How to Transfer Chase Points to Southwest

The search results will display all the flight options for your chosen dates. If your travel dates are flexible, the Low Fare Calendar shows you the best deals for traveling on each day of the month. After you’ve chosen your itinerary, Southwest will provide a breakdown of your trip details — including the cost in points and any additional fees.

Click “Continue,” and if you haven’t logged in to your Rapid Rewards account yet, Southwest will prompt you to do so at this point. Enter your username and password, and then you can confirm your trip.

Maximizing value when you transfer Chase points to Southwest

You don’t need to worry about award availability or searching for rare, high-value redemptions with Southwest. Unlike many airlines, it lets you book any seat with cash or points. Award ticket prices are tied to cash prices, and you typically get about $0.015 per Southwest point no matter what you book.

The key to getting the most value when you transfer Chase points to Southwest is booking Wanna Get Away fares. This is the cheapest fare option, both in dollars and points. Anytime tickets usually cost two or three times as much, and Business Select tickets are slightly more than that.

Since Southwest’s seats are the same throughout the aircraft, it’s best not to spend more points on those premium fares. There aren’t any big differences on award tickets that make Anytime or Business Select fares worth more.

Should you transfer Chase points to Southwest or redeem through Chase’s portal?

Chase gives you the option of booking travel through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal. If you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or the Chase Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card Credit Card, you can redeem points toward travel purchases at a rate of $0.0125 per point. With the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you get $0.015 per point.

Booking a flight this way also generally earns you points with the airline. Award tickets don’t earn points, giving the Ultimate Rewards travel portal an edge in that regard.

You could compare the value you’ll get on a flight with each method to see which is the better deal. If that’s too time consuming, here’s a simpler solution:

• Transfer Chase points to Southwest if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card.
• Redeem Chase points through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve®.

Southwest flights don’t show up through the Ultimate Rewards flight search, so you’ll need to call a Chase travel advisor at 1-866-951-6592 to book one.

Chase’s Southwest credit cards

If you’re a frequent flyer with Southwest, you may want to consider a Southwest credit card. There are three personal credit cards that Chase and Southwest offer together:

All three airline cards offer sign-up bonuses and yearly anniversary points bonuses and earn Rapid Rewards points on your purchases. A big perk is that those points count toward a Southwest Companion Pass. You need to either earn 125,000 qualifying points or take 100 qualifying one-way flights in a calendar year to get a Companion Pass.

If you’re a loyal customer of Southwest, then getting one of these cards makes sense. You’ll be well on your way toward gaining a Companion Pass, which is a fantastic benefit if you have someone who flies with you frequently. You’ll also pick up some bonus points every year.

The Chase Ultimate Rewards cards offer much more versatile travel points, though. You can transfer Chase points to Southwest and many other airline and hotel partners, or you can redeem them through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal. If you want more flexibility when redeeming your travel rewards, one of those cards is the better choice.

Booking a Southwest flight with Chase points

Once you know how to transfer Chase points to Southwest, it’s a fast and simple process. While Southwest may not have a glamorous first-class product or a ton of international routes, its prices are among the very best. Those low prices and the Companion Pass make Southwest especially useful for families looking to take an affordable vacation. Keep an eye on the deals and you could score roundtrip tickets without dipping too far into your points.