Southwest 25% Rapid Rewards Points Buy, Gift, Transfer Bonus - Worth It?
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Now through May 31, 2014, Southwest is offering a 25% bonus when you buy, gift or transfer Rapid Rewards points. Points can be purchased, gifted, or transferred in blocks of 500 with a minimum initial purchase or transfer of 2,000 points and a daily maximum of 60,000 points.
Normally Southwest Rapid Rewards points cost 2.75 cents apiece to purchase for yourself or gift, but with this promo, they cost 2.0625. Transferring points usually costs 1 cent per point, but with this promo, it's 0.75 cents.
So then the question becomes, is it worth it? You get the best value from your Rapid Rewards points on Wanna Get Away fare redemptions. Southwest recently devalued these from 60 points per $1 in airfare to 70 points per $1 in airfare - so you're getting a value of 1.4 cents per point. In that case, buying points doesn't make much sense unless you just need a couple hundred or thousand to top up your account for a specific redemption.
Transferring miles might make more sense since it costs you less than half the value you'd get per point on a Wanna Get Away redemption, but again, I wouldn't go transferring huge amounts of points because if you're doing that, you might as well just use the points in your current account to book whatever fare you're thinking of rather than sending them to someone else and paying for it.
This could make sense if you are part of a pair that has a Companion Pass and you have more points in your account than the Companion Pass holder. In that case, you could transfer your points for 0.75 cents each to the Companion Pass holder and they could redeem for an award and bring you along - two tickets for the price of one, and a situation that actually brings your transfer-points cost to 0.375 cents per point.
As always, though, do the math for yourself and figure out if taking advantage of this makes sense for you. There are some other great options out there that might make better sense for you. For instance, if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, Ink Bold or Ink Plus, you can transfer your Ultimate Rewards points to your Southwest Rapid Rewards account at a 1:1 ratio instantly and for free, so that's a better option to top up your account if you can.
Not only that, but the Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card is currently offering a sign-up bonus of 40,000 bonus points when you apply and spend $1,000 in the first 3 months, plus those points are Companion Pass eligible, so if you're looking for ways to stock up on points, that's another great option.
TPG featured card
at Bilt's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 1X | Earn up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee |
| 2X | Earn 2X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases |
Pros
- Unlimited up to 1 Bilt Point per dollar spent on rent and mortgage payments
- Elevated everyday earnings with both Bilt Points and Bilt Cash
- $400 Bilt Travel Portal hotel credit per year (up to $200 biannually)
- $200 Bilt Cash annually
- Priority Pass membership
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons
- Moderate annual fee
- Housing payments may include transaction fees, depending on the payment method
- Designed primarily for members seeking a premium, all-in-one card
- Earn points on housing with no transaction fee
- Choose to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spend. Use Bilt Cash to unlock point earnings on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee, up to 1X.
- 2X points on everyday spend
- $400 Bilt Travel Hotel credit. Applied twice a year, as $200 statement credits, for qualifying Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.
- $200 Bilt Cash (awarded annually). At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
- Welcome bonus (subject to approval): 50,000 Bilt Points + Gold Status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 3 months + $300 of Bilt Cash.
- Priority Pass ($469/year value). See Guide to Benefits.
- Bilt Point redemptions include airlines, hotels, future rent and mortgage payments, Lyft rides, statement credits, student loan balances, a down payment on a home, and more.