can you use southwest travel funds and points

UponArriving

Southwest Travel Funds (Expiration, How to use, Etc.) [2021]

Sometimes you need to cancel a flight or you just flat out miss a flight with Southwest. In those instances, all hope is not lost and all of your value is not lost either. That is because you will likely be issued Southwest travel funds (depending on the type of ticket that you purchased).

In this comprehensive article, I will show you everything you need to know about Southwest travel funds. I’ll discuss how you get them, how to use them, and important details like when they expire. I will also touch on gift cards and LUV vouchers for added clarification.

Table of Contents

What are Southwest travel funds?

Southwest travel funds are special funds that usually get issued when you are given a refunded credit for your Southwest flight. Southwest travel funds are different from gift card balances and Southwest LUV vouchers and I’ll discuss those below for added clarification.

Tip: Use the free app WalletFlo to help you travel the world for free by finding the best travel credit cards and promotions!

Best Southwest credit cards

Southwest airlines rapid rewards premier card.

The Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Premier Card comes with the following benefits:

• No foreign transaction fees
• 6,000 anniversary points ( learn more )
• Earn 1,500 Tier-Qualifying Points for every $10,000 in purchases, up to 15,000 Tier-Qualifying Points each calendar year
• $99 Annual fee

Southwest Airlines Priority Card

The Southwest Airlines Priority Card comes with all of the benefits offered below:

• 2X Rapid Rewards on Southwest purchases
• 2X Rapid Rewards on hotel and car rental partner purchases.
• 1X Rapid Rewards on all other purchases
• $75 Southwest annual travel credit ( learn more )
• 7,500 anniversary points each year
• Four Upgraded Boardings per year when available.
• 20% back on in-flight drinks, WiFi, messaging, and movies
• Earn tier qualifying points towards A-list Status
• $149 annual fee applied to your first billing statement

How to get Southwest travel funds

Typically, you will get Southwest travel funds whenever you cancel a flight or you fail to show up for a flight (a “no show”).

One of the most common ways to get Southwest travel funds is to receive a credit for your canceled flight.

Southwest Airlines has one of the most generous cancellation policies out of any major airline in the US. They allow you to change your flights with no additional fee (up to 1 hour prior to departure) and allow you to cancel your flight up to 10 minutes prior to the departure time.

Anytime fare or a Business Select fare

If you purchased an Anytime fare or a Business Select fare then you can cancel up to 10 minutes prior to the departure time and receive a full refund. However, if you fail to cancel your flight you will be issued Southwest travel funds in place of that refund.

Wanna-Get-Away fare

If you purchased a Wanna-Get-Away fare you are not allowed to receive a full cash refund. Instead, you will receive Southwest travel funds whenever you cancel your ticket at least 10 minutes prior to departure. But keep in mind that if you fail to show up for your flight and don’t cancel your ticket at least 10 minutes prior to departure, you will not be issued any type of credit at anytime and you will lose all of your travel funds. 

Award reservations

If you had an award reservation then your Rapid Rewards will be deposited back into your account. However, any taxes and fees associated with your reward travel reservation will be held for future use in the form of reusable travel funds under the name of the traveler(s).

Also keep in mind that if you purchase Southwest EarlyBird, that is a nonrefundable purchase and you will not receive travel funds for that. To find out more about Southwest EarlyBird click here .

2020 Coronavirus travel funds update 

Extended expiration.

If you purchased a nonrefundable fare (such as a Wanna-Get-Away fare) for travel between March 1 and September 7, 2020 and you cancel your flight “in accordance with Southwest’s No Show Policy,” you will receive travel funds good through September 7, 2022.

However, once you use those travel funds for a purchase they will then expire one year from the date of purchase.

So for example if you redeemed travel funds on July 1, 2021 then those travel funds would expire July 1, 2022.

Travel funds with an expiration date of September 7, 2022, can be converted into Rapid Rewards points at the same rate you would be able to purchase a ticket with points today.

You must request to convert your travel fund by December 15, 2020.

Southwest gift cards

Southwest gift cards can be purchased from the Southwest website at anytime  or you can purchase them via phone by calling Southwest Airlines at 1-800-IFLY-SWA (1-800-435-9792).

You can choose any amount between $10 dollars and $10,000 dollars so the range is quite extreme. (Orders exceeding $1,000 can be made by printing the  Southwest gift card order form  and following the directions provided.)

You can also choose to have these gift cards delivered via email, or you can have them sent via mail. But note that if you were getting them sent via the mail, you will have to pay the shipping fees. If you prefer, you can also expedite the shipping of these gift cards.

A Southwest gift card is NOT valid for the purchase of:

• Southwest Airlines Vacation Packages
• Rental cars
• Southwest Airlines Merchandise
• EarlyBird Check-In
• Additional Southwest gift cards
• In-flight purchases

Related: How much are Southwest points worth?

Southwest LUV Vouchers

Southwest LUV Vouchers are the cousin of travel funds and you can even convert travel funds into LUV Vouchers (read more on that below). 

LUV Vouchers are valid as a form of payment toward future airfare only on Southwest Airlines through Southwest.com , toll-free Reservations 1-800-I-FLY-SWA (1-800-435-9792), or at any Southwest Airlines Ticket Counter.

Southwest LUV Vouchers are not redeemable as:

• Payment toward Government-imposed segment fees
• Excise taxes
• Passenger Facility Charges
• September 11th Security Fees or
• Payment toward miscellaneous charges
• Southwest Airlines Group tickets
• Southwest Airlines Vacations packages
• or travel either wholly or in part on other air carriers.

When do Southwest travel funds expire?

Southwest travel funds will expire one year from the purchase date (booking date) of the original flight. This is a huge thing to know because some people assume that the expiration date is one year from the date of travel, which is not the case.

Southwest Airlines does not offer free extensions for the expiration date for travel funds. However, you still might be able to get them to extend the expiration date of your travel funds. This will likely come at a cost of though.

Travel funds expire date extension

Many people extend the expiration date for their travel funds after paying a $100 reinstatement fee. The travel funds are then converted into LUV vouchers when the reinstatement takes place.

You may only have 6 months to request the reinstatement and you must make your request after your travel funds expire. Also, the LUV voucher may only be valid for 6 months from issue so inquire about its expiration date. 

Sometimes Southwest has reduced the value of the travel funds when they are reinstated so be on the lookout for that.

The good thing about getting a LUV voucher is that you should be able to use that for anybody. So in some instances, it could be very well worth it to pay $100 so that you can apply those funds to a different traveler. 

If your funds have already expired, then I highly suggest that you call and inquire about all of the above possibilities. If the phone representative is not willing to budge, then I suggest that you try calling back later and speaking with another representative.

