The Southwest Priority Card is the top card in the Southwest credit card line-up. While it can be outdone in the earning category using the Ultimate Rewards Program, it truly shines for those who fly Southwest often and want to enjoy a few extra benefits. Perks such as 7,500 anniversary points, an annual airline credit, seat upgrades, and savings on in-flight purchases can be very useful. Cardholders can also run spend through the card to earn Tier Qualifying Points to help earn Southwest Elite Status. If you frequently fly Southwest, this is a card you will want to consider.
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Bonus Categories
The Southwest Priority Card features three bonus categories which are purchases made with Southwest, Southwest hotel partners, and Southwest car rental partners. There is no limit to the amount of Rapid Rewards Points you can earn spending in these categories and no limit to the amount of Rapid Rewards Points you can earn with the card overall.
Do note that the Southwest Plus, Southwest Premier, and Southwest Priority credit cards have the same earning structure.
- 2x Southwest Airlines
- Eligible purchases include purchases made directly with Southwest Airlines including:
- Flights/Ticket Purchases
- In-Flight Purchases
- Southwest Gift Cards
- Southwest Vacations Packages
- Southwest Hotels Portal
- Eligible purchases include purchases made directly with Southwest Airlines including:
- 2x Southwest Hotel Partners
- Southwest Hotel Partners consist of:
- Best Western
- Radisson Rewards
- Choice Hotels
- World of Hyatt
- Marriott Bonvoy
- MGM Resorts International
- Rocketmiles
- Book using the Southwest Hotel Partners Page.
- Southwest Hotel Partners consist of:
- 2x Southwest Rental Car Partners
- 1x Non-Category
Perks & Benefits
The Southwest Priority Card comes with several exclusive benefits such as an annual travel credit, upgraded boardings, and cash back on in-flight purchases. The remaining perks are offered on the other Southwest credit cards and are either slightly improved upon or the same.
- Annual $75 Travel Credit
- Applies to Southwest purchases made throughout the anniversary year.
- Credits post the same day that Southwest Airline purchase posts to your account.
- Upgraded boardings and in-flight purchases do not apply.
- 4 Upgraded Boardings Annually
- Earn 4 upgraded bookings per anniversary year.
- Applies to positions A1-A15 on Southwest Airlines.
- Can be purchased at the departure gate or ticket counter on the day of travel only.
- Upgrades are in the form of a statement credit for the price of the upgraded booking; could take 8 weeks to post.
- 20% Off In-Flight Purchases
- Includes beverages and in-flight Wi-Fi.
- Discount is in the form of a statement credit.
- 7,500 Anniversary Points Annually
- Earn Tier Qualifying Points
- Earn 1,500 Tier Qualifying Points for ever $10,000 in eligible net spend ran through the card.
- Earn up to 15,000 Tier Qualifying Points per calendar year which is $100,000 in annual spend.
- Travel & Purchase Coverage
Sign Up Bonus
The standard sign up bonus for the Southwest Priority Card is 40,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards Points after you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months of account opening which isn't bad at all.
Fees
Annual Fee
The annual fee for the Southwest Priority Card is $149. Between the travel credits offered with the card and the annual 7,500 Rapid Rewards Points, you should easily be able to make this card worth it. Add on the fact that you will save on in-flight purchases and receive four upgraded bookings and it should be a no-brainer for anyone frequently flying Southwest.
Authorized User Fee
There is no authorized user fee for the Southwest Priority Card. This means you can add additional users to help build Southwest Rapid Rewards Points faster.
Foreign Transaction Fee
The Southwest Priority Card is a 0% foreign transaction fee. This allows you to use the card overseas without any type of penalty. You will not earn too much in terms of points with international travel spending outside of the given bonus categories. If you're looking to earn Southwest Points on International travel, you'll want to consider the Chase Ultimate Rewards Program.
Rewards Calculator
You can use the rewards calculator to calculate how many points, miles, or cash back you can earn based on your spend per category. This calculator will also give you the dollar value of the card based on the value of the rewards earned and how much each benefit is worth to you, minus the annual fees. You can click the Compare A Card button to compare this card side by side any other card featured on the site within the same calculator.
Note! All category spend entered in the primary card's column (first column when comparing cards) will carry over to all credit card calculators on the site. This means you will not have to re-enter the same information again and again when browsing during the session.
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