When converting to group sow housing it is important that the environment provides good animal welfare, animal performance is maintained, and the transition is economically successful. The EU and four states have banned gestation stalls, and many retailers are pressuring producers to make plans to go stall free. Denmark and the Netherlands have both achieved high sow performance with group housing, and with proper management sow performance can be maintained except for a potential dip immediately after the transition. There are various systems available, and the four major points to consider when choosing a system are floor space allowance, feeding strategies, group mixing plans, and stockpeoples’ capabilities. Providing opportunities for sows to flee or avoid dominant sows can allow the group hierarchy to become established with less aggression and injuries. As well, using mixing strategies such as a mixing pen; sorting by size, parity, BCS, and gestational stage; and adding larger groups into a dynamic group can help reduce aggression. Temperament assessments may also help to form groups that will have less aggression. There are space guidelines for group housing, but actual space allowance should be based on behaviour, group size, and other pen features. The layout of the pen can be considered as the quality of space. There should be natural spaces for certain activities, and the layout should allow for walking and lying naturally. Space quality can be improved with dividers, environmental enrichment or bedding, and flooring type, as fully slatted floors can increase the incidences of lameness. In group housing, the stockpeople become more important for how well the system will work for production levels and sow wellbeing, and good, daily animal observations should be made. Overall, more research is needed to determine the optimum system for sow welfare and production, although the EU process of transitioning can offer valuable insights.