Travel rewards credit cards are very popular and there are a lot of different cards out there. Some of the more interesting cards in recent memory are tied to specific airlines. If you are looking for an airline rewards credit card, then the Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card just might appeal to you. It offers ample rewards for Southwest Airlines customers and can definitely enhance your travel experience in a few ways.
Anyone who wants to be able to earn rewards for booking flights through Southwest Airlines will be interested in seeing what this card has to offer. The card has the potential to earn you a lot of rewards when you fly regularly. It might even be one of the top travel reward credit cards on the market in terms of booking flights. It’s a sensible option for some but is it going to be right for you?
We are going to look at the Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card thoroughly to help you determine just that. Come along with us as we examine this credit card in an in-depth way. You will be able to see everything that it has to offer and it will be easier to tell whether or not it is a good fit for your wallet. It is always worth it to take the time to look at credit cards from all the different angles before you decide to commit so read on to get all of the information that you need to know.
Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority [earnist_link ref="southwest-rapid-rewards-priority-credit-card" id="6751"] |
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| INTRODUCTORY OFFER You'll earn 50,000 points after spending $1000 in the first 3 months. |
| REWARDS You'll earn 3X points on Southwest purchases and Rapid Rewards hotel and car rentals. |
| BENEFITS $75 Southwest travel credit each year. 4 Upgraded boardings per year. 25% back on in-flight drinks and wi-fi. Earn 7500 points on your cardmember anniversary. All points from credit card count toward Companion Pass. |
| FEES $149 annual fee. No foreign transaction fees. |
| TRAVEL FREEDOM THOUGHTS Southwest points are great because when they have a sale, their award chart goes on sale as well. By getting a personal and business Southwest card you can be well on your way to Companion Pass status. |
| [earnist_link ref="southwest-rapid-rewards-priority-credit-card" id="6751"]LEARN HOW TO APPLY >>[/earnist_link] |
Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card Fees
One thing is going to make this card stand out right away when it comes to prices and fees. You will see that this card has a $149 annual fee. This is a pretty high fee overall and is higher than most of the other credit cards that are offered by Southwest. Even with the high fee, this card does still have a lot of value so don’t let it completely deter you from wanting to give this card a go.
To help balance things out a bit, you will be able to avoid foreign transaction fees when using this credit card. This card has no foreign transaction fees and this makes it a lot easier to use when traveling abroad. No one wants to be hit with a hefty fee when he or she needs to use his or her credit card while outside of the country. If you travel to other countries somewhat often, then not having to pay foreign transaction fees will be a real blessing.
The APR on this credit card is a bit high, though. This is not a credit card that you will want to carry a balance on if you can help it. A high APR may limit the uses of the card somewhat. You will probably not want to transfer a balance over to this card either but it was never really designed to be a balance transfer card to begin with.
You also should know that this card does not have any type of an introductory APR. This can be somewhat of a letdown for people who are used to taking advantage of these types of offers. You will be getting the standard APR right out of the gate. It should not deter you from giving the card a shot but you will want to try to use this credit card in the most intelligent ways possible.
Features of the Rapid Rewards Priority Card
There are a couple of features that will really be helpful when you sign up for this credit card. The first one is that it has a nice sign-up bonus. Spending a certain amount of money in the first three months of being a cardholder will allow you to claim this lucrative bonus. It will help you to earn a big chunk of reward points all at once.
The best part about this sign-up bonus is that you will be able to earn it pretty easily. If you travel fairly often, then you will definitely be able to earn this bonus. The price of a couple of plane tickets is going to get you close to the required amount of money to earn the bonus. This is a great way to start off your time with this credit card and it will help to make paying that annual fee feel as if it is less of a burden.
To add to this, you will also be able to receive free bonus points upon every credit card anniversary. This is a nice perk that is offered by the Southwest Airline credit cards. For this specific card, you will receive 7500 bonus points for every anniversary. If you add up the value of the points, this will put a dent in making up that annual fee.
