Decent Pay, Amazing flight benefits during the two months took 3 personal trips on a whim day of decision kind of thing and never paid a dime. Great exercise outside all day. You will be sent to Dallas for a week for training they will give you a food allotment and hotel for your self they will sell it to you that southwest is a great company and when you leave you will really believe it.

Cons

-----MANDATORY OVERTIME------ For me this was a deal breaker. It sounds great at first like i get paid double time to work my normal job heck ya! So my first week after my initial training my schedule was Wednesday thru Sunday 1PM to 9PM with mon tue off it sounds straight forward and great but... They LOVE to extend you and they will do it everyday. If your off time was at 9PM thats when you make plans with your loved ones but then they will extend you 3.7 hours after your end time everyday. And they will tell you during the last 30 mins or less during your shift that you have to stay. And I mentioned that I had Mon and Tue off thats a lie you will be mandatory on your first day off of every week guaranteed no questions asked. They will tell you on you last shift before your days off that you will have to come in on your day off to help fill holes... So thats great but like I said above you will have to work an extra 3.7 hours on top of that shift because thats something you do on every shift. ------Management------- Management is poor at your location they let you know that your just a number they will remind you anytime your tired that there are thousands of applicants out there waiting for this job and they can fire you in a second and it wouldn't affect them at all. And a few minor things that I didnt know before i started -This is a union job you will have to pay union dues -Forced overtime is a killer on my paychecks so far I have had (49,55,43, and 51 hours of mandatory overtime. Great for money but its such a physical job be ready for the toll on your body -Seniority based company, you will start at the bottom of the roster there is about 200 employees at my location. And shifts, time off, and jobs are given out this way, the guy thats been there the longest gets to choose his job first than the second guy ect ect... so new hires will get last pick on everything for the first 10 years or so before your seniority starts kicking in.

1.0

May 21, 2022

Shiny on the outside, bleak on the inside

Senior business consultant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

I have worked at Southwest airlines for 5.5 years. I am considered a high performer and I have been shoulder tapped several times for new roles. I drank the kool aide when I first joined the company but please trust me when I say, Southwest is not a place to grow your career. 1.) Flight benefits 2.) Really great 401K Match 3.) Some really great people but overworked

Cons

1.) Southwest lacks diversity in leadership roles and actively overlook POC for roles when considering Senior Manager and above positions. 2.) Southwest is a place where you will have to spend 3+ years before you are promoted. Promotions are not based on hard work but rather who you know. 3.) Working hard and creating great work does not matter at Southwest. What matters is who you suck up to. That is the only thing that will get you promoted. 4.) The culture at SWA was really fun when I first joined 5 years ago. But since then, consultants have taken over the company and the company culture has changed for the worse. 5.) In past years, we use to be at the top of the "Best Places to Work in America" list. We've dropped a lot. Internal Employee satisfactions scores are ABYSMAL. 6.) For the past two years, most of us worked from home. WFH policies across the department are not all equal. 7.) There is no work life balance. During COVID, most of us were working 12 hours a day. 8.) Salaries are ridiculously low. On average, someone in my role at SWA makes about $115 to $130. That same role, people outside of SWA would make about $150 to $165. 9.) We have flight benefits but no PTO to even use them. 10.) It has become a revolving door at SWA. They only talk about who they are hiring but the company is bleeding heads and no one even mentions. Literally, I hear about 2 to 3 people have left the company on a weekly basis.

Southwest Airlines Response

4y

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is not new to Southwest Airlines, it’s embedded in our values. The goal of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Team is to ensure an inclusive workplace where everyone feels seen, heard, and can flourish. We do this by recognizing, championing and educating our Cohearts to value differences, respect one another, and have courageous conversations. If you have a concern under our Discrimination Policy, please contact the Employee Service Center to complete the Employee Relations Inquiry Form so we can ensure your concerns are properly addressed.

2.0

Mar 26, 2014

Don't believe the hype

Senior software engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good health benefits, great 401k matching, good flight benefits if you can use them. Salary is OK but below average.

Cons

Southwest Airlines is becoming Outsource Airlines, at least for the Technology area at headquarters. Leadership is poor and they are putting the final nails in the coffin of the SWA culture. They only pay lip service to supporting their employees. Perks have disappeared rapidly over the late couple years. They ask for feedback and when it is all negative, they inform you that they are telling you to do it and not asking (so why ask for feedback in the first place). They say they are moving to industry standards but only cherry pick the part of "standards" they want to enforce and ignore the other factors that go along with it that makes it work for other companies. SWA is fast becoming an industry follower and not a leader. The principals in the book about SWA, "Nuts!", is being thrown out the window and it's not for the better.

Viewing 13 - 15 of 5,210 Reviews

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