If your cat or small dog fits in a carrier that slides under the seat in front of you, they can probably fly in the cabin with you. That is the short answer, and it has stayed true for years. Almost everything else about in-cabin pet travel has changed since we first published this guide: fees have roughly doubled, the list of destinations that refuse cabin pets has grown, and the U.S. now has federal entry rules for dogs that did not exist a decade ago.
Here is what applies in 2026, what disqualifies a pet from the cabin, and what to do when your pet is too big to ride up front.
Can My Pet Fly in the Cabin With Me?
Yes, if your pet is small enough to fit in a closed carrier under the seat for the entire flight and your route allows it. Those are the two tests, and the second one surprises people more than the first.
Most major U.S. carriers accept small dogs and cats in the cabin. Delta also accepts household birds on domestic U.S. flights. But “the airline allows pets in the cabin” and “the airline allows pets in the cabin on your route” are different statements. American Airlines, for example, permits carry-on pets only within and between the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, and prohibits them outright on trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific trips.
There is no lap travel. Your pet stays in the carrier, under the seat, from boarding to deplaning. Airlines enforce this, and Delta warns that failing to comply can cost you the ability to travel with your pet on future flights.
How Much Does It Cost to Bring a Pet in the Cabin?
Budget $150 each way on the major U.S. carriers for domestic travel.
- Delta: $150 each way for travel within the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands on tickets issued on or after April 8, 2025 (it was $95 before that date), and $200 each way for international travel.
- American: $150 per kennel, each way.
Two details that catch people out: First, the fee is per kennel, per direction, and it is nonrefundable. Second, connections can multiply it: American applies the fee for each connection segment when your trip includes a stopover or connection of four hours or more. A round trip with a long layover each way is not two fees.
What Size Carrier Do I Need?
There is no universal answer, and this is the single most common reason pets get turned away at the gate. The real limit is the under-seat space on your specific aircraft, which varies.
Delta recommends a soft-sided kennel with maximum dimensions of 18″ x 11″ x 11″ because it fits most aircraft types, but states plainly that maximum dimensions are determined by the aircraft you are flying. American publishes a clearer table: soft-sided (recommended) at 18″ x 11″ x 11″ on all flights, hard-sided at 19″ x 13″ x 9″ on mainline aircraft, and hard-sided at just 16″ x 12″ x 8″ on American Eagle regional flights.
That American Eagle number deserves attention. American’s hard-sided limit drops from 19″ x 13″ x 9″ on mainline aircraft to 16″ x 12″ x 8″ on American Eagle regional jets. If your trip mixes the two, a bag accepted on your outbound flight can be turned away at the gate on your return. Size your carrier to the smallest aircraft on your itinerary, not the first one.
Beyond dimensions, airlines apply a comfort standard. Delta requires that your pet be able to move around inside the kennel without touching or sticking out from the sides. American requires the pet to fit comfortably inside the closed, zipped carrier. Soft-sided carriers are generally recommended because they compress slightly, though American notes they still need to fit without excessively collapsing the kennel.
A note on kennel rules: Delta requires in-cabin soft-sided kennels to be leak-proof with ventilation on three sides for domestic travel and four sides for international. American requires carriers to be secure, padded, water-repellent, and ventilated with nylon mesh on three or more sides. Confirm the requirement for your specific carrier and route before you buy.
Which Airlines Allow Pets as Carry-On Luggage?