Note that it is possible that the policies regarding reinstated travel funds are subject to change at anytime so always be prepared for alternative measures!

What about gift cards and vouchers?

Unlike Southwest travel funds, the gift cards do not expire.

However, Southwest LUV Vouchers must be redeemed and all travel completed by the expiration date indicated. If applied in conjunction with any other accepted form(s) of payment, the earliest expiration date of all payments applies.

Southwest will often grant extensions for LUV vouchers but will usually refuse an extension if that LUV voucher was received as a result of getting an extension from your travel funds expiration date. However, if you were given a LUV voucher because of some sort of customer service issue, then you will likely be granted at least one extension for the expiration date.

How to check/view your Southwest travel funds

If you would like to check the status of your Southwest travel funds then simply log-in to your Southwest account and then click on “My Account.” You will then see “My travel funds” at the top and you’ll just need to click on “View Travel Funds.” 

You can also do so by clicking here. You will need to have your confirmation number and the passengers first and last name. On that website, you can also check the balance of your Southwest gift card and vouchers.

If you do not have your flight details, you might run into some resistance because Southwest does state that you need this information to look up your travel funds:

Customers calling Southwest to request a refund or to research travel funds for a specific ticket must provide their confirmation number, ticket number or flight information (date, origin and destination).

How to use and apply Southwest travel funds

It is very simple to use your Southwest travel funds.

When you are getting ready to complete the booking of your flight, you should see a button on the checkout screen under the Payment method window for Travel Funds. You will want to click that and then enter in the confirmation number and passenger name from the reservation of the canceled or unused flight.

Keep in mind that the passenger name must match the name of the traveler on the new flight perfectly. You cannot use Southwest travel funds for someone else. You also cannot transfer your travel funds to someone else.

As Southwest states:

Travel Funds from an unused or cancelled reservation may only be applied toward the purchase of future travel for the individual named on the ticket.

But keep in mind the possible exception where you convert your travel funds into LUV vouchers. That route comes with a cost and some risk, but if it works out it can be a way to get around the transferability rule.

Southwest travel funds FAQ

If you do not know your confirmation number, then try to search your inbox for Southwest emails. You should have been given an email at the time of booking containing your confirmation number. The subject line will usually state “Your reservation is confirmed.” You might also be able to locate the confirmation number by logging into your Southwest account and clicking on your past activity which you find under “My Trips.” If all else fails then consider calling the following phone number: 1-800-435-9792 (1-800 I FLY SWA).

You should note that you can only use these funds for airfare or for Southwest vacation packages. They cannot be applied for other purchases like in-flight purchases, Southwest Earlybird, and other random airline incidentals.

A lot of people don’t have use for their travel funds and they want to know if they can convert the travel funds into cash money. The answer to this question is no. If Southwest allowed customers to do that, it would honestly defeat the entire purpose of issuing travel credits in the first place so it is understandable that they do not allow this.

It is possible that when you go to apply your Southwest travel funds that they will not work. If that is the case, then I suggest calling up Southwest right away and explaining to them that you believe that you have travel funds that should be applied and that they are not working during the checkout process.

If you would like to check the status of your Southwest travel funds then simply log-in to your Southwest account and then click on “My Account.” You will then see “My travel funds” at the top and you’ll just need to click on “View Travel Funds.” 

When you are getting ready to complete the booking of your flight, you should see a button on the checkout screen under the Payment method window for Travel Funds. Click that and then enter in the confirmation number and passenger name from the reservation of the canceled or unused flight.

Southwest is one of the most generous airlines when it comes to changing flights and canceling your flights. Receiving Southwest travel funds for your cancellations and no show instances can be a great way to not miss out on a lot value. Just make sure that you stay on top of tracking the expiration date for your funds so that you properly use them in time.

Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and the credit card app, WalletFlo . He is a former attorney turned travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, and CNBC. Read my bio .

23 comments

Hi, I tried to get my travel funds reinstated within the 6months period(by deducting 100), but they were not ready to do it, I have an other travel funds which is about to expire, I booked something and cancelled due to the corona virus scare, though I explained my situation about it, they were not ready to do it.I have been traveling via southwest from past 10 years, even though they were not ready to do it.They would have updated the funds on the app long back.Its so confusing with so many promotional emails from southwest.

So just to make sure, did you make your request after your travel funds expired or before?

I have 2 travel funds, one of them got expired in dec2019, and the other one is expiring on march 22nd 2020.So I requested for both.

The southwest site says you CAN use travel funds for southwest vacations. https://www.southwestvacations.com/deals/benefits-of-booking-southwest-vacations?clk=GSUBNAV-VAC-WHYBK&intcmp=GSUBNAV-VAC-WHYBK

Thanks for that. I’ve updated the article to clarify.

Question that may be very pertinent to this. I had small amount of travel funds to use ($20) which were expiring on 8/15/20. I just applied those to a new flight I just purchased last month (say 2/15/20). With the COVID-19 situation prices continue to drop and I noticed the new flight now is $34 less so I changed to get that $34 credit.

However, now when I look at my Travel funds, I do see the $34, but the expiry date is 8/15/20 (not 2/14/21 which is what I was expecting). It appears since I used that old Travel fund of $20, it is now applying that original expiry date to my new Travel funds. Is this how it should work? I could not find anything on this but it is important to know. It may not be worth to use those small travel fund amounts if they are expiring soon since any future larger credit you may get won’t have a long life.

I would be surprised that SWA would do this (the ticket I bought on 2/15 was $200 – so saying that when I applied that $20 travel fund to it, making that original ticket date be the new expiration date seems silly).

I have the same issue. On 2/20/2020 I booked a flight for this coming weekend using a credit card and a small travel fund balance that was set to expire on 7/16/2020. I’ve now cancelled that flight for obvious reasons, but the website shows the full amount (not the just the amount on the original travel fund) expires on 7/16/2020. Is this a glitch, or by design? If it’s supposed to work like that, then like the other poster wrote, be careful if you book a flight using a combination of travel funds and credit card…if you cancel that flight, you won’t get a full year credit on the amount you paid by credit card…

I recently (March 13,2020) had to make a change in travel. I did not have a computer access and call wait times were in excess of 90 minutes. I COULD NOT use my travel funds on the SOUTHWEST Android app. That is such a huge limitation. I could not load a desktop site on my phone.

Travelers should be aware of the limitation in using Travel Funds is ONLY AVAILABLE via the FULL SOUTHWEST.COM desktop site. Not their mobile app.

Southwest “should” fix this arbitrary limitation.

Excellent information! I canceled my trip last week due to the virus. I had purchased two tickets. When I book my next flight, I will obviously use the travel funds for my ticket. Will I be able to use those travel funds for the other person’s ticket…….she had a ticket on the canceled flight? I tried to call the airline for this question, but the wait time was long.

