- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card: 85K bonus points for $3K spend in 3 months.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card (Click on apply now to access this card): 85K bonus points for $3K spend in 3 months.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card: 85K bonus points for $3K spend in 3 months.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card: 80K bonus points for $5K spend in 3 months.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card: 60K bonus points for $3K spend in 3 months.
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Limited time card signup bonuses:
Through 10/9, you can earn a limited time signup bonus on Southwest cards.
- The Chase Southwest Consumer Priority card has a signup bonus of 85K Southwest points for spending $3,000 in 3 months.
- The card offers some amazing benefits for Southwest loyalists including 4 annual A1-A15 boarding upgrade certificates, $75 in annual Southwest travel credit, 7.5K Southwest points upon every card anniversary, 25% off in-flight purchases, triple points on Southwest purchases, double points on local transit and commuting, rideshare, internet, cable, phone, and select streaming, and the ability to earn unlimited tier points towards A-List status. $149 annual fee.
- The Chase Southwest Consumer Premier card (Click on apply now to access this card) has a signup bonus of 85K Southwest points for spending $3,000 in 3 months.
- The card offers 6,000 points every card anniversary, 2 early-bird checkins per year, 25% off in-flight purchases, triple points on Southwest purchases, double points on local transit and commuting, rideshare, internet, cable, phone, and select streaming, has no foreign transaction fees, and the ability to earn unlimited tier points towards A-List status. $99 annual fee.
- The Chase Southwest Consumer Plus card has a signup bonus of 85K Southwest points for spending $3,000 in 3 months.
- The Chase Southwest Performance Business Credit Card has a signup bonus of 80K Southwest points for spending $5,000 in 3 months.
- The card offers some amazing benefits for Southwest loyalists including 4 annual A1-A15 boarding upgrade certificates, 9K Southwest points upon every card anniversary, 365 free Wi-Fi passes annually, 4 points per dollar spent on Southwest, double points on social media and search engine advertising, internet, cable, and phone services, local transit and commuting, and rideshare, Global Entry/Pre-Check credit, and the ability to earn unlimited tier points towards A-List status. Having this card also allows for $500 in credits to transfer Southwest points between accounts. $199 annual fee.
- The Chase Southwest Business Premier card has a signup bonus of 60K Southwest points for spending $3,000 in 3 months.
- The card offers 6,000 points every card anniversary, 25% off in-flight purchases, 2 earlybird checkins per year, 3 points per dollar spent on Southwest, double points on local transit and commuting, and rideshare, has no foreign transaction fees, and the ability to earn unlimited tier points towards A-List status. Having this card also allows for $500 in credits to transfer Southwest points between accounts. $99 annual fee.
Comparison chart:
Card | Southwest Consumer Priority | Southwest Consumer Plus | Southwest Consumer Premier | Southwest Business Premier | Southwest Performance Business |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Signup bonus | 85K bonus points for $3K spend in 3 months | 85K bonus points for $3K spend in 3 months | 85K bonus points for $3K spend in 3 months | 60K Southwest points for spending $3K in 3 months | 80K Southwest points for spending $5K in 3 months. |
Annual Fee | $149 | $69 | $99 | $99 | $199 |
Anniversary Bonus | 7.5K Southwest points | 3K Southwest points | 6K Southwest points | 6K Southwest points | 9K Southwest points |
Annual Southwest travel credit | $75 | None | None | None | None |
Annual Southwest A1-A15 boarding upgrade certificates | 4 | None | None | None | 4 |
Annual Southwest EarlyBird Checkins | None | 2 | 2 | 2 | None |
Points per dollar spent on Southwest | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
Points per dollar spent on social media and search engine advertising | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Points per dollar spent on Internet, Cable, and Phones | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
Fee credit for transferred points | None | None | None | $500 per cardmembership year | $500 per cardmembership year |
Points per dollar spent on select streaming | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
