Whether Southwest Airlines is your mode of transportation for travel around the country, or you've been considering adding points to your Rapid Rewards account, there's no time like the present. Southwest has three personal co-branded credit cards providing some of its best welcome offers in a long time, and all of them are set to expire at 7 a.m. EDT on Thursday, July 2, 2026.

The offers go from 80,000 to 90,000 Rapid Rewards points, depending on which card you select. For a $229 yearly card, the top offer would be about $1,080 in potential airfare value, at a reasonable valuation of about 1.2 cents per point. Before the window closes, that math needs to be looked into.

The Three Offers on the Table

The welcome bonuses are divided up by card and how much it takes to claim them, and they all must be completed in the first three months of opening an account:

• Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Card $99 annual fee: 80,000 points after $1,000.
• Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Card ($149 annual fee): 85,000 points after spending $2000
• Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Card ($229 annual fee): 90,000 points after spending $3,000

There's a difference in the top and bottom offer of 10,000 points, equivalent to about $120 worth of Rapid Rewards redemptions. These minimum spend requirements increase with the cost of the credit card, but none are so high that they deter anyone with normal living expenses from using their credit card over 90 days.

There's one important aspect to understand before you make an application for these offers: they're mutually exclusive. Only one personal Southwest Visa can be held at a time and if a new cardmember bonus has been earned on any personal Southwest card within the last 24 months, then you cannot earn another one again. Be thoughtful; it is not something that needs to be decided again any time soon!

Why Points for Rapid Rewards REALLY count!

Southwest's Rapid Rewards program is revenue-based, which means the amount of points required is directly proportional to the cash price of the ticket. No complicated award matrix to navigate, no fuel surcharges in fine print and no blackout dates. When you have points and Southwest flies the route, you can book it.

The downside to this is you will not always be able to get the extreme over-booking “redemption” that some airline programs with set award charts may offer. What you do have is consistency and flexibility  and on routes that Southwest has a competitive cash price, the points can equal pretty good value. If you are travelling domestically, a balance of 80,000 90,000 points will suffice for multiple return flights on many popular routes.

The program also directly contributes to the top benefit of Southwest: Companion Pass. If you earn 135,000 qualifying points during a calendar year you earn a Companion Pass that will allow one person that you designate to fly with you on any paid or award ticket for the remainder of that calendar year and the following year. Bonus points earned towards this threshold are valid and can help bridge a significant gap towards Companion Pass in one shot.

The Case for Going With the Priority Card

The straight-up advice: If you're looking to apply for one personal card from Southwest, you should apply for the Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Card. This $229 annual charge is the most expensive of the three, but the rewards of the card outweigh the cost over time. The Priority Card is awarded 7,500 anniversary bonus points each year, which equates to approximately $90 worth of Rapid Rewards. It also features a $75 travel credit from Southwest that will be applied as a statement credit to qualifying purchases, which equals a third of the credit card's annual fee in a single line. The earning rate for the Southwest card is much more favorable for those who fly Southwest regularly, with 4x points on purchases, compared to the Plus Card at 2x and Premier at 3x, and Tier Qualifying Points (TQPs) earned towards A-List status with each $5,000 spent.

One of the things to note about the seat assignment benefit is that it forced Southwest to change the math for other benefits of their cards, such as a free drink on the initial flight, which is now off the table. The Priority Card is not just for the primary cardmember to reserve preferred seats 48 hours before he or she leaves, but also for up to eight companions to pick their own seats at the time of booking. It is important on well-traveled routes where preferred seating fills up fast. Additionally, Priority cardholders can secure extra legroom seats without any extra cost within 48 hours of the flight and it really helps on longer journeys. The difference between the cards is real, not theoretical, when compared to the Plus Card, which has a seat selection window of just 48 hours before departure.

The three cards have one thing in common: and that's important, too!

Rather than solely looking at the distinctions, it's important to remember that all three of the personal cards from Southwest are basically the same without regard to tier. All cards offer one free checked bag for the primary cardholder and up to 8 guests on the same reservation. If that's the only benefit you're looking for, you'll save a lot of money when you're traveling as a family or group of people who may need to check more bags, since Southwest now charges up to $45 for your first checked bag. All three also provide Group 5 boarding, a special place to board guaranteed to be earlier than the general public, and a 25% discount on in-flight purchases, including drinks.

In particular, the first checked bag benefit is one that doesn't discriminate on the level of the card. It is a checked bag coverage that you and your travel party enjoy with either the $99 Plus Card or the $229 Priority Card. If a Southwest regular checks bags often, this one feature alone can yield annual value to a card holder that outweighs a significant part of his or her annual fee.

The Business Cards are a note

Southwest offers two co-branded business credit cards that are currently offering high tiers of offers if you are self employed, running a business or if you need to split up business expenses to a separate card. The Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Card has a $149 annual fee and has 60,000 points after 3 months and $3,000 in spending. The Performance Business Card, which costs $299 a year, tops that to 80,000 points after $5,000 in the same time period.

In terms of eligibility, business card applications and personal card applications don't compete with one another, so if you're a business owner seeking to rapidly build up a well-rounded Rapid Rewards balance, having both types of cards will help you earn a lot more in a year and maybe even make it into the Companion Pass fold!

The Bottom Line

Southwest's welcome offers are among the most generous this family has ever presented and they're coming to an end Thursday morning. The value of 80,000 to 90,000 bonus points is genuine and it's a smart choice to make before the expiration date. The Priority Card is also the best ongoing argument since it offers the best seat selection, earning rates, travel credit and the biggest welcome offer to beat the lower tiered cards. The deadline for applying is 7 a.m. ET July 2, or whenever the next opportunity arises.