How long does it really take to board a plane? It depends a lot on the order in which passengers walk down the aisle. This page simulates five popular boarding methods on a 30-row cabin and compares how each one performs.

Pick a layout (narrow-body 3-3 like a 737/A320, widebody 3-3-3 like a 787, or widebody 3-4-3 like a 777), pick a method below, and hit Start. To race all five at once and see a ranked dashboard, scroll down to the Comparison Mode section.

Group: —
Walking Stowing luggage Blocked Seated
Elapsed Time
0.0s
Seated
0 / 180
Aisle Conflicts
0
Seat Conflicts
0
Avg Wait
0.0s

Comparison Mode

Run all five methods head-to-head. Each runs in its own mini cabin so you can watch them race in parallel.

How the methods work

The simulation models walking speed, luggage-stowing time (2–5 seconds), and aisle blocking when an upstream passenger is in the way. Blocked passengers turn yellow. In the widebody layouts the cabin has two parallel aisles, and passengers split between them based on which aisle is closest to their seat: in 3-3-3 the middle block’s first two seats (D, E) use the upper aisle and the last seat (F) uses the lower; in 3-4-3 the four-across middle block splits with D and E using the upper aisle and F and G the lower.