I was anti-Southwest until I got one of their credit cards — now I’m a convert

15.06.2024 - 16:45 / thepointsguy.com

I've been living in the U.S. for almost a decade, and one of the strongest opinions I encounter among travelers here is about Southwest Airlines. It seems that the only people more vocal than the airline's haters are its loyal fans.

I think there are valid arguments on both sides of the coin. And, indeed, I was more of a Southwest hater for most of my time living here — until I got one of its cobranded credit cards.

At TPG, we don't push credit cards just for fun; we promote the ones that offer the best value to our readers. An airline credit card can make your travels more comfortable — and save you money in the process.

Right now, the airline's three personal cards — the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card, Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card and Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card — are offering a high welcome bonus. If you apply before June 26, you can earn 85,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening.

So, if you live near an airport with a Southwest presence, it might be worth getting one of its credit cards. Here's how I became a Southwest convert after opening the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card in 2023.

First of all, Southwest has a broad domestic network, making it easy to fly across the country.

The airline has a particularly strong presence in the eastern half of the U.S., Texas and California, covering a large portion of the country's population. It also flies to Hawaii and a number of destinations in Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America.

Since I live in Austin, Southwest is an easy choice for me; it operates almost 40% of flights in and out of the airport. Plus, it's just a short hop to Dallas Love Field (DAL) and Houston's William P. Hobby Airport (HOU), Southwest's fifth- and seventh-largest hubs, respectively, for easy one-stop connections throughout the carrier's network.

Southwest prides itself on having no cancellation or change fees, which can come in handy for award travelers and those who change plans at the last minute.

Case in point: This summer, I am taking a break from the heat in Texas to spend June in Chicago, July in Europe and August somewhere else in the U.S. I'm not 100% sure where I want to be for my final month, so I have booked several Southwest reward flights to spend time in either Chicago or Portland, Maine.

I can cancel any flight up to 10 minutes before departure, which is an extremely generous policy, giving me the power to adjust my flights as my plans firm up.

I aim to get at least 2 cents in value out of each frequent flyer point or mile I redeem across various programs. This is approximately the value that we peg the major issuers' currencies at, including Chase