Back in November, Chase launched some unusual welcome offer bonuses on its portfolio of Southwest co-branded credit cards: You can earn a $400 statement credit and 40,000 Rapid Rewards points after you spend $3,000 in the first four months of card membership … no matter the card you choose. But you'll need to act fast: They end next Monday, Jan. 6.
They're unusual because Southwest (and most airlines) typically bump up the points bonus you can earn. Critically, that $400 statement credit applies to any spending you do on your Southwest card – not just Southwest (or travel) purchases. Think of it as getting a $400 discount on $3,000 worth of spending … which is nearly as good as cash!
Better yet, the points from these sign-up bonuses still count toward the 135,000 points needed to qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass. Considering you get another 10,000 Companion Pass-qualifying points just for having a Southwest Card, you'd need to earn an additional 85,000 points to unlock more than a year of BOGO flights with Southwest.
Beyond the bonus points and opportunity to get closer to a coveted Companion Pass, these cards come with other benefits like anniversary bonus points, early bird check-ins, upgraded boardings, and a discount on in-flight purchases.
Keep reading for everything you need to know about these Southwest credit card offers.
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card
- bonus_miles_full
- Anniversary Bonus: On your cardmember anniversary, you will receive 3,000 Rapid Rewards points each year.
- Earn 2x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar spent on purchases with Southwest Airlines and its hotel and rental car partners.
- Earn 2x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar spent on local transit and commuting purchases, including rideshares like Uber and Lyft. You’ll also earn 2x points per dollar spent on internet/cable, phone services, and select streaming purchases.
- Earn 1x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar on all other spending on the card.
- Get 2 Early Bird check-ins each year.
- Chase 5/24 Rule: The card will be subject to the Chase 5/24 rule, so you may not be approved for the card depending on how many credit cards you’ve opened in the last two years.
- Annual Fee: The card has an annual fee of $69, which is not waived for the first year of card membership.
Learn more about the *sw plus*.
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card
- bonus_miles_full
- Anniversary Bonus: On your cardmember anniversary, you will receive 7,500 Rapid Rewards points each year.
- Priority Boarding: Each year on your cardmember anniversary, you will receive four upgraded boarding positions. Simply purchase an upgrade on the day of your travel with the Priority card. You’ll receive a boarding number between A1 and A15, and be reimbursed via statement credit within eight weeks.
- Annual Travel Credit: Receive an annual travel credit of $75 to use on Southwest Airlines flights.
- 25% Back on In-Flight Purchases: Receive 25% back via statement credits for in-flight purchases. This can be used for drinks, movies, and purchasing Wi-Fi and messaging.
- Earn 3x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar spent on purchases with Southwest Airlines.
- Earn 2x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar spent on local transit and commuting purchases, including rideshares like Uber and Lyft. You’ll also earn 2x points per dollar spent on internet/cable, phone services, and select streaming purchases.
- Earn 1x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar on all other spending on the card.
- Unlimited Tier Qualifying Points can be earned towards A-List status each year.
- Chase 5/24 Rule: The card will be subject to the Chase 5/24 rule, so you may not be approved for the card depending on how many credit cards you’ve opened in the last two years.
- Annual Fee: The card has a $149 annual fee, which is not waived for the first year of card membership.
Learn more about the *sw priority*.
The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card
- bonus_miles_full
- Anniversary Bonus: Each year, on your cardmember anniversary, you will receive 6,000 Rapid Rewards points.
- Earn 3x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar spent on purchases with Southwest Airlines.
- Earn 2x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar spent on local transit and commuting purchases, including rideshares like Uber and Lyft. You’ll also earn 2x points per dollar spent on internet/cable, phone services, and select streaming purchases.
- Earn 1x Rapid Rewards Points per dollar on all other spending on the card.
- 25% Back on In-Flight Purchases: Receive 25% back via statement credits for in-flight purchases. This can be used for drinks, movies, and purchasing Wi-Fi and messaging.
- Get 2 Early Bird check-ins each year.
- No foreign transaction fees
- Chase 5/24 Rule: The card will be subject to the Chase 5/24 rule, so you may not be approved for the card depending on how many credit cards you’ve opened in the last two years.
- Annual Fee: The card has a $99 annual fee, which is not waived for the first year of card membership.
Learn more about the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card (for full disclosure, this is not an affiliate link).
How Good are These Offers?
While the sum of points you can earn isn't the biggest we've ever seen, the addition of a $400 statement credit could easily outweigh that – depending on what you're looking for.
Considering the standard bonus offer on all these cards is 50,000 points, you're sacrificing a relatively small amount of points in favor of $400. And because Rapid Rewards points have a fixed value (of around $1.2 cents apiece), the $400 statement credit is worth way more than 10,000 Rapid Rewards points.
That said, big-time Southwest flyers and points aficionados might prefer a larger points bonus in favor of this statement credit. That's especially true if you're chasing a Southwest Companion Pass.
Still, the 40,000-point bonus isn't nothing.
Say you want to take a trip down to Florida this winter to beat the cold in Chicago. Non-stop flights from Chicago-Midway (MDW) to Orlando (MCO) can easily be had for under 18,000 Rapid Rewards roundtrip … and oftentimes, much less.
Maybe Florida isn't your scene. We get it. But how does Hawaii sound? You can use this bonus to fly you and a friend to paradise … with points to spare! Roundtrip flights from Oakland (OAK) to Honolulu (HNL) can be had for even less than the cost of going to Florida – just 17,755 points and $11.20 in taxes and fees.
This is just the tip of the iceberg of what's possible with Southwest Rapid Rewards. You can often find flights to Denver (DEN), Nashville (BNA), or Phoenix (PHX) for just 10,000 or 12,000 points roundtrip. Add in the $400 statement credit, and you've got a free trip … plus a little “spending money” to go with it. Talk about a win, win!
Are You Eligible?
Before you hit apply, it's time to ask yourself: Are you even eligible to open one of these Chase Southwest cards?
Chase only lets you hold one Southwest personal credit card at a time. That means if you already have one Southwest credit card open, you will not be approved for a second card. On top of that, these welcome bonuses are not available if you have earned a welcome bonus on any of the three Southwest Airlines personal credit cards in the past 24 months (or two years).
These cards are also subjected to the dreaded Chase 5/24 rule, so getting approved for one of these cards may be difficult depending on how many credit cards (from any bank, not just Chase) you’ve opened in the last 24 months. If you've opened five or more credit cards with any bank in that period, you will not be approved for Chase credit cards, regardless of your credit score or history with Chase.
However, if you are eligible, these Southwest credit cards are easily among the best credit cards you can get if you are under the Chase 5/24 rule. That’s especially true with these big bonuses clearing a path to Southwest's Companion Pass.
Read our master guide to the Southwest Companion Pass!
Pair with a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve
All three of these Southwest credit cards make great companions to either the *csr* or the *csp*. That’s because Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be transferred to your Southwest Rapid Rewards account on a 1:1 basis, meaning 1,000 Chase points get you 1,000 Southwest Rapid Reward points. And those transfers are instant.
You can even transfer these points to Southwest to book one ticket to use with your Companion pass, paying just the taxes and fees on both tickets. It’s a great deal.
Learn more about the *csp*.
Learn more about the *csr*.
Bottom Line
Chase and Southwest are out with unusual but valuable new bonus offers to earn a $400 statement credit and 40,000 Rapid Rewards points after you spend $3,000 in the first four months of card membership on any of the Southwest personal credit cards.
If you're interested, you need to act fast. These offers will end on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025.