The table below covers the details most likely to affect your booking. Fees and restrictions change often, so treat this as a starting point and verify with the airline before you book.
| Airline | In-cabin fee (each way) | Carrier guidance | Key limits to know |
| Delta | $150 U.S./Canada/PR/USVI (tickets issued on or after April 8, 2025); $200 international | Soft-sided recommended, max 18″ x 11″ x 11″. Max size is set by aircraft, not a single published number. | No in-cabin pets to or from Hawaii, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Iceland, Jamaica, Barbados, South Africa or the UAE. Not permitted in Delta One, international Business or Premium Select. |
| American | $150 per kennel | Soft-sided (recommended) 18″ x 11″ x 11″; hard-sided 19″ x 13″ x 9″ mainline, 16″ x 12″ x 8″ on American Eagle. | Carry-on pets only within/between the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. No carry-on pets on trans-Atlantic or trans-Pacific trips, to Hawaii, to Jamaica, or to Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia or Uruguay. |
| United | Published on United’s pet travel page; confirm at booking | Hard- and soft-sided both accepted, with different maximums. Under-seat height is tighter on some aircraft. | Reported fees and carrier dimensions vary widely across third-party sites. Verify directly with United before you buy a carrier. |
Sources: Delta Air Lines Pet Travel and American Airlines Pets policy pages, July 2026.
Verify before you book. Airline pet policies change frequently, and third-party summaries are often out of date or contradictory. We found active disagreement among travel sites on United’s current in-cabin fee and carrier dimensions, which is exactly why we point you to United’s own pet travel page rather than reprint a number we cannot confirm. Always confirm directly with the operating carrier.
Which Destinations Do Not Allow Pets in the Cabin?
Delta does not permit pets in the cabin to or from Australia, Barbados, Hong Kong, Iceland, Jamaica, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, or the United Arab Emirates. Pet travel is not allowed on flights to Hawaii, and pets originating in Brazil, Colombia, or the Dominican Republic are not accepted.
American Airlines prohibits carry-on pets on trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific trips entirely, to and from Hawaii, to Jamaica, and to or from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Uruguay.
If you are moving to any of these places, in-cabin travel is not an option you have to weigh. It is off the table, and your pet will need a different route. That is a planning problem, not a booking problem, and it is worth discovering now rather than at check-in.
For destination-specific requirements, explore our blog for guides on moving pets to Hawaii, Hawaii pet quarantine, and more!
What Documentation Does My Pet Need?
For domestic U.S. flights, requirements are modest. Delta requires pets to be at least 8 weeks old for domestic travel. American requires pets traveling within the U.S. and Puerto Rico to be at least 8 weeks old. A health certificate from your veterinarian remains a sensible precaution and is required on many routes.
International pet travel, and any return to the U.S., is a different matter entirely.
The CDC Dog Import Rule
Since August 1, 2024, all dogs entering the United States must appear healthy on arrival, be at least six months of age, be microchipped, and be accompanied by a CDC Dog Import Form online submission receipt. The CDC states that additional requirements depend on where the dog has been in the previous six months and whether the dog was vaccinated in the United States. Dogs arriving from countries with a high risk of dog rabies must be protected against rabies.
Two consequences worth spelling out. A puppy under six months old cannot enter the U.S., full stop, regardless of vaccination status or country of origin. And the microchip must be ISO-compatible and readable by a universal scanner. American goes further than the federal floor: it does not accept dogs as carry-on pets if they originate from or have visited a high-risk rabies country in the six months before travel.
Read the current rules at the CDC’s Bringing a Dog into the United States page. For how microchip standards and timing work in practice, see our guide on what to know about microchips for dogs and international travel.
Timing matters more than paperwork. The microchip must be implanted before the rabies vaccination for the vaccination to count in most jurisdictions. Get that order wrong and the vaccine has to be redone, which can push a move back by weeks. This is one of the most common and most expensive mistakes we see.
What If My Pet Is Too Big for the Cabin?
This is where most people planning an international move end up. The checked-baggage option has largely disappeared. American accepts checked pets only for active-duty U.S. Military and U.S. State Department Foreign Service personnel traveling on official orders. Delta’s cargo program for household pets is similarly restricted. For most travelers with a large dog, “just check him” is no longer a plan.
What remains is manifest cargo, booked through an airline’s cargo division rather than passenger reservations. This is a genuinely different process with its own kennel standards, temperature embargoes, breed restrictions, and paperwork timelines. It is also, contrary to widespread assumption, the standard and well-established way pets move internationally.
