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Best Seats at the Kia Forum for Concerts
Few rooms in American music carry the weight of the Kia Forum. Led Zeppelin, Queen and Elton John played here when it was still the Lakers’ home, the Eagles reopened it with six sold-out nights in 2014, and Pollstar named it Arena of the Decade for the 2010s. Today it’s the only arena-sized venue in the country given over entirely to music and entertainment: a round, column-ringed bowl on Manchester Boulevard in Inglewood, next door to SoFi Stadium, with just two seating levels and no suite ring, so even the upper deck feels drawn in toward the stage.
The honest catch is the night’s end, when the lots drain slowly and a SoFi event on the same evening can lock up the whole district. Here’s where to sit, and how to handle everything around the show.
Kia Forum Seating Overview
The Forum is an oval bowl wrapped around a very large floor. For most concerts the stage goes at one end, the floor fills with lettered sections A through N (or opens as general admission), and three raked riser sections, 1–3, close off the back of the floor.
Around that floor sit only two levels: a shallow lower bowl, the 100s, at roughly 15 rows, and a deep upper bowl, the 200s, at close to 30 rows, with nothing between them. That layout decides every seat. The oversized floor pushes the lower-bowl side sections farther from the stage than at most arenas, while the missing middle tier puts the front of the 200s unusually close and at a near-perfect height.
Best Non-Premium Seats
Lower-bowl sections 110–112 and 125–127, front rows. These are the side sections nearest an end stage, and the 100 level sits high enough that row 1 looks over the floor crowd rather than into it. The tradeoff is distance and angle: the big floor leaves you farther from the performer than a comparable side seat elsewhere, and the sections angle slightly away from the stage, so you’ll be turned in your seat.
Front-center floor, sections B through D. In a reserved-floor layout, this is as close as a standard ticket gets, dead center and near the barricade. The floor is flat, though, so from the middle rows back you’re at the mercy of whoever stands in front of you. Sections A and E flank them at sharp angles to the stage.
Best Value Seats
Front rows of the side 200s, roughly rows 1–8. With no suites or club ring between the levels, these rows sit at an ideal height with a clean look over the whole production. The round bowl pushes you back from the stage, but the sightline beats most lower-level seats at other arenas.
Floor risers, sections 1–3. They’re raked, so even the back rows see over the heads in front. You’re a long way from the stage, which makes these a production-and-screens seat rather than a performer seat.
Upper rows of 110–112 and 125–127. You keep the lower-bowl angle and gain elevation, and the steep rake makes it easy to see over the rows ahead. They usually price well below the front rows of the same sections.
Budget / Cheapest Way In
Low rows in the upper corners, not high rows on the upper sides. A seat in the first ten rows of a 200-level corner often costs about the same as row 25 on the side and gives you the better view. The upper side sections are steep enough that the difference between front and back rows is dramatic, and the top rows mean climbing as many as 30 rows of stairs.
The far-end 200s, head-on to the stage. These are the lowest-priced seats in the house for an end-stage show. You see the full light and screen production straight on, but the artist is a small figure.
Kia Forum GA Floor and the Wristband Line
When the floor goes general admission, the Forum opens one of the largest GA floors of any arena in the country, and it runs a numbered-wristband system worth knowing before show day. GA holders may begin lining up at 9 a.m. on show day only, on Kareem Court south of Manchester, and numbered wristbands are handed out from 9 a.m. to about noon; your whole party has to be present to get them.
At 4 p.m. the official GA line forms in the northeast corner of the parking lot near Lot C. There’s no overnight camping, no saving places, and no lines for future dates, and chairs or tents can’t be left behind. Restrooms stay open for anyone holding their spot all day. If you bought an artist early-entry package, you skip the wristband process and follow that package’s rules instead.
Our Pick
The first five rows of lower-bowl sections 110–112 or 125–127. It’s a seated, elevated side view close to the stage with nothing between you and the show, and it avoids the lottery of standing behind someone on the flat floor.
What to Avoid (and What’s Worth Trying Once)
Sections that wrap past the stage line. For end-stage shows, the seats beside and behind the stage are either closed or sold as limited or side view. If a listing carries either label, believe it.
Row 20 and up on the upper sides. They’re steep, far from the stage, and a long climb. A low-row corner seat costs about the same and sees more.
The back half of a flat reserved floor if you’re short. Once the crowd stands, you’ll watch the screens. The risers or the 100s are the better buy.
Worth it once: the GA floor for an artist you love. It’s a long day if you want a spot near the barricade, but a packed Forum floor is one of the great standing-room experiences in American music.
