(EXPIRED) [Last call] Increased Southwest consumer card offers

If you’ve been waiting for an end-of-year increased offer on the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards consumer credit cards, your time has come: all three cards are now offering increased welcome bonuses at just the right time of year.

The Offers & Key Card Details

Card Offer and Details

Chase Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards® Plus Card     ➥More   ⓘ $615 1st Yr Value Estimate 50K points 50K points after $1K spend in the first 3 months $69 Annual Fee     This card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (click here for details). Recent better offer: Expired 12/9/21: 100K (50K after $2K spend in 3 months plus 50K after a total of $12K spend in 12 months)     FM Mini Review: This card can be great for its new cardmember bonus, but its ongoing perks are worth the annual fee only if fully used each year. Card Type: Visa Signature or Platinum Base 1X (1.4%) Travel 2X (2.8%) Phone 2X (2.8%) Brand 2X (2.8%) Earning rate: 2X local transit and commuting, including rideshare ⚬ 2X internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming ⚬ 2X Southwest Big spend bonus: If you earn 135,000 points in one calendar year, you'll get a companion pass good for the rest of that calendar year and all of the next year. Noteworthy perks: 3000 bonus points each year upon card renewal. 2 EarlyBird Check-Ins each year. 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each year ⚬ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23)

Card Offer and Details

Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card     ➥More   ⓘ $585 1st Yr Value Estimate 50K points 50K points after $1K spend in the first 3 months $99 Annual Fee     This card is known to be subject to Chase's 5/24 rule. Recent better offer: Expired 12/9/21: 100K (50K after $2K spend in 3 months plus 50K after a total of $12K spend in 12 months)     FM Mini Review: The combination of 6,000 points plus 2 EarlyBird Checkins each year make this card a keeper for those who fly Southwest often. Card Type: Visa Signature or Platinum Base 1X (1.4%) Travel 2X (2.8%) Brand 3X (4.2%) Earning rate: 3X Southwest ⚬ 2X Rapid Rewards(R) hotel and car partners ⚬ 2X local transit and rideshare ⚬ 2X internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming ⚬ 1X on all other purchases. Big spend bonus: If you earn 135,000 points in one calendar year, you'll get a companion pass good for the rest of that calendar year and all of the next year ⚬ Earn 1,500 TQPs for each $10K in purchases Noteworthy perks: 6000 bonus points each year upon card renewal. 2 EarlyBird Check-Ins each year. 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each year ⚬ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23)

Card Offer and Details

Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card     ➥More   ⓘ $535 1st Yr Value Estimate 50K points 50K points after $1K spend in the first 3 months $149 Annual Fee     This card is known to be subject to Chase's 5/24 rule. Recent better offer: Expired 12/9/21: 100K (50K after $2K spend in 3 months plus 50K after a total of $12K spend in 12 months)     FM Mini Review: Great for frequent Southwest flyers - this card could easily be a long-term keeper. Card Type: Visa Signature or Platinum Base 1X (1.4%) Travel 2X (2.8%) Phone 2X (2.8%) Brand 3X (4.2%) Earning rate: 3X Southwest ⚬ 2X Rapid Rewards(R) hotel and car partners ⚬ 2X local transit and rideshare ⚬ 2X internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming ⚬ 1X on all other purchases. Big spend bonus: If you earn 135,000 points in one calendar year, you'll get a companion pass good for the rest of that calendar year and all of the next year ⚬ Earn 1,500 TQPs for each $10K in purchases Noteworthy perks: ⚬ 7,500 anniversary points each year ⚬ $75 Southwest annual travel credit ⚬ Four A1-15 boardings every year ⚬ 20% back on in-flight drinks, Wi-Fi, messaging, and movies. 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each year ⚬ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23)

Quick Thoughts

It’s great to see these increased bonuses on these cards, especially considering that now is an ideal time to get started on the path to a Southwest Companion Pass. That’s because by getting one of these cards now and waiting until after January 1st to complete the minimum spending requirement, the bonus will post in 2023 and you’ll be more than halfway to a Companion Pass for the rest of of 2023 and 2024. That’s because the Companion Pass requires earning 135,000 Companion Pass Qualifying Points within a single calendar year (but you will get credit for 10K qualifying points for having one of the credit cards, so you’ll only need to earn 125K points if you’re a cardholder). The bonus on one of these cards will put you within another 50K points earned from having a Companion Pass.

Unfortunately, you are not eligible to receive the bonus on any of these cards if you have received the welcome bonus on a Southwest Airlines consumer credit card in the past 24 months. That means you can not apply for two of the “personal” (consumer) cards to earn a companion pass.

However, you are still eligible for the business cards even if you currently have a consumer card. Therefore, your strategy may be to open one of these consumer cards and one of the currently-available Southwest Rapid Rewards business cards to earn a Companion Pass. Again, make sure that you hold off on completing spending requirements until January so that you don’t earn any of the bonus points in 2022 — you need to earn all of the necessary Companion Pass qualifying points in the same calendar year.

Out of the consumer cards, I like the Priority card the most. At $149, it has the highest annual fee of the three consumer cards, but it comes with a $75 annual Southwest airlines credit that is triggered by nearly any Southwest Airlines purchase (buy a flight, a gift card, onboard WiFi, etc). That credit is very easy to use for anyone who flies Southwest much (and I believe buying a gift card from Southwest would also trigger it). Furthermore, the Priority card offers reimbursement for buying A1-A15 boarding up to 4 times per year. Southwest sells leftover Business Select boarding positions (A1-A15) at the gate (and in the app!) for $30 or $40 per segment and this card will reimburse that purchase up to four times per year (and note that you can use them one at a time or you could buy upgraded boarding for 4 passengers and use all 4 reimbursements at once). This can really come in handy if you forget to check in 24 hours before your flight or you miss a connection and get put on a later flight with a “C” boarding position. If you think you’ll use the A1-A15 boarding buy-up at least once per year and you value the $75 Southwest credit somewhere near face value, I feel like the Priority card becomes the best value out of the consumer cards.

Overall, it’s good to see these cards back up with increased offers at just the time when people are most likely to be interested giving the timing for the purposes of earning the Southwest Companion Pass.

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