Southwest Premier Card Review: Is The $149 Mid-Range Card Worth It?

Chase and Southwest have a great portfolio of personal credit cards at three different price points. This is my in-depth review of the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card, the Southwest personal card with a $149 annual fee (which is neither the highest nor lowest annual fee product). Now is an especially good time to consider this card, both because it’s offering an elevated welcome bonus of 85,000 bonus points, and because it’s your last chance to use credit card welcome bonuses to qualify for Southwest’s Companion Pass benefit under the old system. Link: Learn more about the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card Southwest Premier Card summary & key details for October 2026Southwest Premier Card bonus, eligibility, & feesSouthwest Premier Card welcome bonusSouthwest Premier Card bonus eligibility & rulesSouthwest Premier Card annual fee & authorized user feeSouthwest Premier Card no foreign transaction feesSouthwest Premier Card rewards structureSouthwest Premier Card points earningSouthwest Premier Card status earningNo more Companion Pass qualification through welcome bonusesRedeeming points from the Southwest Premier CardSouthwest Premier Card benefits & perksSouthwest first checked bag freeSouthwest complimentary Preferred seatsSouthwest early boarding benefits6,000 Rapid Rewards bonus points every year15% Southwest flight discount25% savings on inflight drinks & Wi-FiTravel & purchase protectionIs the Southwest Premier Card worth it?Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier vs. Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus comparisonSouthwest Rapid Rewards Premier vs. Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority comparisonTip: Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points insteadSouthwest Premier Card FAQsBottom line Southwest Premier Card summary & key details for October 2026 Before I get into my Southwest Premier Card review, here’s a broad look at the card and its key features: Southwest Airlines Premier Card annual fee: $149 Southwest Airlines Premier Card welcome offer: 85,000 bonus points after you spend $2,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening Southwest Airlines Premier Card earning rate: 3x points on Southwest purchases, 2x points at grocery stores and restaurants on the first $8,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year, 1x points on all other purchases Southwest Airlines Premier Card foreign transaction fee: None Southwest Airlines Premier Card travel benefits with Southwest: First checked bag for free, complimentary Preferred seat within 48 hours of departure, 15% flight promo discount each year, board no later than Group 5, 25% back on inflight purchases, earn 1,500 Tier Qualifying Points toward status for every $5,000 spent on the card (through 2026), get 6,000 points every year on your cardmember anniversary Best for: Occasional Southwest flyers who want airline perks with a mid-range annual fee In my opinion, here are the pros and cons of the Southwest Airlines Premier Card: Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Card prosSouthwest Rapid Rewards Premier Card consBenefits when flying with Southwest, including a free checked bag and Preferred seat selectionPoints are only useful for Southwest flights and Rapid Rewards partnersNo foreign transaction feesWelcome bonus no longer counts toward Companion Pass qualification starting in 2027Annual anniversary points bonus helps offset the annual feeSpending cap on non-Southwest bonus categories Southwest Premier Card bonus, eligibility, & fees When applying for credit, cards, the welcome bonus, eligibility rules, and fees, are obviously major factors that potential cardmembers consider. So let’s cover those details for the Southwest Premier Card, as the card has a great bonus, nuanced eligibility requirements, and a relatively manageable annual fee. Southwest Premier Card welcome bonus The Southwest Premier Card is offering a limited time welcome bonus where you can earn 85,000 bonus points after you spend $2,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. This is a limited time, elevated offer, as the most recent base offer was for 55,000 points. Rapid Rewards is a revenue-based frequent flyer program. Based on my latest miles & points valuations, I consider Rapid Rewards points to be worth 1.2 cents each. So to me, the points from this welcome bonus are worth $1,020, making this a solid welcome offer. Earn lots of Rapid Rewards points with Southwest credit cards Southwest Premier Card bonus eligibility & rules When it comes to Southwest credit card eligibility rules, the Southwest Premier Card isn’t available to anyone who currently has a Southwest Rapid Rewards personal card, or anyone who has received a welcome bonus on a Southwest Rapid Rewards personal card in the past 24 months. However, you are eligible if you have a Southwest Rapid Rewards business credit card. Beyond the restrictions related to which Southwest cards you have, there are general application rules for Chase cards, including the Chase 5/24 rule, whereby you usually won’t get approved for a Chase credit card if you’ve opened five or more credit card accounts in the past 24 months. The Southwest Premier Card has a $149 annual fee, and you can add authorized users to the card at no extra cost. Southwest’s personal credit cards have annual fees of $99, $149, and $229, so this is the “middle child” of the Southwest and Chase personal card portfolio. Southwest Premier Card no foreign transaction fees The Southwest