Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Review 2026

Quick answer

The Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier is the middle-tier Southwest personal card at $149 per year, and for most regular Southwest flyers it delivers better value than the entry-level Plus. It earns 3x points on Southwest purchases, awards 6,000 anniversary points annually, and earns Tier Qualifying Points toward elite status — features absent on the Plus. If you fly Southwest 4–8 times a year and want a strong Companion Pass vehicle without paying for premium perks you may not use, the Premier hits the sweet spot.

TL;DR: The Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier card has a $149 annual fee, earns 3x points on Southwest Airlines purchases, 2x on hotel and car rental partners, and 1x on everything else. It awards 6,000 anniversary bonus points each year, earns 1,500 Tier Qualifying Points per $5,000 spent (capped at three times per year), and has no foreign transaction fee. The current welcome offer ranges from 50,000 to 60,000 Rapid Rewards points after $1,000–$2,000 in the first 3 months.

At a glance

Who should get the Southwest Premier card?

The Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier sits in the middle of the three personal Southwest co-branded cards, and it is the right choice for travelers who fly Southwest regularly — roughly 4 to 10 times per year — and care about both earning more points per dollar spent on Southwest and accumulating Tier Qualifying Points (TQPs) toward A-List or A-List Preferred status.

A-List status (earned with 25 qualifying flights or 35,000 TQPs) provides priority boarding, same-day standby, priority security lanes at select airports, and a 25% points bonus on base fares. A-List Preferred (50 qualifying flights or 70,000 TQPs) adds complimentary in-flight Wi-Fi on eligible aircraft. The Premier is one of the few ways to earn TQPs without actually flying, making it valuable for business travelers who do not always hit the flight threshold but do charge significant business expenses to Southwest co-branded cards.

The Premier makes the most sense if you:

• Fly Southwest 4–10 times per year
• Want 3x on Southwest purchases rather than 2x (the Plus rate)
• Are working toward A-List status and want card spend to contribute TQPs
• Do not need the premium perks of the SW Priority (which adds a $75 travel credit and 4 upgraded boardings)
• Travel internationally occasionally and want no foreign transaction fees

Welcome bonus analysis

The Premier's welcome bonus typically ranges from 50,000 to 60,000 Rapid Rewards points after spending $1,000 to $2,000 within the first 3 months, depending on the current offer. At an average value of 1.5 cents per point, a 60,000-point bonus is worth approximately $900 in Southwest airfare.

Like all Southwest co-branded card welcome bonuses, these points count toward the Companion Pass threshold of 135,000 qualifying points in a calendar year. If you apply for the Premier at the start of the year and earn the full 60,000-point bonus, you are nearly halfway to the Companion Pass with a single application.

Chase 5/24 rule: You must have fewer than 5 new credit card accounts opened in the past 24 months across all issuers to be eligible. Plan your application timing carefully.

Bonus stacking note: If you have previously received a welcome bonus on any Southwest personal card, Chase typically will not allow you to earn another personal Southwest card bonus. The business cards (Ink Preferred) are separate and can be combined with a personal Southwest card bonus.

Earning structure in depth

The 3x rate on Southwest purchases is the Premier's key advantage over the Plus card's 2x. On $5,000 spent annually with Southwest, the difference is 5,000 extra points — worth approximately $75. On top of that, the Premier's 6,000 anniversary points ($90 value) versus the Plus's 3,000 ($45 value) add another $45 per year.

Combined, the Premier earns roughly $120 more per year in value than the Plus for a Southwest-heavy spender, while costing $50 more in annual fees ($149 vs. $99) after Chase's 2026 fee increases. Net of that fee gap, the Premier still comes out about $70 ahead — and because the $45 anniversary-point bump alone covers 90% of the $50 fee difference, the extra 3x earn rate only needs to cover about $5 more before the upgrade is pure profit. That works out to roughly $350 in annual Southwest spend, so the math favors the Premier for nearly anyone who books even a couple of Southwest flights a year.

For non-Southwest everyday spending, 1x is below average. Consider pairing the Premier with the Freedom Unlimited (1.5x on all purchases) or Sapphire Preferred (2x on travel and dining) to maximize value on non-Southwest spend. Our Chase Ultimate Rewards guide covers how to stack these cards for maximum points.

Tier Qualifying Points (TQPs): the hidden gem

The single biggest differentiator between the Premier and the Plus card — and a feature often overlooked — is the ability to earn Tier Qualifying Points through credit card spending.

