How To Use Southwest Dining Rewards to Earn More Points

BY 

Caroline Lupini

- March 30, 2017June 10, 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.

Intro Bonuses

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 300 bonus points after visiting a participating restaurant and spending $25 within 30 days of joining the program. 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!

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 140 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:

• Buffalo Wild Wings
• 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	50,000 bonus points 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 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 16.74-25.49%. Annual Fee: $0

Recommended Chase Cards (Business)

CHASE CARD	BENEFITS & INFO
Chase Ink Business Preferred℠ Card	Earn 80,000 bonus points That's $1,000 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards® Points are worth 25% more when you redeem for travel 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. Annual Fee: $95
Chase Ink Business Cash℠ Card	Earn $500 bonus cash-back Earn 5% cash back in select business categories 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 14.99%-20.99% $0 Annual Fee
Chase Ink Business Unlimited℠ Card	$500 bonus cash back after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening. Unlimited 1.5% cash back 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers, then a variable APR of 14.99%-20.99%. $0 Annual Fee

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!