Update June 5, 2024: A media relations representative confirmed to us that this limited-time bonus will end on June 26, 2024.
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card sign-up bonus has just been increased to 85,000 points.
- You’ll earn 85,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
- This offer is a limited-time offer that offers more bonus points on this card than we’ve seen in recent memory, beating the increased offer that was available at the end of 2023.
- This limited time bonus is available through June 26, 2024.
Here’s what you need to know about the current offer on the Rapid Rewards Plus card.
Best bonus: Online 85k Rapid Rewards points offer.
Here’s the best bonus offer currently available on the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card. This bonus is a limited-time offer, scheduled to end on June 26, 2024.
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card sign-up bonus
bonus_miles_full
This is the biggest bonus we’ve seen in recent memory on this card.
More about this card
Benefit highlights:
3,000 anniversary points after your cardmember anniversary each year.
25% back on all Southwest in-flight purchases.
2 EarlyBird Check-In® per year.
Rewards:
2x on Southwest Airlines purchases made directly with the airline.
2x on Rapid Rewards hotels and car rental partner purchases.
2x on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
1x on other purchases.
Rewards are earned as Rapid Rewards points.
Learn more:
See all bonuses available for new Southwest credit cards in our overview of Southwest Airlines credit card welcome bonuses.
Other bonuses available online
Update June 5, 2024: This bonus is not available through all channels. As of this update, if you go directly to Chase.com, you’ll see the lower 50,000 business-as-usual bonus. If you’re applying for this card, be sure you’re applying for the best 85k point bonus.
This bonus is also available through Chase referral links.
How to use Southwest Rapid Rewards points
The Southwest Rapid Rewards points you’ll earn with the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card are incredibly easy to use for flights. Here’s what we like best about Rapid Rewards points:
- You’ll get consistent value. On average, you’ll get about 1.3-1.4 cents per point of value from each of your points. (10,000 points can get you a flight with a cash price of around $130-$140.)
- Rapid Rewards points don’t expire.
- If you cancel your flight, you get your points back. Any Southwest flight can be canceled up to 10 minutes prior to departure. If the flight was booked with your Rapid Rewards points, the points will be returned to you account.
To use Southwest Rapid Rewards points for flights, simply select “Points” when booking any flight at Southwest.com. You can also toggle between seeing flights priced in dollars and flights priced in points during the booking process.
My take on the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card welcome bonus
I’m excited about this bonus. This is the biggest bonus on the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card that I can remember and it beats the limited-time offer from last year by 10,000 miles. It’s very rare to see a bonus this generous on a card with only $69 annual fee.
This is the same bonus as you’ll find on the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card, which carries a higher annual fee ($149) but provides much more value if you fly Southwest at least a few times each year.
Verdict: If you have any interest in flying Southwest Airlines, get this card for its bonus. But consider the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card if you’re a consistent Southwest flyer interested in keeping the card for the long-term.
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card sign-up bonus
bonus_miles_full
This is the biggest bonus we’ve seen in recent memory on this card.
More about this card
Benefit highlights:
3,000 anniversary points after your cardmember anniversary each year.
25% back on all Southwest in-flight purchases.
2 EarlyBird Check-In® per year.
Rewards:
2x on Southwest Airlines purchases made directly with the airline.
2x on Rapid Rewards hotels and car rental partner purchases.
2x on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
1x on other purchases.
Rewards are earned as Rapid Rewards points.
Learn more:
See all bonuses available for new Southwest credit cards in our overview of Southwest Airlines credit card welcome bonuses.
Frequently asked questions
Do the sign-up bonus points on this card count toward companion pass?
Yes. The bonus points you earn with this card’s new cardmember incentive count toward companion pass.
Should I get the Plus or Priority card?
If you fly Southwest consistently, the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card will provide more value on an ongoing basis. These two cards currently have the same sign-up bonus.
Aaron Hurd Aaron Hurd is a credit card, travel rewards, and loyalty program expert. Over the past 15 years, he has authored over a thousand expert contributions published by leading outlets including WSJ, TIME, Newsweek, Forbes, NerdWallet, The Points Guy, Bankrate, CNET, and many others. He has also served in consulting roles for many of these same outlets, designing content strategy, hiring teams of teams of editors and contributors, developing thought-leadership pieces, and ghost-editing for senior editors. Aaron is well-known in the miles and points community and regularly presents about travel rewards at conferences like the Chicago Seminars and Minnebar.Aaron has enjoyed the game of optimizing credit card rewards since getting his first credit card shortly after he turned 18. He started learning about credit cards and travel rewards from the (now defunct) FatWallet Finance forums and FlyerTalk. He holds more than 40 open credit cards and has first-hand experience with almost every major credit card product.
