Southwest Rapid Rewards is the loyalty program of Southwest Airlines, the largest airline in the US by domestic passengers carried. It’s one of the easiest programs to use, because points are worth roughly the same towards any Southwest flight, and there are no blackout dates.
That can be a good or a bad thing, depending on how you look at it. On one hand, you know you can redeem your points toward any flight. At the same time, you can’t maximize your points toward luxury travel like you can with other airline loyalty programs.
Here, we’ll look at all the ways to redeem your Southwest Rapid Rewards points, which you can earn principally by flying Southwest and using the airline’s co-branded credit cards. Redemptions include using points for Southwest flights, hotel stays and merchandise.
Generally, you’ll get the best value when you redeem your Southwest points for flights. While Southwest has partnerships with various international airlines, you can only redeem your points for flights on Southwest. This means you’re restricted to the airline’s own network, which is mostly domestic flights.
Southwest points are generally worth between 1.2 and 1.5 cents each towards flights, which can mean that 10,000 points is worth between $120 and $150. You’re still responsible for paying taxes and fees on award tickets, which are $5.60 on domestic flights and often higher on international flights.
