Southwest Airlines Upgrades Rapid Rewards Program: Easier Entry To Elite Status And Cash Plus Points Booking Option

Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards offers two levels of elite status, A-List and A-List Preferred, that offer members additional perks. Previously, members would have to fly:

• 25 one-way flights or earn 35,000 tier qualifying points per calendar year to achieve A-List status
• 50 one-way flights or earn 70,000 tier qualifying points per calendar year to achieve A-List Preferred status

With the new upgrades made to Rapid Rewards, the number of one-way qualifying flights needed to achieve status has decreased to:

• 20 flights for A-List
• 40 flights for A-List Preferred

If you opt to achieve status through tier qualifying points, these thresholds will remain the same.

After hitting the threshold of flights or TQPs, members will maintain their status for the rest of the calendar year as well as the entire year following. The reduced thresholds outlined in this upgrade do not go into effect until January 1, 2024. So if you want to achieve status before the end of 2023, you must still fly 25 or 50 one-way trips.

This lower barrier to entry allows frequent Southwest flyers to unlock the sweet set of perks that come with status. Both A-List and A-List Preferred status grant members priority boarding and priority check-in and security lane access. Each tier also allows members to earn Rapid Rewards points at an accelerated rate: a 25% earning bonus for A-List members and a 100% bonus for A-List Preferred members.

If completing a minimum of 20 one-way trips with Southwest to qualify for status sounds daunting, you are still in luck. The new updates to Rapid Rewards now make earning TQPs a quicker process for those who hold one of Southwest’s co-branded Chase credit cards (all but the Plus card).

Previously, cardholders would earn 1,500 TQPs toward A-List and A-List Preferred after every $10,000 spent. However, effective January 1, 2023, cardholders will earn the same amount of TQPs after every $5,000 in spending instead. This change essentially allows you to use your credit card spending to reach status twice as fast.

Currently, Southwest fares can only be purchased using one form of currency, whether that be Rapid Rewards points or cash. Beginning in spring 2024 (an exact date is yet to be set), Cash + Points will allow members to pay for a flight using a combination of cash and Rapid Rewards points.

Cash + Points will give members five preselected options for redemptions, starting with 1,000 points. Flights paid for with Cash + Points will count toward a member’s qualifying one-way flights for A-List, A-List Preferred or Companion Pass status when flown but will not earn Rapid Rewards points, TQPs or Companion Pass qualifying points.

The final addition to Rapid Rewards, going into effect on November 6, 2023, is a new perk for A-List Preferred members. Members with this status will receive two digital premium drink coupons per flight leg for the entirety of their earned status.

Drink coupons will be entirely digital on A-List Preferred member’s mobile boarding passes. Keep in mind: Southwest only offers premium drink service on flights of 176 miles or more. On flights shorter than this, expect to only be served water.

Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards is already a known and loved loyalty program among frequent flyers. The changes made to this program—particularly the easier access to elite status—continue to make Southwest stand out as a unique, egalitarian carrier. Being a Rapid Rewards member offers nothing but additional value to Southwest customers, so creating an account could be your first step toward some sweet perks.