This Simple Trick Stops Anyone Reclining Their Plane Seat Into You

There’s nothing worse than settling into your seat on a flight only to have the person sitting in front of you recline their chair into your precious, limited space.

The trick to avoid getting squished? Sit behind a seat that can’t recline.

On most airlines, the seats in the emergency exit row and in the row directly in front of the exit row don’t recline. While you might not be able to recline your seat either, you can ensure those valuable few inches of extra space by grabbing one of these spots.

Most exit row seats even provide a few more inches of seat pitch compared to non-exit row seats, so that passengers have more space to access the exit. You just have to agree that you’re willing to help operate the exit door in case of an emergency. But given the low, low likelihood of an emergency landing, its almost always worth it.

Even better? Try to reserve one of the rare seats which do recline, but are behind a non-recliner. Sites such as SeatGuru.com offer seat maps of any upcoming flight, allowing you to reserve a seat behind a non-recliner – just check the red and yellow seats on any of Seat Guru’s maps to ensure you’re in the best spot on the plane.

Looking to upgrade even more? Read our guide to getting a free first-class plane seat for free.

About the author

Claire Lancaster

Tech & Entrepreneurship Editor

English-American, Claire has lived and worked in the U.S., South America, Europe and the UK. As Culture Trip’s tech and entrepreneurship editor she covers the European startup scene and issues ranging from Internet privacy to the intersection of the web with civil society, journalism, public policy and art. Claire holds a master’s in international journalism from City University, London and has contributed to outlets including Monocle, NPR, Public Radio International and the BBC World Service. When not writing or travelling, she can be found searching for London's best brunch spot or playing with her cat, Diana Ross.