, Southwest Airlines has scheduled flights to over 100 destinations in 43 states, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, the newest being Alaska on May 15, 2026. The airline has 15 focus cities and operates over 4,000 flights each day.
Destinations
Southwest does not use the "hub and spoke" system of other major airlines, preferring instead the "point-to-point" system with focus cities. It has large operations in certain airports. An average of 80 percent of Southwest passengers are local passengers—only 20 percent are connecting passengers, a lower percentage than on most major airlines, where many passengers connect in hub cities. However, at Southwest's focus cities, the percentage of connecting passengers can reach 30 percent. As part of its effort to control costs, Southwest historically used secondary airports in cities where the primary airports have high costs, such as Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, and Miami. In the early 21st century, however, the airline has been expanding into primary airports as well.
In most cities where Southwest uses both a primary and secondary airport, the secondary airport is used more than the primary for flights (such as Oakland instead of San Francisco), with some exceptions such as the Los Angeles metro area, where Los Angeles International is a Southwest base and secondary airports (such as Burbank, Long Beach, Santa Ana and Ontario) have limited Southwest operations despite having a higher market share at the smaller airports. Until 2006, Southwest did not fly into Denver, which is now its most popular destination.
Unlike most other U.S. airlines, Southwest does not fly outside North America, and it does not fly to Canada due to its payment system not being set up for Canadian dollars.
Southwest began flying to Hawaii in 2019Flying Southwest to Hawaii: Coconut rum, snack packs and 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' and has announced it had begun service to Alaska on May 15, 2026.Southwest Airlines announces nonstop Anchorage flights for 2026
International service Southwest began planning international service when it acquired AirTran Airways, which already served international destinations. Southwest's first approach to international service came on April 19, 2012, when it signed a contract with the Amadeus IT Group to launch an international reservation system. This agreement gave the airline the capability to begin flying to destinations outside of the United States.
Southwest debuted the international reservation system on January 27, 2014, when its first international flights went on sale. This was followed by the first international flights which began on July 1, 2014, to Aruba (AUA), Montego Bay, Jamaica (MBJ) and Nassau, Bahamas (NAS).
Southwest built a 5-gate international terminal at William P. Hobby Airport that opened in 2015. Southwest also built a 5-gate international terminal in Fort Lauderdale that opened in 2017. In 2021, a 5-gate extension of terminal A at Baltimore/Washington International Airport opened. Southwest is the sole occupant of Terminal A and it invested significantly in the creation of the extension.
Busiest airports As of November 15, 2024, there are 18 airports at which Southwest Airlines has over 80 daily departures.
RankCityAirportNumber of FlightsNumber of Cities ServedNumber of Gates1DenverDenver International Airport30292342Las VegasHarry Reid International Airport27670213ChicagoMidway International Airport25079374BaltimoreBaltimore/Washington International Airport23579265DallasDallas Love Field20475186NashvilleNashville International Airport20279217PhoenixPhoenix Sky Harbor International Airport18261328HoustonWilliam P. Hobby Airport17569209OrlandoOrlando International Airport174612010St. LouisSt. Louis Lambert International Airport137621711AustinAustin–Bergstrom International Airport12553812San DiegoSan Diego International Airport11134613SacramentoSacramento International Airport109321114OaklandOakland San Francisco Bay Airport108241115TampaTampa International Airport106431516San JoseNorman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport100261817Kansas CityKansas City International Airport80451518AtlantaHartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport474018
Current destinations , Southwest Airlines flies to 119 destinations.
