I fly regularly with Ryanair as they offer the best timing for my most frequently visited destinations and I am conveniently located for Stansted.
As of this year I have switched so as long as price difference is not more than £20-£30 I will book another airline (as long as timing is not too dissimilar). This has reduced the number of Ryanair flights I take by half. This makes me very happy - worth it just so I don’t have to listen to that trumpet.
the main reason I switched is their seating policy. I have realised the following, which I hope some of you find useful.
if you are travelling with a companion you stand a much higher chance of getting allocated 2 middle seats with space next to you for one companion to pay and move so you can sit with each other. If travelling solo you are much more likely to get aisle or or window so as to keep pairs of side-by-side seats open and available for when they split groups up.
This won’t always work and if there are stray middle seats there’s a good chance you’ll be allocated it as a solo traveller.
As a result, if I am travelling with someone we always make separate reservations now. Like this you don’t end up next to each other but usually close and with a much better seat to potential swap someone (if that’s important to you).
The flip side of a single booking is you usually only have to pay for one seat in order for 2 people to sit together. Just buy the seat after checkin.