Travel funds are credited back to the passenger name on the original ticket. No one may use that credit except the original passenger. So if you bought three tickets for three different passengers, then each passenger will have a separate credit listed under their Specific name And under that confirmation code.

If you have travel funds that expire June 1, 2020 to you have to actually fly by June 1, 2020 or just book your next trip by then?

I was wondering the same thing. Have you found out the answer to this yet?

I am wondering that same thing. If my travel funds expire in April 2021, can I use them for a flight in June 2021?

I need to use my “credit” by March 13, 2021 from a cancelled flight. Can i book a ticket for later in the year or do I actually have to fly by March 13?

I do not understand why if I pay for tickets for other family members and they can’t be used, why I can not get the voucher back in my account? It really just doesn’t seem fair!

I purchased tickets for travel for my wife and me to fly to Hawaii last October. Due to personal reasons we could not go at that time. I promised my wife I would take her this past spring but due to the Covid outbreak you are not allowed to travel to Hawaii without quarantining for 2 weeks. My funds expire in October 2020 so basically I will lose my money unless I use the funds for other travel which I do not want to do until the Covid risk lessens. We are elderly and have other health problems so SWA is basically telling us to travel somewhere we don’t need or want to go and in the process risk our lives. What an airline!! By the way I have taken over 700 flights on SWA over the years and have been a loyal customer. As a result I will fly SWA as little as possible in the future. This will be easier now as all the other major airlines have done away with their change fees as well.

does using travel funds for a southwest flight count as a qualifying revenue flight. there are promos that require a revenue flight

I canceled over 10 upcoming flights on Southwest in mid-March just as the pandemic travel restrictions were starting in CA (I also canceled many more on 3 other airlines — I fly a couple times a week). I then went to transfer the credits to points and couldn’t find the cancelation notice (even though I wrote down when I canceled). I was told that the funds were “stuck” and therefore even though they had documentation of cancelation, I had to call corporate to have them establish the credit. I called corporate but after holding for 30 minutes, I didn’t have time to complete the transfer (but the person assured me the cancelation was in the record and would be issued when I called back). When I called back I was placed on hold for about 30 minutes and they told me that they didn’t see that I had canceled and would only issue credit for no-show (due to COVID) but the funds had to be used in a couple months (before my job will allow me to travel). Is there anything you advise?

Thank you for this great information. My question is about using SW travel funds by the expiration date, does “using” mean booking travel or travel by that date?

We have funds that expire in Sept. 2021. I plan to book flights next week for travel in Dec. 2021.

I too have the very same question…Seems it has been asked a lot on here and no one gets an answer. I sure hope to get an answer to this soon too.

So here’s the rub on travel funds, they expire 1 year after the booking date, not the travel date. But when you want to redeem them, the redemption date is the travel date, not the booking date. This is just pure evil!

Whoa! I am facing the similar issues that I read in this comment section. Really they have very conveniently kept hidden loopholes that would be experienced only by the customer who has to face such a situation. And very cleverly SW sneaks away gulping our hard earned money by luring you can have travel funds to use for future travel! Even though I pay with my credit card the travel fund could be used by only the passenger in whose name I bought the ticket. Why on earth the passenger who has enjoyed my buying ticket will get free travel funds to use but I can not use it if he/she is not flying and I need to fly for my own business to take care. Well, this time I had to cancel and rebook the tickets 4-5 times and in that rebooking I had to change my travel route that saved me and my husband more that $ 300 dollars for each of us. My husband is suffering with diabetes as well as lung cavity formed due to bacterial infection making him immunocompromised. Due to this corona/omicron fear he does not want to risk his life. Our travel funds are expiring on June 29, 2022. I spent several hours calling SW airline customer service, wait time 72 hours!, also tried calling through Southwest Credit card that I used to buy our tickets and from there trying to get some help with travel funds extension, no human available making me listening FREE MUSIC for infinite time. Why there is no e-mail facility to get in touch with them? No where on the entire site you can use e-mail contact except using the form the site want me to fill in. And unfortunately my issue is not among the reasons the page shows, I can not use e-mail route! Do you have any update about COVID 19 some modification in using travel funds beyond the expiration time limit? I would appreciate some feedback.

Comments are closed.

Privacy Overview

You Can Now Convert Your Southwest Travel Credits Into Points—at a Very High Rate

There are some pros and cons to converting the funds. here’s how to know whether the switchover is right for you..

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A $200 travel fund will convert into 15,600 points.

Photo by Shutterstock

For anyone who has had to cancel a Southwest Airlines flight due to the coronavirus pandemic, this may be some welcome news: As of August 10, anyone with qualifying future travel credits (what Southwest refers to as travel funds) can convert them into Rapid Rewards points—as long as they do so by December 15, 2020. And the conversion rate is pretty impressive.

To qualify, a customer must be a Rapid Rewards member, and the funds must be set to expire by September 7, 2022. (If you’re not already a member, you can join and then convert the funds online.) The first and last name on the travel fund must match that of the Rapid Rewards account, and the original ticket must have been purchased directly from Southwest.

To see how much your travel funds are worth in points you simply go to “ check travel funds ” and enter your details. Southwest has built in a “funds to points conversion eligibility” tab that shows you how many points you will get in exchange for the balance of your travel funds.

The carrier is assigning a whopping 78 points to every travel fund dollar, which are all being converted at the same rate. That’s a lot more than its standard conversions for purchased tickets. Southwest typically determines points based on the fare class and the fare amount. So, if you purchase a Business Select fare, you get 12 points for every dollar spent—a $200 ticket will earn you 2,400 points; for an Anytime fare, you get 10 points for every dollar spent—a $150 ticket will get you 1,500 points; and for a Wanna Get Away fare, you earn 6 points for every dollar spent, so a $100 ticket will get you 600 points. By comparison, a $200 travel fund converts to 15,600 points, and a $100 travel fund would be converted to 7,800 points.

The option is key for those who purchased tickets for someone other than themselves: While travel funds remain in the original passenger’s name (the person who was originally scheduled to fly), the purchaser would be able to transfer the funds for a ticket they bought for someone else into their Rapid Rewards account. They could then use the Rapid Rewards points toward any ticket, regardless of who is flying.

Another thing we love about Rapid Rewards points? They never expire. Additionally, a Rapid Rewards account represents a lump sum of points that you can add to or draw upon to book flights with as needed, making it easier to use than travel funds. The travel funds are individual credits that are assigned per refund. As you start to use them, you can end up with odd and small remaining amounts (such as $15.83 or $1.22) that become very difficult to cobble together toward a flight, especially since Southwest limits customers to three forms of payment. Keep in mind that you cannot combine points and cash for a single reservation, so you can get some leftovers with points, too—but you can book a one-way reservation using points, and a one-way reservation with cash, as one workaround.

