Compare the Features and Benefits of Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card and
Graphite™ Business Cash Unlimited Card

The Southwest Plus Card charges the lowest annual fee of any Southwest credit card, making it a tempting option for travelers that enjoy flying Southwest.

In exchange for the modest $99 annual fee, cardholders will get 25% back on inflight purchases on Southwest Airlines, plus get 3,000 bonus points each card anniversary as well as free checked bags for the cardholder and up to 8 additional passengers in the same reservation who can check their first bag at no additional cost.

For a family of 4 this would be a savings of up to $280 roundtrip ($35 per bag per trip).

Cardholders earn 2 Southwest points per dollar spent in spending categories including Southwest purchases (including inflight purchases) as well as 2 points for every $1 you spend at gas stations and grocery stores on the first $5,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year.

Points earned count toward earning the Southwest Companion Pass. However, Southwest Plus Credit cardholders won’t get Tier Qualifying Points toward earning A-List Status. If you want to earn Tier Qualifying Points, you’ll need to get the Southwest Priority or Premier Credit Card instead.

There are no longer any foreign transaction fees on this card.

Frequent Southwest flyers should consider the Southwest Priority Credit Card instead. Although it charges the highest annual fee of any Southwest credit card, the card offers 2,500 tier qualifying points (TQPs) toward A-List status for every $5,000 spent in purchases annually, 4 points for every $1 you spend on Southwest Airlines^®purchases, and a 7,500-point anniversary bonus. That card also gives you a complimentary Preferred seat at booking, when available, and unlimited upgrades to an Extra Legroom seat within 48 hours prior to departure, at no additional charge, when available.

Lastly, this card is great for getting a large piece of the to a Southwest Companion Pass with the bonus offer, since the points earned from the signup bonus count. Read our guide on earning a Southwest Companion Pass for up to two years via new account bonuses.

It’s easy to look at this card and wonder how it differs from the American Express Blue Business Cash™ card, with no annual fee, and wonder why you’d pay a $295 annual fee on this card.

The primary two reasons are:

1) This card is a No Preset Spending Limit card. If you put heavy spend on a business card, you would max out the credit limit on the Blue Business Cash™ very quickly.

2) Importantly, that card only earns 2% on the first $50,000 spent annually on eligible purchases and just 1% thereafter. Terms apply.

This card will earn you the full 2% on unlimited spend. You’ll earn back the $295 annual fee (in Rewards Dollars) after the first $14,750 in eligible spend. If you are spending $500,000 on the card annually, that is a rounding error on the way to 2% cash back on everything else.

Previously, you had few options for such high spend, with the Business Platinum Card® as the obvious choice.

However, the Business Platinum  earns just 1% in Membership Rewards points on all spend outside select categories. Specifically, it earns 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar on up to $2 million in eligible purchases in the U.S., per calendar year, in the following select business categories combined:

• Electronic goods retailers
• Software & cloud system providers
• Construction materials and hardware supplies.
• Shipping providers.
• Purchases of $5,000 or more

The Business Platinum card also earns 5X per dollar on airfare and prepaid hotel purchases with American Express Travel. Terms apply.

So the cash back from an unlimited 2% on this Graphite Business Cash Unlimited may be far more worthwhile to you, especially if you don’t play the “points game.”

And don’t forget you’ll also get an unlimited 5% Cash Back on American Express Travel® on flights and prepaid hotel bookings through Amex Travel®. That can really add up for business travel collectively booked on the Amex Travel platform.

Card Members can get metal Employee Graphite™ Business Cash Unlimited Cards for $95 per year for the first 5 Cards, and $95 for each thereafter, with the ability to earn Reward Dollars on purchases and receive alerts to help Card Members know who’s spending and where.

This card competes squarely against the Capital One Spark Cash Plus and the Venture X Business which earns 2X Capital One Miles.

Rates & Fees for the Graphite™ Business Cash Unlimited Card

Rates and Fees for the The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card

Rates and fees for The Business Platinum Card® from American Express