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Offers for the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card are not available through this site. Some offers may have expired. Please see our card marketplace for available offers
Southwest Airlines is regularly praised for its top-value airfares, flexible travel rules, and the many destinations it serves. Simply, there's a lot to LUV about Southwest. And if you fly the airline with any frequency, it's worth considering the benefits of adding a Southwest co-branded credit card to your wallet. Not to mention, you can earn a stack of Rapid Rewards points when you apply for one and meet the minimum spending requirements.
Let's examine the valuable offers and benefits of the Southwest cards to see if one is right for you!
- Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- 3,000 anniversary points each year.
- Earn 2X points on Southwest® purchases.
- Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
- Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
- 2 EarlyBird Check-In® each year.
- Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
- Member FDIC
- Rates & Fees
- 2X points per $1 spent on Southwest® purchases and Rapid Rewards® Hotel and Car Rental Partner purchases
- 2X points per $1 spent on local transit and commuting, including rideshare
- 2X points per $1 spent on internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming services
- 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases
Southwest Airlines Credit Card Welcome Offers
Southwest offers five travel rewards credit cards — three for personal use and two for business. Here are all five cards and their current sign-up bonuses:
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card: Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card : Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card: Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees): Earn 60,000 points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open.
- Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card: Earn 80,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Related: Why Southwest Rapid Rewards Is the Easiest Airline Loyalty Program
Anniversary Bonus Points
All five Southwest cards provide bonus points on your account anniversary. This helps offset the cost of holding the card over the long term. Southwest points are typically worth around 1.52¢ each. That value suggests you're banking around $15 in flight savings for every 1,000 points you earn. Here are the extra points you get with each card and their approximate value:
- Southwest Plus Card: 3,000 points ($45)
- Southwest Premier Card: 6,000 points ($90)
- Southwest Priority Card : 7,500 points ($113)
- Southwest Premier Business Card: 6,000 points ($90)
- Southwest Performance Business Card: 9,000 points ($135)
There are no yearly spending minimums or other requirements to earn these extra points — just keep your card open and pay its annual fee. Since Rapid Rewards points don't expire, most Southwest flyers should count these bonus points at close to face value. They'll be safe in your frequent flyer account until you're ready to convert them into travel savings.
For the cards with an annual fee under $100, the anniversary bonus comes within $20 of covering the cost of keeping the card long-term. For more frequent Southwest flyers, the Southwest Priority Card and Southwest Performance Business Card bring a slew of additional perks that can make them worthwhile.
- Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- 7,500 anniversary points each year.
- Earn 3X points on Southwest® purchases.
- Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
- Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
- $75 Southwest® travel credit each year.
- No foreign transaction fees.
- Member FDIC
- Rates & Fees
- 3X points per $1 spent on all Southwest® purchases
- 2X points per $1 spent on all Rapid Rewards® Hotel and Car Rental Partner purchases
- 2X points per $1 spent on local transit and commuting, including rideshare
- 2X points per $1 spent on internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming services
- 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases
- Earn 80,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- 9,000 bonus points after your Cardmember anniversary.
- Earn 4X pts on Southwest® purchases.
- Earn 3X points on Rapid Rewards® hotel and car rental partners.
- Earn 2X points on rideshare.
- Earn 2X points on social media and search engine advertising, internet, cable, and phone services and 1X points on all other purchases.
- 4 Upgraded Boardings per year when available.
- Member FDIC
- Rates & Fees
- 4X points per $1 spent on Southwest® purchases
- 3X points per $1 spent on Rapid Rewards® hotel and car partners
- 2X points per $1 spent on social media and search engine advertising, Internet, cable and phone services
- 2X points per $1 spent on rideshare
- 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases
How Many Rapid Reward Points Will I Earn?
The Southwest Performance Business Card earns the most points for purchases from the airline, with 4x earnings on Southwest purchases and 3x on hotel and car rental purchases made through Southwest. It also offers extra points for popular small-business spending categories, including 2x on social media and search engine advertising, internet, cable, and phone services.