Points per dollar spent on local transit and commuting, and rideshare | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Points per dollar spend elsewhere | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Credit for Southwest in-flight WiFi | 25% cash back | 25% cash back | 25% cash back | 25% cash back | Full credit, up to 365 times per year |
Credit for Southwest in-flight drinks | 25% cash back | 25% cash back | 25% cash back | 25% cash back | None |
Credit for Global Entry/Pre-Check | None | None | None | None | Full credit every 4 years |
Points count towards companion pass | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Foreign transaction fees | 0% | 3% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Annual Companion Pass Bonus | 10K points (Max 10K per Southwest account) | 10K points (Max 10K per Southwest account) | 10K points (Max 10K per Southwest account) | 10K points (Max 10K per Southwest account) | 10K points (Max 10K per Southwest account) |
Tier qualifying points towards A-list Status | 1.5K tier points for every $5K spent | None | 1.5K tier points for every $5K spent | 1.5K tier points for every $5K spent | 1.5K tier points for every $5K spent |
Visa Savings Edge cash back | None | None | None | Yes | Yes |
Welcome bonus terms:
Officially you can only have one active Southwest consumer card, but you can have each of the Southwest business cards. However there are DDF reports of getting approved for multiple Southwest consumer cards at the same time. Post your results in the comments!
Consumer cards: You can get the bonus as long as you don’t have an active Southwest consumer card and haven’t received a Southwest consumer card bonus in the past 24 months.
Business cards: You can get the bonus as long as you don’t have the exact same business card active and you haven’t received a bonus on the exact same business card in the past 24 months.
5/24:
Typically, Chase cards are subject to 5/24 restrictions, meaning that you are not likely to be approved if you have been approved for 5 or more consumer credit cards in the past 24 months. Note that the Chase system automatically counts cards like authorized user cards and store cards as cards that count towards 5/24, but if you explain to Chase that those cards are merely authorized user cards or store cards they can manually approve you for a new card.
However there have been many reports of 5/24 rules being waived for co-brand consumer cards like these.
You can check your credit report for free at the federally authorized annualcreditreport.com to check how many accounts are shown as being open in the past 24 months.
Value of Southwest points:
The value of Southwest points is variable based on the paid fare.
For example a nonstop flight from Los Angeles to Phonix on 12/4 costs $48.98 or 2,617 points+$5.60. That’s a value of 1.66 cents per point.
If you’ll redeem points for an average of 1.5 cents each, that makes an 85K signup bonus worth $1,275. If you qualify for a companion pass that number can double to a whopping $2,550 signup bonus.
Plus each Southwest card comes with anniversary bonus points!
Companion pass and spend timing:
If you earn 135,000 points in 2024 from select sources, including earnings from credit card signups and credit card spending!
However, if you held a Southwest credit card on the first business day of the calendar year, you were awarded with 10,000 Companion Pass points, so you would only need to earn 125,000 Companion Pass points to earn a pass good through 12/31/25.
Want the points to count for a 2025 Companion Pass good through 12/31/26?
After getting approved for the card, call Chase to change to statement closing date to the 1st of the month. While Chase signup bonus deadlines are marketed as 3 months, typically you’ll have about 115 days after approval to finish spending, so if you’re approved today you should have until about January 14th to complete your spending. Be sure to ask Chase for the exact date by which you need to complete your spending.
Spend the $5,000 any time after your December statement closes on 12/1 and before the signup bonus deadline and the 85K signup bonus points and base spending will count towards earning a 2025 Companion Pass.
The same rule applies for future years.
The pass allows you to bring a companion with you for free whenever you fly Southwest, including Hawaii, even if you are flying on a free ticket! That effectively doubles the value of your Southwest points. There is no limit to the number of free companion flights that you can take.
You can designate a companion and change that companion up to 3 times in a calendar year, so you can name up to 4 companions over the course of a year.
