You Can Buy Southwest Points for 50% Off Right Now

Southwest Rapid Rewards members can now buy points at a deeply discounted rate with the airline’s latest rewards sale.

“Spring into big savings,” the airline wrote about the promotion on its website. “Save 50% when you buy 3,000+ Rapid Rewards points.” 

The sale, which is valid until May 15 at 11:59 p.m. PT, allows travelers to purchase Rapid Rewards points for just 1.5 cents apiece with the discount. Points must be purchased in 1,000-point increments, with a 60,000-point maximum amount per transaction. 

However, there are no annual limits to note, so a traveler could, in theory, buy an unlimited amount of points during the sale. 

Once purchased, these points cannot be returned and will only count towards redeeming for flights. These Rapid Rewards points are separate from elite qualification miles to work towards Southwest’s A-List or A-List preferred status, or even the coveted Companion Pass that allows for a traveler and their companion to get buy one, get one flights.

When does it make sense to pay cash or redeem points for a Southwest flight? Some travelers missing just a few thousand points for their next flight might want to take advantage of this promotion. 

However, buying points can make sense to save money on flights. There’s a simple calculation involved — travelers need to compare the cash and points rate, which can be easily toggled when searching for a flight on Southwest’s website or app. 

Travel + Leisure tested this method out by searching for a one-way flight between Phoenix (PHX) and Nashville (BNA) this fall. The cash rate is $205, while it requires 11,958 points with $5.60 in taxes and fees. 

By subtracting the cost of taxes and fees and dividing the points rate by the remaining cash fare, it’ll yield a value of roughly 1.67 cents per point. In this case, it makes sense to buy points for the cheaper 1.5 cents rate.

Southwest isn’t the only airline that has points on sale throughout the year. Currently, American and United are selling discounted miles for travelers who want to book their next flight and save cash in their wallets.