Benefits of the Rapid Rewards Priority Card
If you like to have many benefits when you sign up for a credit card, then this one is not likely to disappoint you. There are several good benefits that will make being a cardholder feel worthwhile. One perk that everyone will be able to take advantage of easily is the free $75 of annual Southwest travel credit. You can spend this on flights or you can use it for other Southwest Airlines purchases.
Aside from this, you will also be able to enjoy four upgraded boardings per year. Upgrading boarding is something that will typically cost you up to $50. Being able to upgrade boardings for free four times per year is going to save you money. Saving money while making your traveling experience that much nicer is certainly going to be a good selling point for this card.
Cardholders will also enjoy saving money on all in-flight purchases when flying with Southwest Airlines. When you purchase things such as drinks, WiFi, or movies, you will be reimbursed for 20% of the purchase cost. This reimbursement will come in the form of statement credit. It just makes it that much more convenient for you to fly with Southwest Airlines.
Lastly, having this card will make it easier to work towards getting to the next tier with Southwest Airlines. For each $10,000 that you spend in a calendar year, you will gain 1500 tier-qualifying points. This helps you to gain your A-list or A-list preferred status that much more quickly. If you like the idea of working toward becoming a preferred Southwest Airlines customer and enjoying the perks that come along with this status, then you will certainly benefit from having this card.
Rewards Program Info
You will be able to earn a pretty good amount of rewards when you fly through Southwest Airlines using this credit card. Cardholders will earn 2X rewards points on all Southwest Airlines purchases. This will include flights as well as other types of Southwest Airlines purchases. If you fly often enough, then this is going to pay off for you pretty quickly.
Cardholders will also be able to earn 2X rewards points on purchases made at Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partners. This means that you will be able to earn double rewards on quite a few travel-related purchases. If you use this card as a pure travel credit card, then you should be able to rack up rewards at a decent rate. All other purchases will allow you to earn 1X points for every $1 spent.
You will be able to redeem your rewards in a very straightforward way with this credit card. Once you have earned enough points, you will be able to redeem those points for flights. There are other redemption options as well but redeeming points for flights is the best way to use your rewards points when trying to maximize their value. You will always be able to redeem points for flights at any time and it will be a streamlined process.
Another great aspect of this that you should know is that you are allowed to change your plans when you redeem points for a flight. If your plans change and you need to cancel your flight, then you can simply deposit those rewards points right back into your account. It is easy to do this and it always feels customer-friendly. You will not be penalized in any way so this is certainly a good card when you want to redeem earned points towards flights.
The Pros
- 2X rewards points on Southwest Airline purchases
- Good perks
- Customer-friendly point redemption process
- Good sign-up bonus
- Annual bonus
You are going to be able to earn 2X rewards on all of your Southwest Airlines purchases. This makes it easy to start racking up the rewards when you travel a lot. If you are a loyal Southwest Airlines customer, then this will be a very easy way to earn rewards. You will be able to work toward earning your next tier as a Southwest customer as well.
The perks for being a cardholder are pretty nice. You will get a free $75 in Southwest credit that you can use towards flights or other purchases. Cardholders get to upgrade their boarding four times per year for free. Being able to save 20% on in-flight purchases is a really great perk too.
The fact that this card has a good sign-up bonus is really going to help you out too. This will let you earn a lot of points really quickly. You can get this sign-up bonus without it being too big of a deal either. It is very attainable and most people who travel often will earn the bonus without trying hard at all.
Having an annual bonus helps this card stand out from the competition as well. You will be given bonus points for every anniversary that you celebrate as a cardholder. These points can be useful for helping to offset the cost of that annual fee. You will be able to get these points every year without fail and they will always come in handy.