Premium Seating at the Kia Forum
The Forum has no luxury suites. Its premium product is a set of boxes built into the front of the upper level, which happens to be the best-height seat in the building.
The Best Premium Experience
City National Bank Legends Boxes. These are open-front lounge areas at the bottom of select 200-level sections, furnished with couches and a table instead of stadium seats, with a dedicated server bringing food and drinks. They come with fast-pass entry and VIP parking passes. Boxes are sized for about 4, 8 or 12 guests, and the venue quotes roughly $1,500 to $10,000 per event depending on the artist and the box.
Best Value Premium
Individual box seats on the resale market. Legends Box tickets sometimes turn up as individual seats rather than whole boxes, which gets you the couch, the server and the upper-level sightline for a fraction of a group booking. For two people celebrating something, this is the move.
Other Premium Options
Artist VIP packages are sold by the tour, not the venue, and usually bundle early entry, merch and a premium seat. Preferred parking in the lot closest to the box office is often available as an add-on and is the cheapest upgrade that actually changes your night, because it gets you out faster.
Suites & Group Options
Groups book whole Legends Boxes per event through the Kia Forum’s premium site, and availability rarely lasts to the week of a big show. Catering can be pre-ordered, and limited overflow tickets can be added at extra cost.
Kia Forum Seating Chart & Capacity
The Kia Forum holds about 17,500 people for its biggest concerts, which makes it smaller and more intimate than Crypto.com Arena downtown. One seat-numbering quirk helps on the chart: in each section, seat 1 is on your left as you face the floor, and lower-bowl rows run only about a dozen seats wide, so getting in and out is quick.
The Forum doesn’t publish a fixed seating chart, because the floor and stage are redrawn for every production. The website “A View from my Seat” will give you a great overall view of the different angles however.
Who Plays at the Kia Forum?
No sports team calls the Forum home. The Lakers and Kings played here from 1967 until they moved downtown in 1999, and the Sparks followed in 2001. Today it hosts concerts, comedy, award shows and combat sports. The Clippers play under a mile south at Intuit Dome, which shares the Forum’s owner, and SoFi Stadium sits across Prairie Avenue.
Getting the Best Kia Forum Tickets
Ticketmaster is the primary seller, and every ticket is mobile-only. Signing up for the venue’s newsletter on its website gets you presale access, and that’s where the best face-value seats for big names disappear. The box office is open Fridays from noon to 6 p.m. and from noon until showtime on event days. Artists often book multi-night runs here, so if one date sells out, check the others before paying resale. For sold-out shows, check out our partner Vivid Seats as they usually have a deep inventory of tickets.
Kia Forum Events & Upcoming Shows
The Forum’s calendar runs across rock, pop, Latin, K-pop, hip-hop and comedy, with frequent multi-night stands. The full, current calendar lives on the official Kia Forum events page, and each event page lists that night’s parking, terrace opening time and any show-specific rules.
Kia Forum Bag Policy & Rules
Allowed: clear bags up to 12 x 6 x 12 inches, one-gallon clear freezer bags, and clutches or wristlets up to 9 x 6 inches, which don’t need to be clear. Diaper and medical bags are permitted with the person who needs them. Everything is searched, including x-ray screening, and entry runs through walk-through metal detectors. Regular backpacks don’t qualify, and some artists set stricter rules, so check your show’s event page.
Key Venue Policies
Cashless. Cards and mobile pay only, with cash-to-card kiosks inside the venue.
Mobile tickets only. Screenshots and printouts are not accepted.
Outside food and drink. Not allowed, except one factory-sealed water bottle of 20 oz or less.
Cameras. Non-professional and disposable cameras are fine; detachable or telephoto lenses, video cameras, GoPros, tripods and selfie sticks are not, and some shows ban photography entirely.
Alcohol. Limit of two drinks per transaction, and anyone who appears 40 or younger is asked for ID.
The Kia Forum has a dedicated accessibility page, and accessible seating is sold through the regular ticketing channels.
Getting to the Kia Forum
Most people drive, and the parking is on-site, so driving is the practical choice. What matters is the exit. Check whether SoFi Stadium, YouTube Theater or Intuit Dome has an event the same night, because two crowds leaving at once turn every nearby street and garage into a queue.
Kia Forum Parking
The Forum’s own lots, including the Prairie Lot and the Kareem Lot, surround the building and are sold in advance through JustPark, the official parking partner. Rates vary by event, lots usually open three hours before showtime and close one hour after, and payment is cashless. There’s no tailgating of any kind, and once a show is 30 minutes underway you can’t hang out in the lot. Prepaid spots are first-come within the lot, and big nights sell out, so buy parking with your tickets.
