Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card Review 2023

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Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card

Details

Rewards

Earn 2X points on Southwest® purchases. Earn 2 points on Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partner purchases. Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare. Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services, and select streaming. Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.

Intro offer

30,000 points and a Companion Pass® good through 2/28/24 after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening

Recommended Credit

Good to Excellent

Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)

20.49% – 27.49% Variable

Pros & Cons

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Earns Southwest points on every purchase

A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction.

You get 3,000 points every year after your cardmember anniversary

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Charges foreign transaction fees

Very limited benefits

Highlights

• Limited-time offer: earn Companion Pass® good through 2/28/24 plus 30,000 points after you spend $4,000 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, and select streaming.
• 2 EarlyBird Check-In® each year.
• Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
• All points earned count towards Companion Pass®

Additional Reading

Read our review

The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card is a solid choice if you fly with Southwest and want to earn a lucrative welcome bonus for the lowest annual fee. Its limited-time welcome bonus makes the Southwest Companion Pass (one of the best deals in travel) super easy to earn.

However, if you fly Southwest often, other Southwest personal cards could be a better fit if you can make the most of the benefits.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card Review: Is the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card the Best Credit Card for You?

Chase issues five different Southwest credit cards. The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card is the entry-level version, with the lowest annual fee ($69) of the bunch. That makes it ideal for those who want to minimize their out-of-pocket cost while still earning a lot of Southwest points.

However, a low annual fee also means fewer ongoing benefits. This shouldn’t be a factor if you’re just an occasional traveler, but frequent Southwest flyers could get better value from the additional perks on the other Southwest credit cards. The great thing about Southwest points is that they never expire, so there’s no pressure to redeem your points right away.

The best way to redeem your points is for free flights, which will provide a value of around 1.4 cents per point, based on Insider’s points and miles valuations. However, you can also use Southwest points with Chase Pay Yourself Back to offset eligible dining purchases made within the last 90 days (ends March 31, 2023) as well as to offset the card’s annual fee.

Before you decide on whether the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card is the right pick for you, you’ll want to compare it to the other Southwest cards, because you can only have one personal version at a time. And if you prefer flexibility, a card that earns transferable Chase Ultimate Rewards® points might be a better bet.

Southwest is one of over a dozen Chase airline and hotel transfer partners, and cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® have broader bonus categories and more benefits.

We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card Rewards

Welcome bonus

For a limited time, the card is offering a rarely seen welcome bonus of 30,000 points and a Companion Pass® good through 2/28/24 after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. The bonus points you’ll earn equates to $420 in Southwest travel, on average (based on Insider’s valuations). But when paired with the promotional Southwest Companion Pass you’ll earn, the potential value is through the roof.

The Companion Pass allows you to bring along a travel buddy every single time you fly Southwest for just the cost of taxes and fees. Whether you’re using cash or Southwest points to book your travel, your companion will fly for pennies on the dollar.

How to earn Southwest points

With this card, you’ll earn:

• 2x points on Southwest purchases (including flights, inflight purchases, Southwest gift cards, and Southwest Vacations packages)
• 2x points on Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partner purchases (see the full list here)
• 2x points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare (and also passenger trains, buses, taxis, limousines, rideshare, ferries, toll bridges and highways, and parking lots and garages)
• 2x points on internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming (Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, Netflix, Sling, Vudu, Fubo TV, Apple Music, SiriusXM, Pandora, Spotify, and YouTube TV)
• 1 point per dollar on everything else

How to use Southwest Points

Southwest has an expansive domestic route network (including Hawaii), and also flies to a number of international destinations in the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America.

Southwest doesn’t have an award chart like other airlines do. Instead, the number of points required for an award flight is tied to the price of a paid ticket. On average, you can expect to get a value of 1.4 cents per Southwest point when you redeem them for award travel, based on Insider’s points and miles valuations.

Redeeming Southwest points to book award flights online is simple — once you log into your Rapid Rewards account, search for flights just as you would if you were looking for a paid ticket. The website gives you the option to toggle between the cash price and the points cost, so you can easily compare the two. 

If you’re not flying Southwest right now, there’s no harm in holding on to your points until you’re ready, because they’ll never expire. However, Southwest credit card holders do have other options for redeeming points through the More Rewards program, including merchandise, gift cards, car rentals, hotels, cruises, and experiences. The value you’ll get per point varies, but it’s typically much lower than what you’d get if you redeemed for Southwest flights.

The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card also unlocks the ability to redeem Southwest points at a rate of 1 cent each through Chase Pay Yourself Back. Eligible redemptions are dining purchases made within the last 90 days, up to $200 in reimbursements (through March 31, 2023), and your card’s annual fee.

Southwest Plus Card Benefits and Features

The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card doesn’t come with some of the other benefits offered by other Southwest cards (like elite-qualifying points or travel credits), but you’ll still get a variety of travel and purchase protections and a handful of other perks.

