How my Southwest Precedence card pays for itself in simply 4 flights a yr

0 1 3 minutes read

I’ve to come back clear earlier than we get into this: Flying Southwest Airways is not precisely my favourite journey expertise. From setting a check-in alarm to keep away from that dreaded C group to the awkward open seating interactions, it is not precisely my cup of tea.

That mentioned, generally the fares or nonstop routes from my house in Pittsburgh are too good to move up. And for me, the Southwest Speedy Rewards® Precedence Credit score Card makes these journeys infinitely extra gratifying.

This card additionally simply received Greatest Airline Cobranded Credit score Card on the 2023 TPG Awards, so let’s get into why I — and plenty of you, too — assume it is price it.

Generally I am unable to move up a Pittsburgh to Orlando nonstop flight. MARIAH WILD/WALT DISNEY WORLD

4 free upgraded boardings

You understand these coveted A1 to A15 boarding positions? Certain, you can pay for a pricier Enterprise Choose fare, however the Southwest Precedence card will reimburse you for as much as 4 upgraded boardings per yr, which bump you up into these prime positions when paying the extra inexpensive Anytime and Wanna Get Away fares.

4 upgrades are excellent for somebody like me who solely flies Southwest a couple of instances a yr. Southwest says pricing begins at $30 every, however in my expertise, I’ve virtually all the time seen them on the $40 mark — which means this profit alone provides as much as $160 in worth per yr for me, already exceeding the cardboard’s $149 annual payment.

These upgrades are additionally simpler than ever to redeem. Again within the day, you can solely redeem them on the airport, however now, you should purchase upgraded boarding on the Southwest app or web site proper after you test in on the 24-hour mark. Sure, you may nonetheless wish to set that alarm as a result of upgraded boarding is not all the time out there, and with the simpler redemption, they have an inclination to go a bit quicker than earlier than.

Annual journey credit score and anniversary factors

You will additionally get an annual $75 Southwest journey credit score every year and seven,500 bonus Southwest Speedy Rewards factors in your card anniversary. Primarily based on TPG’s month-to-month valuations, these anniversary factors are price $105.

So, whenever you add up the $75 credit score, the 7,500 bonus factors and the 4 upgraded boardings, you find yourself with roughly $340 in worth every year, greater than double the annual payment.

The Southwest Speedy Rewards Precedence card additionally has a couple of incentives in the event you’re chasing Southwest A-Listing standing or a Companion Go. You will earn 1,500 tier-qualifying factors for each $5,000 you spend on the cardboard beginning January 2024 (which is considerably improved from the $10,000 spend wanted for a similar tier-qualifying factors in 2023). The cardboard additionally offers you an annual increase of 10,000 Companion Go-qualifying factors.

Each day E-newsletter

Reward your inbox with the TPG Each day e-newsletter

Be a part of over 700,000 readers for breaking information, in-depth guides and unique offers from TPG’s consultants

Associated: Methods to shortly earn the Southwest Companion Go

Bonus classes

The Southwest Precedence card has a couple of spending classes the place you may earn bonus Speedy Rewards factors:

3 factors per greenback spent on Southwest purchases, together with flights, gadgets you purchase inflight, present playing cards and Southwest Holidays packages
2 factors per greenback spent on Speedy Rewards lodge and rental automobile companions
2 factors per greenback spent on native transit and commuting class purchases
2 factors per greenback spent on web, cable and cellphone companies, in addition to choose streaming companies

Whereas these would possibly assist in the event you’re taking pictures for A-Listing standing, I typically depend on different playing cards I’ve to maximise earnings in these classes. I additionally prefer to ebook lodge and rental automobiles on to keep away from cancellation or change points.

Get monetary savings inflight and thru Chase

Two different smaller perks function the icing on the cake.

First, you may get 25% again on inflight purchases. I’ve seen this assertion credit score publish on Southwest inflight Wi-Fi purchases, reducing the efficient price from $8 to $6.

Moreover, I’ve steadily discovered strong Chase Presents focused to my Southwest Precedence card, together with cash-back gives on Southwest purchases. The supply I am at present focused for offers 5% money again on Southwest purchases of $50 or extra (as much as $20), and a earlier supply supplied as much as 10% money again. I’ve additionally cashed in on Chase Presents for eating places like First Watch, plus Instacart and gasoline purchases.