It Just Got Easier For Frequent Travelers To Get Elite Status With Southwest
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New year, new perks. At least when it comes to Southwest Airlines. While some carriers have recently come under fire for making it tougher for fliers to achieve elite status—like Delta’s SkyMiles program—Southwest is relaxing its policies. Starting January 1, 2024, the Dallas-based carrier says passengers will need fewer flights to unlock more rewards, notes an update on the its website.
As it stands, travelers must book 25 one-way flights to achieve A-List status. Next year, that number drops down to 20 one-way flights or 35,000 tier qualifying points in one calendar year. The A-List perks include priority check-in and priority boarding, giving you a better chance of snagging your favorite seat with the airline’s open seating policy. On qualifying flights, there’s also a 25% earning bonus, a flexible same-day change policy, same-day standby, and a dedicated phone line to contact customer service.
Changes to A-List Preferred
On January 1, 2024, the threshold for A-List Preferred members will lower as well. In the past, travelers needed to spring for 50 one-way flights to qualify for preferred status, but now you’ll only need 40 flights or 70,000 tier qualifying points. In addition to all of the A-List perks, A-List Preferred members can enjoy free in-flight WiFi and a 100% earning bonus on qualifying flights (compared to 25% on A-List alone).
There’s one more perk for A-List Preferred members to get excited about—and it’s arriving a little earlier than the others. Starting November 6, 2023, the airline will add two complimentary premium drinks to the roster. That means holiday flyers can enjoy a couple of spirits, wines, beers, hard seltzers, or hard lemonades on the house. This policy applies for each leg of the journey, provided that the flight is longer than 176 miles. Water, juices, sodas, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and snacks are, of course, still complimentary.
Cash + Points, plus 2X spending
Though the required number of flights for elite status has gone down, the number of overall points for each tier will not change in 2024. It’s still 35,000 points to achieve A-List and 70,000 points for A-List Preferred. But, if you’re a credit card holder, you’ll now be able to get there twice as fast.
On January 1, 2024, every $5,000 you spend on your airline credit card will give you 1,500 qualifying points towards elite status. Previously, that spending requirement was $10,000. This policy change is across the board for travelers with a Rapid Rewards Premier, Premier Business, Priority, or Performance Business Credit Card.
Even without a Southwest card, there’s one more change up ahead. In spring of 2024 (the exact date is still to be determined), Southwest will roll out the “Cash + Points” option to redeem flights. If you have at least 1,000 points in your Rapid Rewards account, you’ll be able to redeem them to pay for part of your flight and add another payment method for the remaining balance. Previously, it was one or the other—all cash or all points.
The goal of all of these upcoming changes is to deliver more flexibility, simplicity, and value to customers, explains the airline. With the soaring prices of just about everything these days, we could all use a little more of that.
