CNN Underscored opinions monetary merchandise comparable to bank cards and financial institution accounts based mostly on their total worth. We could obtain a fee by way of the LendingTree affiliate community when you apply and are authorized for a card, however our reporting is at all times impartial and goal.
The Southwest Fast Rewards program is among the most versatile airline loyalty packages on the market. Incomes Fast Rewards factors is extremely straightforward and redeeming them is very simple. With this system, you by no means have to fret about blackout dates or award availability — so long as there’s a seat obtainable on the market, you should utilize your Fast Rewards factors to ebook your self a free flight.
Apart from the easy-to-use program, there’s additionally one other big profit: You possibly can cancel a flight booked on factors for completely no price. So long as you cancel 10 minutes previous to the flight’s departure time, all factors redeemed will return into your account, and all taxes and charges might be refunded again to the bank card used.
Moreover, factors by no means expire, all passengers can test two baggage for no price and with the coveted Southwest Companion Pass, one other passenger can fly with you an infinite variety of instances for nearly free.
Fortuitously, there are lots of methods to earn Southwest Fast Rewards factors — even when you aren’t flying Southwest flights fairly often. Between Fast Rewards companions and the Southwest co-branded bank cards, you possibly can earn factors earlier than you even step foot on a Southwest airplane.
At the beginning, you’ll must enroll in the program, which is free and easy to do.
When flying Southwest Airways on a paid fare, you’ll earn factors based mostly on three parts: the ticket worth, your fare class and your elite standing.
Southwest gives three fare lessons: Enterprise Choose, Anytime and Wanna Get Away. There are a couple of further perks if you buy a Enterprise Choose or Anytime ticket, however most Southwest flyers will wish to buy a Wanna Get Away ticket, which is the bottom worth on provide. Word that you’ll solely earn factors on the pre-tax price of a ticket on the following charges:
- Enterprise Choose Fare: 12 Fast Rewards factors per greenback spent
- Anytime Fare: 10 Fast Rewards factors per greenback spent
- Wanna Get Away Fare: 6 Fast Rewards factors per greenback spent
When you have elite standing with Southwest, you’ll earn bonus factors. A-Checklist members will earn an extra 25% Fast Rewards factors, whereas A-Checklist Most well-liked members will earn an extra 100% Fast Rewards factors.
For instance, if you buy a $97 ticket ($119 post-tax) from Baltimore (BWI) to Ft. Lauderdale (FLL) on a Wanna Get Away ticket, you’ll earn 584 Fast Rewards factors.
You may as well earn Southwest Fast Rewards factors for purchases you’re already making in your day-to-day life. With many Southwest partnerships, you possibly can earn Southwest Fast Rewards factors for purchases exterior of flying — from buying on-line to renting vehicles.
One of many best alternatives to earn bonus factors is by utilizing the Southwest Rapid Rewards online shopping portal. For many on-line purchases you make, particularly these at giant retailers, you possibly can earn bonus factors for every greenback you spend. All you must do is begin on the buying portal, choose your service provider and then you definately’ll be directed to that service provider’s web site and might full your buying as you usually would.
For instance, when you’re trying to store at Macy’s, as a substitute of going straight to the Macy’s web site, you’ll wish to begin at Southwest’s buying portal and seek for Macy’s. The portal will let you know the precise variety of factors you’ll earn, which might fluctuate all year long, and also you’ll then be taken on to Macys.com. After you place your order, you’ll obtain the factors earned inside the subsequent 12 weeks — some retailers submit faster than others.
Just like buying on-line, you may also earn bonus factors by collaborating in Southwest’s Rapid Rewards Dining program. By linking your bank card, you’ll robotically earn Southwest Fast Rewards factors at collaborating eating places.
Be certain that to opt-in for e mail communications, as you’ll earn three factors per greenback spent. In case you aren’t enrolled to obtain emails, you’ll earn a a lot inferior one level per two {dollars} spent. There are additionally many bonus alternatives all year long, comparable to new member bonuses, assembly sure spend thresholds and writing opinions for eating places.
You may as well earn Southwest Fast Rewards factors by crediting your resort stays and automotive leases to Southwest. With all eight automotive rental companions — Alamo, Avis, Finances, Greenback, Hertz, Nationwide, Payless and Thrifty — you’ll earn 600 Fast Rewards factors per qualifying rental. Nevertheless, we don’t advocate crediting your resort stays to Southwest, as you’ll usually forgo incomes any factors with the resort chain itself.
However, when you’re trying to make a reservation at a boutique resort that doesn’t have its personal loyalty program, you can also make a reservation with Southwest Hotels or Rocketmiles.com. With each third-party resort websites, you possibly can earn as much as 10,000 Fast Rewards factors per reservation — though it’s usually lots much less.
Many different common Southwest Fast Rewards companions embrace reserving journey actions by way of Southwest Airways Experiences, ordering flowers from 1-800-Flowers and filling out surveys with e-Rewards.
Inside the Southwest suite of co-branded bank cards, there are three private and two enterprise playing cards, which all earn Southwest Fast Rewards factors. With all 5 playing cards, you’ll earn factors with each buy you make on the cardboard.