You won’t get status with those converted points, however

There are a couple potential drawbacks to this conversion offer. The biggest one is that points transferred from travel funds will not count toward earning tier status or a coveted Companion Pass, which allows you to have someone travel with you for a year or more for free. And you can’t earn points when purchasing a ticket with points—but you can when purchasing it with travel funds. So if status is your aim, the conversion may not be best for you.

Southwest has three tiers of elite status : A-List, A-List Preferred, and the Companion Pass . To earn A-List status, travelers need to have racked up 35,000 points in a calendar year. To earn the Companion Pass, you’ll need to earn 125,000 points. Anyone with A-List or A-List Preferred status through December 31, 2020, will have that status extended through the end of 2021.

Points don’t cover taxes or fees, either. So you’ll have to pay for those out of pocket for any flights purchased with points. These can vary quite a bit depending on where you are flying and what kind of extras you have, such as additional bags or a pet.

Nevertheless, the conversion option adds more flexibility to Southwest’s already very flexible policies. Even prior to the pandemic, the carrier’s standard policy included no change fees for flight changes. However, it made some adjustments due to the pandemic that offered its customers longer grace periods. Typically, after canceling a Southwest flight, a new flight must be booked within a year of the travel credit being issued. But if you have funds that have expired or will expire between March 1, 2020, and September 7, 2020, they will now expire on September 7, 2022. And any travel funds that resulted from a flight that you canceled between March 1 and September 7, 2020, will expire September 7, 2022.

>> Next: How Safe Is Flying During COVID-19?

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How to Redeem Southwest Points For Maximum Value

Sally French is a travel rewards expert who joined NerdWallet in 2020. She previously wrote about travel and credit cards for The New York Times and its sibling site, Wirecutter.

Outside of work, she loves fitness, and she competes in both powerlifting and weightlifting (she can deadlift more than triple bodyweight). Naturally, her travels always involve a fitness component, including a week of cycling up the coastline of Vietnam and a camping trip to the Arctic Circle, where she biked over the sea ice. Other adventures have included hiking 25 miles in one day through Italy's Cinque Terre and climbing the 1,260 steps to Tiger Cave Temple in Krabi, Thailand.

She lives in San Francisco.

Megan Lee joined the travel rewards team at NerdWallet with over 12 years of SEO, writing and content development experience, primarily in international education and nonprofit work. She has been published in U.S. News & World Report, USA Today and elsewhere, and has spoken at conferences like that of NAFSA: Association of International Educators. Megan has built and directed remote content teams and editorial strategies for websites like GoAbroad and Go Overseas. When not traveling, Megan adventures around her Midwest home base where she likes to attend theme parties, ride her bike and cook Asian food.

Kevin Berry works as the content lead for multimedia production at NerdWallet including YouTube, podcasts and social media videos across all financial topics. Previously, he was the Lead Editor for the Travel Rewards team. Prior to NerdWallet, Kevin managed the content and social media teams at NBC Sports in Portland for eight years. His prior experience also includes time as a financial analyst (Comcast) and business system analyst (Nike).

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Table of Contents

1. Best redemption: Southwest Airlines flights

2. okay redemption: booking international flights on southwest (if you have a southwest credit card), 3. subpar redemption: redeem southwest points for gift cards (for cardholders), 4. ho-hum redemption: other travel, 5. bad redemption: physical products (if you have a southwest credit card), 6. a redemption that feels good: give them to charity, redeem southwest points wisely.

Southwest Rapid Rewards is one of the best frequent flyer programs out there for no-frills travelers who prefer simplicity.

Rapid Rewards points never expire. And since the value of Rapid Rewards points closely mirrors cash prices for airfare, you don’t need to worry about whether you got a good or bad redemption when booking Southwest flights.

And while redeeming Rapid Rewards points for airfare tends to be the best redemption, you’re not limited to just that. Just note that while your points are generally worth the same cash value when you redeem them for airfare, the other redemptions are not all created equal — and they are generally far inferior.

NerdWallet values a Rapid Rewards point as being worth 1.5 cents , but you’ll typically only get that when you redeem your points for Southwest flights. Other redemptions — such as a new pair of headphones or an international flight with a non-Southwest airline — tend to be worth far less.

So with that, here are the primary ways to redeem Southwest Rapid Rewards points, ordered from general best to worst.

» Learn more: Your guide to earning Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards points

★ LIMITED TIME OFFER

Heads up! For a limited time, select Southwest Airlines credit cards are offering a sign-up bonus for new cardholders that's substantially larger than the standard offer — a bonus that NerdWallet calculates could be worth more than $1,200. The offer is good only through June 26, 2024. Learn more and apply here.

One of the most straightforward ways to redeem Rapid Rewards points is by booking Southwest flights — not to mention it’s one of the best values of your points.

Rather than pricing flights using distance-based award charts like some airlines, Southwest’s redemption rate directly correlates to the fare’s cash-price. This means the higher the fare, the more points it will “cost” you.

Southwest airfares are divided into four categories, all of which are redeemable with points:

Business Select (most expensive, higher earning rates, more flexibility).

Wanna Get Away Plus.

Wanna Get Away (least expensive, lower earning rates, less flexibility).

All tickets are eligible for two free checked bags and no change fee, and credits are reusable indefinitely if a flyer needs to cancel their ticket.

Some types of tickets, such as senior, infant, child, military and government fares, are not eligible to be purchased with points.

How to redeem your Southwest points for flights

To redeem your Rapid Rewards points for flights , log in to the Southwest website and make sure the “Points” option is selected on the search (not “Dollars”). You can use your Southwest points to book flights for anybody, not just yourself.

Here are the steps for how to redeem your Southwest points for flights:

1. Login to your Rapid Rewards account

Booking flights with Rapid Rewards points is easy. Simply navigate to Southwest's website and click the yellow login button. Once you've entered your credentials, you will be directed to your dashboard.

2. Input your flight details

Enter your dates, destination, number of passengers and whether you would like to book round-trip or one-way. You can toggle to looking at award flights ahead of searching by clicking "Points."

Note that you can also do this on the next screen.

3. Click search and browse flight availability

Deal-seeking travelers know to refer to Southwest's Low Fare calendar if your dates are flexible. If you skipped toggling to the points view in the last step, you can also do that here.

Business Select fares usually cost the most, but come with built-in benefits like preferred boarding. You can also redeem your points for an Anytime , Wanna Get Away Plus or Wanna Get Away fares.

