QantasLink E190 Seat Selection Guide (2026)
✈️ Quick Verdict
Aircraft: Embraer 190 — two configurations, 17 aircraft between them
Config: 94 seats (10 Business, 84 Economy) on 12 aircraft · 97 seats (9 Business, 88 Economy) on 5
Layout: Business 1-2 — A | E F, a genuine solo column · Economy 2-2 — A B | E F. There is no middle seat anywhere on this aircraft
Version lottery: Yes — the whole economy cabin shifts one row, and the extra-legroom bulkhead moves with it
The one-look test: count the seats in row 4. Three seats and a curtain behind → 94-seat jet. Four seats → 97-seat jet. Or check row 1: 1A on its own is the 94-seat cabin
The trap: on the 94-seat jet the economy bulkhead row is 5A, 5B, 5E and 5F, and 5A and 5F have no usable window at all. You pay for the legroom and face a wall
Best in Economy — both cabins: 11B and 11E. Exit-row legroom, full recline, and the only two green seats in economy
Best in Business: 1A on the 94-seat jet — a solo seat in a row of its own
Seats to avoid: 5A, 5F, 6A, 6F, 7A, 7F (no window on both cabins) and row 25 (no recline, lavatory behind) · IFE: streaming to your own device, still being rolled out · Wi-Fi: none
The legroom row at the front of economy has no windows
QantasLink’s 94-seat Embraer 190 puts economy’s bulkhead at row 5. It is the row you would pick from a seat map without hesitating: nothing in front of you, extra legroom recorded at 5A and 5B, the front of the cabin, first meal, first off.
5A and 5F have no usable window. Neither do 6A, 6F, 7A or 7F. Six seats carrying a window letter, in the first three rows of economy, look out at a blank wall — and the row where that hurts most is the one the booking map makes look best. Add the detail that 5E and 5F sit against a tighter-than-usual bulkhead — about 17 inches to the wall, less than a normal bulkhead gives — and the front row of economy on this aircraft is a considerably worse bet than it appears.
On the 97-seat jet the trap moves but does not disappear. There, row 4 is the economy bulkhead, and 5A, 5F, 6A, 6F, 7A and 7F are still the six blank-wall seats — only now they are ordinary rows rather than the premium ones. Row 4 gets its own smaller problem instead: the windows at 4A and 4F sit behind the seat, and 4E and 4F have the same tight bulkhead, about 18 inches to the wall.
Two cabins, three seats apart, and economy moves a whole row
The 94-seat jet carries four rows of Business and starts economy at row 5. The 97-seat jet carries three rows of Business and starts economy at row 4. Both end at row 25. Three seats separate the configurations on paper; in practice every economy row number between 4 and 25 refers to a different physical position depending on which aircraft you are on.
| 94-seat cabin | 97-seat cabin | |
|---|---|---|
| Aircraft | 12 | 5 |
| Business | 10 seats, rows 1–4 | 9 seats, rows 1–3 |
| Row 1 | 1A only — a solo seat in its own row | Full row: 1A, 1E, 1F |
| Economy | 84 seats, rows 5–25 | 88 seats, rows 4–25 |
| Economy bulkhead | Row 5 — and 5A/5F have no window | Row 4 — windows sit behind the seat at 4A/4F |
| Overwing exit | After row 10 | After row 10 |
| Best economy seats | 11B and 11E | 11B and 11E |
| No-window seats | 5A, 5F, 6A, 6F, 7A, 7F | 5A, 5F, 6A, 6F, 7A, 7F |
Business is 1-2, and on the 94-seat jet row 1 is one seat
The Embraer 190 has no middle seat to block, so QantasLink’s Business cabin is a real 1-2 layout: a single seat in the A column, a pair at E and F. Every A seat in Business has direct aisle access with nobody to climb over, on both configurations.
On the 94-seat jet, row 1 consists of 1A alone — a solo seat at the front of a cabin with no seat beside it and no row-mates. It is the best seat on the aircraft, and it exists on twelve of the seventeen airframes. On the 97-seat jet row 1 is a normal three-seat row, and the equivalent pick is any A seat; 3A and 3F both rate best there.
