Southwest has a special going on right now where all you need to do is sign-up for their Rapid Rewards program (their frequent flyer program) and you will earn 2,000 points! If you opt-in for their account summary e-mails and update e-mails, you will receive an additional 500 points.
Southwest is a revenue based point system so this translates to a fixed value of $42 (a little more in actual redemption because it reduces the taxes on the tickets so it would be worth a little closer to $50). After their devaluation on March 31, these points will be worth $36 (you can read about the devaluation here). For a bonus that costs you nothing but a few minutes of your time, this is a great deal!
The catch is that these points are only available for new members. If you have family members that are not already signed up for the program (like my three children), you can sign them up and get these valuable points. Many people wonder how valuable these points actually are if you need more than this for a redemption. The good news is that Ultimate Rewards transfer to Southwest at a 1:1 ratio. So, you can transfer points to your family members’ new accounts to top them off for some upcoming reward. I am considering this because the cheapest Southwest redemption for me is Rochester to Baltimore and can often be had for around $90 round-trip. With this promo, I would only need about another 3,000 points in each account (transferred from my Ultimate Rewards account) to get the points required for the free trip!
If you have not already signed up for an account for yourself, this is a great time to do it! After that, you can take advantage of one of the great offers available on the Southwest credit cards (50,000 points) and fatten that account up! I do not receive a commission for these cards.
Of Note
- The terms say that you will not receive the extra 500 points until you have been subscribed to the e-mails for a period of three months. So, do not expect the 500 points for at least that time.
- This sign-up promo does not count towards the Companion Pass as these are bonus points.
