Two weeks in the past, Southwest Airways revealed it might convey new “variable” award pricing to its Rapid Rewards loyalty program.
Now, it is right here.
Final week, the airline quietly started rolling out its way more fluid redemption price for patrons seeking to e book flights utilizing factors, a spokesperson confirmed to TPG Wednesday.
Going ahead, how a lot worth you will get out of a Southwest level will range — maybe considerably, in some circumstances — from one flight to a different.
It is a shift Southwest executives revealed March 11 as a part of a a lot bigger overhaul to the service’s industrial technique, which additionally included the end to its long-standing “bags fly free” policy.
‘The Day Southwest Died’: Reactions pour in about the carrier’s big changes
How Southwest Fast Rewards redemptions are altering
To be clear, redemptions on Southwest have been already dynamic, in a way: They fluctuated based mostly on the money value of a flight however at a comparatively mounted (and predictable) price.
Whereas the setup did not lend itself to the candy spots traditionally discovered on airways that used an award chart for mileage redemptions, it supplied relative consistency.
TPG’s March 2025 factors and miles valuations peg the worth of a Southwest Fast Rewards level at roughly 1.35 cents — in keeping with a JetBlue TrueBlue level and a United MileagePlus mile however barely greater than the worth of a Delta SkyMiles mile.
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What we’re seeing
TPG is presently reviewing the adjustments to Southwest’s redemption charges to see how they will have an effect on the subsequent journey you are hoping to e book with factors and can report again on what we see.
Listed here are just some examples, although.
On this flight in the course of the week of July 4 from Phoenix Sky Harbor Worldwide Airport (PHX) to Honolulu’s Daniel Ok. Inouye Worldwide Airport (HNL), the one-way, $597 flight could be redeemed for 54,000 factors. That is a price of 1.1 cents per level — properly beneath TPG’s earlier price of 1.35 cents.
Then again, for this Tuesday flight in September from PHX to San Francisco Bay Oakland Worldwide Airport (OAK) in California, you will get simply over 1.7 cents per level by redeeming 7,500 factors as an alternative of paying the comparably low-cost $129 for the flight.
For flights on one Friday in June from Baltimore/Washington Worldwide Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) to Las Vegas’ Harry Reid Worldwide Airport (LAS), redemption charges are presently hovering round 1.2 cents per level. That very same day, redemption charges for flights from Cancun Worldwide Airport (CUN) in Mexico to Houston’s William P. Interest Airport (HOU) are on par with historic marks (between 1.3 and 1.4 cents).
In the meantime, you will get round 1.17 cents per level in worth for a Memorial Day weekend departure from Chicago’s Halfway Worldwide Airport (MDW) to Louis Armstrong New Orleans Worldwide Airport (MSY).
Hit significantly arduous: flights to and from Hawaii, Bay Space-based household journey blogger Leslie Harvey, of Trips With Tykes, instructed TPG after checking award costs for about 100 flights on Wednesday.
“I am seeing largely throughout the board that Hawaii flights are a worse worth than different form of extra normal, mundane flights,” Harvey, an avid Southwest flyer, stated whereas discussing a number of the adjustments she noticed with TPG. “I feel it is largely unfavorable. I’ve seen a few flights which have been I suppose, higher than I am used to seeing. However they appear to be true outliers.”
We’ll maintain crunching the numbers and report again on developments we discover.
Backside line
Southwest’s shift on Fast Rewards redemptions got here simply weeks after the airline slashed the number of points passengers could earn on its lowest fare lessons.
Wanna Get Away Plus flyers now earn simply 6 factors per greenback, down from 10 factors per greenback beforehand.
Wanna Get Away passengers earn solely 2 factors per greenback, down from 6 factors per greenback beforehand. Efficient Might 28, Wanna Get Away might be changed by a brand new “primary” fare class.
Nonetheless, Enterprise Choose passengers will proceed to earn two free checked luggage — even after the “luggage fly free” profit ends — and can earn extra factors per greenback (14) than they did beforehand.
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