Here's a by-card breakdown of how many Rapid Rewards points you'll earn on your spending, plus a preview of some of their headline benefits:
| CARD | EARNING RATE |
|---|---|
| Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card | Receive 3,000 anniversary points each year. Enjoy benefits including 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare, 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming, 2 Early Bird Check-In® each year, 10,000 Companion Pass® qualifying points boost each year, and more. |
| Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card | Receive 6,000 anniversary points each year. Enjoy benefits including 3X points on Southwest® purchases, 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare, 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming, 2 Early Bird Check-In® each year, 10,000 Companion Pass® qualifying points boost each year, and more. |
| Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card | Receive 7,500 anniversary points, 4 upgraded boardings per year when available, and a $75 Southwest® travel credit each year. Enjoy benefits including 3X points on Southwest purchases, 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare, 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming, 10,000 Companion Pass® qualifying points boost each year, and more. |
| Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card | Earn 3 points per $1 spent on Southwest® purchases. Earn 2 points per $1 spent on Rapid Rewards® hotel and car rental partners. Earn 2 points per $1 spent on local transit and commuting, including rideshare. Earn 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. |
| Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card | Earn 4 points per $1 spent on Southwest® purchases. Earn 3 points per $1 spent on Rapid Rewards® hotel and car rental partners. Earn 2 points per $1 spent on local transit and commuting, including rideshare. Earn 2 points per $1 spent on social media and search engine advertising, internet, cable, and phone services. Earn 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. |
Use These Cards To Qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass
The Southwest Companion Pass is one of the most sought-after perks in award travel. It allows the passholder to take a companion on every Southwest flight, for just the mandatory taxes and fees, for at least one year. This pass is good for revenue tickets and award flights paid with Rapid Rewards points.
From the Southwest T&C's:
Companion Pass Qualifying Points are earned from revenue flights booked through Southwest Airlines, points earned on Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Credit Cards, and base points earned from Rapid Rewards Partners.
So, any points earned on your Southwest co-brand credit cards, including the signup bonus, will count towards your Companion Pass qualification. The other thing to note is that if you earn the Companion Pass early in the year, you get to keep it for the rest of that year, plus the entire following year.
For example, if you earn the pass early in July 2025, you'll keep the pass for the rest of 2025 and all the way through December 31, 2026. Catch all the details in our post covering how to earn the Southwest Companion Pass.
Easy Redemption Process
Redeeming your Rapid Rewards points with Southwest Airlines is easy. Book your flights and opt to use your points during the reservation process. There are no blackout dates, and as long as there's a seat available on the flight, it’s yours if you have the points. Other travel rewards programs have significant limitations on when and how to use the points, so this is a breath of fresh air.
Annual Fees
Annual fees on the Southwest cards will set you back:
- $69 on the Southwest Plus Card
- $99 on the Southwest Premier Card
- $149 on the Southwest Priority Card
- $99 on the Southwest Premier Business Card
- $199 on the Southwest Performance Business Card
Bottom Line
While the Southwest Rapid Rewards travel rewards credit cards are straightforward and attractive to passengers who travel Southwest Airlines, there are few high-end perks to look forward to. There are no travel partners you can creatively combine points with to get even more flexibility and value out of your points, but you can get your money’s worth out of the cards if you are a frequent Southwest traveler and want to keep things as simple as possible.
You can earn a lot of points, and redeeming them is fairly simple. It can also be very valuable if you earn the Southwest Companion Pass; these cards are now the fastest way to get there.
- Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- 3,000 anniversary points each year.
- Earn 2X points on Southwest® purchases.
- Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
- Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
- 2 EarlyBird Check-In® each year.
- Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
- Member FDIC
- Rates & Fees
- 2X points per $1 spent on Southwest® purchases and Rapid Rewards® Hotel and Car Rental Partner purchases
- 2X points per $1 spent on local transit and commuting, including rideshare
- 2X points per $1 spent on internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming services
- 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card (Rates & Fees), and Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
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