Air Canada E175 Seat Selection Guide (2026)
✈️ Quick Verdict
Aircraft: Embraer E175, operated by Air Canada Express · Fleet: 21 aircraft · Config: 76 seats — 12 Business, 64 Economy
Layout: Business 1-2 (A · D F) · Economy 2-2 (A C · D F)
Version lottery: No — one layout across the fleet
Best seats: 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A — solo Business seats with no neighbour at all
Seats to avoid: Row 27 (rear galley and lavatory), row 26, and 22A / 22F (no usable window view)
Middle seats: None anywhere · WiFi: Intelsat ATG, ground-based — messaging tier only
The seat worth knowing about: 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A
Air Canada's E175 Business cabin is laid out 1-2: a single seat against the left wall, and a pair on the right. That single seat is not a marketing flourish. In rows 1 through 4, the A seat has no neighbour on either side — window on one side, aisle on the other, nobody to climb over and nobody climbing over you.
On a widebody this arrangement gets called a throne seat and costs a fortune. On a regional jet between Toronto and Boston it is available for the price of an ordinary domestic Business fare, and most passengers pick their seat without noticing the difference between A and the D/F pair.
If you are travelling alone in Business, always take an A seat. 2A or 3A are the picks — solo, mid-cabin, and clear of the forward galley.
If you are travelling as a pair, the reverse applies: D and F sit together with nobody else in the row, so you get a private two-seat cabin of your own.
There is no middle seat on this aircraft
Economy is 2-2 from row 12 to row 27, lettered A and C on the left, D and F on the right. Every one of the 64 Economy seats is either a window or an aisle. For a nervous flyer, a claustrophobic traveller, or anyone who simply resents the middle seat, this is the most comfortable aircraft in Air Canada's short-haul fleet regardless of which row you end up in.
It also changes how couples should book. On a 3-3 narrowbody the advice is to take the window and the aisle and hope the middle stays empty. Here there is no gamble: book A and C, or D and F, and the two of you have the row.
Rows 5 to 11 do not exist
The Business cabin ends at row 4 and Economy begins at row 12. Nothing sits between them — row 12 is physically the next row after row 4. The seven missing numbers are a numbering convention, not a galley, a gap or a missing section.
This is worth knowing because row 12 does not sound like a front-of-cabin seat and is one. It is the first Economy row, directly behind the Business divider, with a bulkhead rather than a reclining seat back in front of it. It is the best Economy row on the aircraft and is usually the first to be taken.
Business Class row by row
| Row | Verdict |
|---|---|
| 1 | Bulkhead. Most legroom, first off, but bags must go overhead for taxi and landing, and the forward galley and lavatory are right there |
| 2 | Best row. Under-seat storage, a seat to recline into, and one row of separation from the galley |
| 3 | Equally good. 3A is the quietest solo seat in the cabin |
| 4 | Last Business row, against the Economy divider. Still a solo A seat, but you sit at the boundary |
Business pitch is around 38 inches with a seat about 20 inches wide — a genuine recliner rather than a blocked-middle arrangement, which on a 76-seat jet is unusually generous.
Economy: best seats
- Row 12 — the bulkhead row, directly behind Business. The most legroom in Economy and the first row served.
- Rows 13 and 14 — forward of the wing, quiet, and close enough to the front to disembark quickly. Air Canada commonly sells these as Preferred seating.
- 12A and 12D — if you want the bulkhead and a window, these are the two to take.
- Rows 15 to 20 — the middle of the cabin. Nothing wrong with any of them, and well clear of both the forward divider and the rear galley.
Economy: seats to avoid
- Row 27 — the last row. It backs onto the rear galley and the rear lavatory, so recline is restricted and there is traffic beside you for the whole flight.
- Row 26 — one row clear of the wall, but still inside the lavatory queue on a full flight.
- 22A and 22F — the window sits so far behind these two seats that there is no usable view from either. They are window seats in name only, and the only two on the aircraft with that problem.
- Row 1, if you value storage — the bulkhead means nothing under the seat in front during taxi, take-off and landing.
That is a genuinely short list. On a 76-seat regional jet with no middle seats, the difference between a good seat and a bad one is smaller than on almost anything else Air Canada flies — which is exactly why the 22A/22F window problem is worth knowing about before you pay to pick one.
The WiFi is the real compromise
The E175 carries Intelsat air-to-ground WiFi, not satellite. It is a messaging and email tier of service — adequate for iMessage, WhatsApp and checking mail, and not adequate for video calls, streaming or a large file. Because it works from ground towers rather than satellites, it is also route-dependent in a way satellite systems are not.
If you have work that genuinely needs to happen in the air, this is the aircraft in Air Canada's fleet where that is least likely to go well. Download what you need before you board.
Cabin features
| Feature | Business | Economy |
|---|---|---|
| Rows | 1–4 | 12–27 |
| Layout | 1-2 (A · D F) | 2-2 (A C · D F) |
| Seats | 12 | 64 |
| Pitch | About 38 in | About 31 in |
| Width | About 20 in | About 18 in |
| Middle seats | None | None |
| Lavatories | One forward (port side), one aft behind row 27 (port side) | |
| WiFi | Intelsat air-to-ground — messaging and email only | |
Quick-pick summary
| Traveller | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Solo in Business | 2A or 3A | A true solo seat with no neighbour |
| Couple in Business | 2D and 2F | A private two-seat pair, nobody else in the row |
| Economy legroom | 12A or 12D | Bulkhead row with a window |
| Couple in Economy | Any A and C, or D and F | No middle seat to worry about |
| Fastest exit | Row 12, C or D | First Economy row, aisle, single forward door |
| Nervous flyer | Rows 15–18 | Over the wing, and no middle seat to feel boxed into |
| Paying nothing | Anything except 26 and 27 | The cabin is genuinely consistent |
Comparable guides
- Air Canada A220-300 — the mainline aircraft with the widest economy seat in the fleet
- Air Canada A321 — the workhorse narrowbody on the same city pairs
- Air Canada 737 MAX 8 — the other main short-haul type
- Air Canada A321XLR — the long-range narrowbody
Frequently asked questions
Does the Air Canada E175 have middle seats?
No. Economy is 2-2 and Business is 1-2, so every seat on the aircraft is a window or an aisle.
What is the best seat on the E175?
2A or 3A in Business — single seats with nobody beside them. In Economy it is row 12, the bulkhead row directly behind Business.
Why do the row numbers jump from 4 to 12?
Numbering convention only. Row 12 is physically the row immediately behind row 4; there is no missing cabin section between them.
Who actually operates these flights?
Air Canada Express, flown by Jazz Aviation on Air Canada's behalf. You book and check in with Air Canada, and the Business cabin is a genuine recliner product rather than a blocked middle seat.
Is the WiFi any good?
It is air-to-ground rather than satellite, which puts it firmly in the messaging-and-email tier. Do not count on video calls or streaming.
Where are the lavatories?
Two, both on the port side: one at the front ahead of row 1, and one at the rear behind row 27. The rear one is why row 27 is the row to avoid.