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Rapid Rewards
- Participating Airlines:
- Southwest Airlines
- Owner:
- Southwest Airlines
- Region:
- North America
- Countries:
- United States
- Established Date:
- 1996-04-25
Summary
- Southwest Airlines announced a devaluation of Rapid Rewards, with each point worth 4% less starting January 1st, 202
- This means award tickets will be more expensive.
- Southwest previously devalued points by 6% in 2021, and now points are only worth 90% of 2019 levels. However, you can still book award travel on old rates until December 31st.
- Southwest guarantees the base value of a point, offering 1.4 cents per point (falling to 1.3 cents next year). While the devaluation hurts loyal members, the advance notice is better than other airlines’ sudden changes.
Southwest Airlines announced a new devaluation of Rapid Rewards earlier this month, with each point worth 4% less come January 1st, 2024. This is particularly notable since the value of each point is tied to a dollar value, roughly 1.2 to 1.35 cents a piece, so the drop means you’ll be paying more for all award tickets. Here’s what you need to know.
Changes coming
First reported by Frequent Miler, members received a surprise at the bottom of their November Rapid Rewards statement: they’re going to be worth less. Starting 1st January 2024, points will be worth 4% less, meaning they’ll fall from a base value of 1.2 cents to 1.15 cents per point. This effectively means all tickets are now 4% more expensive since points track perfectly to cash prices.
This isn’t the first time Southwest has made this decision, in 2021, points were devalued by 6%, meaning they are now worth only 90% of 2019 levels. This time around, however, you have until 31st December to book award travel on the old rates if you already have some pre-planned travel.
Photo: Lukas Souza | Simple Flying
As a revenue-based program, Southwest devaluations hurt a little bit more since there’s no way to avoid it. No booking with partner airlines or flying under a certain distance to avoid charges, the effect is instant. To illustrate, a one-way ticket from Chicago Midway to Las Vegas costs $417.98, with $374.96 charged as the base fare and $43.02 as taxes.
If you use Reward Rewards it’ll cost 31,122 points + $5.60 in taxes. That means you’re getting 1.33 cents per point today, and in 2024, you’ll be paying 1.27 cents per point, or 32,470 points + $5.60. It’s not a huge hit but the impact will be instant for members.
Photo: Southwest
Guaranteed value
Southwest is one of the most of the few airlines that guarantees the base value of a point, along with Delta, which offers a worse 1 cent per point value. The Points Guy reports the value of each point as 1.4 cents (falling to 1.3¢ next year). In a statement to TPG, the carrier said,
“We recently shared with Rapid Rewards® Members that beginning Jan. 1, 2024, they’ll see a modest increase in the number of Rapid Rewards points required per dollar of the base fare to redeem Wanna Get Away®, Wanna Get Away Plus®, Anytime, and Business Select® fares. We continue our focus on enhancing the Customers’ experiences and remain committed to delivering nonstop Southwest Hospitality. We’re making this change as a normal course of business to adapt to the current environment and increased cost pressures.”
Photo: Tada Images/Shutterstock
For members who loyally fly with the carrier, devaluing points over cash prices (which would make awards more expensive too) will hurt more. However, the advance notice is better than the 2021 changes which was overnight and arguably better than airlines like Delta or United, which increase the value of award tickets by 20 to 30% overnight or introduce new fare classes to devalue instead.
What do you think about Rapid Rewards’ latest changes? Let us know in the comments!
Source: Frequent Miler, The Points Guy