I Finally Fell Under “5/24” and Was Just Approved for a Travel Card I Wanted for a While. Here’s What It Is!

I can’t decide if this is a good thing now that it’s actually happening – or if it should’ve remained a fun idea. I won’t be surprised if I get dragged in the Comments section. 😉

(All information about the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card, Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card, Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Chase Freedom Flex®, and Ink Business Cash® Credit Card was collected independently by Eye of the Flyer. It was neither provided nor reviewed by the card issuer.)

5/24

I apparently just fell under Chase’s 5/24 rule. “5/24” is the colloquial term for Chase’s informal policy that it will automatically decline credit card applicants who’ve been approved for five or more cards issued by any bank within the past 24 months. American Express, Capital One, Chase, whoever. Most of us in the hobby can’t resist a good welcome bonus and pounce on promotions. (I love small business cards because those do not affect your 5/24 status. Chase will, however, check your 5/24 count when you apply for one of their business cards.)

Sharing the Fun?

I plan to take a few short-ish, regional trips this year with friends or family and decided now was the time to jump on the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card‘s limited-time promotion. New applicants can earn a Companion Pass® good through February 28, 2026, plus 30,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in eligible purchases within three (3) months of being approved for card membership.  (The offer expires on March 31, 2025.) I applied and was approved yesterday!

The Southwest Companion Pass lets the primary member (me, in this instance) bring a designated companion along for free on any Southwest flight as long as the Companion Pass is active. The Companion Pass is valid on both revenue/cash flights and award trips. At its best, that means I can redeem Rapid Rewards points for my portion of the ticket. We’ll only pay taxes and fees. In some instances, we can travel roundtrip for just under $25 total. Companions can be changed up to three times per calendar year.

Unless there’s a promotion running, the Companion Pass is usually earned by flying 100 qualifying one-way flights or earning 135,000 qualifying points during a calendar year. The qualifying points can come from flights and Southwest credit cards — including welcome bonuses.

Why The Priority Card?

The Southwest Priority features the same welcome offer as the two other personal Rapid Rewards cards (the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card and Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card)

It also has the highest annual fee of the three. The Priority is $149, the Premier is $99, and the Plus is $69. (Worth noting: the Plus charges foreign transaction fees.)

The cards all have nearly the same points-earning structure, too.

So, why did I apply for the Priority?

First, Rapid Rewards Priority Card holders can earn up to $75 in statement credit for eligible Southwest purchases each cardmember year (Upgraded Boardings and inflight purchases are excluded.). That’s basically $75 in free airfare. That essentially knocks the annual fee down to $75. The other two cards do not feature this benefit.

Next, cardmembers receive 7,500 bonus Rapid Rewards points on their cardmember anniversary, starting the second year. I value Rapid Rewards points at about 1.4 cents each, so that’s about a $105 value. I’m essentially getting $180 in Southwest travel for $149. We normally use points and cash to book a few Southwest trips each year — especially because we use Vegas as one of our home airports even though we live in Los Angeles.

Plus, I’ll be reimbursed for up to four Upgraded Boardings (A1-A15) purchased between 24 hours and 30 minutes before departure each year. If I decide to take a long haul (perhaps to somewhere in Hawaii), my chances of getting a bulkhead or exit row go way up if I can score a prime boarding position. Then Southwest might be worth it for long hauls. (More on that in a minute.)

Southwest is changing their model to assigned seats and limited extra-legroom products, so I’m unsure how the Upgraded Boardings will translate when those modifications kick in.

My family has a few transcontinental trips this year and we booked those with Delta because — believe it or not — their prices and schedule worked best for us. Plus, the idea of flying Southwest cross country didn’t really appeal to me — especially with multiple layovers in some instances.

But some friends invited us to Las Vegas and that’s quick flight from one of our home airports (Burbank). Our youngest nephew (whom we swear was just two years old, like, last week) graduates high school in a couple of months, so we’ll fly to his graduation party in Northern California this summer. My Minnesota Twins play the (West Sacramento, formerly Oakland) Athletics this summer, so a friend might be my companion for a day and we’ll pop up there for a game. My North Dakota State Bison play in Nashville this fall, too, so that just became more affordable.

This “teaser” promotion is a good litmus test. We’ll see how much we realistically use the Companion Pass during the next year.

Southwest does not fly to my original hometown of Fargo, North Dakota. If they did, we’d have jumped on the Companion Pass bandwagon a long time ago. We also have family in Madison, Wisconsin, and the Airline of Love doesn’t fly there, either. (They do, however, fly to Milwaukee, and it’s not too onerous to get to the Mad City from there or even Chicago.)

I appreciate that the offer comes with 30,000 bonus points. I’ll earn at least 4,000 more with my organic spending, too. Plus, I can transfer Chase points to Rapid Rewards from my Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Chase Freedom Flex®, and Ink Business Cash® Credit Card. (All information about the Freedom Flex was collected independently by Eye of the Flyer. It was neither provided nor reviewed by the card issuer.)

Southwest Priority Card Details

• 3X on Southwest Airlines purchases
• 2X on Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partner purchases.
• 2X on local transit and commuting, including rideshare
• 2X on internet, cable, and phone services
• 2X on select streaming
• 1X on all other eligible purchases
• Other Card Earnings and Bonuses
• 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points boost each year
• Receive 7,500 bonus points each year upon card renewal (starting the second year of card membership)
• $75 Southwest travel credit each year.
• Unlimited Tier Qualifying Points (TQPs)
  • Earn 1,500 TQPs toward A-List status for every $10,000 you spend on the card. There is no limit on the number of TQPs you can earn!
• 25% back on Southwest inflight purchases
• Enjoy four (4) upgraded boardings (boarding positions A1-A15) per year when available.
• No blackout dates or seat restrictions.
• $149 annual fee.

Final Approach

I’m excited to knock out my minimum spending requirement and try my Southwest Companion Pass for a year. If I find we really like it, then I’ll apply for a Southwest business credit card toward the end of 2025 or right away in 2026 so I can earn the welcome bonus and then try to get enough points to keep the Pass through 2027.