Premier Card has no foreign transaction fees, so you can use it abroad without worrying about extra charges. Southwest Premier Card rewards structure In addition to the benefits, one of the main reasons you’ll want to consider picking up a card is because of its return on spending, so you’re sure it aligns with what you’re looking for. In the case of the Southwest Premier Card, it has a limited number of bonus categories, and spending can also help you toward earning elite status with Rapid Rewards. So let’s cover those details. Southwest Premier Card points earning As far as the Southwest Premier Card’s rewards structure goes, the card offers the following: 3x points on Southwest purchases 2x points at grocery stores and restaurants on the first $8,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year 1x points on all other purchases 1,500 Tier Qualifying Points for every $5,000 spent on the card (through 2026) It’s good that the card has some bonus categories, though there are ultimately more rewarding cards out there for everyday spending. Based no my valuation of 1.2 cents per point, that’s like a 3.6% return on Southwest purchases, a 2.4% return on grocery stores and restaurants (up to the cap), and a 1.2% return on everything else. Southwest Premier Card status earning The Southwest Premier Card also lets you earn unlimited Tier Qualifying Points (TQPs) toward Southwest status. Through the end of 2026, you can earn 1,500 TQPs toward A-List status for every $5,000 spent on the card. Starting January 1, 2027, every Southwest credit card will earn 1 TQP per dollar spent, so $35,000 in spending on any of them would get you to Silver status. A-List is Southwest Airlines’ version of elite status, and offers perks like priority boarding, a 25% points bonus, same-day standby, priority check-in and security lane access, and a dedicated phone number. A-List status ordinarily requires earning 35,000 TQPs in a calendar year, so spending on a Southwest Premier Card could help you earn that. Whether or not that’s worth it depends on how much you’d otherwise fly with Southwest. Currently, Southwest Rapid Rewards elite status has two levels: A-List and A-List Preferred. Beginning January 1, 2027, though, the program will grow to three tiers, with new names: Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Qualifying for Silver status will require the same 35,000 TQPs needed for A-List, while Gold and Platinum will require 65,000 TQPs and 140,000 TQPs, respectively. I covered these Southwest Rapid Rewards program changes in detail here. No more Companion Pass qualification through welcome bonuses This brings me to another big upcoming change to the Southwest program and how cards like the Southwest Premier Card fit into your strategy — and this is a pretty unwelcome one. One of the best values in travel is the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass. With a Companion Pass, you can have someone travel with you for the entire year (whether on a cash ticket or award ticket) and just pay taxes and fees for them. This is such an incredible deal and basically doubles the value you can get from flying Southwest. For a long time now, the points earned as part of Southwest credit card welcome bonuses have counted towards the 135,000 qualifying points needed to earn the Companion Pass. But starting January 1, 2027, credit card welcome bonuses will no longer count toward qualification. This eliminates the easiest way to earn this valuable benefit, and it’s not the only change: referral bonuses, anniversary points, bonus points from spending, and partner spending, won’t count toward the Companion Pass either. In fact, Southwest’s rolling the Companion Pass into its highest elite tier, Platinum, and requiring either 140,000 TQPs or 100 qualifying flights to earn it. This change isn’t specific to the Southwest Premier Card, as it applies to welcome bonuses across all Southwest credit cards. But the good news is that welcome bonuses earned before the end of 2026 do count toward Companion Pass qualification, so now is your last chance to take advantage before this opportunity ends. Changing are coming to Southwest Companion Pass qualification Redeeming points from the Southwest Premier Card I have a dedicated post that covers how to redeem Southwest Rapid Rewards points for maximum value, but I’ll briefly cover how redemptions work. Rapid Rewards is a revenue-based frequent flyer program, which means that the value you’ll get from your points is tied to the cash cost of Southwest tickets. That said, there are a few different levels, ranging from Basic tickets to Choice Extra fares. Basic award fares tend to offer the highest redemption value, and in my experience the best-value Southwest point redemptions are usually for international routes to destinations like Costa Rica and Aruba. For instance, I’ve seen Basic awards from Tampa (TPA) to Liberia, Costa Rica (LIR) for 12,000 points and $24.21. The same fare cost $200 in cash, giving you a very strong value of 1.46 cents per point. One great thing about the Southwest Rapid Rewards program is that there are no change or cancellation fees, and rebooking a fare when the price drops gets you a refund equal to any difference in points. Just note that Basic fares can only be changed by upgrading to a higher fare bundle, so for a cheaper Basic award you’d cancel and rebook rather than change. Southwest Premier Card benefits & perks The Southwest Airlines Premier Card offers some benefits that could make the card worth keeping long term. How do the perks compare to Southwest’s lower and higher annual fee