Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier

The short answer

Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier is the middle personal Southwest card from Chase, with a $149 annual fee. It is an airline rewards card with anniversary points, checked-bag benefits and access to available Preferred seats shortly before departure. The question it raises is whether the extra $50 over Plus, which costs $99, buys anything you would use.

In Julia's example, $1,600 of Southwest tickets a year and one checked suitcase on a round trip, Premier finishes $36.80 ahead of a no-fee 2% card. Plus, with the same trips and the same bag waiver, finishes $31.60 ahead, so Premier leads it by only $5.20. With $400 of tickets instead, Plus leads by $9.20.

The Studio's verdict on fit is "Southwest spending and Preferred seat selection beginning 48 hours before departure." It suits less well a household that flies less, that is content with Standard seats, or that wants to choose Preferred seats when buying the ticket. The Wallet Score is 58 out of 100.

What it costs

The annual fee is $149, which is $50 more than Plus. The Studio's rate card lists no membership cost, and the card has no foreign transaction fee.

Julia measures Premier two ways: against a no-fee 2% card, and against Plus on exactly the same trips. The second comparison isolates what Premier adds, because the two cards share the eligible bag waiver and boarding no later than Group 5.

What it earns

• 3 points per dollar on eligible direct Southwest purchases.
• 2 points per dollar on the first $8,000 of combined grocery-store and restaurant spending each account anniversary year, then 1 point.
• 1 point per dollar on other ordinary purchases.
• 6,000 points after each cardmember anniversary.
• 1,500 tier qualifying points for each $5,000 of eligible annual purchases, which help toward A-List.
• A yearly boost of 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points.

Julia values a point at a net 1.2 cents, based on travel she would actually buy, after award taxes, other charges and rewards given up by redeeming. At that value the 2-point rate returns 2.4%. Julia allows for the points' posting time instead of expecting them on the anniversary morning.

The credits, used honestly

• First checked bag: the waiver covers the primary cardholder and up to 8 others on the same eligible reservation, within normal bag limits. Julia includes her Rapid Rewards number when booking and allows up to 14 days for a new card's status to update. Partner-carrier bookings do not qualify, and authorized users do not receive their own waiver. If your fare or status already covers the bag, there is nothing saved.
• Anniversary points: 6,000 points, worth $72 at a net 1.2 cents.
• Seat selection: you can choose an available Preferred or Standard seat within 48 hours before departure, and the benefit can extend to up to 8 additional passengers on your reservation. Preferred seats have standard legroom nearer the front. They are not Extra Legroom seats, and this is not free Preferred selection when you buy the ticket.
• Anniversary code: 15% off an eligible new booking, against 10% on Plus. Neither works on Basic fares.

The code applies to the eligible base fare before government taxes and fees. On a $600 base fare, Premier's percentage takes $90 off that part and Plus's takes $60 off. It is one code, delivered within 15 days of the anniversary and valid for 1 year after delivery, usable through Southwest's website or app on an eligible new booking. It cannot be applied to a booked flight or combined with another code.

Julia checks the final totals and the rewards she would earn on the reduced fare before treating the difference as saved. She would not buy a more expensive fare to use it, and she adds no code saving to either annual result.

The catch

Timing is the catch. Premier's seat benefit begins 48 hours before departure, so it does not settle seats at booking, and the Studio's limitation says so: "Preferred seats at booking require Priority. The Basic-fare test gives the discount codes no value."

Two different years apply. The $8,000 limit on grocery and restaurant spending follows your account anniversary year. The spending period for the tier qualifying points follows December statement cycles. The tier points and the 10,000-point Companion Pass boost are not spendable, and the boost is not an automatic Companion Pass. Julia checks her own progress before moving purchases to meet a threshold.

On everyday purchases, a suitable no-fee card paying 3% on the same purchase could do better than Premier's 2.4%. Julia checks merchant eligibility and the other card's limit, and she would not move all her groceries to Premier because she keeps it for flying.

Welcome-offer eligibility is separate from this renewal-year comparison, and Julia pays in full so interest does not undo the benefit.

Who it fits

Premier fits a fuller travel year, where its points narrowly justify the extra fee and the 48-hour Preferred seating and a usable discount could then make Julia prefer it. It also fits someone who wants to sit nearer the front and does not mind waiting to see what is available.

It fits less well fewer flights, or trips where Standard seats are fine. Julia would give Plus a serious look there, choosing by the seat timing and the booking she would use, not by assuming the middle-priced card is the sensible compromise.

The score of 58 comes from the everyday card test, which weighs recurring value after fees across 3 fixed household budgets, then how easily the rewards can be used, effort and 2 specific protections. Premier's extra anniversary points and earning categories help; the annual spending limit still matters, and seat convenience is not counted as cash.

The arithmetic

Julia's example is $1,600 of Southwest tickets and one checked suitcase on a round trip, compared with a no-fee 2% card.

• Bags: $45 each way avoids $90 in fees. The 2% card would earn $1.80 on paying them, so the net saving is $88.20.
• Anniversary points: 6,000 points at 1.2 cents is $72.
• Tickets: $1,600 at 3 points earns 4,800 points, worth $57.60. The 2% card earns $32, so Premier adds $25.60.
• After the $149 fee, Premier is $36.80 ahead.

Against Plus on the same trips, Plus is $31.60 ahead after its fee, and Premier beats it by $5.20 before valuing seats or codes.

The tipping point: Premier costs $50 more, and its extra 3,000 anniversary points cover $36, leaving $14. The extra point on Southwest purchases is worth 1.2 cents per dollar, so about $1,167 of eligible yearly Southwest spending makes up the $14, with the same bags on both cards.

With $400 of tickets instead, Premier finishes $17.60 ahead and Plus $26.80, so the cheaper card leads by $9.20.

Before you apply

On the issuer's page today, check the $149 fee, the 48-hour seat rules, the bag waiver, the $8,000 limit and your anniversary date, the anniversary code percentage, and your eligibility for any welcome offer. Then price one real year of Southwest tickets on both cards.

The Studio's rate card carries the checked-bag benefit at $240, the larger of the $120 and $240 its tests use, and flags it for review. The video's example is $90, so confirm the current fees.

The figures in this article were verified on October 6, 2026.