4. Select your flight and input your payment details

Once you've found the right flight for you, navigate to the next page and input your personal travel details. If you are a Global Entry / TSA PreCheck member , be sure to add in your Known Traveler Number so you can get through security faster on your day-of travel.

Since the cost of your trip is covered by your points balance, you will only be on the hook to pay the $5.60 in government taxes and fees. These can be paid for with a credit card, PayPal or a Southwest travel voucher .

Redeem using Cash + Points

In Spring 2024, Southwest launched a new option for redeeming points for flights: Cash + Points.

You'll have to start booking your ticket as a cash fare to have this option, but at check out, you'll be presented with the chance to use points to cover a portion of your fare, discounting the final cash price.

Southwest will provide you with up to five pre-set points-to-cash redemption ratio options determined by a number of factors, including the specific flight and number of passengers. You'll need a minimum of 1,000 poitns in your account to use Cash + Points.

While many other airlines let regular members use their miles to book award flights on other airlines, don’t expect that here. Southwest isn't part of an airline alliance and doesn’t have any formal airline partnerships, so most people can only use Rapid Rewards points to fly Southwest.

However, if you have a Southwest credit card , you can use your points to book international flights with non-Southwest airlines via the Southwest More Rewards program. This online shopping portal enables users to purchase products beyond Southwest flights, including international flights on other airlines.

According to our analysis of the Southwest More Rewards program, the cost to book an international flight on points (based on our valuation of Rapid Rewards at 1.5 cents ) is still around a 50% markup compared with if you just paid for the flight in cash.

But, if you have a ton of Southwest points to burn and don’t anticipate using them on a Southwest flight, this could be an okay option.

If you're a Rapid Rewards credit cardholder, you can also access the airline's online shopping portal, known as the More Rewards platform . There, Southwest credit card holders can exchange their points for gift cards to restaurants, department stores, retailers and more. You’ll usually find big, nationwide brands like Olive Garden, Buffalo Wild Wings, Staples, PetSmart and Macy’s on the list.

But, we don't recommend it.

Redemptions on the More Rewards portal typically tend to provide a poor rate of return. Most gift card redemptions cost 15,000 points for a $100 gift card (a 0.6 cent per point value), though you can sometimes find better deals or smaller increments of options.

We don't generally recommend redeeming your Southwest points for gift cards or other items as you tend to get bad value relative to our estimated value of 1.5 cents apiece.

If these are redemptions you believe you will pursue frequently, bookmark that specific webpage URL linked above as Southwest makes it oddly difficult to find your way to this portal from its website.

Then again, you really shouldn't spend much time on that website anyway, as almost every redemption is abysmally bad. Read more about why we don't suggest Rapid Rewards members purchase gift cards or merchandise with their points in our article Southwest’s More Rewards: A Waste of Points?

Beyond international flights that aren't through Southwest, you can also use your Rapid Reward points to pay for other types of travel expenses including hotels, rental cars and experiences. Like gift cards, you'll have to book these things through the Southwest Rapid Rewards portal. Redemption value is hit and miss versus cash rates, but this is for certain: rates are almost worse than booking actual Southwest flights.

Only take this option if you're certain you won't be flying on Southwest anytime soon (like perhaps you've moved to a city that isn't served by Southwest).

The worst thing you can possibly buy with your points on the Southwest More Rewards platform — again, only available to Rapid Rewards credit cardholders — is physical stuff. We’re talking electronics, home and garden tools, travel insurance, pet gifts, coffee and sunglasses.

And it’s all generally a bad deal. According to our analysis of More Rewards products, physical items are marked up an astounding 161% on average, versus purchasing them for their retail price.

Unless you're desperate to buy one of the items, or you're short on cash to buy it through traditional means and are otherwise not planning to use your points, skip this option.

» Learn more: Southwest’s More Rewards: Don’t waste your points

Can you donate Southwest points? Yes — Southwest allows you to give your points to one of about a half-dozen charity organizations, including the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Student Conservation Association.

To donate your Southwest points to charity, navigate to Southwest’s donation page and follow the instructions from there.

As far as what you get out of it, well, let’s say you get some warm fuzzies. Otherwise, there’s not a ton of value, especially since points donated to charity won’t count toward your qualification for improved status in the Rapid Rewards Program. Donated points also won’t count toward any Companion Pass qualification or Southwest elite status designation. Your donation won’t even count toward your account activity.

As far as whether your donation is tax deductible, Southwest says you should consult your tax advisor.

» Learn more: Southwest Rapid Rewards program: The complete guide

Southwest’s Rapid Rewards points are a delightfully low-maintenance currency, and the airline's loyalty program offers a variety of opportunities for redemption, the most valuable being flights to one of Southwest’s more than 100 destinations in the U.S., Mexico and the Caribbean.

Then again, if you don’t want to fly, you’ve got some other options as well. Just know that — to maximize your value — it is best to use your Rapid Rewards points on Wanna Get Away fares for Southwest flights.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are some of the best travel credit cards of 2024 :

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

on Chase's website

1x-5x 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases.

60,000 Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

1.5%-5% Enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

Up to $300 Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back!

on Capital One's website

2x-5x Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day. Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options.

75,000 Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

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How to easily redeem your southwest flight credits.

Thanks to Southwest’s generous cancellation policy, you might have flight credits waiting to be used.

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To redeem your Southwest flight credits, you can use them to book any available cash flight or to pay for the taxes and fees on award flights. One of the places you can check your flight credits is the Southwest website.

Southwest flight credits are a form of flight credits that you might receive from one of the features we love most about Southwest Airlines. This feature is the ability to cancel a flight and receive the unused funds in the form of flight credit.

Let's explore how to make the best use of your Southwest flight credits and how to check the credits available to you.

Key takeaways

What are southwest flight credits, how to use southwest flight credits, how to make the most of your southwest flight credits, southwest flight credits faq.

• Southwest flight credits are funds toward future flights that you can earn when you cancel a Southwest reservation up to 10 minutes before the scheduled flight departure.
• You can redeem your Southwest flight credits through the Southwest website, mobile app, phone, or at a Southwest ticket counter. They can cover cash flights as well as taxes and fees associated with rewards travel.
• Southwest flight credits don’t expire, so you don’t have to worry about losing them if you don’t use them.
• Southwest allows you to transfer flight credits to someone else if your canceled fare was a Business Select, Anytime, or Wanna Get Away Plus fare.

Southwest flight credits are essentially travel funds you can apply toward future flights. They aren't the same thing as airline miles you earn from one of the air carrier's co-branded Chase credit cards . A passenger earns these flight credits when they cancel a Southwest reservation up to 10 minutes before the flight is scheduled to take off.

You can redeem your flight credits by going to the Southwest website at Southwest.com, by phone, through the mobile app, or at a Southwest ticket counter for future flights. You can reach Southwest customer service at 1-800-I-FLY-SWA (1-800-435-9792).