cards? Southwest first checked bag free The Southwest Premier Card gets the primary cardholder and up to eight additional passengers on the same reservation a first checked bag at no additional cost. Checked bags on Southwest cost $45 each way, so this can save you up to $90 roundtrip on checked bag fees per person. With even a couple of roundtrip flights per year, this benefit can offset the annual fee. Southwest complimentary Preferred seats The Southwest Airlines Premier Card lets you pick a Preferred seat on Southwest, if any are available, starting 48 hours before departure. The cost for a Preferred seat can vary from $28 to nearly $50 depending on the flight, so this perk is another potential money-saver. Southwest early boarding benefits Another Southwest Premier Card benefit is early boarding. You’ll be able to board with Group 5, or earlier if you have elite status or a fare or seat type that qualifies you for an earlier boarding group. Southwest has eight total boarding groups, so while there are several ahead of Group 5, it’s better than boarding last. 6,000 Rapid Rewards bonus points every year On your cardmember anniversary every year, you’ll receive 6,000 bonus Rapid Rewards points. Southwest Rapid Rewards is a revenue-based frequent flyer program, and you can generally expect that you’ll need around 83 Rapid Rewards points for every dollar of airfare you book. In other words, 6,000 bonus points get you around $72 in Southwest airfare annually. That covers nearly half of the annual fee right there. 15% Southwest flight discount Each year on your Southwest Premier Card cardmember anniversary, you’ll get a 15% promo code that applies to Southwest flights. Just note that this excludes Basic fares. 25% savings on inflight drinks & Wi-Fi The Southwest Premier Card offers 25% savings on inflight purchases of Wi-Fi and drinks. Simply pay with your card, and you’ll automatically receive a statement credit for that amount. Travel & purchase protection The Southwest Premier Card offers a variety of travel & purchase protection benefits, including: Baggage delay insurance Lost luggage reimbursement Extended warranty protection Purchase protection You’ll want to check the cardmember agreement for the full terms & conditions associated with these benefits. The Southwest Airlines Premier Card is Southwest’s mid-range card, and the $149 annual fee is in line with many other co-branded airline credit cards. The card is offering a fantastic bonus, which is one good reason to consider this product. On an ongoing basis, the 6,000-point anniversary bonus can get you around $72 worth of airfare. Whether the Southwest Premier Card is worth it in the long run depends on how much you value the other perks like a free checked bag, and whether you plan to use spending on the credit card to qualify for Southwest elite status. The Southwest Premier Card provides some nice value Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier vs. Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus comparison As I mentioned above, the Southwest Premier Card is the mid-range option in Chase’s lineup of Southwest cards. Here’s a look at how it compares to the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card (learn more), which is the entry-level option: The Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Card has a lower annual fee of $99, so $50 less than the Southwest Premier Card The Southwest Plus Card has a slightly lower welcome bonus, of 80,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 within the first three months The Southwest Plus Card doesn’t include the option to spend your way to Southwest elite status through the end of 2026 (starting in 2027, all Southwest cards earn 1 TQP per dollar spent) The Southwest Plus Card offers 3,000 points to cardmembers each year on their anniversary, vs. 6,000 points for the Southwest Premier Card The Southwest Plus Card offers a 10% flight discount each year on your cardmember anniversary, whereas the Southwest Premier Card offers a 15% discount The Southwest Plus Card earns 2x points on Southwest purchases compared to 3x points on the Southwest Premier Card, and it also earns 2x points at gas stations and grocery stores on the first $5,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year (compared to 2x points at grocery stores and restaurants on the first $8,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year on the Premier) If you don’t care about working toward Southwest status through credit card spending and you want to keep your annual fee to a minimum, the Southwest Plus Card is likely a better option for you. Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier vs. Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority comparison On the other end of the spectrum, there’s the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card, which is the most expensive of the three personal Southwest credit cards. Here’s how it differs from the Southwest Premier Card: The Southwest Priority Card has a higher annual fee of $229, so that’s $80 more per year than the Southwest Premier Card The Southwest Priority Card is offering a slightly higher welcome bonus, of 90,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 within the first three months The Southwest Priority Card gets you complimentary Preferred seating at booking when available, as opposed to within 48 hours of departure when available with the Southwest Premier Card The Southwest Priority Card includes extra legroom seat upgrades (based on availability) as a benefit — something you won’t find on the other two Southwest personal credit