The smarter play is the event lot at Kelso Elementary, directly across Prairie Avenue. It’s usually cheaper than the Forum’s lots, proceeds support Inglewood schools, and because you’re not in the venue’s exit queue, you’re out while the main lots are still crawling. Private lots along Prairie Avenue north of Manchester, a 7- to 10-minute walk, do the same job, but steer clear of any garage that also serves SoFi on nights both venues let out together.
Public Transit
Take the Metro K Line to Downtown Inglewood station, then walk about a mile down Market Street and Manchester Boulevard, roughly 20 minutes, or ride Metro bus 115 along Manchester. From the C Line, bus 212 runs from Hawthorne/Lennox station up Prairie Avenue to the venue. For some of the biggest shows, Metro adds free shuttles from both stations, announced on the event page. Check last-train times before you go, because a late encore leaves little margin.
Rideshare
Lyft is the Forum’s official rideshare partner, and drop-offs are allowed at all entrances. Pickup after the show is the problem: the designated zone backs up and prices surge. Walk north on Prairie or across Manchester, away from the lot exits, before you request, and your wait will be shorter and your fare lower.
Kia Forum Insider Tips
A Forum night starts on the terrace and ends in the parking lot, and the difference between a great night and a long one is mostly timing. These are the things that help most.
The History of the Fabulous Forum
Lakers and Kings owner Jack Kent Cooke opened the Forum on December 30, 1967, with a Kings game, in a building architect Charles Luckman modeled on a Roman coliseum. Its ring of columns holds up a cable-suspended roof about 407 feet across, leaving the interior free of support pillars. Aretha Franklin played the first concert in January 1968. Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn gave it the nickname that stuck, “the Fabulous Forum,” and it was the stage for the Showtime Lakers, the Kings’ Wayne Gretzky years and basketball at the 1984 Olympics.
The teams left in 1999, and a church owned the building through the 2000s. Madison Square Garden bought it in 2012, rebuilt it as a concert venue with upgraded acoustics and one of the country’s largest GA floors, and reopened it in January 2014. It joined the National Register of Historic Places that year. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer bought it for $400 million in 2020, clearing the way for Intuit Dome, and Kia took the naming rights in 2022. Since the reopening, it has hosted Harry Styles’ 15-night residency and Kendrick Lamar’s Juneteenth 2024 Pop Out show.
Arrival and Entry
Use the terrace before doors. The outdoor terrace circling the building opens to anyone who scans a ticket, with food and drink for sale, a Grab & Go stand on the northeast side, and the designated smoking areas. Each event page lists that night’s terrace opening time.
Get your ticket into your phone wallet before you park. Screenshots won’t scan, and fumbling with an app at the metal detectors slows the whole line.
Arrive earlier than you think. Every guest goes through metal detectors and bags get x-rayed, so security lines grow fast in the last half hour before the opener.
Kia Forum Food & Drink
Get a Carney’s chili dog. The LA burger and hot dog institution runs a stand inside, along with Papa Cantella’s sausages and hot dogs.
Use the checkout-free stores when lines build. The Forum has two grab-and-go markets with snacks, hot food, beer and cocktails; you walk out without a register, and staff check ID for alcohol.
Eat in Inglewood beforehand. Concession food is fine but the neighborhood is better, and the terrace lets you arrive fed and still settle in early.
Getting Out After the Show
Check SoFi Stadium’s calendar before you pick where to park. The Forum’s lots sell parking for SoFi events too, and on nights both let out together, drivers report sitting in garages for close to an hour.
Leave during the encore or wait it out. Either beat the rush by five minutes or stay put for 30 and let the lot clear, because the middle option is the worst of both.
Know which way you’re exiting. The main lot drains toward both Prairie Avenue and Kareem Court, and attendants don’t always direct traffic, so decide on your route before you start the car.
Best Photo Spots
Shoot the colonnade as the sky darkens. The ring of white columns is the Forum’s signature, and the terrace gives you room to get the whole curve in frame.
Look for it from the plane. The Forum sits under the eastern approach to LAX, and on landing the round roof is easy to pick out beside SoFi.
Finish at Randy’s Donuts. The giant rooftop donut is under two miles west on Manchester, it’s open 24 hours, and it’s the post-show photo every visitor wants.
Bringing Kids to the Kia Forum
Buy a ticket for every child. Everyone needs a ticket regardless of age, unlike arenas that allow toddlers on a lap. Events are all-ages unless noted.
Pack a diaper bag instead of a backpack. Diaper bags are allowed with the person using them; regular backpacks aren’t.
Kia Forum Quirks
Leave the face paint and balloons at home. Both are on the prohibited list, which surprises K-pop and themed-show fans. Signs are capped at 11 x 17 inches and must relate to the show.