You can also use Southwest flight credits to cover any taxes and fees associated with rewards travel. And since Southwest doesn’t charge cancellation fees, the entire cost of your canceled ticket can be put toward your next flight; you’ll pay only if there’s a fare difference.

Do Southwest flight credits expire?

Southwest flight credits no longer expire. Southwest has eliminated expiration dates on all Southwest flight credits unexpired on or created on or after July 28, 20222. 

Keep in mind that other forms of Southwest travel funds, such as gift cards or LUV vouchers, might have expiration dates. The expiration date is typically listed on the card or travel voucher, or you can check the expiration date online.

Can I transfer Southwest flight credits?

Southwest allows you to transfer flight credits to someone else in certain cases. This feature is available for customers who buy their flights using the Wanna Get Away Plus fare, as well as the Anytime or Business Select fares.

Both the sender and the receiver of the flight credit must be Rapid Rewards Members. To access the transferable flight credits associated with your Rapid Rewards account, you need to log in to your account and select “My Account” from the menu options at the top of the page for desktop or scroll down to “My Travel Funds” at the bottom of the page for mobile and the Southwest app.

Next, select “Payment” from the menu options within your account. Any available transferable flight Credits and flight credits in your account should be listed.

Other types of Southwest travel funds

Keep in mind that you can also receive other forms of travel funds from Southwest, this includes:

• Southwest gift cards you received or bought
• Southwest LUV vouchers you received for inconveniences on past trips

These can be used similarly to Southwest flight credits, but different rules may apply.

To use your Southwest flight credit, follow these steps:

• Access your flight credits: You can do this through My Account by selecting the Payment tab on southwest.com or “Check Travel Funds” on mobile.
• Write down your original ticket confirmation number: You might need this when making your new reservation.
• Browse and select your new flight: Search for the flight you’d like to take to begin the booking process.
• Apply your flight credit: You should see an option to apply a flight credit or other travel funds in the payment section. You can do so by entering the confirmation number associated with the flight credit.
• Make sure you got a confirmation: After applying your flight credit and completing your booking, you should receive a confirmation of your payment and new booking.

You can also call Southwest or visit a ticket counter to redeem your unused funds.

Sometimes, your Southwest flight credits won’t be enough to cover the cost of your flight. This can be frustrating, especially if you weren’t planning to travel and just want to make use of your funds. But with Southwest Rapid Rewards, you’ll always earn bonus points toward future travel when you have to make a purchase.

If your Southwest flight credits aren’t enough to cover the cost of your upcoming flight, consider using a Southwest credit card to cover the difference. Chase is the credit card issuer for the Southwest credit cards, but you'll earn Southwest rewards, not Chase Ultimate Rewards. You’ll rack up some serious Southwest points and perks through one of these credit cards , which are known for being some of the best airline credit cards . 

For example, a Southwest credit card can even help you earn the Companion Pass faster, which lets you take a travel companion with you for free on all your Southwest flights, excluding taxes and fees. You can also use flight credits in conjunction with Rapid Rewards points or with a Southwest gift card.

Southwest’s cancellation policy is extremely generous and is just one of the reasons we love the airline . Even though their cards are some of the best travel credit cards , you’ll need to be aware of the rules associated with redeeming your Southwest flight credits and keep track of any information you’ll need to access your funds. With these tips in mind, you can worry less about canceling flights because of a travel disaster and start putting your funds toward your next travel adventure.

How many Southwest travel funds can I use?

You can use up to three forms of payment per Southwest transaction, including travel funds and vouchers. As long as your travel funds are valid for the flight date and passenger(s) in question, you can apply as many as three separate vouchers to the same purchase.

It’s important to note that because Southwest only allows up to three forms of payment per transaction, your combined vouchers must cover the entire cost of the flight(s), including fees and taxes. If you don’t have enough flight credits to pay the entire balance — or are using LUV vouchers, which require taxes and fees to be paid separately — you’ll be limited to using two vouchers. In that case, you will need to use an alternate form of payment, like a travel credit card, for the balance.

Can I use my flight credits on the Southwest app?

Yes, you can use flight credits (as well as LUV vouchers and Southwest gift cards) when booking a flight through the Southwest mobile app.

As with all other Southwest booking platforms, you are limited to a total of three payment options per booking. If you are using multiple flight credits or LUV vouchers to book a flight, you’ll need to ensure they cover the full cost (airfare plus any government fees, taxes, or charges).

Otherwise, the maximum number of flight credits or vouchers you can use per booking is two. That is so you can cover the difference with a credit card or other payment method without exceeding the three-payment-method maximum.

Should I convert my Southwest flight credits to points?

If you have Southwest flight credits, you’ll have the option to convert travel funds into Southwest Rapid Rewards points . Depending on how you plan to use those funds, this may or may not be a good idea.

If you plan to book a flight prior to your funds’ expiration, converting might not make sense. In many cases, you could lose money on the funds-to-points conversion, which gives you less flight for your money.

However, there are some cases in which converting might be the right idea. This is the case if:

• You have existing Rapid Rewards points but are slightly short of how many you need to book the desired flight. Converting funds to points would give you a large enough balance to book the trip you want.
• You book flights for your family, friends, or other groups. The flight credits are linked to your name and can be used only for your own flights. Rapid Rewards points can be transferred, shared, or used to book flights for others.

How do I extend my Southwest flight credits?

Southwest flight credits that were created on or after July 28, 2022, never expire, so you no longer have to worry about extending your flight credits. 

Can I transfer my Southwest flight credits to someone else?

Yes, Southwest enables you to transfer flight credits to someone else as long as your fare type is a Wanna Get Away Plus, Anytime, or Business Select. Also, keep in mind that both you and the receiver of the flight credit must be Rapid Rewards Members.

Southwest flight credits: bottom line

If you've had canceled flights with Southwest, you might be sitting on a list of valuable Southwest flight credits. These credits are a flexible way to book future travel, covering both cash flights and the taxes and fees on award flights. The best part? They don't expire, giving you the freedom to plan your next adventure on your own schedule.

Generous Welcome Bonus

Southwest rapid rewards ® plus credit card.

FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.

