Virgin Australia 737-700 Seat Map & Best Seats (2026)
✈️ Quick Verdict
Aircraft: Boeing 737-700 · 134 seats · 8 Business / 24 Economy X / 102 Economy
Fleet: A small sub-fleet of four aircraft — the shortest 737 Virgin Australia flies
Layout: 2-2 in Business (letters A C | D F), 3-3 in Economy. Rows 1–23
Version lottery: One configuration, but the Wi-Fi is a lottery — the 2Ku system is fitted to selected aircraft only
Best seats: Row 11 — the exit row, and the only Economy X row with both the legroom and a full recline. 5A and 5F for the best window.
Seats to avoid: Row 10 (the worst seat on the aircraft that is not next to a lavatory), 7A and 7F (no window at all), rows 21–23.
Entertainment: Streamed to your own device. No seatback screens.
Wi-Fi: Intelsat 2Ku, 10–40 Mbps — fast enough to stream, when the aircraft has it.
The trap: row 10 and row 11 are one row apart and six inches apart
Row 11 is the overwing exit row. Row 10 is the row in front of it. On the seat map they sit next to each other in the middle of the cabin, and unless you know what the exit row does to the row ahead of it, there is nothing to tell them apart.
Row 10 is the row to avoid. It has standard 31-inch Economy legroom, and it also cannot fully recline, because the path to the exit behind it has to stay clear. On top of that, 10A and 10F have windows set behind the seat, so the view is restricted too. It is a standard-price seat that gives up recline and the view and gets nothing back.
Row 11, one row back, is the best row in Economy. It is Economy X, it has around 37 inches of space in front of it, and because row 12 is an ordinary row it reclines fully. Every seat in row 11 is a good seat — there is not a single flag against any of the six.
Economy X: rows 3, 4, 5 and 11
Virgin Australia sells 24 Economy X seats on this aircraft: the three rows at the front of the Economy cabin, plus the exit row. They are not equally good, and the front block in particular has some sharp edges.
| Row | Verdict | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Mixed — take 3D | Bulkhead. 3A and 3F have windows set behind the seat. 3B, 3C and 3E lose underseat storage and have the tray in the armrest. 3D is the only clean seat in the row |
| 4 | Good | 34" pitch, no flags on any seat, and you keep your underseat storage |
| 5 | Best of the front block | 34" pitch and 5A and 5F have the best windows in the forward cabin |
| 11 | Best in cabin | Exit row, ~37", full recline, no flags on any of the six seats |
If you are buying Economy X for legroom alone, row 11 gives you the most of it. If you want legroom plus a window you can actually look out of, 5A and 5F are the pick — and unlike row 11, they are nowhere near an exit door, which on a cold morning departure is not nothing.
Row 3 is the one to be careful with. It is the bulkhead row, so it looks like the premium end of the block, but four of its six seats have a real drawback: A and F get a restricted window, B, C and E lose the underseat storage and sit in a slightly narrower seat because the tray table folds out of the armrest. 3D is the exception and is a genuinely good seat.
Business Class (rows 1–2)
Eight seats in two rows of 2-2, lettered A and C on the left, D and F on the right. It is a small, quiet cabin with its own lavatory at the front — one lavatory for eight passengers, which is the best ratio on the aircraft by a wide margin.
Best picks: 1A, 1C and 1F. Row 1 leads the cabin and has the most room ahead of it. The exception is 1D, which sits directly behind the forward galley — expect noise and bright light during the service. If you are light-sensitive or hoping to sleep on an early departure, take row 2 instead; both rows 2A/2C and 2D/2F are entirely unflagged.
Standard Economy, row by row
| Rows | Verdict | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Good | First standard row, no flags, near the front |
| 7 | Avoid A and F | 7A and 7F have no window at all — wall only. 7B to 7E are fine |
| 8–9 | Good | Clean rows with no flags on any seat |
| 10 | Avoid | No recline, and restricted windows at 10A and 10F |
| 12, 14, 16 | Avoid A and F | Windows sit behind the seat. The middle four seats in each row are unaffected |
| 13, 15, 18, 20 | Good | Ordinary rows over and behind the wing, no flags |
| 17, 19 | Best windows | 17A, 17F, 19A and 19F have the best-aligned windows in the rear cabin |
| 21 | Caution | Every seat picks up lavatory queuing and noise, though 21A and 21F do have good windows |
| 22 | Avoid | Every seat backs directly onto a lavatory |
| 23 | Avoid | Last row: no recline, lavatories immediately behind, and the galley behind 23B–23E |
The two rear lavatories serve 126 Economy passengers, about one per 63 people. The queue forms in the aisle beside rows 21 and 22, which is what makes the back three rows worse than their pitch alone would suggest.
