Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card

Rewards by category

Our take

The Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus is built for households that fly Southwest a few times a year. It earns 2x on Southwest purchases, gas, and groceries, and at SwipeCaddy's 1.3-cent point valuation, 2x works out to roughly 2.6% back. The bag benefit is the family angle: your first checked bag flies free, and so does the first bag for up to eight companions on the same reservation.

The tradeoffs are real. The $99 annual fee buys points, not cash, and the gas and grocery 2x is capped at your first $5,000 per year combined; everything past that earns 1x. The card also traded its old 2x categories on transit, internet and phone, and streaming for gas and groceries when the fee rose to $99. The anniversary package softens the fee: 3,000 points, worth about $39 at 1.3 cents each, plus a 10% off promo code.

In a small wallet, treat this as a Southwest-and-errands card, not an everywhere card. Its 1x base rate is a weak floor, so pair it with a flat-rate card for spending outside gas, groceries, and Southwest itself. On the trip, though, it pulls its weight: no foreign transaction fees, a 10,000-point Companion Pass qualifying boost each year, and free first checked bags that stack up fast for a family.

The math

Run $600 a month of groceries through this card and you're earning about $187 a year at our conservative valuations. Against the $99 annual fee, that top rate needs roughly $1,375 a month of groceries spend before it beats a no-fee flat 2% card.

Store bonuses

• Southwest Airlines2x
• Lyft2x

Key benefits

• 3,000 anniversary points each year
• First checked bag free for you and up to 8 companions on the same reservation
• 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points boost each year
• 10% off promo code each Cardmember anniversary

Common questions

Does Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card have an annual fee?

Yes — $99 per year.

What does Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card earn on groceries?

2x on groceries (up to $5,000/anniversary yr (combined)).

What rewards does Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card earn on everything else?

1x on all other purchases, in Southwest Rapid Rewards.

What is the catch with the Southwest Plus card's 2x gas and grocery rate?

The 2x applies only to your first $5,000 per year in combined gas and grocery purchases; after the cap those purchases earn 1x. These categories also replaced the card's former 2x on transit, internet and phone, and streaming. If your household clears $5,000 quickly, route the overflow to a dedicated grocery or flat-rate card.

Does the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus help you earn the Companion Pass?

Yes, in one specific way: the card gives you a 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points boost each year you hold it. Your regular earning, including 2x on Southwest purchases, gas, and groceries, adds redeemable points on top. If the Companion Pass is a goal for your household, that annual boost is a real head start.

Related reading

• How we value points and miles (and why our numbers are lower than everyone else's)SwipeCaddy ranks cards by reward rate × a conservative cash value per point: 1¢ for cash back and transferable points (Chase, Amex, Citi, Capital One, Bilt), 1.1–1.3¢ for airline miles, 0.4–1.4¢ for hotel points, and 0.8–0.9¢ for store currencies. Optimistic transfer values are recorded for context but never ranked, because most people never achieve them.