The 50,000-point bonus kicks in after a new cardholder charges $2,000 within three months.
There's no published end date to this 50,000-point sign-up bonus, so it could be ratcheted back at any time.
Other card details:
Annual fee: $99.
Annual percentage rate (APR) is variable—the Prime Rate plus 11.99 percent—currently 15.99 percent.
The card awards two points per $1 on purchases of Southwest tickets and Rapid Rewards hotel and rental car partners; one point per $1 for other charges.
Premier cardholders receive 6,000 bonus points on their anniversary, enough for $100 toward a Wanna Get Away award ticket.
No foreign transaction fees.
Deal or No Deal
In Southwest's program, 50,000 Rapid Rewards points translate into more than $700 toward Wanna Get Away award tickets—probably two free round-trip flights.
As credit card sign-up bonuses go, this is a solid one. And as Southwest offers go, it's as good as it's ever been, and probably as good as it'll ever get.
Unless you're a serial card acquirer—a flipper, who signs up solely for the bonus, and then moves on—the question posed by credit-card bonuses has less to do with the card itself than it does with the program it's linked to. In this case, the question is: Is Southwest's Rapid Rewards a program that meets your needs?
If it is, this would be a good time to pull the trigger on the program-affiliated card.
