A valuable card for frequent fliers #CashNews.co

For small business owners who fly with Southwest Airlines often, the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Card is worth a look. It comes with a high-value welcome offer, decent rewards for Southwest loyalists, and several airline-focused perks. But it also has a $99 annual fee, so you need to ensure you’ll get enough value from it to recoup that cost.

This Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Credit Card review will provide an in-depth look at this card’s features, pros, and cons so you can decide if it’s right for you.

The easiest way to get big value from the Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Credit Card is to spend enough to earn its valuable welcome bonus. You can earn 60,000 points once you spend $3,000 within the first three months.

To reach the $3,000 threshold within three months, you’ll need to spend around $1,000 on your card each month. But if you spend that amount anyway as part of your regular budget, earning the welcome offer is worth your time. It’s valued at around $600, which easily offsets the $99 cost of this card during the first year.

Besides earning the bonus, you’ll need to fly Southwest regularly to maximize your rewards with this card. Qualifying Southwest purchases will net you 3X points per $1 spent, and you’ll earn 2X points on hotel and rental car purchases through Rapid Rewards partners.

That said, general purchases also earn bonus rewards. For instance, you can get 2X points on every $1 spent on commuting, rideshare, and local transit purchases. This could be a great opportunity to earn extra points if you rely on public transportation to get to and from work daily.

All other qualifying purchases you make with your card will net you 1X points per $1 spent.

You can redeem points for flights on Southwest-operated airlines for yourself or a companion. Simply choose the pay with points option when booking airline tickets via the Rapid Rewards program. You can also use a combination of cash and points if your rewards balance isn’t enough to cover the full cost of a flight.

You won’t get much flexibility in terms of redemptions with this card, so if you’d rather use your rewards for other things, a general travel card is probably a better choice.

Learn more: Are travel credit cards worth it?

Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business cardholders get two free Early-Bird check-ins each anniversary year. This flight add-on allows you to check into a flight before the standard 24-hour window and get a better boarding position. You’ll also get 25% back (as a statement credit) on inflight drinks and Wi-Fi purchases made with your card.

The points you earn with your card can help you earn the famous Southwest Companion Pass benefit. If you accumulate 135,000 points or make 100 eligible flights during a calendar year, you can qualify for the Companion Pass, which allows you to bring a companion with you on Southwest flights for the cost of taxes and fees; their actual fare is free.

If you decide to keep your card long-term, which could be a good move for frequent Southwest fliers, you’ll get 6,000 bonus points annually on your cardmember anniversary.

With this card, you’ll earn 1,500 tier qualifying points (TQPs) for each $5,000 you spend in a year. These TQPs can help you work toward Southwest A-List or A-List Preferred status, which gives you benefits like same-day flight changes and priority boarding. You’ll need 35,000 TQPs or 20 eligible flights to earn A-List status and 70,000 TQPs or 40 eligible flights to earn A-List Preferred status.

If you opt to transfer your points to another Rapid Rewards member, there could be fees associated with the transfer. Fortunately, Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business cardmembers can get reimbursements of up to $500 in a given year.

You won’t pay any extra fees when you buy things abroad using your card, as it has no foreign transaction fees. This can come in handy if you’re a frequent international traveler.

Cardholders get one free year of DashPass, which offers unlimited deliveries with Caviar and Doordash, $0 delivery fees, and lower service fees (when eligible.) You must enroll by Jan. 31, 2025 to get this benefit; after the first year, you’ll be charged for DashPass membership at the regular monthly rate unless you cancel.

After you activate your DashPass membership, you’ll also get up to $10 in quarterly statement credits for eligible non-restaurant DoorDash orders charged to your card.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business cardmembers can get employee cards with no extra annual fee cost. You can set spending restrictions on employee cards if you prefer.

If Southwest is your preferred airline for business travel, this card could be ideal for your wallet. Its affordable annual fee, generous bonus, rewards structure, and array of perks make it a great choice. If you fly a lot for work, you could quickly rack up Rapid Rewards points — all of which can be used towards an enviable companion pass on the airline.

Those who aren’t loyal to Southwest or prefer a card with miles that can be redeemed with multiple airlines should look elsewhere.

Learn more: Which credit card is best for me? A guide to help you choose

The Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Card is part of the Visa payment network, which means you can use it wherever Visa cards are accepted. This is good news because Visa is accepted mostly everywhere—in over 200 countries and territories.

• Online via your Chase account

• By phone: 1-800-436-7958

• At a local Chase branch

• Through the Chase mobile app

• By mail:
  Cardmember Services
  P.O. Box 6294
  Carol Stream, IL 60197-6294

If you need help with your card, you can get in touch with Chase’s customer service team by calling 1-800-432-3117 or by messaging the bank through its social media profiles on Instagram or Facebook. You can also log into the Chase portal for assistance.

The Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Card may not be the right choice if you’re looking for a small business credit card but aren’t loyal to Southwest. Here are some excellent alternatives to consider before you apply.

Why we like it: If you’re looking for more flexibility with rewards redemptions, the Chase Ink Business Preferred is an excellent choice. You can use your rewards for flights with several carriers, hotel reservations, car rentals, and more through Chase Travel. Redemptions even get a 25% boost when you redeem points for travel through Chase. Gift cards and statement credits are also options.

With this Chase credit card, you can earn a valuable welcome bonus, plus get 3X points on up to $150,000 combined shipping; social media and search engine advertising; internet, cable, and phone services; and travel purchases each year.

Read our full review of the Ink Business Preferred Credit Card.

Why we like it: The Capital One Spark Miles for Business is another great choice if you’re seeking flexibility. As with the Ink Business Preferred, you can redeem your rewards for flights with several airlines, car rentals, hotel reservations, and more with Capital One Travel.

Get 5X miles on prepaid hotel and rental car bookings through Capital One Travel and 2X miles on all other qualifying purchases. You’ll pay a $0 introductory annual fee your first year, then a $95 annual fee afterward.

Read our full review of the Capital One Spark Miles for Business.

Why we like it: If United Airlines is your preferred carrier, the United Business Card could be an excellent choice. New cardholders can earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first three months. You can also get up to 7X miles on United flights (and 2X on other United purchases); up to 3X miles on hotel stays booked through United Hotels; 2X miles at gas stations, office supply stores, on dining, and on local transit; and 1X miles on all other eligible purchases.

Besides generous rewards, you’ll also get United-focused perks like priority boarding, your first checked bag free, two complimentary United Club lounge passes annually, $100 in United travel credits after purchasing seven flights over $100 each anniversary year, and more.

This article was edited by Kendall Little

Editorial Disclosure: The information in this article has not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. All opinions belong solely to Yahoo Finance and are not those of any other entity. The details on financial products, including card rates and fees, are accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank’s website for the most current information. This site doesn’t include all currently available offers. Credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.