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

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Southwest Airlines

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

1.0

Dec 27, 2017

Sadly, not what they used to be.

Flight attendant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great benefits. Profit sharing, medical, etc. No age discrimination. We had people in their twenties through sixties in our class. Your own room during training.

Cons

Horrible politics and inconsistent scoring on proficiencies, as some people that failed them moved on in the process. Many instructors do not practice “The Golden Rule” (even though it was hammered into our heads on a daily basis). A few of the instructors failed at many aspects of “The Southwest Way”. I approached management about these concerns. They assured me this was not acceptable and would follow up with me. That never happened.

2.0

May 9, 2017

Shifts Make No Sense

Anonymous

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Perks: Flying/Travel, benefits, overtime opportunities, such as regular overtime, double time, etc.

Cons

Shifts are wack. Example go in for shift from afternoon to late night. Get mandatory overtime from late night to mid morning. Then told to come back mid afternoon for regular shift, which will lead to another "mandatory" overtime shift.

Southwest Airlines Response

We appreciate your feedback and will truly take it to heart. We recognize that working in the airport operations is certainly hard work and may not be for everyone. Thank you for being a Southwest Warrior and know that your hard work does not go unnoticed!

5.0

Nov 20, 2015

Good company

Flight attendant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

This company has treated me very well. compensation and work rules are among the best in the industry. I have been able to travel the world and I have met great people here.

Cons

Many of the employees are entitled and do not realize how good we have it. Sometimes I fear excessive arrogance will be our downfall. We think the Southwest way is ALWAYS the best way, and sometimes Ideas from people with other industry experience are dismissed without any real consideration because it's not the way we've always done it.

Viewing 19 - 21 of 5,210 Reviews

Jobs at Southwest Airlines

Supervisor Ramp - MSY

Manager Future Schedules

Supervisor Ramp - DCA

Flight Ops Flight Instructor - HDQ

Senior Lead Counsel Labor Relations

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Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines reviews

Ratings by category

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

Sadly, not what they used to be.

Shifts Make No Sense

Good company

Jobs at Southwest Airlines

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