Shipping Pets On Southwest Airlines: Fees, Rules, and Safer Alternatives

Shipping pets on Southwest Airlines is generally a cabin-only option for a small dog or cat—not a cargo-shipping service. In 2026, Southwest accepts eligible small dogs and cats in an approved carrier on qualifying domestic flights, charges a pet fare per carrier, and does not accept pets on flights to or from Hawaii or on international itineraries. You must reserve the pet space through Southwest, check in at the airport ticket counter, and keep the animal inside the carrier for the entire flight. For a large, unaccompanied, international, or Hawaii-bound move, Southwest is usually not the complete transportation solution.

What Southwest pet travel actually includes

Southwest’s pet program is designed for a passenger traveling with a small dog or cat in the aircraft cabin. It is not the same as booking an animal as air cargo, checking a kennel as baggage, or arranging door-to-door relocation. Southwest’s official pet policy describes the cabin program, carrier requirements, and route restrictions at its Pets page.

The practical distinction matters to military families and corporate relocation teams. If the owner and pet can travel together, the Southwest program may solve the flight portion of a domestic move. If the pet must travel separately, cannot fit under the seat, or needs customs, ground delivery, or destination-state coordination, the airline ticket alone does not solve the move.

Who and what may travel

Southwest’s cabin pet rules apply to small domestic dogs and cats. The animal must remain in a carrier that fits under the seat. A carrier containing two small animals of the same species may be permitted under Southwest’s rules, but the carrier still counts as the passenger’s pet carrier and must meet the airline’s requirements. Confirm the current acceptance decision when booking, especially for a nervous animal, a brachycephalic breed, or a carrier that is close to the size limit.

• Species: domestic cats and dogs, subject to Southwest’s acceptance rules.
• Location: cabin only; pets are not accepted as checked baggage or manifest cargo through this program.
• Carrier: one carrier per paying passenger, with the pet remaining inside during the flight.
• Availability: Southwest limits the number of pet carriers allowed on a flight, so a pet ticket is not guaranteed merely because a passenger seat remains available.

Southwest states that pet carriers are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis and that a pet carrier counts toward the passenger’s carry-on allowance. A traveler carrying a pet should therefore plan the rest of the cabin baggage around the carrier rather than assuming the animal creates an additional unrestricted bag allowance.

Southwest fees, carrier dimensions, and route limits

The numbers below are the decision points most travelers need before buying a ticket. Southwest’s published policy lists a $125 pet fare each way per pet carrier on applicable routes. For travel between Hawaiian Islands, Southwest lists a separate $35 each-way pet fare per carrier; that interisland exception does not mean pets may fly with Southwest between Hawaii and the mainland. Verify the amount at booking because airline fees can change. The current fee and route information are published by Southwest at its official pet-policy page.

Measure the carrier as it will be used, including any rigid frame, wheels, or protruding hardware. A soft carrier that compresses slightly may still be rejected if it cannot fit safely under the assigned seat. The dimensions are not a substitute for checking the aircraft’s under-seat configuration; an aircraft change can affect the usable space.

The Hawaii answer is an airline rule and a state rule

Southwest does not accept pets on flights to or from Hawaii. It does accept pets on certain flights between Hawaiian Islands under its separate interisland policy. This is Southwest’s airline eligibility rule, not a statement that Hawaii has waived its animal-entry requirements.

For a mainland-to-Hawaii relocation, the owner must use an airline and routing that accepts the animal and then satisfy Hawaii’s import process. Hawaii’s Animal Industry Division explains the state’s quarantine, vaccination, microchip, health-document, and inspection requirements through its Animal Quarantine and Inspection program. Depending on the island, airport, documentation, timing, and eligibility for a direct-release program, a pet may face a long preparation period or quarantine consequences.

That is why a PCS family should treat airline acceptance and Hawaii entry clearance as two separate workstreams. Southwest can be a possible carrier for an interisland leg after lawful entry, but it cannot be used to move a pet from the continental United States to Hawaii.

How to book and check in with a pet

The reservation process is simple in outline but unforgiving if handled late. Southwest requires the pet to be added to the reservation through its customer-service process rather than assuming that selecting a passenger seat automatically reserves a pet space. Start with the airline before finalizing a nonrefundable itinerary, because the flight may already have reached its pet-carrier limit.

1. Choose an eligible itinerary. Exclude international flights, itineraries containing an international segment, and Southwest flights to or from Hawaii.
2. Call Southwest to add the pet. Use the customer-service number and pet-booking instructions published on Southwest’s pet page; request confirmation that the pet space is attached to the reservation.
3. Prepare the carrier and documents. Confirm the carrier’s measured dimensions, the animal’s vaccination and health requirements, and any destination-specific rules.
4. Arrive at the airport ticket counter. Southwest’s pet process requires an in-person check-in and payment of the applicable pet fare at the airport ticket counter, rather than relying on ordinary online check-in.
5. Use the carrier through the airport and flight. Follow airport screening instructions, then keep the animal enclosed under the seat for the full flight.