Don’t bring a laptop straight from work. Laptops, tablets and computers are banned, and the venue doesn’t list a bag check to fall back on.
Know where first aid is. The First Aid office is on the east concourse across from sections 227–228.
Hotels Near the Kia Forum
The Forum sits in a mostly residential stretch of Inglewood, so walkable hotel choice is thin. The better approach is picking an area 10 to 20 minutes away and driving or riding in, and on nights when SoFi hosts a major event, the closest rooms fill early.
Best Areas to Stay
Hollywood Park and Century Boulevard, a mile south, is the only area with a walk-or-quick-ride to the Forum and a couple of places to eat and drink. The LAX and El Segundo corridor, 10 to 15 minutes west, has the most rooms and the easiest airport run. Westchester and Culver City trade a 20-minute drive for better restaurants, and Manhattan Beach puts you by the ocean about 20 minutes south. Staying downtown means fighting the 110 or the 405 both ways.
Hotel Recommendations
The Anthem Los Angeles Stadium District, Tapestry by Hilton is the closest real hotel, across from Intuit Dome about a mile south of the Forum. It has a pool, balconies and a sports bar and rooftop restaurant next door. There’s no self-park lot, so you’re paying for valet.
Hotel June West LA is a relaxed boutique hotel in Westchester with a pool scene and a cantina, about 20 minutes from the Forum. It’s the comfortable-middle pick if you want the stay to feel like part of the trip.
westdrift Manhattan Beach is a resort-style splurge beside a golf course, a short drive from the beach. Rooms are aging in places, and service charges get added to food and drinks.
The Culver Hotel is a 1924 landmark in the middle of downtown Culver City, with a lively bar and dozens of restaurants on the doorstep. The rooms are small and show their age, and that’s the price of the character.
Hampton Inn & Suites LAX El Segundo is the dependable pick near the beach cities, with a solid breakfast and a quick run to Inglewood from the western end of the 105.
Budget Options
Hampton Inn Los Angeles Airport LAX, on La Cienega in Inglewood, is clean, modern and about a 10-minute drive from the Forum. Parking costs extra.
Hollywood Park Motel on Prairie Avenue is within a 10-minute walk of the Forum and parking is free, so you’ll be asleep before the lots empty. Reviews swing from spotless to filthy, so read the most recent ones before booking.
Before & After the Show in Inglewood
A Forum night works best if you give Inglewood an hour. The old downtown along Market Street, a mile north near the K Line, is where locals go: a coffee at Sip & Sonder, a drink at a bar that stays open late, and soul food on Manchester. To the south, Century Boulevard around Hollywood Park and Intuit Dome has the newer sports bars and a rooftop, built for crowds heading to SoFi and the Dome.
Best Pregame & Postgame Bars
The Nile Restaurant and Bar on Market Street is the late-night move, with a DJ, wings and salmon bites, and service that slows down when it’s packed. Tom’s Watch Bar on Century Boulevard is a big-screen sports bar that works for groups.
Cork & Batter, next to it, has a rooftop with sunset views and good crispy rice and cocktails. Lounge 1888, beside Intuit Dome, is the grown-up option, with a jazz-leaning DJ and a proper cocktail list.
Best Restaurants in the Area
Dulan’s Soul Food Kitchen on Manchester is an Inglewood institution for oxtails, fried chicken and cornbread, and it closes early in the evening, so make it your pre-show dinner. Fiesta Martin on Florence Avenue is a busy Mexican spot for carne asada and margaritas before the show.
The Serving Spoon on Centinela is the next-morning breakfast, family-run and always busy. Randy’s Donuts is open 24 hours for the drive home.
Why You Should Go
Sooner or later, every great Los Angeles concert story seems to pass through this building. Walk under those white columns on a warm Inglewood evening and you’re stepping into the same round bowl where Showtime ran and Zeppelin roared, now tuned for nothing but music, with a floor that turns into one enormous sea of people when the lights go down. Come for an artist you’d cross town for, on a night SoFi is dark, and when you arrive, take a drink out to the terrace and watch the colonnade light up before you go in.
Explore all of our Southern California guides
Rose Bowl and the L.A Coliseum
Intuit Dome and Crypto.com Arena
Dodger Stadium and Angel Stadium in Anaheim
Written by Brad Richards. Founder of Gameday Guides. This guide includes insights from personal visits as well as updated info from team sources, fan forums, and stadium policies. We aim to help you plan with confidence — enjoy your gameday. If you have any tips, if we missed anything or you have a question, don’t hesitate to shoot us an email.