Southwest currently allows two free items in the cabin: one carry-on bag plus one personal item per passenger on most fares.

Quick Scoop: How many carry ons on Southwest?

  • You get 1 standard carry-on bag
    • Goes in the overhead bin.
* Typical max size is around 24 x 16 x 10 inches (including wheels and handles).
  • You also get 1 personal item
    • Must fit completely under the seat in front of you.
* Examples: purse, laptop bag, small backpack, camera bag.

So in practice you can board with two cabin items: one carry-on + one personal item (not counting things like a small jacket or duty‑free bag, which are usually fine on top of that).

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.