Current Offer

Earn 85,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening

Rewards Rate

2X points on Southwest purchases and Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partners; on local transit and commuting, including rideshare; and on internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming; plus 1X points on all other purchases

• Solid rewards rate
• Redeem points for flights, gift cards, and more
• 3,000 bonus points after cardmember anniversary
• 2 EarlyBird Check-Ins® per year
• Has annual fee
• Has foreign transaction fee
• Limited travel benefits compared to premium Southwest cards
• Earn 85,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
• 3,000 anniversary points each year.
• Earn 2X points on Southwest® purchases.
• Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
• Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
• 2 EarlyBird Check-In® each year.
• Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
• Member FDIC

Author Details

Lindsay Frankel

Yahia Barakah, CEPF

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Six ways to make the most of your Southwest points

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There are lots of reasons to love the Southwest Rapid Rewards program , like the excellent customer service and absence of change or cancellation fees. And earning Southwest points is a good choice because they don’t have blackout dates on award flights and the price of an award flight is tied to the cash price, so cheaper tickets cost fewer points.

Some of the  best airline credit cards  can help you to easily earn Southwest points . Let’s look at what you can do to make the most of those points once you’ve earned them.

Best ways to use Southwest points

When it comes to using Southwest points , they’re a bit different than most miles or points. The  Southwest award chart  is far from traditional — flights aren’t broken up into geographic or distance-based zones. With Southwest, the cost of an award ticket is tied to the cash price of the flight. You’ll typically find that  Southwest points value are worth about 1.5 cents on average toward Southwest airfare. But there are some ways to use your Southwest points that are better than others.

Booking “Wanna Get Away” fares

While the actual value you get per Southwest point will vary, you’ll almost always get the most value per point if you use them to book Wanna Get Away fares (the cheapest ones). Here are some points prices for Southwest flights from Atlanta to New York:

And here is the cash price for those same tickets:

Here’s the value per point for each of those flights:

• Wanna Get Away 1.59 to 1.81 cents each
• Anytime 1.43 to 1.45 cents each
• Business Select 1.42 to 1.45 cents each

You can see that not only are Wanna Get Away fares cheaper, but you’ll get more bang for your buck as well. This is only one example I randomly pulled up, so it’s possible on some flights the difference in value won’t be as extreme. But regardless, you’ll always be more likely to get a better value for your points if you stick with Wanna Get Away fares.

Flights to the Caribbean & Hawaii

While Southwest flies primarily domestic U.S. routes, they’re also a great option if you’re interested in a tropical getaway. They fly to these destinations in the Caribbean and Hawaii:

• Belize City
• Cuba (for now)
• Dominican Republic
• Grand Cayman
• Hawaii (Honolulu, Lihue, Hilo, Kahului, and Kona)
• Mexico (Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Cozumel and Los Cabos)
• Puerto Rico
• Turks and Caicos Islands

This is great if you don’t have a flexible schedule because Southwest doesn’t have blackout dates. As long as the seat is open you can book it with points.

But the prices do increase as the cheapest fares are booked up and the price will really jump up if there aren’t anymore Wanna Get Away fares. So if you want to get the best deals to popular spots like these, you should book your flights as soon as Southwest opens up their schedule ( subscribe to our newsletter and we’ll let you know when it happens).

Positioning flights

Just because Southwest doesn’t fly to Europe, Asia, or South America doesn’t mean Southwest points can’t save you money in getting to those destinations. We often see sub-$400 round-trip fare deals to Europe — but it’s often the case that those flights are only from major airports.

The good news is that there are cities where Southwest has an operating base (hub):

• Baltimore/Washington (BWI)
• Chicago (Midway)
• Los Angeles

So whenever you see a deal from any of these cities to Europe, Asia or South America, there is a good chance you can inexpensively jump on a Southwest flight to catch your international plane.

Bringing along a lap infant for free

If you’re traveling with an infant less than two years old, you’ll find that Southwest has a very generous policy. On all domestic flights, you can bring one lap infant along for free with each adult (12+ years old). Because Southwest doesn’t have assigned seats, you’ve also got a much better chance of having an empty seat next to you to use for the baby.

Even on Southwest’s international flights, you can bring along a lap infant for only the cost of the taxes and fees for the international segment. That’s typically a solid deal considering that many airlines charge at least 10% of the adult fare, even on award flights. You will need to prove your child’s age so be sure to bring some sort of identification like a birth certificate or passport.

Purchase (or re-book) flights during Southwest sales

Southwest has regular fare sales and because the award and cash prices of tickets are linked, you can book Southwest flights for fewer points during sales. Not only that but Southwest doesn’t have cancellation or change fees. If the flight you’ve already booked drops in price during a sale, you can easily re-book at the lower price.

To stay up to date on the latest sale you can bookmark our  Southwest fare sale  page, subscribe to our newsletter  or follow us on Twitter .

Instantly (nearly) double your value with a Southwest Companion Pass

If you aren’t familiar with the Southwest Companion Pass , you should be. It’s the best tool for making your Southwest points are worth more. If you have a Southwest Companion Pass you can bring along your designated companion on any Southwest flight (points or cash) for just the cost of taxes and fees. On domestic flights that means it only costs ~$11 to bring along your friend, spouse, or family member.

To earn a Southwest Companion Pass you’ll to need to meet one of these requirements in a calendar year:

• Earn 125,000 qualifying Southwest points
• Complete 100 one-way Southwest flights

The best Southwest credit cards to earn points

If earning the Companion Pass sounds like an impossible task, it’s actually more realistic than it seems because the Southwest points you earn from Southwest credit card sign-up bonuses from travel credit cards like the following, count toward earning a Companion Pass:

• Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card
• Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card
• Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card
• Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card
• Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card

Before you attempt this strategy there are a couple of rules you’ll want to be aware of. First off, you can only hold one personal Southwest card at a time. And you can only earn the sign-up bonus on one personal Southwest card every 24 months.

But you can hold a personal Southwest card and both Southwest Business cards at the same time. And you might qualify for small business credit cards and not even realize it. You don’t need to be a full-time business or even have a special business structure setup if you are a sole proprietor. So it’s much easier to qualify for the Companion Pass if you open both a personal and small business card.

The Southwest Companion Pass is valid for the calendar year you earn it in and the entire next calendar year. So if you earn a Companion Pass in April of 2020, it will be valid until December 31, 2021.

Don’t forget about Chase’s 5/24 rule , as it does impact the Southwest cards. If you’ve opened five or more cards from any bank in the past 24 months, you won’t be eligible for any Chase credit cards. But certain small business cards won’t show up on your personal credit report, so they won’t add to your count.

Bottom line

Southwest is a favorite airline of many because of its customer-friendly policies. And even though they don’t have a traditional award chart like other airlines, there are still plenty of ways to get great value from the best ways to use Southwest points.

You could use your Southwest points to position yourself to take advantage of a cheap flight to Europe or to fly to a beautiful tropical destination in the Caribbean or Hawaii.

Joseph Hostetler

Joseph Hostetler is a full-time writer for Million Mile Secrets, covering miles and points tips and tricks, as well as helpful travel-related news and deals. He has also authored and edited for The Points Guy.

