Southwest Credit Card Review

Thanks to the implosion in the financial and banking industries, and recent credit card legislation, it is harder than ever to get good value out of credit card rewards programs. Many programs have either raised the amount of points or miles needed to purchase free flights, or have increased the annual fees. Either way, it adds up to less value for credit card holders.

Fortunately, there are still some rewards credit cards that offer their customers a good value. The Southwest credit card offers unlimited rewards seats on the airline with no blackout dates. This is very important as anyone who has tried to use airline miles to book a popular flight, or tried to fly home during the holidays. On most airlines, redeeming miles for flights means multiple attempts to find a flight with available seats during a non-blacked out time.

The card is easy to use. You earn 2 points for every $1 spent on all Southwest Airlines based purchases like plane tickets and upgrades. You earn 1 point for each $1 spent everywhere else. You also earn an additional 3,000 bonus points each year on the date you first got our card. You can redeem your points for free flights for just 60 points per dollar for "Wanna Get Away" fares and 100 points per dollar for "Anytime" fares. Either way, if you fly Southwest a lot, this card will add up to a great value quickly.

However, prospective cardholders should be aware that the card comes with a $69 annual fee, so if you aren't going to get enough free flights out of your car usage, don't sign up. The interest rate is variable and is 11.99 percent above the Prime Rate. Currently, that works out to 15.24 percent APR.

If you like traveling and you live near an airport that Southwest flies out of, the Southwest Rapid Reward Premier card is a good card for you to have in your wallet.