Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card overview
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card is the most rewarding of Southwest Airlines’ personal credit cards, offering a $75 annual Southwest credit and 7,500 anniversary bonus points. With the most benefits of any of the airline’s offerings, this is the card to get if you’re a Southwest loyalist. Card Rating*: ⭐⭐⭐½
*Card rating is based on the opinion of TPG’s editors and is not influenced by the card issuer.
Southwest Airlines has a legion of fans — largely due to its flexible change/cancellation policies and offering two free checked bags for all passengers. Unlike other airlines, Southwest doesn’t offer lounges, premium cabins or even seating with extra legroom.
But it does offer a full suite of cobranded credit cards to help frequent flyers fulfill their Southwest travel goals.
This card won the Best Airline Cobranded Credit Card award in the 2023 TPG Awards.
The Southwest Priority card has a recommended credit score of 670 or above and is the most premium personal credit card in the Southwest lineup.
But are its benefits valuable enough to warrant the $149 annual fee? And is now the right time for you to apply? Let’s find out.
Southwest Priority Credit Card pros and cons
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Southwest Priority Credit Card welcome offer
New Southwest Priority cardholders can earn a welcome bonus of 40,000 bonus points and a $400 statement credit after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first four months of account opening. This offer ends Dec 16.
According to TPG’s November 2024 valuations, this welcome offer is worth up to $960 when including the statement credit. The bonus points will also help you get much closer to securing a Companion Pass, which requires earning 135,000 points in a calendar year.
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In order to maximize the Companion Pass for 2025 and 2026, it’s best to wait to apply for the card until December. Then, after your December statement date, complete the minimum spending requirement to receive your bonus points in January. This should help you obtain a Companion Pass for 2025 and 2026 (rather than the rest of 2024 and 2025 if your bonus points arrive in December).
Note that Southwest cards are subject to Chase’s 5/24 rule. If you’ve opened five or more credit cards in the past 24 months (from all banks, not just Chase), you may not be approved.
In addition, you can’t open a new personal Southwest card if you have one open. You also won’t be able to get a new welcome bonus from a personal Southwest card if you’ve received one in the past 24 months.
Related: 15 lessons from 15 years’ worth of Southwest Companion Passes
Southwest Priority Credit Card benefits
The Southwest Priority card offers the following benefits, with the first two more than offsetting the annual fee:
- Anniversary bonus: On your card anniversary each year, you’ll receive 7,500 Rapid Rewards points, worth $105 based on TPG’s November 2024 valuations.
- Annual Southwest travel credit: During each cardmember year, you’ll receive a $75 travel credit that can be used on most Southwest purchases, including tickets (excluding upgraded boardings and inflight purchases).
- 25% inflight savings: Receive 25% back (as a statement credit) after you use your card to purchase inflight drinks and Wi-Fi.
- Tier qualifying points boost: Earn 1,500 TQPs that count toward A-List and A-List Preferred status for each $5,000 you spend in a calendar year.
- Four upgraded boardings per year
In addition to the Southwest-specific benefits, the card comes with lost luggage reimbursement, baggage delay insurance, extended warranty protection and purchase protection.
These perks are valuable to one TPG reader, who said they frequent a Southwest hub:
“Great travel benefits and insurance plus Southwest perks like free upgrades and opportunities to earn a lot of points. It’s the one I will pick as long as I live near a Southwest hub.” — Trisha M via a TPG Newsletter survey
Note: Reader-submitted responses have not been edited, reviewed or approved by the issuers nor reflect TPG’s opinions of these cards.
The card also has no foreign transaction fees, so it’s a good choice for spending abroad.
Related: How to get airline elite status
Earning points with the Southwest Priority Credit Card
Here’s what you’ll earn with the Southwest Priority card:
- 3 points per dollar on Southwest purchases
- 2 points per dollar spent with Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partners
- 2 points per dollar on local transit and commuting, including ride-hailing apps
- 2 points per dollar on internet, cable and phone services; select streaming
- 1 point per dollar on all other purchases
This airline credit card offers a wider variety of bonus categories than other airline credit cards, though top travel cards are typically even more lucrative.
You’ll earn 4.2% back on Southwest purchases and 2.8% back on select purchases (according to TPG’s November 2024 valuations), which is not a bad rate of return for a cobranded credit card.
However, this may not be the best Southwest card for you if you don’t book Southwest flights often or prefer to use other portals for hotel and rental car bookings.
Related: The best rewards credit cards for each bonus category
Redeeming points with the Southwest Priority Credit Card
Redeeming Rapid Rewards points with the Southwest Priority card is very straightforward. Southwest award prices are directly tied to the cash value of the ticket, meaning the number of points you need for a flight will fluctuate, but you’ll rarely encounter times when you can’t use your points. Plus, you can redeposit your award without penalty if your plans change.
While Southwest’s points won’t help you fly in first-class suites, they can provide great value. For instance, you can fly from Los Angeles (LAX) to Chicago-Midway (MDW) for as few as 4,701 points one-way, depending on the time of year. Meanwhile, other airlines often charge 10,000 miles or even more (assuming you can find availability).
If you book during one of Southwest’s flash sales, you could score awards for less than 2,500 points one-way. You can even fly to fun faraway destinations like Hawaii, Costa Rica and Mexico with your Southwest points.
For instance, TPG credit cards editor Emily Thompson recently took advantage of one of these sales to book a round-trip ticket between Nashville (BNA) and San Jose, California (SJC) for under 25,000 points. If you’re flying to one of Southwest’s destinations, you can find a great deal on points.
Related: Why I choose Southwest every time
Which cards compete with the Southwest Priority Credit Card?
Southwest Airlines offers three personal cards, so you can choose the one that fits you best.
- If you want Southwest benefits with a more modest fee: The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card is the mid-tier card in the Southwest lineup, with a $99 annual fee. Its benefits include 6,000-anniversary bonus points, two EarlyBird Check-ins per year and 25% back on inflight purchases. To learn more, read our full review of the Southwest Premier card.
- If you want a Southwest card with an even lower annual fee: The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card has a $69 annual fee and an anniversary bonus of 3,000 points. You’ll also receive two EarlyBird Check-ins every year and 25% back on inflight purchases. To learn more, read our full review of the Southwest Plus card.
- If you want transferable points to use with Southwest and other airlines: The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which you can transfer 1:1 to Southwest and a wide range of other airlines for making flight redemptions. You’ll get numerous travel protections, a $50 annual hotel credit on hotel bookings made through Chase Travel℠ and robust earning categories for a $95 annual fee. To learn more, read our full review of the Sapphire Preferred.
The information for the Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
For more options, check out our full list of travel credit cards.
Related: Comparing the Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority, Premier, and Plus Credit Cards
Is the Southwest Priority Credit Card worth it?
If you fly Southwest at least a few times each year, you will come out ahead with the Southwest Priority card. The card’s everyday earning rates aren’t the most lucrative, but impressive built-in perks like upgraded boardings, a $75 annual travel credit and a 7,500-point anniversary bonus easily make up for it. However, if you fly Southwest less often, you’ll likely prefer another of our other favorite airline cards.
Bottom line
The Southwest Priority card is the most rewarding of Southwest Airlines’ personal credit cards, allowing you to earn a good stash of points and get the most benefits of any of the airline’s offerings. If you fly Southwest often, this is the best Southwest card for you.
However, if you don’t fly Southwest often or want to keep your annual fee costs lower, you may want to opt for one of the other Southwest cobranded cards or a card that earns transferable rewards.
Apply here: Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card
Related: How to pick the right travel credit card for you
