Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card review: The first-class travel card for Southwest loyalists

This card lets you earn rewards fast with its everyday categories, but the airline perks make the Southwest Priority card stand out for brand loyalists. 

Welcome offer: Terrific value  

The Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority card offers a good welcome offer for an airline rewards card, and even other travel cards of its caliber. You can earn 50,000 points after spending $1,000 within the first three months. According to Bankrate's latest valuation of around 1.5 cents per point on average, this offer could be worth around $750  — more than enough to offset the annual fee for the first year. However, this is a drop from the previous welcome offer of 85,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months (worth about $1,275 at an estimated 1.5 cents per point). The new offer is still a solid value worth pursuing, plus it may be easier to obtain if you don't fly frequently. However, it's also reasonable to wait for a bigger bounty if you're in no rush.

That said, some of Southwest's sibling cards carry the same welcome offer but have much lower annual fees and many of the same perks. It's worth considering whether a lower-tier Southwest card's perks will fit your needs since you may be able to take advantage of the same sign-up bonus value at a lower yearly cost.

Rewards: Plenty of ways to earn and redeem points

Racking up points should be no trouble with your Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card if you frequently fly with Southwest and regularly commute with local transit and ridesharing services. Southwest purchases earn 3X points. This includes flights, in-flight purchases and Southwest Airlines gift cards. You can also net 2X points on other legs of your journey with the airline’s hotel and rental car partners. Once you’re home, stock up toward your next trip with 2X points on local transit (including rideshares) and your monthly internet, cable, phone and select streaming service bills. All other purchases earn 1X points.

On top of that, you can earn points by shopping through the Southwest Rapid Rewards shopping portal, eating out at restaurants in its Dining Rewards program (registration required) and taking advantage of other promotional point offers as a Rewards Member. Although these reward opportunities can be pretty niche, you could earn decent points from TurboTax and 1-800-Flowers purchases, among others.

Your Rapid Rewards points will never expire while your account is open. There are no blackout dates or restrictions for award flights, and you have flexible redemption options for an airline card. For instance, you can redeem through the More Rewards program or Chase for more options, which include: 

• International flights with other carriers
• Hotel stays
• Rental cars
• Rapid Rewards Access Event exclusive experiences
• Merchandise
• Gift cards
• Transferring or gifting points to other Rapid Rewards members
• Donating points to eligible charities
• Statement credits toward eligible Chase Pay Yourself Back purchases

This is a solid roster of choices, but several other airlines’ cards may provide even more flight-centric redemption options, such as seat upgrades, in-flight purchases, incidental airline expenses, and airport lounge access.

Bankrate estimates that Southwest points average 1.5 cents per point, which rivals competing cards. However, your reward value will fluctuate depending on several factors, including the redemption option and your reward flight’s destination, time and date.

Perks: Solid travel credits

While you won’t get fancy perks like airport lounge access with this Southwest card, you’ll save plenty. You can enjoy the following travel benefits: 

• Four Southwest upgraded boardings a year (subject to availability)
• A $75 Southwest travel credit every year (automatically applied when using your card on eligible travel purchases through the airline)
• 7,500 anniversary bonus points 
• 25 percent back on inflight purchases, such as drinks and Wi-Fi
• 10,000 Companion Pass points every year
• 1,500 tier qualifying points (TQPs) towards elite status per $10,000 in purchases
• One year of DoorDash DashPass for $0 delivery fees and lower service fees (after that, you’re automatically enrolled at the current monthly DashPass rate; must activate by Dec. 12, 2024)

Since the annual bonus points can be worth almost $113 (at a value of 1.5 cents apiece based on Bankrate's estimates), this perk along with the annual travel credit could easily offset the annual fee every year. If you take advantage of the additional discounts and credits, then this Southwest card can be quite lucrative.

You also receive several protection benefits as a Visa cardholder like auto insurance coverage for rental cars and roadside dispatch. These protections can be helpful while traveling.

Additionally, this card can help you achieve Southwest elite status. With the Priority card’s bonus of 1,500 TQPs per $10,000 in purchases, you can start working your way to A-List or A-List Preferred. With A-List status, you earn 25 percent more points on Southwest purchases, while A-List Preferred delivers an extra 100 percent.