Our Ultimate Guide to Pet Cargo and Air Freight for Dogs and Cats walks through how cargo travel works and why it is often the safer choice.
Are Snub-Nosed Breeds Allowed in the Cabin?
Generally yes, and this is a point of real confusion.
The well-known brachycephalic restrictions apply to checked and cargo travel, not the cabin. American’s list of breeds it will not accept as checked pets runs to twenty entries and includes Boston Terriers, all Bulldog breeds, all Pug breeds, Shih Tzus, Pekingese, and Lhasa Apsos, plus brachycephalic cats such as Persians, Himalayans, Burmese, and Exotic Shorthairs.
So a Pug small enough for an under-seat carrier can typically fly in the cabin on a permitted route, while a Bulldog too large for the cabin has very few options at all. That asymmetry is why breed and size together, not either alone, determine what is possible. To learn more, see our article on Flying With Snub-Nosed Breeds.
Breed lists change. Check the operating airline’s current published list before booking rather than relying on any summary, including this one.
Practical Tips for Flying With a Pet in the Cabin
- Book the pet the moment you book yourself. Delta operates a first-come, first-served policy with a cap per flight: two pets in Delta First (domestic), four in Delta Comfort and Main, and none in Delta One, international Business, or Delta Premium. American caps most aircraft at twenty carriers across all cabins, but American Eagle regional jets allow just one in the premium cabin and five in the main cabin.
- Have your kennel dimensions ready when you call. Delta asks for length, width, and height when booking a pet.
- Check your seat assignment. Neither airline permits pets in bulkhead or exit-row seats. American additionally bars them from First and Business on the 777-200, 777-300ER, 787-8, and 787-9, and from seat 13D on the A321neo. Delta excludes flat-bed and Delta One seats, rows 46 to 51 on the A330-200, rows 54 to 59 on the A330-300, and center seats on the 757-200.
- Acclimate your pet to the carrier well in advance. Weeks, not days. A pet that is comfortable in the carrier at home is far less likely to be distressed in a loud, unfamiliar terminal.
- Plan for security. Delta requires you to remove your pet from the kennel at the security checkpoint. Practice holding a squirming animal while a bin goes through an X-ray, because that is the moment things go wrong.
- Do not sedate. American Airlines does not accept sedated or tranquilized pets, citing American Veterinary Medical Association guidance that sedatives raise the risk of respiratory and cardiovascular problems at altitude.
- Arrive early. You will check in at a special services counter, not a kiosk, and an agent will inspect the pet and kennel and collect the fee.
Should I Handle This Myself or Use a Pet Relocation Service?
If you are flying a ten-pound cat from Atlanta to Denver, book it yourself. The process is manageable, and this article probably covers most of what you need.
The calculus changes when your route crosses a border, your pet is too large for the cabin, your destination appears on an airline’s prohibited list, or your breed faces cargo restrictions. At that point, you are coordinating USDA-accredited veterinary paperwork against fixed timing windows, destination import permits, IATA-compliant kennels, airline cargo bookings and ground transport at both ends, with each piece dependent on the others. A microchip implanted in the wrong order or a health certificate issued a day too early can undo months of planning.
That coordination is what we have done at Animal Land Pet Movers for more than 25 years. If you are weighing options, our Myths and Facts About Pet Relocation guide addresses the assumptions that most often derail DIY plans, and our Pet Relocation FAQ answers the practical questions.
Ready to move your pet? Request a price quote, and our relocation specialists will map out the route, requirements, and timeline for your pet’s specific move. If in-cabin travel is the right answer for you, we will tell you that too.
Airline pet policies, fees, and government entry requirements change frequently. All details in this article were verified against the sources above in July 2026 and are provided for general information only. Always confirm current requirements directly with the operating airline and the relevant government authority before booking travel for your pet.
