Marketing

Southwest enhances Rapid Rewards program

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October 24, 2023

Southwest Airlines Co. is enhancing its loyalty program, Rapid Rewards, making it easier to earn tier status, awarding A-List preferred members with up to two complimentary premium drinks, and letting customers pay for flights using a combination of cash and points, according to a press release.

"We're making our award-winning Rapid Rewards program even stronger, by adding new enhancements to our loyalty program, making it even easier for members to earn and enjoy their benefits," Jonathan Clarkson, VP, marketing, said in the release. "By lowering the tier requirements and making credit card spend count double toward tier requirements, we're able to deepen engagement with our brand and cobranded credit cards, while maintaining the core program values that our customers know and love — including unlimited reward seats, no blackout dates, and points that don't expire."

The enhancements include:

1. Earn A-List status faster: Starting Jan. 1, 2024, Southwest Rapid Rewards members only need to fly 20 one-way qualifying flights (previously 25) or earn 35,000 tier qualifying points to reach A-List status.
2. Earn A-List preferred status faster: Starting Jan. 1, 2024, Rapid Rewards Members only need to fly 40 one-way qualifying flights (previously 50) or earn 70,000 tier qualifying points to earn A-List Preferred status.
3. Starting Jan. 1, 2024, Rapid Rewards credit card members will receive 1,500 tier qualifying points for every $5,000 spent (previously $10,000) on purchases using their Rapid Rewards Premier, Premier Business, Priority, or Performance Business Credit Cards from Chase.
4. Complimentary premium drinks for A-List preferred status: Starting Nov. 6, 2023, A-List preferred members can receive up to two complimentary premium drinks per flight, added directly to their mobile boarding passes.
5. Starting in spring of 2024, Rapid Rewards members will have the option to pay for their flight with a combination of cash and points, starting with as few as 1,000 points.