Annual travel credit:
If you have the Southwest Consumer Priority card you’ll get reimbursed for $75 in annual spending on Southwest flights!
Fee credit for transferred points:
Southwest charges a fee of 1 cent per point for points transferred to other members. Business card holders can now get a credit of up to $500 per cardmembership year for transferred points, which would cover the fees for up to 50K points. You can effectively pool together your family’s points for free!
Upgraded boarding certificates:
If you have the Southwest Consumer Priority Card or the Southwest Performance Business Card you’ll get reimbursed for 4 annual purchases of upgraded A1-A15 boarding positions so that you can get some of the best seats on the plane. Upgraded boardings may be purchased at the departure gate or ticket counter on the day of travel. These cost $30-$80, so this is a benefit worth up to $320 per year!
On other cards you’ll get 2 EarlyBird checkins per year, which cost $15-$25 each.
25% cash back on in-flight purchases:
Most Southwest cards now offer 25% cash back on top of points for purchases of drinks and Wi-Fi on Southwest flights!
Inflight WiFi Credit:
If you have the Southwest Performance Business Card you’ll receive a statement credit equal to $8 Southwest WiFi charge on up to 365 charges per year! That will let you connect all of your family’s devices when you fly Southwest so that you can save a bundle!
Global Entry/Pre-Check credit:
If you have the Southwest Performance Business Card you’ll get reimbursed for Global Entry/Pre-Check Membership. You can get reimbursed for those fees ($78 for Pre-Check or $100 for Global Entry and Pre-Check) every 4 years. Membership lasts for 5 years, so you will be able to renew before your membership lapses. Global Entry/Pre-Check make flying so much easier and its great to see more cards add this benefit as I can get Global Entry and Pre-Check for free for my entire family that way!
A-List Status:
With Southwest cards besides the Plus card you can earn 1,500 tier points towards A-List status for every $5,000 spent with no cap on earnings. You can learn more about A-List status here.
Free changes and cancellations. Lock in low fares with no penalty:
Southwest allows you to cancel an award flight and redeposit the points in your account for future use without any penalties.
Thinking of taking a trip but not 100% sure about it? With Southwest points you can lock in a good rate and just cancel the trip free of charge at any point before the flight if you can’t make it!
You can use the points for yourself or book award tickets for anyone else you want to give a ticket to.
Southwest allows you to redeem points for any seat on any flight. There are no blackout dates or capacity controls.
When Southwest has a fare sale the amount of points go on sale as well as it tracks to the price of the ticket. Best of all Southwest will refund your points if the price of your award ticket falls! Just rebook your trip online for the same dates or give them a call for the credit.
Southwest points will never expire as long as you earn points every 24 months.
Transfer Chase Points To Southwest to maximize the value of your Companion Pass:
You can transfer points from the following Chase cards to Southwest at a 1:1 ratio. You can redeem those Southwest points and bring a companion with you for free!
If you, a member in your household, or an authorized user has one of the following Chase cards, you can transfer points into miles:- Limited time offer: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has a 60K signup bonus AND a $300 Chase Travel credit for spending $4K in 3 months, earns 2.1 points per dollar on travel after the card's 10% anniversary bonus, 3.1 points per dollar on dining, streaming, and online groceries after the card's 10% anniversary bonus, has a $50 hotel credit, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.25 cents each for paid travel ($95 annual fee). Read more here.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a 60K signup bonus for spending $4K in 3 months, earns 3 points per dollar on dining/travel, has a $300 travel credit, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.5 cents each for paid travel ($550 annual fee with $300 travel credit). Read more here.
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has a 90K signup bonus for spending $8K in 3 months, and earns 3 points per dollar on up to $150K of annual spending on shipping, advertising, and travel, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.25 cents each for paid travel ($95 annual fee). Read more here.
