Southwest Premier Card Review: Useful Benefits at an Affordable Price

The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card makes it easy to collect points, with a sign-up bonus and bonus points every year. However, there is a $99 annual fee, and this card doesn't offer many travel perks. Check out our full Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card review to see if you should apply or look for other credit cards.

This credit card is a good fit for: People who regularly travel with Southwest and want an airline credit card that doesn't break the bank.

Top perks

Here's more on each of the benefits offered by the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card.

50,000 bonus points

Earn 50,000 points for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. It's not the biggest sign-up bonus we've seen, but it's enough to cover one or more Southwest flights.

6,000 anniversary bonus points

You'll get an additional 6,000 points every year after your cardmember anniversary. We've calculated that Southwest points have a value of about $0.014 to $0.018 per point. Using that valuation, 6,000 bonus points are worth about $84 to $108.

Earn up to 3 points per $1

Here's how much the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card earns:

• 3 points per $1 on Southwest purchases
• 2 points per $1 on Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partners
• 2 points per $1 on local transit and commuting, including rideshares
• 2 points per $1 on internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming services
• 1 point per $1 on other purchases

There are rewards credit cards that offer more bonus points, but this Southwest card has a reasonable rewards rate for what it costs.

Achieve A-List status faster

A-List status with Southwest gets you perks like priority boarding and check-in as well as point bonuses. You can achieve A-List status by earning at least 35,000 tier qualifying points (TQPs) in a calendar year. For every $10,000 you spend with the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card, you'll earn 1,500 TQPs, and there's no limit to how many you can earn this way.

Get closer to a companion pass

The companion pass is one reason for Southwest's loyal followers. If you can fly 100 qualifying one-way flights or earn 125,000 qualifying points in a calendar year, you'll get the companion pass for the rest of the year and the full following calendar year. This allows you to take a pre-selected companion with you for free on every Southwest flight you purchase with dollars or miles. The sign-up bonus you get with the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card, and all the other points you can earn along the way, qualify toward the companion pass.

Two Early Bird Check-In credits per year

You get automatically reimbursed for up to two Early Bird Check-In services you buy with your Southwest card per account anniversary year. As the name suggests, these allow you to check in early and board sooner. That's a valuable perk with Southwest, since you select your seat when you board.

25% back on in-flight purchases

When you use this airline credit card to pay for in-flight drinks or wifi, you get 25% back as a statement on your credit card bill. The statement will show up within one to two billing cycles.

What could be improved

This card also has a couple notable issues potential applicants should know about.

Annual fee

There's a $99 annual fee to have the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card. Whenever a card has an annual fee, it's important to consider whether you'll get your money's worth.

Fortunately, that's easy enough with this Southwest card. The yearly bonus of 6,000 points already gets you close to breaking even. If you use your card and fly with Southwest regularly, you should come out ahead.Just make sure you also look at more credit card reviews to see if there are any alternatives that could offer more value.

No luxury travel perks

While other travel credit cards offer benefits like airport lounge access and reimbursements for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry, the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card doesn't offer many high-end perks. That being said, it has a lower annual fee than many of those premium travel credit cards.

Read more: Best Travel Rewards Credit Cards

We recommend you have a good credit score, which means a FICO® Score of 670 or above, when applying for the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card. This gives you a great chance of approval.

This is a co-branded credit card between Southwest and Chase. As such, it's subject to Chase's 5/24 rule. This rule prevents consumers who have opened five or more cards in the past 24 months from getting a Chase credit card. Make sure you haven't opened that many cards so you don't get an instant denial.

LEARN MORE: A Guide to Chase's 5/24 Rule

You fly with Southwest at least two or three times per year and you prefer a credit card with a reasonable annual fee over a pricier one with more travel benefits.

The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card doesn't have a huge list of features, but it has everything you need to save money with Southwest. The annual fee also makes it one of the more affordable travel card options. Just make sure to take your time comparing credit cards across Southwest's lineup. They each have different perks and annual fees, so you'll maximize your savings by choosing the one that fits you best.

Our credit card methodology

At The Motley Fool Ascent, we rate credit cards on a five-star scale (1 = poor, 5 = best). Our rating criteria includes rewards rates, welcome bonuses, fees, and perks like travel credits and 0% intro APR offers to evaluate our ratings.

We combine these factors with an evaluation of brand reputation and customer satisfaction to ensure you're getting the best card recommendations. Learn more about how The Ascent rates credit cards.