Ask the representative to repeat the flight number, travel date, pet species, carrier count, and fee. Keep the confirmation with the passenger’s itinerary. A reservation record that shows a passenger but not the pet is not sufficient evidence that the animal has been accepted.

What to carry on travel day

Southwest’s airline acceptance does not replace destination documentation. Requirements vary by state, territory, municipality, and circumstance. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s APHIS pet-travel guidance explains that interstate and international movement requirements may involve an accredited veterinarian, health certificates, vaccinations, identification, and destination rules.

• Pet reservation confirmation and passenger itinerary
• Rabies certificate and other vaccination records required by the destination
• Microchip or identification information, when required
• Health certificate or veterinary documentation, if required for the route
• Absorbent carrier lining, medication instructions, and a small supply of food
• Emergency contact details for the owner, destination caregiver, and relocation coordinator

Do not sedate a pet simply to make the flight easier. Medication decisions belong with the animal’s veterinarian, who should account for the pet’s health, age, breed, and the effects of air travel. A carrier-trained animal that can settle without medication is generally easier to manage at security, during boarding, and after arrival.

Where Southwest stops being a workable shipping plan

The Southwest cabin program breaks down when the animal or assignment does not fit its basic operating model. The most common mistake is calling a cabin ticket “pet shipping” when the actual requirement is unaccompanied transportation from door to door.

Large or unaccompanied pets

A dog that cannot stand, turn, and remain safely contained in an under-seat carrier is not a practical candidate for this program. Southwest’s cabin policy does not create a larger hold or cargo option for that animal. A pet traveling without its owner also cannot simply be added to a passenger reservation. In those cases, the owner may need a specialized animal-transport arrangement with an appropriate airline, crate, routing plan, and ground handoff.

For a family moving with two adults and several small pets, airline limits can also become the constraint. Each passenger may be able to associate with a carrier under Southwest’s rules, but the flight’s total pet-carrier limit still applies. A family should secure the pet spaces before purchasing separate tickets that cannot be changed.

International and Hawaii relocations

Southwest’s domestic cabin policy does not cover an international relocation. International pet travel can involve destination import permits, rabies timing, official health certificates, airline-specific crate rules, customs, transit-country restrictions, and delivery after the animal clears the airport. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention separately regulates dogs entering the United States; its current requirements are summarized on the CDC dog-importation page.

A family flying overseas on a connecting itinerary must examine every segment, not just the first Southwest flight. An itinerary that begins domestically but includes an international leg may be excluded from Southwest’s pet program. The pet may need to travel under a different airline’s live-animal policy, and the documents must match the final destination rather than merely the departure airport.

Hawaii creates a similar planning trap. The airline exclusion comes first: Southwest cannot carry the pet from the mainland to Hawaii. Then the state-entry process adds its own deadlines and inspection requirements. Starting with a Southwest reservation before confirming Hawaii eligibility can leave a family with a paid passenger itinerary but no lawful pet routing.

• Use Southwest cabin travel when the owner is traveling, the dog or cat fits the approved carrier, the flight is eligible, and the destination rules are manageable.
• Use another airline’s pet program when the route is international, the pet must travel in an approved hold or cargo system, or Southwest excludes the itinerary.
• Use professional door-to-door transport when the move requires multiple carriers, customs support, state-entry coordination, ground delivery, or travel without the owner.

How relocation professionals apply the decision

A reliable plan starts by classifying the move before selecting an airline. For military families, a military pet shipping coordinator may need to align the pet’s flight with orders, household-goods timing, temporary lodging, and the service member’s reporting date. The cheapest passenger itinerary is not necessarily the lowest-risk plan if the pet arrives before housing, documents, or a receiving caregiver are ready.

For Hawaii assignments, treat Hawaii pet shipping as a compliance project before treating it as a flight search. Confirm the microchip, rabies history, required waiting periods, destination airport procedures, and inspection schedule. Only after those items are mapped should the team decide whether the owner travels with the pet, another airline carries the animal, or a managed relocation includes airport pickup and delivery.

A practical Southwest-versus-specialist checklist

Use Southwest when all of these answers are yes:

• The pet is a small dog or cat eligible for cabin travel.
• The carrier fits within the applicable soft- or hard-sided dimensions.
• The owner will travel on the same eligible domestic itinerary.
• The route is not international and does not travel to or from Hawaii.
• A pet space is confirmed before the trip is locked in.
• The destination’s vaccination and health-document rules are satisfied.

Move to a specialized plan when any answer is no. A professional provider can coordinate airline acceptance, veterinary paperwork, customs support, live tracking, airport handoffs, and final delivery, but the provider still must work within the destination country’s law and the operating airline’s rules. The key benefit is not bypassing requirements; it is assigning one party to sequence them and monitor the handoffs.

For a straightforward domestic trip, book early, measure the carrier, reserve the pet directly with Southwest, and check in at the ticket counter. For a PCS, overseas relocation, executive move, or Hawaii assignment, obtain a route-and-document review before buying tickets. BestPetTravel provides door-to-door domestic and international pet transportation, including airline coordination, paperwork, customs support, live tracking, and delivery logistics; visit BestPetTravel when the move needs more than a cabin reservation.

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