How To Use Southwest Dining Rewards to Earn More Points

BY 

Caroline Lupini

- March 30, 2017November 14, 2018

1. Earn Points  / 
2. Shopping & Dining

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Earning enough Southwest points to make a rewards redemption can be challenging, but there are several strategies that can help you earn miles and points faster at no additional cost. One of these methods involves signing up for an airline or hotel’s dining rewards program.

This article walks you through the Southwest dining program to show you how it works and the types of point bonuses you can expect.

How To Join/Log in & Basics of Using The Program

Rapid Rewards Dining requires you to enter basic information about yourself, register your Southwest Rapid Rewards number, and create a separate login for the reward program.

You will also need to link a credit card to your profile at the time of joining – don’t worry, you won’t be charged for anything!

Earning extra rewards works like this: whenever you use a card linked to your profile at a participating restaurant, you will earn bonus points based on the cost of your meal, including tax and tip. It won’t require registering your meal after the fact or keeping track of receipts – everything is automatic.

After your meal is over, you’ll have a chance to review your experience for 10 more Southwest points.

You can have a maximum of 6 credit cards linked to your profile, so anytime you use any of those cards for dining you will automatically earn rewards.

Southwest’s dining portal is a bit different than some other airlines’ because the number of bonus points earned doesn’t vary between restaurants. You’ll earn 3 bonus points per dollar spent at participating restaurants when you opt in to email notifications from Rapid Rewards Dining.

You’ll only earn 1 bonus Rapid Reward point per $2 spent if you don’t opt in to email notifications.

Bonuses offers

It’s often possible to earn an introductory bonus for joining the dining program and completing specific requirements within a specified time period.

The current bonus available is for up to 1000 bonus when visiting participating restaurants within 30 days of joining the program. You’ll earn 500 points for your first visit, 250 for your second visit and 250 for your third visit – all with minimum spends of $25 for each visit. You’ll also need to review your experience within 30 days of dining.

In the past, these bonuses have gone as high as 2,000 Rapid Rewards points! However, you’re probably better off joining now so you can earn 3 points for every dollar right away, instead of waiting for a sign-up bonus that may never return!

You will also get a first step bonus of 500 points after you reach your first 1,500 and a thank you bonus of 300 points each time you accrue 1,000 points. This is one of the most generous dining programs we’ve seen!

Example Restaurants

As mentioned above, the number of rewards earned doesn’t vary by dining experience. Grab a quick bite or dine at a fine establishment; all that matters is that the restaurant is participating in the program.

When I did a search for restaurants near Boulder, CO, the dining portal listed 107 participating restaurants within 30 miles. Most of the restaurants listed were smaller local restaurants rather than chain locations.

There were a few chain options listed, but in some cases, not every location participated. Here are a few examples:

• Buca di Beppo
• Burger King
• Fogo de Chao Brazilian Steakhouse

Using Credit Cards To Earn Extra Points

The points you earn through the Southwest Dining program are all in addition to the regular credit card rewards you would earn.

If you are mainly interested in Southwest points, you should consider using a card that earns Southwest rewards directly or one that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which you can transfer to Southwest at a 1:1 ratio.

Below is a list of cards that earn these reward currencies.

Hot Tip: Using a card that earns 2x dining points is a great way to boost your earned miles and points even more!

Chase Ultimate Rewards Cards

Recommended Chase Cards (Personal)

CHASE CARD	BENEFITS & INFO
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card How We Get $1k+ Value From Just 60k Pts >	Earn 50,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months That's worth $625 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards. 2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide. $0 foreign transaction fees Annual Fee: $0 the first year, then $95
Chase Freedom Unlimited®	Earn $150 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months Unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase - it's automatic. 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases & balance transfers, then a variable APR of 17.24 - 25.99%. Annual Fee: $0
Chase Sapphire Reserve®	Earn 50,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards® $300 Annual Travel Credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year 3X points on travel immediately after earning your $300 travel credit. 3X points on dining at restaurants. Access to 1,000+ airport lounges worldwide after an easy, one-time enrollment in Priority Pass™ Select Annual Fee: $450

Recommended Chase Cards (Business)

CHASE CARD	BENEFITS & INFO
Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card We Get $1,600+ of Value Using This Card >>	Earn 80,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months That's $1,000 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards® Earn 3 points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases in the following categories each account anniversary year: Travel, Shipping purchases, Internet, cable and phone services, Advertising purchases with social media sites and search engines. Get up to $600 per claim in Cell Phone Protection against covered theft or damage for you (and your employees listed on your monthly cell phone bill) when you pay it with your Chase Ink Business Preferred credit card. Annual Fee: $95
Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card 21 Benefits This Card Offers Biz Owners >>	Earn $500 bonus cash-back after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months Earn 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services Earn 2% cash-back on the first $25,000 (combined) spent at gas stations and restaurants each year 0% introductory APR for 12 months on purchases and balance transfers, then a variable APR of 15.49% - 21.49% $0 Annual Fee
Are you a business owner? For more detail, see our Chase business credit cards article, or in-depth business credit card guide to make an ideal choice for your situation.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Cards

Hot Tip: Check out the benefits of the best Southwest credit cards!

Conclusion

Joining Rapid Rewards Dining and linking your credit cards is a fast, easy, and convenient way to earn more Southwest points when you are dining out. You might also enjoy using the shopping portal as well to really maximize rewards.

Pair this with a credit card that earns a category bonus for spending at restaurants, and you’ll be ready to redeem your next Southwest award in no time!