Online check-in is the moment the airline confirms you intend to travel and issues your boarding pass. It is not the same as booking, and it is not the same as dropping your bag. Understanding what it covers stops most of the day of travel confusion.
When it opens
Most airlines open check-in 24 hours before departure. Some open 30 hours, a few open 48 hours or even at the moment of booking for full fare tickets. Low cost carriers sometimes charge for early check-in and then open free check-in only a couple of days out.
Set a reminder for the moment it opens if your fare does not include a seat. On popular routes the free seats disappear quickly, and families who check in late often end up split across the cabin.
What you need
Have these ready before you start
- Booking reference, sometimes called a PNR, which is six letters and numbers.
- Passport or ID details for international travel, including the expiry date.
- Any visa, residence permit or travel authorisation number the airline asks for.
- Frequent flyer number if you want the miles credited.
- Emergency contact details, which some airlines now require.
Enter your passport details exactly as they appear in the machine readable strip at the bottom of the photo page. If the system rejects a name, it is usually because of an accent, a hyphen or a double surname. Do not guess: call the airline instead.
Boarding passes
Mobile boarding passes are convenient but they are not universal. Some airports still require paper, and some airlines will not issue a mobile pass on routes where the destination requires a physical document check. If the app offers you a PDF, save it offline and take a screenshot as well. Phone batteries and airport wifi both fail at inconvenient moments.
Add the pass to your phone wallet if that option exists. It survives a flat signal, updates the gate automatically on many airlines, and is quicker to open than logging back into an app while a queue builds behind you.
When you cannot check in online
- Your ticket includes an infant on your lap, or an unaccompanied minor.
- You need special assistance that has to be confirmed at the airport.
- You are travelling on a visa the airline must verify in person.
- You bought the ticket through a third party that did not pass on all your details.
- Your route involves a codeshare where the operating carrier handles check-in separately.
None of these are problems, they just mean you should arrive earlier. Airline counters open two to three hours before departure for long haul flights, and the first hour is usually the quietest.
Seats, bags and extras
Check-in is where airlines sell you things. Read carefully before you tap. Seat selection, extra legroom, priority boarding and cabin bag upgrades are all optional on most carriers, although on some low cost airlines a larger cabin bag genuinely does need to be paid for and it is much cheaper online than at the gate.
If you already paid for a bag, confirm that the allowance appears on the boarding pass. Errors here are common when a booking was made through an agency, and they are far easier to fix the day before than at a bag drop counter with fifty people behind you.
After you check in
Check the terminal, not just the gate. Many airports have several terminals and airlines move flights between them at short notice. The boarding pass shows the terminal at the time of issue, so re-check the departure boards when you arrive.
If your plans change after you check in, tell the airline before departure. Most systems will not let you rebook once you are checked in, and a no show can invalidate the rest of the itinerary including the return leg.
Common questions
- Does checking in online guarantee my seat?
- It confirms your place on the flight, though airlines can still change your seat for operational reasons such as an aircraft swap.
- Can I check in for both flights of a connection?
- Usually yes when both are on the same booking. If they are separate bookings you will normally have to check in for the second flight separately.
- What if I check in and then miss the flight?
- Contact the airline as soon as you know. Being checked in does not protect the ticket, and later legs may be cancelled automatically.
Still stuck on something?
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