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Despite a few patches of operational turbulence earlier in 2023, Southwest remains one of America’s most popular airlines. It’s unique among U.S. airlines with trailblazing policies of charging no fees for checked bags or ticket changes. In terms of passenger load, Southwest is the third largest airline in the United States, with only Delta Air Lines and American Airlines carrying more passengers in 2022. As of December 2022, Southwest Airlines reached an impressive 121 airports, with a truly robust route network of flights both within the United States (including Hawai‘i) and to nearby international destinations, including Mexico, Aruba, Belize, and Costa Rica.
Beyond its popularity as an air carrier, Southwest is also revered for its portfolio of cobranded credit cards, which offer numerous travel benefits while carrying low annual fees. The cards always carry some sort of introductory bonus to sweeten the sign-up deal, typically around the 50,000-point mark. But now, introductory offers on all of Southwest’s three personal cards have been upped to a valuable two-part welcome bonus: 60,000 points plus a one-time 30 percent off promo code for travel on Southwest.
You can earn this bonus on the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card, Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card, or Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card after spending $3,000 within the first three months of card membership. (Previous promotions have required a minimum of $5,000 in spending.) Moreover, this increased bonus, when combined with the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card and its current 80,000-points welcome offer (after spending $5,000 in the first three months of card membership) could land you a valuable Southwest Companion Pass for the rest of 2023 and 2024.
Here, all the reasons you should consider these Southwest credit cards with the current promotion.
Getting a Southwest credit card for the points, benefits, and discount code
Southwest Rapid Rewards points are loosely pegged to a dollar value—each point is worth between 1.3 to 1.45 cents when redeemed for the airline’s cheapest “Wanna Get Away” fares. That means that a 60,000 Rapid Rewards points bonus is worth approximately $780–$870 on Southwest flights.
Next, the 30 percent off promo code promises even more savings. The code will appear directly in cardholders’ Southwest.com account after spending $3,000 during the first three months of card membership. The one-time 30 percent discount will apply to the base fare applied before taxes and fees and will be available for use until October 31, 2024. There is no limit to its value, but in most instances it should yield a value of one or several hundred dollars.
In addition to the intro offers, great travel benefits are bundled into Southwest’s cards. Depending on the card, benefits may include bonus points for eligible spending in select categories, passes for complimentary EarlyBird Check-In on Southwest flights (pending availability), and annual fee credits for Rapid Rewards points transfers.
Getting Southwest credit cards for a Companion Pass
Hefty intro bonuses make it easier to earn Southwest’s ultra-valuable Companion Pass, which is essentially a voucher good for unlimited two-for-one travel on both paid and award tickets on Southwest Airlines. Earning a Companion Pass requires 135,000 Companion Pass qualifying points or flying 100 qualifying one-way flights in a calendar year.
Thankfully, welcome bonuses count as qualifying points, presenting an almost too-good-to-be-true fast track. In fact, if you double-down on Southwest credit cards, with a personal card under the current 60,000-points offer and the Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business Credit Card with a current 80,000-points welcome offer, you could quickly land Southwest’s coveted Companion Pass for the rest of 2023 and all of 2024.
The differences between Southwest’s branded credit cards
All of Southwest’s cards are great, but choosing which one(s) comes down to personal preference. There are five credit cards, each beginning with a “P”: Plus, Premier, Priority, Premier Business, and Performance Business. The difference between each “P” lies in the annual fee and package of benefits.
The three personal credit cards—Plus, Premier, and Priority—are the ones with increased introductory offers, which are slightly higher than the usual amount of 50,000 points.
All three personal cards award two points per dollar spent on local transit and commuting purchases (including rideshares), internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming purchases. Additionally, all three have the exact same welcome offer: You’ll earn 60,000 points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months your account is open as well as a 30 percent off promo code for travel on Southwest Airlines.
On the other hand, the three cards grant different earnings on Southwest Airlines purchases and promise different annual benefits, such as account anniversary bonuses. Below are the three personal cards with the most pertinent information and benefits.
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card
With the lowest annual fee, the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card still packs in the points.
- Welcome offer: Earn 60,000 Rapid Rewards points after you spend $3,000 within the first three months of account opening plus a 30 percent off promo code for travel on Southwest Airlines.
- Annual fee: $69
- Earnings on purchases: Earn two points per dollar spent on purchases with Southwest, its hotel and car rental partners, local transit and commuting purchases (including rideshares), internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming purchases. Get one point per dollar on everything else.
- Primary Southwest benefits: Two EarlyBird Check-Ins per year; an account anniversary bonus of 3,000 points annually
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card is a higher-end version with a higher annual fee and better benefits.
- Welcome offer: The bonus and terms are the same as those offered by the Southwest Plus card.
- Annual fee: $99
- Earnings on purchases: Same as the Plus card, except three points per dollar spent on Southwest purchases
- Primary Southwest benefits: Two EarlyBird Check-Ins per year; an account anniversary bonus of 6,000 points annually
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card is the most premium personal credit card Southwest offers, with some additional benefits to match.
- Welcome offer: The bonus and terms are the same as those offered with the Southwest Plus and Southwest Premier cards.
- Annual fee: $149
- Earnings on purchases: Same as the Southwest Premier card
- Primary Southwest benefits: Four Upgraded Boardings per year; an account anniversary bonus of 7,500 points annually; an annual $75 Southwest travel credit; 25 percent back on Southwest in-flight drinks and Wi-Fi
Besides these three personal credit cards, Southwest also has two business credit cards, Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card and Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card, each with significant introductory bonuses (60,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months and 80,000 points after spending $5,000 in the first three months, respectively) and benefits. If you have an enterprise—big or small . . . as in sole proprietor small—you can apply for a business credit card. While you can’t have two different personal cards or two different business cards, you can have both a personal and a business card and follow our aforementioned advice for a coveted Companion Pass.
Which card to choose and why apply now
Thanks to these new welcome offers on personal cards, now is a great time to apply for Southwest credit cards. With the current bonuses, any personal card is a smart choice. Which one you choose depends on how much you value the earnings structure and primary benefits versus the annual fee. We do like the higher-end Priority card for its numerous perks and credits. Yet for most, it makes sense to start with the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card, which carries a nominal $69 annual fee but still yields nearly a thousand dollars in value on Southwest flights with the bonus points and discount code combined.
If you want to go even further with your new Southwest miles, consider aiming for Southwest’s coveted Companion Pass. The timing of high introductory offers on personal cards and the current bonus on Southwest’s higher-end business card places this pass, essentially a free ticket for a travel companion on every flight, within easy reach. Combined welcome offers of the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card and the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card amount to 140,000 points, even more than what’s needed to land Southwest’s Companion Pass for the rest of 2023 and 2024.
This article was originally published in 2022; it was updated most recently on May 25, 2023, with current information. While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they are subject to change at any time, and may have changed or may no longer be available.
