We are an independent publisher. Our reporters create honest, accurate, and objective content to help you make decisions. To support our work, we are paid for providing advertising services. Many, but not all, of the offers and clickable hyperlinks (such as a “Next” button) that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. The compensation we receive and other factors, such as your location, may impact what ads and links appear on our site, and how, where, and in what order ads and links appear. While we strive to provide a wide range of offers, our site does not include information about every product or service that may be available to you. We strive to keep our information accurate and up-to-date, but some information may not be current. So, your actual offer terms from an advertiser may be different than the offer terms on this site. And the advertised offers may be subject to additional terms and conditions of the advertiser. All information is presented without any warranty or guarantee to you.

This page may include: credit card ads that we may be paid for (“advertiser listing”); and general information about credit card products (“editorial content”). Many, but not all, of the offers and clickable hyperlinks (such as a “Apply Now” button or “Learn More” button) that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. When you click on that hyperlink or button, you may be directed to the credit card issuer’s website where you can review the terms and conditions for your selected offer. Each advertiser is responsible for the accuracy and availability of its ad offer details, but we attempt to verify those offer details. We have partnerships with advertisers such as Brex, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Wells Fargo and Discover. We also include editorial content to educate consumers about financial products and services. Some of that content may also contain ads, including links to advertisers’ sites, and we may be paid on those ads or links.

For more information, please see How we make money.

Which Is Better, 2% Cash Back Or Southwest Points?

  • Million Mile Secrets

    • Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

    The Southwest Companion Pass is My Favorite Travel Perk!

    Update:   One or more card offers in this post are no longer available.  Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers. 

    Million Mile Secrets reader Rick Castorani writes on Twitter:

    Are points really better than cash back? I can’t quite figure out which is better, 2% cash back or Southwest points.
    Which Would You Choose, Cash Back Or Southwest Points?

    Let’s take a look…

    How Much Are Southwest Points Worth?

    Southwest Wanna Get Away Award Flights Cost 70 Points per Dollar

    Southwest points have an advertised fixed value of 70 points per dollar.  That means 1 Southwest point is worth 1.42 cents ($1 / 70 Southwest points).  But they are often worth more because the points cover the cost of taxes as well!

    Southwest Points Are Worth At Least 1.42 Cents per Point

    How Much Are Cash Back Points Worth?

    With a card like the Fidelity AMEX you get 2% cash back on all purchases.  So you get 2 cents for every $1 you spend. And with the Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard® you earn ~2.1% back if you redeem for travel.

    2% Cash Back Vs. Southwest Points:  An Example

    Let’s say Rick has a $20,000 home improvement project coming up.  Should he put this spending on his Southwest card or his 2% cash back card?

    Note that you are almost always better off using your spending towards getting new sign-up bonuses.  But sometimes you will have to make purchases which you can’t use towards a credit card sign-up bonus.

    If Rick uses a 2% back card like the Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard®, Rick will get 40,000 points ($20,000 in spending X 2 points per $1 spent).  And these Barclaycard miles are worth ~1.05 cents per point if use them towards travel.  That’s because you get 5% miles back when you redeem for travel.

    So Rick’s $20,000 in spending will get him $420 (40,000 points X 1.05 cent per point) towards travel.

    Or with the Fidelity AMEX, Rick would get $400 deposited into his Fidelity account ($20,000 X 2% cash back).

    Note: You can only get cash back deposited into certain Fidelity accounts.

    But what if he puts his $20,000 in spending on his Southwest credit card?

    Rick will only earn 1 Southwest point per dollar spent on his Southwest card.  So he will earn 20,000 Southwest points ($20,000 home improvement spending x 1 point per dollar).  Southwest points are worth at least 1.42 cents per dollar.  This means Rick’s Southwest points are worth ~$284 (20,000 Southwest points x 1.42 cents per point).

    Clearly, $440 in cash back towards travel is worth more than a ~$284 Southwest flight!

    Double the Value of Southwest Points With the Companion Pass!

    However, if Rick can use the $20,000 spending to earn the Southwest Companion Pass, his Southwest points will be worth much more.

    Emily and I love our Southwest Companion Pass because it has given us the ability to visit family and friends around the country for close to free.

    Emily and I Used Our Companion Pass to Travel to Key West

    Rick can go a long way towards earning the Companion Pass by signing-up for 1 personal Southwest credit card and 1 business Southwest card (when the offer is for 50,000 miles after completing the minimum spending).  With the Companion Pass, your companion travels with you for free for up to 2 years anytime you fly Southwest.

    This is 1 of the best deals in travel because it doubles the value of your Southwest points!

    With the Southwest Companion Pass, Rick’s Southwest points are worth 2.84 cents per point  (1.42 cents per Southwest point x  2 people flying for free).

    Rick’s 20,000 Southwest points will now be worth $568 (20,000 points x 2.48 cents per point) towards Southwest flights.

    This is worth ~30% more than the $420 he would get back towards travel with the Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard®.  And ~40% more than he’d earn in cash back with the Fidelity AMEX!

    But once he has earned the Southwest Companion Pass he is better off with the 2% cash back cards.

    Bottom Line

    Typically, 2% cash back is worth more than Southwest points.

    However, with the Southwest Companion Pass you double the value of your Southwest points.  So if you can use your spending to earn the Companion Pass, it will be worth more than 2% cash back.  But once you earn the Companion Pass, you are better off with 2% cash back.

    When do you prefer to earn points and when do you prefer cash?
    Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)