Row 10 pays for the exit; row 11 collects it
There is one overwing exit, after row 10, on both cabins. 10A, 10B, 10E and 10F may not fully recline — the exit behind them needs a clear path — and they gain no legroom for it. Row 11 gains the legroom and reclines normally.
Row 11 is not uniformly good, though. 11A and 11F have windows that sit forward of the seat, so you lean ahead to see out. That leaves 11B and 11E — the two aisle seats — as the only seats in economy that rate best on either aircraft. On a 2-2 jet an aisle seat costs you nothing: there is nobody on the far side to climb over you.
The back of the aircraft
Row 25 is the last row on both cabins: no recline, a lavatory immediately behind, and galley noise across rows 24 and 25. It is the row to avoid outright. Row 24 is workable if you are not sensitive to galley light and noise during the service.
Quick-pick summary
| Travelling as | Book | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Best seat on the aircraft | 1A (94-seat jet) | A solo Business seat in a row of its own |
| Legroom in economy | 11B or 11E | Exit-row legroom with full recline, and a proper view |
| Window, and you mean it | Rows 12–23, A or F | Avoids the blank walls at rows 5–7 and the misalignment at 8–12 |
| Couple | Any A/B or E/F pair, rows 13–23 | 2-2 means a pair is a whole side of the cabin |
| Solo, wants space | 11B or 11E | Aisle costs nothing on a 2-2 jet |
| Off first | Row 4 or 5, aisle | Front of economy — but check the window letter first |
| Avoid | 5A, 5F, 6A, 6F, 7A, 7F, row 25 | No usable window; last row has no recline |
How to tell which version you are on
- Count row 4. Three seats and the Business cabin ends there → the 94-seat jet. Four seats and it is the first economy row → the 97-seat jet. This is visible on any seat map at booking.
- Look at row 1. A single seat, 1A, with nothing at 1E or 1F → the 94-seat jet.
- Count the economy rows. Rows 5 to 25 is 84 seats; rows 4 to 25 is 88.
The Business curtain moves with demand on many short-haul operations, so the seat count sold as Business on the day may differ from the physical cabin. The row structure does not move, which is why counting row 4 is the reliable check.
Comparable guides
QantasLink A320 Seat Map & Best Seats (2026) — two 180-seat cabins that cannot be told apart at booking
Qantas A220-300 Seat Map & Best Seats (2026)
KLM Cityhopper E195-E2 Seat Map & Best Seats (2026) — the stretched E2, and a paid legroom product worth four inches on one cabin and one inch on the other
Qantas 737-800 Seat Map & Best Seats (2026)
Frequently asked questions
What is the best seat on a QantasLink E190?
1A on the 94-seat jet — a Business seat alone in its own row. In economy, 11B and 11E on either configuration: exit-row legroom, full recline, and the only two economy seats that rate best on both.
Are there middle seats on the QantasLink E190?
No. Economy is 2-2 throughout and Business is 1-2. Every seat on the aircraft is either a window or an aisle, which is the E190’s single biggest advantage over a 737 or an A320 on the same route.
Which seats have no window?
5A, 5F, 6A, 6F, 7A and 7F on both configurations. On the 94-seat jet those include the extra-legroom bulkhead row, which is what makes this the trap worth knowing before you pay for it.
Is the exit row worth it?
Row 11 is; row 10 is not. Row 10 sits ahead of the exit and loses recline on all four seats without gaining any legroom. Row 11 gains the legroom and reclines normally, and its aisle seats 11B and 11E have no window compromise either.
Does the QantasLink E190 have Wi-Fi?
No. Neither configuration has Wi-Fi recorded. Entertainment streams to your own device and is still being rolled out across the fleet, so it may not be available on your aircraft.
How many E190s does QantasLink fly?
Seventeen across the two cabins — twelve in the 94-seat configuration and five in the 97-seat one. The type is growing on Qantas domestic routes.