While the Priority card offers a solid welcome offer, other cards could be a better option considering the Priority card's annual fee, which might be too high for some travelers. 

Fees: Costly annual fee and penalty fees could add up

While the Rapid Rewards Priority card has plenty of great perks, it also comes with a bunch of fees that might cut into savings. The annual fee of $149 is the highest of any Southwest personal credit card. You would need to take full advantage of the perks to offset this cost.

On the other hand, Southwest offers two other airline cards with a lower yearly cost and similar benefits. For instance, the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card features the same rewards rates with a $99 annual fee.

Additionally, this card's fees and interest skew a bit high though typical for a travel card. The lower end of its ongoing variable APR is slightly above the current average credit card interest rate. The card also charges a penalty APR (up to 29.99%), which could remain indefinitely if you miss a minimum payment or make a payment that is returned. The balance transfer fee is on the higher side too —  5% of the amount of each transfer with a $5 minimum, so this might not be the best option if you plan to consolidate any credit card debt. 

However, there are no foreign transaction fees and Southwest never charges change fees, providing more flexibility with your travel plans. And you’ll generally avoid these penalty rates and fees if you pay off your balance every month.

If you’re on the fence about Southwest’s highest-priced credit card, evaluating how much value the Southwest Priority card offers during the first year and beyond could help make your decision.

Because of its annual perks, the Priority card offers perhaps the best ongoing value of any Southwest card. Its rewards rates for travel are solid for a brand-specific airline card, but the non-travel categories might not be as useful for most cardholders.

We estimate Southwest points are worth around 1.5 cents each, which is a relatively high value for airline rewards. However, general-purpose travel cards often earn even more valuable rewards. For example, Bankrate’s valuations show both Chase Ultimate Rewards points and Capital One miles can be worth more: Around 2.0 cents for Amex points and 1.7 cents for Capital One miles with the right transfer partners. Combined with excellent rewards rates and bonus categories, competing premium travel cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card could end up being stronger rewards options for some cardholders.

While the Southwest Priority card’s rewards might not be its strongest feature, its quality welcome offer means the card’s first-year value stands out among airline cards, and the card's annual perks completely offset the annual fee without eating into the rewards you earn from your spending. Together, these factors add up to great long-term value that could easily justify the annual fee.

Here's a look at how much you could earn in your first year and beyond, based on our credit card value estimates and setting aside the Companion Pass offer since it's value will depend on how frequently you fly with a travel partner.

*Based on our formula used to calculate each card’s average rewards rates and average ongoing rewards value, using Bureau of Labor Statistics spending data and an assumed $15,900 yearly spend over three years ($1,325 per month).

Senior credit cards editor Nouri Zarrugh has used Southwest rewards cards for years, but the top-tier card’s annual travel credit and enhanced anniversary bonus were reasons enough to switch.

“I had a lower-tier Southwest card for a long time, but I upgraded to the Priority card a few years ago after I realized it has so many upsides. I can earn rewards at the same rate as I would with the Premier card, but the Priority card's $75 annual travel credit and 7,500 anniversary points can entirely offset its annual fee. That's likely not the case with the Premier card since it only offers 6,000 anniversary points.”

— Nouri Zarrugh,Senior Credit Cards Editor at Bankrate

Pair your Southwest credit card with a credit card that has no annual fee and will reward you for everyday purchases, such as the Chase Freedom Unlimited®. This card touts 5 percent cash back on travel purchased through Chase and on Lyft purchases (through March 2025), 3 percent on dining and drugstore purchases and 1.5 percent cash back on all other purchases. You can use this card to earn travel cash back rewards on other airlines. If you have a premium Chase card, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you can even pool your points into your premium card and then transfer these points to your Southwest rewards account if you’d like.

This card is perfect for Southwest loyalists who fly often enough with the airline to make use of the points or are pursuing elite status. If qualified for the Companion Pass, frequent flyers should have no trouble raking in massive value for the comparatively low $149 annual fee.

If you need more flexibility (and can’t be loyal to Southwest), you’ll be better off with a general travel rewards credit card. These tend to come with bonus rewards on a broader range of spending categories and more redemption options. Look for one that lets you transfer points and for a high value so you can use your points and miles for a wide range of airlines and hotels.

*The information about the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.