Southwest Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card
- Best for: Business owners who fly Southwest for work often and want a better seat on most trips
- What Sets It Apart: Preferred seat at booking; free Extra Legroom upgrades within 48 hours of departure
- Cost: $299 annual fee; 19.49% to 27.99% variable APR; no foreign transaction fees
- Features: 80,000 bonus points after $5,000 in purchases in 3 months; 4X points on Southwest; 2X on gas, restaurants, hotels booked directly, and local transit; 9,000 anniversary points; free first checked bag and Group 5 boarding for up to 9 travelers
- Pros: Seat perks the Premier Business lacks; a credit of up to $120 toward Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS every 4 years; free employee cards that earn points
- Cons: $150 a year more than the Premier Business; employee cards get no seat, bag, or boarding perks; no lounge access
Get the Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business card only if you’ll use its seat perks on most work trips. It lets you pick a Preferred seat near the front when you book and upgrade free to Extra Legroom within 48 hours of departure. If a free checked bag and earlier boarding are enough, the $149 Premier Business has both.
The Performance Business is the pricier of Chase’s two Southwest business cards, and Chase lets sole proprietors, side businesses included, apply with a Social Security number. You and the business are both responsible for repaying the balance.
Key Features
- $299 annual fee, a 19.49% to 27.99% variable interest rate, and no foreign transaction fees
- 80,000 bonus points after $5,000 in purchases in the first 3 months, about $1,000 in Southwest flights at The Points Guy’s value of 1.25 cents a point
- 4 points per $1 on Southwest purchases; 2 per $1 at gas stations and restaurants, on hotel stays booked directly with the hotel, and on local transit and rideshare; 1 per $1 elsewhere
- 9,000 bonus points on each card anniversary
- Free first checked bag, worth $45 each way on most fares, and boarding in Group 5 of 8, for you and up to 8 others on your reservation
Pros
- Preferred seat, near the front with standard legroom, chosen when you book instead of within 48 hours of departure as with the Premier Business
- Free upgrades to any open Extra Legroom seat during the 48 hours before departure, a perk the Premier Business lacks
- 2,500 tier qualifying points toward Southwest elite status per $5,000 spent, then 1 per $1 from January 2027
- Up to $120 back on a Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fee every four years
- Free employee cards whose spending earns points
Cons
- Costs $150 a year more than the Premier Business, which has the same free bag and boarding
- No 15% fare discount code, which the Premier Business gives on each card anniversary, Basic fares excluded
- Employee cards get none of the seat, bag, or boarding perks
- No lounge access, and Southwest ties its first lounges, opening late 2027, to a new premium card
Counting just the annual fee and anniversary points, 9,000 against 6,000 at 1.25 cents each, the Performance Business costs $112.50 a year more than the Premier Business. Apply if the seat perks are worth that on most of your work trips, and take the Premier Business if they aren’t.
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