Ryanair to let parents sit with children for free – here's how its new policy works

Under Ryanair's old policy, it was compulsory for at least one adult in the group to pay for a seat reservation, which the airline called a "mandatory family seat". This could cost between £4.50 and £13.50 per flight, and you could then reserve seats for free for up to four children. But this has now changed.

You now have two options when travelling with children on Ryanair

For new bookings from Thursday 25 June, you can now choose between:

1. Having your seats randomly allocated for free after check-in (by selecting 'continue without a seat' during booking). Choosing this option means any children aged 2 to 11 will be seated next to at least one accompanying adult. But Ryanair's terms say that "other adults and teens on the booking may be allocated seats separately" – so there's no guarantee the whole family will be sat together.
   
   Ryanair also says that choosing this free option means you're "likely to be seated towards the rear of the aircraft cabin, as front rows tend to be reserved and sell out first" (see our 20+ Ryanair tips to help you master the airline's famously strict rules).
   

   

2. Paying to reserve seats at the time of booking. Depending on the route and your travel dates, this can cost anywhere from £4.50 – per person, per flight – for a standard seat all the way up to £36.50 for an extra legroom seat at the front of the plane.

Ryanair says the change will "align its family seating policy with that of most other EU airlines" (see How to sit together for free on BA, Easyjet and others). It adds that it will be "revenue-neutral", meaning it doesn't expect to make any extra money from it.

Existing bookings made before Thursday 25 June are unaffected. Not booked yet? Check out our Cheap flights guide.

Regulator to continue its investigation

Earlier this month, regulator the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced that it would look at whether Ryanair's previous approach to seat reservations "may mean parents are being charged for the airline to meet its child safety and disability‑related obligations as set out under aviation rules".

Responding to the latest announcement, a CMA spokesperson said: "Ryanair claims its seating policy now complies with the law, and we'll test that thoroughly. Our investigation remains ongoing."