cards The Southwest Priority Card earns TQPs toward status at a faster rate than the Southwest Premier Card through the end of 2026: 2,500 TQPs for every $5,000 spent vs. 1,500 (starting in 2027, both cards earn 1 TQP per dollar) The Southwest Priority Card offers a higher anniversary bonus of 7,500 points each cardmember year, compared to 6,000 points on the Premier Card The Southwest Priority Card earns 4x points on Southwest purchases compared to 3x points on the Southwest Premier Card, and it also earns 2x points at gas stations and restaurants with no cap If you fly Southwest all the time and want as many benefits with the airline as possible, the Southwest Priority Card could be the right choice. It’s also the best pick if you want to spend your way toward status before the end of 2026, since it earns TQPs at the fastest rate of the three cards. Tip: Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points instead Chase Ultimate Rewards is a transfer partner with Southwest Rapid Rewards, and points transfer at a 1:1 ratio. This means that you could earn points at a faster rate through Ultimate Rewards than through Rapid Rewards, and your points will be more flexible (since you can also transfer them to other airlines and hotel programs). So, should you earn Rapid Rewards points directly with a Southwest Airlines credit card, or with a Chase Ultimate Rewards credit card? If you’re trying to earn Companion Pass or A-List status, then you have to spend on a Southwest card, since Ultimate Rewards points don’t earn TQPs If you don’t care about Companion Pass and just want to earn as many Rapid Rewards points as possible, earn points with Ultimate Rewards, and then transfer them over For context, some of the best cards for earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points include the following: The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (learn more) offers 3x points on dining, online grocery stores, gas & EV charging, select vacation rentals (including Airbnb, VRBO, and more), and select streaming services, and 2x points on travel; the card has a $95 annual fee The Chase Sapphire Reserve® (learn more) offers 8x points on Chase Travel℠ bookings, 4x points on direct flight & hotel bookings, 3x points on dining, plus a $300 annual travel credit; the card has a $795 annual fee The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (learn more) offers 3x points on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases annually on travel, shipping purchases, internet, cable, and phone services, advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines; the card has a $95 annual fee On top of that, the following four no annual fee cards earn points that can be converted into Ultimate Rewards points at a 1:1 ratio in conjunction with one of the above cards: The Chase Freedom Flex® (learn more) offers 5x points in rotating quarterly categories, on up to $1,500 of spending per quarter, plus 3x points at drugstores The Chase Freedom Unlimited® (learn more) offers 3x points at drugstores and 1.5x points on everyday spending The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (learn more) offers 5x points on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases each anniversary year on cellular phone, landline, internet and cable TV services, plus 2x points on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases each anniversary year on gas stations and restaurants The Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card (learn more) offers 1.5x points on all business spending Southwest Premier Card FAQs Is the Southwest Premier Credit Card worth it? The Southwest Premier Card can be worth it if you fly Southwest several times a year and want to earn redeemable points from the welcome bonus as well as perks like a free checked bag when you fly with the airline. What are the benefits of having a Southwest Premier Card? The main benefits of having a Southwest Premier Card include 6,000 bonus points every year on your cardmember anniversary, a first checked bag for free on Southwest for you and eight companions on the same reservation, complimentary Preferred seat selection starting 48 hours from departure, and the ability to earn Southwest points on your everyday spending. Which Southwest card is better, Premier or Plus? The better card for you between the Southwest Premier and the Southwest Plus comes down to your priorities and how often you fly Southwest. The Southwest Plus has a lower annual fee of $99, but it doesn’t offer the ability to earn Tier Qualifying Points toward Southwest status. The Southwest Premier Card has enhanced benefits like a larger annual flight discount and 3x vs. 2x points on Southwest purchases in exchange for a higher annual fee of $149. Does the Southwest Premier Card have an annual fee? Yes, the Southwest Premier Card has an annual fee of $149. What credit score do you need for the Southwest Premier Card? While Chase doesn’t publish a credit score requirement for the Southwest Premier Card, you’ll have the best odds of qualifying if your credit score is in the good to excellent range. Bottom line The Southwest Premier Card is a solid mid-range airline credit card. It has a nice welcome bonus, plus ongoing perks that justify the annual fee. However, if you’re not particularly interested in extra perks when you fly Southwest, you’re much better off earning points with Chase Ultimate Rewards and then transferring them to Southwest Rapid Rewards, given that it gives you higher points earning rates and more flexibility. If you want to learn more about the Southwest Premier Card, follow this link.