The Cons
- High annual fee
- Lack of flexibility
- No airport lounge access
- Rewards restricted to Southwest Airlines
The biggest downside to this credit card for many people is going to be the High annual fee. Overall, this fee is not absurd but it is higher than many are used to paying. If you don’t like the idea of paying a higher-than-normal annual fee, then it may keep you from wanting to sign up. For most people, you will earn enough through rewards to justify the fee and the benefits also help to offset it.
A lack of flexibility does harm this card a bit too. You will not have as many redemption options as you might like when it comes time to use your earned rewards. Most people will want to use the rewards points to book flights as it will allow you to maximize the value of your points. There are some other options but they are not as robust as some other travel credit cards on the market.
Not being given any airport lounge access as a perk of this credit card is a bit of a letdown too. This is not quite a luxury credit card but the annual fee is higher than many other cards. Airport lounge access is a great perk that some travel credit cards can offer you but this card is not one of them. If you wish to have a truly luxurious traveling experience, then you may want to look into some of the higher-tier travel credit cards on the market instead.
The final downside may not be a big deal to many people at all. You will be limited to using Southwest Airlines when you have this credit card. You can buy tickets for other airlines but you will not earn your increased reward points rate. It is most practical to fly exclusively through Southwest Airlines when you have this credit card in your wallet but that may make you feel as if you have less flexibility when it comes to travel plans.
Credit Score Needed for Approval
Getting approved for this credit card is going to require an excellent credit score. A score of 720 or higher is recommended when you want to have the best chances of being approved. Checking your credit score ahead of applying for this card is smart. You will be able to see if you have a chance of getting approved before applying so that you can avoid feeling disappointed.
Who Does the Southwest Priority Card Appeal to Most?
This is a credit card that is designed for people who travel quite a bit. This is going to really pay off for those who travel all the time. If you are regularly flying around the world for either business or travel, then a card such as this can help you to save money. You will be earning rewards on all of your purchases and it will make your life that much easier.
It also needs to be said that this card is specifically for people who fly through Southwest Airlines. If you like to fly through another airline or if you normally just use whatever airline is available, then this may not be the card for you. You will need to stick with Southwest in order for this card to really be worth it. It makes sense to stick to one airline from a rewards perspective and it can pay off for you.
An Alternative Card to Consider
Those who are looking for an alternative to this credit card may wish to check out the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card. This is a similar credit card that has fewer benefits than the Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card. It has a significantly less expensive annual fee, though. If you would like to avoid the high fee while still being able to enjoy many of the same rewards, then this credit card might work out better for you.
Another option to think about is the [earnist_link ref=”chase-sapphire-preferred-card” id=”6313″]Chase Sapphire Preferred Card[/earnist_link]. This is a great rewards card that is not going to be as limiting as the Southwest Airlines credit cards. You will have many amazing rewards redemption options when using this card, including through Southwest. Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer to many airlines and hotels. Also, it will allow you to earn 2X points on both travel and dining, making it a very practical option for regular travelers.
See our full review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
The Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Card is certainly a good card to consider but some people may find more value in these other options. It just depends on what your needs are. If you like having more options available to you, then the [earnist_link ref=”chase-sapphire-preferred-card” id=”6313″]Chase Sapphire Preferred Card[/earnist_link] is such a sensible option. The Rapid Rewards Plus Card may be more practical for those who wish to avoid the High annual fee of the Priority card. Either way, you will be getting a good credit card that will offer you great rewards potential.
Decision Time: Is the Southwest Priority Card Right for You?
The Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card is a great option for anyone who wants to fly through Southwest Airlines regularly. You are going to be able to earn copious amounts of rewards points while improving your overall travel experience. This is a card that has a lot of potential for anyone who travels enough to justify signing up. It has good benefits that help to make the card feel as if it is a much better deal too.
It is true that the annual fee of this credit card is a bit high. When you take all of the benefits into account, it will really start to offset that fee quite a bit. People who travel a lot will love this credit card so long as they are flying through Southwest Airlines. Anyone who is loyal to Southwest will definitely want to consider this as one of the top options for a travel rewards credit card.