CountryCityAirportNotesRefsArubaOranjestadQueen Beatrix International Airport BahamasNassauLynden Pindling International Airport BelizeBelize CityPhilip S. W. Goldson International Airport Cayman IslandsGeorge TownOwen Roberts International Airport Costa RicaLiberiaGuanacaste Airport San JoséJuan Santamaría International Airport CubaHavanaJosé Martí International Airport Dominican RepublicPunta CanaPunta Cana International Airport JamaicaMontego BaySangster International Airport MexicoCancúnCancún International Airport Puerto VallartaLicenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport San José del CaboLos Cabos International Airport St. MaartenPhilipsburgPrincess Juliana International AirportTurks and Caicos IslandsProvidencialesProvidenciales International Airport United States (Alabama)BirminghamBirmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport United States (Alaska)AnchorageTed Stevens Anchorage International AirportUnited States (Arizona)PhoenixPhoenix Sky Harbor International AirportTucsonTucson International Airport United States (Arkansas)Little RockClinton National Airport United States (California)BurbankHollywood Burbank Airport FresnoFresno Yosemite International Airport Long BeachLong Beach Airport Los AngelesLos Angeles International AirportOaklandOakland San Francisco Bay AirportOntarioOntario International Airport Orange County/Santa AnaJohn Wayne Airport Palm SpringsPalm Springs International Airport SacramentoSacramento International Airport San DiegoSan Diego International AirportSan FranciscoSan Francisco International Airport San JoséSan Jose International Airport Santa BarbaraSanta Barbara Municipal Airport Sonoma County/Santa RosaSonoma County AirportUnited States (Colorado)Colorado SpringsColorado Springs Airport DenverDenver International AirportHayden/Steamboat SpringsYampa Valley Regional Airport MontroseMontrose Regional Airport United States (Connecticut)HartfordBradley International Airport United States (Florida)Destin/Fort Walton BeachDestin–Fort Walton Beach Airport Fort LauderdaleFort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport Fort MyersSouthwest Florida International Airport JacksonvilleJacksonville International Airport OrlandoOrlando International AirportWest Palm BeachPalm Beach International Airport Panama CityNorthwest Florida Beaches International Airport PensacolaPensacola International Airport MiamiMiami International Airport SarasotaSarasota–Bradenton International Airport TampaTampa International Airport United States (Georgia)AtlantaHartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International AirportSavannahSavannah/Hilton Head International Airport United States (Hawaii)HonoluluDaniel K. Inouye International Airport KahuluiKahului Airport Kailua–KonaKona International Airport HiloHilo International Airport LihueLihue Airport United States (Idaho)BoiseBoise Airport United States (Illinois)ChicagoMidway International AirportUnited States (Indiana)IndianapolisIndianapolis International Airport United States (Iowa)Des MoinesDes Moines International Airport United States (Kansas)WichitaWichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport United States (Kentucky)Cincinnati/CovingtonCincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport LouisvilleLouisville International Airport United States (Louisiana)New OrleansLouis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport United States (Maine)PortlandPortland International Jetport United States (Maryland)BaltimoreBaltimore/Washington International AirportUnited States (Massachusetts)BostonLogan International Airport United States (Michigan)DetroitDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport Grand RapidsGerald R. Ford International Airport United States (Minnesota)Minneapolis/Saint PaulMinneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport United States (Mississippi)JacksonJackson–Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport United States (Missouri)Kansas CityKansas City International Airport St. LouisSt. Louis Lambert International Airport United States (Montana)BozemanBozeman Yellowstone International Airport United States (Nebraska)OmahaEppley Airfield United States (Nevada)Las VegasHarry Reid International AirportReno/TahoeReno–Tahoe International Airport United States (New Hampshire)ManchesterManchester–Boston Regional Airport United States (New Mexico)AlbuquerqueAlbuquerque International Sunport United States (New York)AlbanyAlbany International Airport BuffaloBuffalo Niagara International Airport Long Island/IslipLong Island MacArthur Airport New York CityLaGuardia Airport RochesterGreater Rochester International Airport United States (North Carolina)CharlotteCharlotte Douglas International Airport Raleigh/DurhamRaleigh–Durham International Airport United States (Ohio)ClevelandCleveland Hopkins International Airport ColumbusJohn Glenn Columbus International Airport United States (Oklahoma)Oklahoma CityOKC Will Rogers International Airport TulsaTulsa International Airport United States (Oregon)EugeneEugene Airport PortlandPortland International Airport United States (Pennsylvania)PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia International Airport PittsburghPittsburgh International Airport United States (Puerto Rico)San JuanLuis Muñoz Marín International Airport United States (Rhode Island)ProvidenceRhode Island T. F. Green International Airport United States (South Carolina)CharlestonCharleston International Airport Greenville/SpartanburgGreenville–Spartanburg International Airport Myrtle BeachMyrtle Beach International Airport United States (Tennessee)KnoxvilleMcGhee Tyson Airport MemphisMemphis International Airport NashvilleNashville International AirportUnited States (Texas)AmarilloRick Husband Amarillo International Airport AustinAustin–Bergstrom International AirportCorpus ChristiCorpus Christi International Airport DallasDallas Love FieldEl PasoEl Paso International Airport Harlingen/South Padre IslandValley International Airport HoustonWilliam P. Hobby AirportLubbockLubbock Preston Smith International Airport Midland/OdessaMidland International Airport San AntonioSan Antonio International Airport United States (Utah)Salt Lake CitySalt Lake City International Airport United States (Virginia)NorfolkNorfolk International Airport RichmondRichmond International Airport Washington, D.C. areaRonald Reagan Washington National Airport United States (Virgin Islands)St. ThomasCyril E. King Airport United States (Washington)Seattle/TacomaSeattle–Tacoma International Airport SpokaneSpokane International Airport United States (Wisconsin)MilwaukeeMilwaukee Mitchell International Airport
Terminated destinations