- Limited time offer: Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card has a $900 in the form of 90K point signup bonus for spending $6K in 3 months, and earns 1.5 points per dollar on business purchases ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
- Ink Business Cash® Credit Card has a 35K signup bonus for spending $3K in 3 months and another 40K signup bonus points for spending another $3K in 6 months for a total of 75,000 Chase Ultimate points, plus if you have a Chase business checking account open on the card's first anniversary you will get a 10% points bonus on all earnings from card spending, this card earns 5 points per dollar on the first $25,000 in combined purchases on cable, TV, telecom, cellular, and office supply stores, plus 2 points per dollar on dining and gas on up to $25,000 in purchases ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
- Chase Freedom Flex has a 20K signup bonus, plus 5 points on rotating categories, 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Travel, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
- Chase Freedom Unlimited® has a signup bonus that earns an extra 1.5% cash back in the form of 1.5 points per dollar everywhere on up to $20K of spending during your first year, on top of at least 1.5 points per dollar everywhere, 5 points per dollar (marketed as 5% cash back) on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
Business card information, benefits, and 5/24
Some Chase cards are subject to 5/24 restrictions, meaning that you might not be approved if you have been approved for 5 or more consumer credit cards in the past 24 months. Enforcement of 5/24 has been patchy for the past year and the only way to know if you can get approved is by trying to apply.
2 of the cards in the chart above are business cards, but you may already have a business that needs a card to keep track of expenses. For example if your name is Joe Smith and you sell items online, or if you have any other side business and want a credit card to better keep track of business expenditures you can open a business credit card for “Joe Smith” as the business. You don’t need to file any messy government paperwork to be allowed to do that. Just be sure to select “Sole Proprietorship” as the business type and just use your social security number in the Tax Identification Number field.
It’s important to just write your own name as the business name if you are just applying for your own small business as a Sole Proprietorship that doesn’t have any business paperwork.
It’s important to note that business cards from most banks, including Chase business cards, do not get added to your 5/24 count of recently opened cards. That’s because business cards from most banks don’t show up on your personal credit report and the 5/24 count is based off of your personal credit report.
Another benefit of business cards not reporting on your personal credit report is that your credit score won’t be hurt when you spend money on your cards. When you spend money on personal cards your score will be hurt even if you pay your bill on time. That’s because a whopping 30% of your credit score is based on credit utilization, so you lose lots of points even if you pay your bills before the statement due date. You can pay off your credit card bill before your statement close date to avoid that, but that takes effort and laying out money well before you have to. Additionally it’s good to have the statement close with a couple dollars to show the card is active and being paid every month. On business cards from banks like AMEX and Chase the spending is not reported on your personal credit report, so you can wait until the money is due without it having a negative effect on your score. That also means if you close the card, it won’t have an effect on your credit score.
As always, Southwest benefits include:
- 2 free checked bags per passenger.
- Free in-flight messaging.
- Free in-flight streaming entertainment, including movies, live TV, on-demand TV, music, destination guides, and games.
- No change fees to switch your flight. Whether you are on a paid or an award flight you can change without penalty!
- No cancellation fee to cancel your flight (you will get Southwest credit for the full amount paid, even on non-refundable wanna get away fares) or to cancel and redeposit your award flight.
- A refund of the fare or point difference if the price of your flight goes down after you buy it, just call to get the credit at any time before your flight!
Will you signup for any Southwest cards?
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4 Comments On "Limited Time Offer: Earn Up To 85K Signup Bonus Points On Chase Southwest Cards!"
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If I sign up for the card now and complete 3k spending before December will my bonus points post in 2024 or 2025?
I signed up for a card last December and my points posted in Jan 2024. I want to make sure they will combine to meet the companion pass threshold for 2024.
Change the closing date to the first of the month. Then complete the spending after 12/1 for it to post in 2025.
I want it to post in 2024. So as long as I complete spending before December it will post in 2024?
Gotcha. In that case, change the statement close date to the 28th of the month and you can spend until 12/27 and it will post in 2024.