Here is how it works:

A-List status requires 35,000 TQPs (or 25 qualifying flights). The 4,500 TQPs from the Premier represents about 13% of the A-List requirement, which can make a meaningful difference for travelers who fall short of the flight threshold. For A-List Preferred (70,000 TQPs), the card's maximum 4,500 contribution is about 6%.

TQPs earned via card spending do not count toward the Companion Pass — only Rapid Rewards points do. This is an important distinction: the TQPs help with elite status, while your regular point earnings drive Companion Pass progress.

Anniversary bonus breakdown

Every year at account renewal, the Premier deposits 6,000 Rapid Rewards points directly into your account. These points:

• Have an approximate value of $90 in Southwest flights (at 1.5 cents per point)
• Count toward the Companion Pass threshold
• Are awarded automatically — no action required

Compare this to the Plus card's 3,000 anniversary points (~$45). The extra 3,000 points from the Premier are worth $45 — nearly enough on their own to justify the $50 annual fee difference from the Plus, with the 3x earning rate on Southwest purchases closing the small remaining gap for almost any Southwest spender.

How the Premier compares to all three Southwest personal cards

The Premier loses the EarlyBird Check-In perk from the Plus, which is worth noting if you value that benefit. However, the upgraded anniversary bonus, 3x earning rate, and TQP earning more than compensate for most moderate-to-frequent Southwest flyers.

The SW Priority costs $229 (raised from $149 in 2026) — but its $75 Southwest travel credit and 7,500 anniversary points (~$112) bring its net cost down to roughly $42, which is now lower than the Premier's own net cost of about $59 (the $149 fee minus the $90 value of its 6,000 anniversary points). Chase's 2026 fee increases quietly flipped the old advice: the Priority's bigger anniversary bonus, 4 upgraded boardings, and 20% inflight discount now come at a lower effective cost than the Premier, provided you fly enough to actually use that $75 credit. The one thing the Priority still cannot do is earn Tier Qualifying Points — that remains the Premier's exclusive advantage. So the honest breakdown is: pick the Premier if you are chasing A-List status or fly moderately (4–8 times a year) without wanting to manage a bigger annual credit; pick the Priority if you fly often enough to reliably use its $75 credit and 4 upgraded boardings, since it now nets out cheaper than the Premier despite the higher sticker price. See our full Priority review for a deeper breakdown.

Companion Pass strategy with the Premier

The Companion Pass is the crown jewel of the Southwest Rapid Rewards program, allowing a designated companion to fly with you at no charge (just taxes and fees) on every Southwest flight — paid or award — for the rest of the qualifying year and the entire following year.

The Premier card is one of the most direct paths to the Companion Pass for two reasons:

1. The welcome bonus (50,000–60,000 points) provides a massive head start
2. The 6,000 anniversary points count toward the threshold each year

Sample Companion Pass path using the Premier:

Points from Sapphire Preferred or Ink Preferred transfer to Southwest at 1:1 and count fully toward the Companion Pass.

Should you upgrade from the Plus to the Premier?

Run this calculation:

• Additional annual fee: $50 more ($149 vs. $99)
• Extra anniversary points: 3,000 more (~$45 value)
• Extra Southwest earn rate: 1x more per dollar on Southwest spend

Break-even: If you spend $3,000/year on Southwest, the additional 3,000 points at 3x vs 2x ($45 value) plus the extra 3,000 anniversary points ($45) equals ~$90 in additional value against the $50 extra fee — a net $40 gain. Because the anniversary-point bump alone covers 90% of the fee gap, the Premier turns profitable at roughly $350+ in annual Southwest spend, and the advantage only grows from there.

Upgrade if: You spend anything meaningful on Southwest annually (the new breakeven is around $350/year), care about TQPs, or want more anniversary points. The math is favorable well before the old $2,000+ rule of thumb.

Stay on the Plus if: You fly Southwest rarely (1–2 times/year) and use the card primarily for the EarlyBird passes and basic earning, with no interest in A-List status.

Bottom line

The Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier is the best personal Southwest card for the regular Southwest traveler who does not need the Priority card's premium perks. The 3x earning rate on Southwest purchases, 6,000 anniversary points worth ~$90, and Tier Qualifying Points for elite status make it a well-rounded $149 card. Combined with the Companion Pass, the Premier can deliver thousands of dollars in free travel per year for the right Southwest loyalist. For context on where this card sits within the broader Chase ecosystem, pairing it with a flexible UR card unlocks even more value.