How to create custom airport codes
Custom airport codes let you group multiple airports together and search them as a single code. This is useful when you plan trips by region or activity, not by one specific airport.
Instead of running the same search multiple times, you can define your own group once and reuse it anywhere Search or Alerts accept airport codes.
Why custom airport codes exist
Many travelers do not think in single airports.
You might be flexible across a region.
You might care more about the type of trip than the exact city.
You might want to consistently include or exclude the same group of airports.
Custom airport codes help reduce noise and make searches faster and more relevant.
Common ways people use custom airport codes
Activity-based airport groupings
You can group airports near similar activities, like ski destinations, and search them all at once.
Example ski destinations group:
DEN, EGE, ASE, HDN, MTJ, GUC, SLC, JAC, BZN
Breaking up very large regions
If a region like Asia feels too broad, you can create smaller groupings that better match how you actually plan travel.
Example groupings:
East Asia: NRT, HND, ICN, PEK, PVG
Middle East: DXB, AUH, DOH, RUH, JED
Personal flexibility groupings
Some users create custom codes for destinations that don’t have built-in metro groupings, or for trips where they are flexible across nearby airports.
For example, you might create a “Weekend Escape” group that includes a few airports within a short drive or flight:
OAK, SJC, SMF, SFO
This lets you search or set alerts across all of them at once, without running the same search multiple times.
How to create a custom airport code
- Go to Settings
- Click the Preferences tab
- Scroll to the Search section
- Find Custom Airport Codes
- Click Add Custom Code
- Enter the airport codes you want to group together
- Save your preferences
Once saved, your custom airport code can be used anywhere you would normally enter an airport code.
How to use custom airport codes
After creating a custom code, type it into the origin or destination field in Search or Alerts.
Seats.aero will treat it the same as entering all included airports at once.
This makes it easy to stay flexible without repeating searches.
A quick note on expectations
Custom airport codes do not create new availability or change inventory. They simply group airports to make searching easier.
If results look limited, double-check that the airports you want are included in the custom code.