If you are not paying for Economy X, the sweet spot is rows 13 to 20, choosing A or F only in rows 13, 15, 17, 18, 19 or 20. Rows 12, 14 and 16 have the misaligned windows; everywhere else in that block is clean.
How to tell which Virgin Australia 737 you are on
Virgin Australia's 737-700 is a small sub-fleet flying alongside a much larger number of 737-800s and 737 MAX 8s, and the booking flow does not always make the difference obvious. Two tells settle it:
| 737-700 | 737-800 (refreshed) | |
|---|---|---|
| Exit rows | One — row 11 | Two — rows 14 and 15 |
| Last row | 23 | Well past 23 |
| Total seats | 134 | 182 |
| Business | 8, rows 1–2 | 8, rows 1–2 |
| Economy X | Rows 3–5 and 11 | Rows 3–4 and 14–15 |
Because both aircraft have an identical eight-seat Business cabin in rows 1 and 2, counting Business seats will not help you. Count exit rows instead: one means the -700, two means the -800.
The Wi-Fi is a lottery inside a lottery. Virgin Australia's 2Ku system is rated at 10 to 40 Mbps — genuinely fast enough to stream — but it is fitted to selected aircraft only, and this is a small sub-fleet. Since there are no seatback screens and entertainment streams to your own device, download what you want to watch before you board rather than assuming you can pull it down in the air.
Quick picks by traveller
| You are | Take | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Legroom above all | Row 11, any seat | ~37", full recline, and not one flagged seat in the row |
| Economy X with a view | 5A or 5F | 34" pitch and the best-aligned windows in the forward cabin |
| Travelling alone, no extras | 17A, 17F, 19A or 19F | The best windows in the rear cabin, clear of the lavatory queue |
| A family of three | Row 13, 15 or 18 | A full unflagged set of three on either side |
| Booking Business | Row 2, or 1A/1C/1F | Avoid 1D, which sits against the forward galley |
| Off the aircraft fastest | 3D or row 4 | Front of Economy, and neither carries row 3's storage and window problems |
Comparable guides
- Virgin Australia 737-800 seat map and best seats — the aircraft you are far more likely to be on
- Virgin Australia 737 MAX 8 seat map and best seats
- Virgin Australia E190-E2 seat map and best seats
- Qantas 737-800 seat map and best seats — the domestic comparison
- Alaska 737-700 seat map and best seats — the same aircraft, a different cabin
Frequently asked questions
What is the best seat on the Virgin Australia 737-700?
Row 11. It is the exit row and it is Economy X, so it has around 37 inches of space, and because row 12 behind it is an ordinary row, it still reclines fully. None of its six seats carries a single drawback. If you want a window as well as the legroom, 5A and 5F are the better choice.
Which rows are Economy X?
Rows 3, 4 and 5 at the front of the Economy cabin, plus the exit row 11 — 24 seats in total. Rows 4, 5 and 11 are the ones worth paying for; row 3 has a restricted window at A and F and no underseat storage at B, C and E.
Which seats should I avoid?
Row 10, which cannot recline and has restricted windows at 10A and 10F. 7A and 7F, which have no window at all. Rows 22 and 23 against the rear lavatories, with row 23 also losing its recline. And 1D in Business, which sits against the forward galley.
How many seats does the Virgin Australia 737-700 have?
134 — 8 in Business across rows 1 and 2, and 126 in Economy across rows 3 to 23, of which 24 are sold as Economy X.
How do I know if I am booked on the 737-700 rather than the 737-800?
Count the exit rows on the seat map. The 737-700 has one, at row 11, and its cabin ends at row 23. The 737-800 has two exit rows, at 14 and 15, and a longer cabin. Both have the same eight-seat Business cabin in rows 1 and 2, so that will not tell you anything.
Does the 737-700 have Wi-Fi and seatback screens?
There are no seatback screens — entertainment streams to your own phone, tablet or laptop. Wi-Fi is Intelsat 2Ku at 10 to 40 Mbps, but it is fitted to selected aircraft only, so download anything you want to watch before you board.