Key takeaways
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card members receive 3,000 bonus points each year after their account anniversary, a bonus that on its own goes a long way to offsetting the annual fee.
- Additional perks, such as two EarlyBird Check-Ins annually and discounts on eligible in-flight purchases, offer more money-saving opportunities to cardholders.
- The $69 annual fee is the lowest among the Southwest co-branded cards issued by Chase.
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card is one of several Southwest cards offered among Chase’s lineup of co-branded credit cards. The Rapid Rewards Plus card charges the lowest annual fee among the five Southwest cards Chase issues — just $69 — but comes with some attractive perks that help offset even that modest annual fee.
One of those perks is its anniversary bonus. The anniversary bonus is an especially great way to guarantee you’re getting value from this card long term. Here’s how much this anniversary bonus is worth, as well as other benefits of the Rapid Rewards Plus card and of flying Southwest.
Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card details
Here’s a rundown of the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Card’s rewards rate, welcome offer and other card details:
| Card details | |
|---|---|
| Welcome bonus | Earn 50,000 points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening |
| Rewards rates | 2X points on Southwest purchases, Southwest hotel and car rental partner purchases, and local transit and commuting purchases (including rideshares 2X points on internet, cable, phone and select streaming services 1X points on all other purchases |
| Annual fee | $69 |
| APR | 20.74% – 27.74% Variable |
What is the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus anniversary bonus?
The Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus anniversary bonus is 3,000 points automatically applied to your account each year after your account anniversary. Southwest extends this bonus as a “thank you” for renewing your card and paying the $69 annual fee for another year.
How much is the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus anniversary bonus worth?
According to Bankrate’s latest points and miles valuations, rewards earned in the Southwest Rapid Rewards program are worth around 1.5 cents each when redeemed for travel. This means the anniversary bonus on the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus card can be worth up to about $45, depending on how and when you redeem your points.
While 3,000 points may not sound like a lot, keep in mind that Southwest offers one-way fares for as little as 4,000 points (and sometimes less) during sale periods. That’s one of the reasons Katie Kelton, a senior credit cards writer at Bankrate, keeps a similar Southwest card in her wallet. While she doesn’t carry the Plus card specifically, she loves the fact that her card’s anniversary bonus provides so much value:
My Southwest card anniversary bonus points are worth at least one one-way flight, which already offsets the annual fee. Since I almost always fly Southwest, I would’ve bought the flight anyway — making the annual fee worth it. Plus, I get perks like free upgraded boardings and additional points earned on all my other Southwest purchases, which are frequent!
— Katie Kelton, Bankrate Senior Credit Cards Writer
Looking at Southwest’s low-fare calendar at the time of writing, this card’s anniversary bonus could cover most of your trip from Atlanta to New York, depending on when you flew out.
How do I find my Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus account anniversary date?
You can look back at your statement history to estimate when you’ll receive your Southwest anniversary bonus. According to the fine print from Southwest and Chase, you’ll receive this bonus on your account anniversary year, which is “the year beginning with your account open date through the anniversary of your account open date, and each 12 months.”
If you originally signed up for your card on May 12 of any given year, for example, you’ll receive your anniversary bonus after May 12 of the following year.
Keep in mind:
Another way to estimate this is noticing when your annual fee hits your account, as that signals it’s the start of another account year.
The Rapid Rewards Plus anniversary bonus vs. other account anniversary bonuses
The Rapid Rewards Plus card isn’t the only airline card that comes with account anniversary bonuses. Here are a few other Southwest cards to consider, plus their anniversary bonus values, based on Bankrate’s valuations of 1.5 cents per Rapid Rewards point:
Other perks that make up for the annual fee
The Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus anniversary bonus may be worth around $45, depending on how you redeem the points, which already cancels out over half of your $69 annual fee. However, a few other cardholder benefits can also help offset the rest of the card’s annual fee.
Cardholder-specific perks
For starters, you can get two EarlyBird Check-Ins with Southwest every year. These upgrades are worth $15 to $25 one way, so the two you receive every year as a cardholder have a retail value of up to $50. These passes plus the annual points bonus more than offset the annual fee.
But there’s still more savings available. Cardholders enjoy 25 percent back on in-flight purchases of food, drink and Wi-Fi access. These savings on in-flight amenities can add up quickly if you fly with Southwest often.
Southwest Airlines perks
The airline offers some serious benefits beyond what you’d get as a Rapid Rewards Plus cardholder. For starters, Southwest has one of the most flexible cancelation and rebooking policies of all major airlines. Plus, it’s one of the few airlines that don’t impose any blackout dates or capacity controls for award tickets.
Southwest Airlines also offers two free checked bags per passenger on its flights, whether you book your fare with cash or points.
Finally, all of the points you earn in the Rapid Rewards program — including your card’s anniversary bonus — count toward earning the coveted Southwest Companion Pass.
The Companion Pass allows you to bring a companion along on your flights, whether paying with cash or points, for the remainder of the year in which you earn the pass, as well as the following full calendar year. All you’ll pay are required taxes and fees, which come to $5.60 each way for domestic flights and a bit more for international destinations.
You earn a Companion Pass by accumulating 135,000 Rapid Rewards points in a calendar year or by taking 100 one-way qualifying flights in that same timeframe.
The bottom line
The Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card allows you to earn Rapid Rewards points on your everyday purchases, earn an anniversary bonus and enjoy other perks and features, all for a reasonable annual fee. When you add up the value of the Southwest anniversary bonus, two EarlyBird Check-Ins and discounts on in-flight purchases (not to mention the rewards you’ll earn on everyday spending), you can more than make up for this card’s $69 annual fee each year.
That said, you can also consider other Southwest credit cards or cards from partner issuers. Because Southwest is a transfer partner in the Chase Ultimate Rewards program, for example, you can use a Chase travel credit card to earn flexible points on purchases, then transfer them to your Southwest account once you’re ready to redeem.
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