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It just got easier to use your Chase points to book Southwest Airlines flights

For years, you haven't been able to book Southwest Airlines flights online through credit card travel portals , such as those affiliated with American Express , Bilt , Chase and Citi . Finally, that has changed ... well, somewhat.

You can now redeem your Chase Ultimate Rewards points via its online portal for travel on Southwest. Plus, this option could be more appealing than transferring your Chase points to Southwest Rapid Rewards since Southwest announced it'll devalue its points in 2024 by about 4% .

Here's what you need to know about redeeming your Chase points for Southwest flights.

Booking Southwest flights with Chase points

As a holder of the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card , Chase Sapphire Reserve or Ink Business Preferred Credit Card , you can transfer your Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Southwest Rapid Rewards at a 1:1 transfer ratio.

But again, since Southwest is slashing the value of Rapid Rewards points from a projected 1.4 cents apiece to 1.3 cents apiece, point transfers from Chase to Southwest are about to become less advantageous.

But now, you can potentially get a better redemption rate by redeeming your Chase points directly in the Chase portal for Southwest flights. After navigating to the Chase portal , search for your Southwest flight the way you'd book any other flight through the Chase portal. You may initially only see Wanna Get Away and Wanna Get Away Plus fares. After selecting the flight and navigating to the next screen, you should also be able to select Anytime and Business Select fares.

The value of your Chase points when used for airfare in the portal will differ based on the card you have:

• 1.5 cents apiece : Chase Sapphire Reserve
• 1.25 cents apiece : Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and Ink Business Preferred Credit Card
• 1 cent apiece : Chase Freedom Flex , Chase Freedom Unlimited , Ink Business Cash Credit Card and Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card (note that you can't transfer Chase points to transfer partners solely with these cards.)

Even if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or Ink Business Preferred Credit Card, it's still almost certainly a better use of points to book directly in the Chase portal instead of transferring to Rapid Rewards. That's because you'll generally earn Rapid Rewards points when you use Chase points to book Southwest flights in the Chase portal and include your Rapid Rewards number on your reservation. As a reminder, you can't earn Rapid Rewards points on award travel (i.e., when you book by transferring Chase points to Rapid Rewards).

Here's what you earn as a Rapid Rewards member:

• Wanna Get Away : 6 points per dollar
• Wanna Get Away Plus : 8 points per dollar
• Anytime : 10 points per dollar
• Business Select : 12 points per dollar

Southwest status members also receive a bonus:

• A-List : 25% bonus
• A-List Preferred : 100% bonus

So, in the sample screenshot above, a general member would earn 358 Rapid Rewards (the base fare is $59) on this Wanna Get Away fare. That option certainly beats the 5,650 Rapid Rewards points plus $5.60 (and no opportunity to earn points) Southwest is slotted to charge for this flight from 2024.

Related: How to quickly earn the Southwest Companion Pass

Bottom line

You can now use Chase points directly in the Chase portal online, which is good news since Southwest will devalue Rapid Rewards redemptions starting Jan. 1, 2024.

In fairness, if you want to get the most value for your Ultimate Rewards points, there are better ways to maximize Chase points, such as transferring them to partners like World of Hyatt and Air Canada Aeroplan for high-value redemptions.

Still, if you want to use your Chase points for Southwest Airlines travel, there's now another way to do it.

Related reading:

• Southwest schedule extended through August 2024 — book now to save on flights
• Southwest baggage tracking tool is officially launched in the app
• New Southwest credit card offers: Earn 75,000 bonus points on three personal cards
• How to snag the best seats on Southwest Airlines
• What it's really like flying Southwest Airlines all the way to Hawaii

Southwest Airlines offers a different experience: What first-time flyers should know

• Southwest Airlines now lists its fares on Google Flights after long shying away.
• The airline doesn't assign passengers seats.
• Southwest lets all passengers check up to two bags for free.

Southwest is not a regular airline; it’s a cool airline, and flying on it is a slightly different experience than the other major U.S. carriers. With no assigned seats in its all-economy cabins and fewer fees than most other airlines, Southwest has its super fans, but its shtick can catch some travelers off-guard if they’re not familiar with it.

While the airline’s CEO suggested that changes may be coming to its operations in the near future, its trademark service remains in place for now.

The airline, a long-time holdout among the major U.S. airlines, recently started posting airfares on Google Flights .

So, if you’re traveling on Southwest Airlines for the first time, here are four things you need to know .

1. No assigned seating

Probably the biggest difference between Southwest and other airlines is that it doesn’t assign passengers seats.

Instead, every passenger receives a boarding position at check-in. Southwest flights are boarded by lettered groups (A, B, and C), and there are up to 60 positions in each group. Most Southwest gates have columns to help people line up in order prior to boarding.

Once on the plane, passengers can sit in any open seat.

Southwest’s boarding procedure means the sooner you board, the more likely you are to get your choice of seat, which is why elite members of its Rapid Rewards frequent flyer program and holders of some of its co-branded credit cards get priority boarding as a perk. Otherwise, your boarding position is assigned based on when you check in.

Under that system, it’s best to check in as soon as possible. Southwest recommends downloading its app on your phone and checking in as soon as the option becomes available, 24 hours before departure, to get the best possible boarding position.

The airline also sells EarlyBird Check-In, which allows you to get your boarding pass and position up to 36 hours before your flight, and Upgraded Boarding, which guarantees an A1-A15 position when available.

Southwest recently announced it will be raising the maximum price for EarlyBird Check-In and Upgraded Boarding. 

2. Few fees

Southwest lets all passengers check up to two bags for free, and doesn’t charge change or cancellation fees if your travel plans change. You’ll have to pay the difference in the fare if your new ticket is more expensive. All flights are fully refundable up to 24 hours after purchase. Beyond that window, only Business Select fares are refundable to your payment method. Wanna Get Away and Wanna Get Away Plus fares are redeemable for future flight credit if you cancel your trip more than 24 hours after purchasing the ticket.

Cruising Altitude: Want a free upgrade to first class? The only hack is your wallet.

3. Inflight entertainment

Southwest doesn’t have seatback screens, but many of its planes have Wi-Fi that lets passengers stream from its entertainment portal. Options include movies and TV shows, as well as live TV. The Wi-Fi also lets passengers use iMessage and Whatsapp, so long as the apps are downloaded before the flight.

4. Snacks and drinks

Southwest provides water and Coca-Cola soft drinks for free, as well as a selection of snacks. The airline also offers beer, wine, spirits and pre-mixed cocktails for purchase.

Check out the full guide to see current onboard selections. 

Zach Wichter is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in New York. You can reach him at [email protected].

The Key Points at the top of this article were created with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and reviewed by a journalist before publication. No other parts of the article were generated using AI. Learn more .