Last Day: 3 Reasons to Get the New Southwest Priority Card & 1 Big Reason NOT To Apply Now

According to the landing page and advertising materials, tomorrow (August 22) will be the final day of the current offer on the premium new Southwest Priority card. This is a very well thought out premium airline card that should make any Southwest flyer happy but the bonus will likely be dropping to only 40,000 points after tomorrow.

But, there is also one big reason you should not apply right now for this card – keep reading to see if the 3 reasons swing you now or if you go with the reason not to do it right now.

Last Day: 3 Reasons to Get the New Southwest Priority Card & 1 Reason NOT To Apply

Link: New Premium Southwest Priority Card

If you are on the fence about it, here are 3 reasons to apply now and 1 reason not to apply!

Here is what the Southwest Priority card currently offers:

• Earn 40,000 points after you spend $1,000 in the first 3 months from account opening.
• Plus, earn 25,000 points after you spend a total of $15,000 within your first year from account opening.
• 2 points per $1 spent on Southwest^® and Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partner purchases.
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases.
• 7,500 anniversary points each year.
• $75 Southwest annual travel credit.
• Four Upgraded Boardings per year when available.
• 20% back on in-flight drinks, WiFi, messaging, and movies.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• Earn tier qualifying points towards A-list Status
• Annual Fee: $149
• Bonus good until August 22

My guess would be that the offer will drop to the 40,000 points that the first tier of the bonus is currently at. I don’t think they will be touching the other benefits of the card – I think those will be the mainstays of this card.

Reason 1: 65,000 Points!

Of course, right? 🙂 65,000 Southwest points is worth about $975 (more, if you use the points for the cheaper tickets like $60 and under). That is a very healthy sign-up bonus on an airline card! Not only that, but the spending you do on the card and the bonus all count towards the Companion Pass.

That means that, after getting the second tier of the bonus, you would be short 30,000 Southwest points from reaching the 110,000 points necessary to qualify for the Companion Pass. Since referral bonuses count towards that as well, it should be pretty easy to get those extra 30,000 points if you refer others and put spending on this card.

Reason 2: 4 Upgraded Boardings

This new perk is certainly a nice one for those longer trips! I paid twice this year for A1-A15 boarding because I either needed to disembark quickly or I needed some extra legroom to get some sleep on a long flight.

That perk is worth about $40-50 for each upgrade so that is a nice bonus of $160-200 each year.

Reason 3: 7,500 Bonus Points and $75 Travel Credit

I lumped these two together because they kind of go hand in hand. With an annual fee of $149, the $75 travel credit for Southwest flights is a nice way to cut that in half (I count it as a straight $75 since you must be flying Southwest if you get a Southwest credit card!). Of course, you could always buy gift cards at 10% during sales but let’s say $75.

The 7,500 bonus each year is another way to equalize that annual fee. Those points are worth about $112 so it is a really nice way to squeeze a lot of value out of this card!

Reason NOT To Apply Now

It is no surprise that Southwest and Chase are cutting the sign-up bonus now. That is because many savvy reward hunters know that the best time to apply for Southwest credit cards is from early October until the end of the year. People do this and then hold off on meeting the required spending until after January 1 so that they can try and get 110,000 points as early in the year as possible. This allows them to get the fantastic Companion Pass for just about 2 full years!

Also, Chase has instituted their policy of only 1 personal Southwest bonus in 24 months. This means that if you apply now, you won’t be able to get this one or the other personal cards for 2 years. The business card is still an option for you but that will not get you to the Companion Pass early next year.

So, the best strategy may be just to wait this one out. Chances are very good the regular offer will still be for 40,000 points and we may even see that pop up to 50,000 before the end of the year. The business version comes with 60,000 points so between that and this card at 40,000 points, it is easily attainable to hit the 110,000 point threshold.

So, Should You Apply Now?

If the Southwest Companion Pass is important to you (and you are able to get this card right now, thanks to the 24 month rule for the personal Southwest cards and the infamous Chase 5/24 rule), I would skip this offer right now. It works better to go for it after the first week of October and then hit it and the business version. That will put you very close to the 110K for the Companion Pass and if you meet the spending on both cards after January 1, you will be able to have the Southwest Companion Pass for all of 2019 and 2020!

But, if you don’t care about the pass and you really want the points, this is a strong offer – especially for big Southwest fans. If that is you, go ahead and apply now.

Will you be applying now or waiting for another couple of months?