You’ll additionally discover that some playing cards have totally different class bonuses, which implies you’ll earn an elevated variety of factors on sure purchases, comparable to Southwest flights, telecommunication providers, native transit and commuting bills.
New card holders can earn a bulk variety of factors with the co-branded playing cards’ respective sign-up bonuses:
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card: Earn as much as 100,000 bonus factors — 50,000 factors after you spend $2,000 on purchases within the first three months, plus an extra 50,000 factors after you spend $12,000 on purchases within the first 12 months from account opening.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card: Earn as much as 100,000 bonus factors — 50,000 factors after you spend $2,000 on purchases within the first three months, plus an extra 50,000 factors after you spend $12,000 on purchases within the first 12 months from account opening.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card: Earn as much as 100,000 bonus factors — 50,000 factors after you spend $2,000 on purchases within the first three months, plus an extra 50,000 factors after you spend $12,000 on purchases within the first 12 months from account opening.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card: Earn 60,000 bonus factors whenever you spend $3,000 on purchases inside the first three months after opening the account.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card: Earn 80,000 bonus factors whenever you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months after opening the account.
Now, if you’d like a extra versatile card that lets you redeem factors on Southwest together with many different resort and airline companions, you may want both the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. Each playing cards are a part of Chase’s Final Rewards program the place factors switch to 14 totally different loyalty packages at a 1-to-1 ratio, together with Southwest. This implies all factors earned on the 2 playing cards can instantly be transferred to your Southwest Fast Rewards account.
Southwest has one of many easiest packages on the subject of redeeming your factors. There’s no worrying about blackout dates or award availability. As a substitute, so long as there’s a seat obtainable to buy, you should utilize your Fast Rewards factors to ebook any award flight. The variety of factors you want is instantly tied to the ticket price.
Whereas Southwest doesn’t have a precise redemption charge, factors are usually redeemed for round 1.4 cents apiece for a Wanna Get Away Fare. Nevertheless, based mostly on the route and whether or not you’re flying throughout an off-peak or peak interval, it’d require barely extra or fewer factors. You may as well redeem factors for Anytime or Enterprise Choose fares, however you’ll need to spend extra factors — and the advantages aren’t usually price it.
To redeem your factors, when you’re on the Southwest web site, enter your required metropolis pair and dates. You possibly can then toggle between a paid fare and factors redemption. And in case your journey dates are versatile, you may also simply take a look at a calendar view to ebook on a date the place fewer factors are required.
In case you’re a Southwest Fast Rewards cardmember, there are additionally a couple of different non-airline partnership alternatives to redeem your factors, however the redemption worth is extremely low. Whereas we don’t advocate these different redemptions, when you’re trying to deplete your account, you do have choices. Via the unique More Rewards portal, you possibly can redeem your factors for automotive leases, merchandise, occasions, present playing cards and journey experiences.
There are two totally different Southwest elite standing ranges: A-Checklist and A-Checklist Most well-liked. Whereas these two elite ranges gained’t lengthen a seat in top quality — since all Southwest planes provide only one seat sort — there are some perks you’ll obtain to make your expertise that a lot better.
For A-Checklist standing you’ll must fly 25 one-way qualifying flights on Southwest or earn 35,000 tier-qualifying factors in a calendar yr. Advantages embrace precedence boarding, precedence check-in and safety lane entry, same-day standby, devoted telephone line and 25% bonus factors earned on all qualifying flights.
The necessities for A-Checklist Most well-liked standing are double, the place you’ll must fly 50 one-way qualifying flights on Southwest or earn 70,000 tier-qualifying factors in a calendar yr. Along with the A-Checklist advantages, you’ll additionally obtain a 100% bonus on all qualifying flights and complimentary inflight Wi-Fi.
You possibly can earn tier-qualifying factors by flying Southwest Airways on eligible paid flights or by way of bank card spend with many of the Southwest co-branded bank cards.
The Southwest Companion Pass permits a pal or member of the family to fly with you without spending a dime (plus taxes and charges) all through the lifetime of the move. To earn the move, you must earn 125,000 qualifying factors inside a calendar yr. Factors could be earned from flying eligible fares on Southwest, bank card spend in your Southwest co-branded bank card or from Southwest Fast Rewards associate exercise.
When you earn the move, it’s yours for the rest of the yr, plus your complete following yr. For instance, when you earn the move in April 2022, the move doesn’t expire till Dec. 31, 2023. With the move, your companion can fly with you an infinite variety of instances with no blackout dates or every other restrictions.
Whereas there are lots of methods to earn the move, one of many best strategies is thru Southwest credit cards as a result of the factors earned from the sign-up bonus and common bank card spend depend as qualifying factors. And with the present provide the place you possibly can earn as much as 100,000 factors, that may get you extremely near securing the move.
Finally, the Southwest Fast Rewards program is among the easiest airline loyalty packages on the market with some ways to earn factors, in addition to a simple redemption course of.
Try CNN Underscored’s information to the best credit cards of 2021.