Southwest Companion Pass

The current welcome bonus on the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card includes a promotional Southwest Companion Pass, valid until February 28, 2024. Normally, to qualify for a Companion Pass, you’d need to earn 135,000 qualifying Southwest points in a calendar year. Southwest credit card holders also receive a “boost” of 10,000 qualifying points each year.

This promotional Companion Pass is a little different from a regular Companion Pass in that it’s valid for a shorter period of time. A regular Companion Pass is valid for the rest of the year you earned it, plus all of the following year. That said, the 30,000 points from the welcome offer plus what you earn from spending on the card all count toward earning a Companion Pass the normal way.

The Companion Pass is one of the best deals in travel — particularly for those who book a lot of flights around the US, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America. With it, you can bring a companion on any paid or award flights for just the cost of taxes and fees (typically $5.60 for domestic flights).

You can use your Companion Pass for as many flights as you like while it’s valid. Even if you take ten flights per week, your companion can join you. It’s effectively a buy-one-get-one flight certificate.

EarlyBird Check-In

Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card cardholders receive two EarlyBird Check-Ins per account anniversary year, awarded as a statement credit after your purchase. EarlyBird Check-In normally costs $15 to $25 each way, and allows you to automatically check-in for your flight 36 hours prior to departure.

Because Southwest determines your boarding position by the time you check in, this feature can help you get on the airplane sooner and have a better opportunity to select your desired seat.

Anniversary points bonus

Each year when you renew your Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card, you’ll receive 3,000 points, which are worth around $42 in Southwest airfare. This can offset a big chunk of the $69 annual fee.

Inflight purchase discount

When you use your Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card for inflight purchases (drinks or Wi-Fi), you’ll receive 25% back in the form of a statement credit. 

Car rental insurance

When you use your Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card to pay the full cost of your car rental and decline the rental company’s collision damage waiver, you’ll get coverage for damage due to collision or theft. This coverage is secondary to your own personal policy in the US, but primary car rental insurance overseas (or if you don’t have your own insurance).

Purchase protection and extended warranty

New purchases made with the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card are covered by purchase protection for 120 days against damage or theft, up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account. You can also save money because the card extends the time period of a US manufacturer’s warranty by an additional year on eligible warranties of three years or less.

Lost luggage reimbursement and baggage delay insurance

When you use your Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card to pay for your fare, you (and your immediate family) are covered if your checked or carry-on luggage is lost or damaged by the carrier, up to $3,000 per passenger.

And if your bags are delayed by six hours or more, you’re eligible for up to $300 in reimbursement ($100 a day for up to three days) for essential items like toiletries and clothing.

Other travel protections

If you’re approved for the Visa Signature version of the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card, you’ll get access to travel and emergency assistance services, which can help arrange things like medical and legal referrals when you’re away from home. Just keep in mind you’re responsible for the cost of any services arranged.

All cardholders also get travel accident insurance, which covers accidental death or dismemberment when they use their card to pay for air, bus, train, or cruise transportation. Visa Signature cardholders get up to $500,000 in coverage, and Visa Platinum members get up to $250,000.

Finally, you’ll also get access to a roadside dispatch hotline, which can arrange services like towing and jumpstarts when you’re on the road. Again, you’ll be responsible for the actual cost of the service, which gets billed to your card. 

Free DoorDash DashPass subscription

Through December 31, 2024, you can activate a complimentary DoorDash DashPass subscription for 12 months which gets you no delivery fees and reduced service fees when you order from DoorDash and Caviar delivery services. 

GoPuff credits

When you add the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card as your default payment method in the Gopuff app, you can receive $10 per month in Gopuff credit when you make a qualifying purchase. There’s a minimum order amount of $10 plus a $3.95 delivery fee per order.

Gopuff is a service that promises fast delivery of supplies like groceries, convenience items, beverages, health and beauty aids, and more. You can earn the $10 credit each month through December 31, 2023.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Annual Fee and Other Costs

The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card, in addition to charging a $69 annual fee, also adds foreign transaction fees — so it’s not a good choice for purchases outside the US. If you’re looking for a card to use overseas, plenty of credit cards don’t charge foreign transaction fees, including any of the other Southwest cards.

There’s a 20.49% – 27.49% Variable APR to be aware of if you carry a balance on your card. And, as with most cards, you’ll also pay fees for:

• Cash advances: Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each transaction, whichever is greater
• Balance transfers: Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
• Late payments: Up to $40
• Returned payments: Up to $40

How the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Compares

Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus vs Other Southwest Personal Cards

Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus vs Other Airline Credit Cards

Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Methodology: How we reviewed the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus

Chase offers three Southwest personal credit cards, each with varying annual fees and benefits to suit the budgets and travel goals of different flyers. We compared the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card against the benefits and welcome bonuses of those and other similar airline credit cards to arrive at a rating of 3.55 stars out of 5 stars.

Here’s a closer look at how we rate credit cards at Insider.