SW Rapid Rewards vs JetBlue

maciec

AHHHH....Donuts. Is there anything they can't do?
Joined
May 10, 2001
We have never flown JetBlue before. We have solely been SW customers due to the low cost of points you have to redeem to fly. Can anyone tell me how JetBlue compares in points redemption cost? I haven't paid for airfare for our family of 5 since probably 2012 between all of the credit card sign up bonuses I have gotten. I just applied for the JetBlue $99 fee card because we are thinking of flying with them in the fall. BWI is our home airport.

Also are they like SW that the cheapest fares are on release day?

Thanks!
 
I might start with looking at where Jet Blue flies to out of BWI, that might give you an idea of the value of their points to you and the way you travel.
I also fly SW almost exclusively when flying in the US, and I'm smack inbetween BWI & PHL airports, and the places I frequent have several n/s flights out of both of those airports, so that is why I got the SW chase card and take advantage of those bonuses you mentioned!

Knock wood, always have had excellent experiences with SW over the years.
 
I might start with looking at where Jet Blue flies to out of BWI, that might give you an idea of the value of their points to you and the way you travel.
I also fly SW almost exclusively when flying in the US, and I'm smack inbetween BWI & PHL airports, and the places I frequent have several n/s flights out of both of those airports, so that is why I got the SW chase card and take advantage of those bonuses you mentioned!

Knock wood, always have had excellent experiences with SW over the years.

Sorry I guess I should have specified that the comparison I’m looking for is just for flights to MCO
 
I enjoy flying on both SW and JetBlue. I prefer SW for the flexibility on changing flights and getting credits for fare reductions. JB planes have more leg room.

And I think SW is better, the points for flights. I do have both cards. But now SW left Newark airport. We can use PHL (and like PHL), but flights are not usually cheap there. I have the JB card that gives free checked bag for me and my party, it is WELL worth the higher annual fee for me. But I used to get more free flights with SW, especially with me and husband each having our own cards, getting the rewards for that, and then each getting another SW card.
 


I can't speak to Jet Blue, but I wouldn't bank on SW always having their cheapest fares on release day. I've found there are often dips in cost along the way and it's easy to adjust the fare to take advantage of that. For a reservation that you paid for (vs using Rapid Reward points), each passenger will receive the difference back as flight credit that can be used for flights within a year of your original purchase date. If you use Rapid Reward points, it's even easier - they just go back into your account.

Also are they like SW that the cheapest fares are on release day?

Thanks!
 
We use both Jetblue and Southwest.
For our trip in the spring, the Southwest tickets (MHT) were double the price of jetblue tickets (BOS) so we went with Jetblue.
But usually, with all involved cost (parking or bus), Southwest is the best deal. So watch prices on both!
 


I can't speak to Jet Blue, but I wouldn't bank on SW always having their cheapest fares on release day. I've found there are often dips in cost along the way and it's easy to adjust the fare to take advantage of that. For a reservation that you paid for (vs using Rapid Reward points), each passenger will receive the difference back as flight credit that can be used for flights within a year of your original purchase date. If you use Rapid Reward points, it's even easier - they just go back into your account.

It’s interesting that you say that you have seen lower fares outside of release day because I never have. And I’ve been flying Southwest for 10 years
 
We frequently fly JetBlue and SW out of BOS and PVD. For SW we usually book on release day as the flights can be changed so easily if cost goes down - we probably rebook at a lower cost about 20% of the time - often within a week or two of release.

For JetBlue - if we are travelling during peak holiday times - then we usually book on release day as cost almost always goes up. However, for non-peak travel times, I have often seen significant price drops 6-8 weeks out - sometimes the price only drops for a few hours.

If all else were equal - we would probably fly JetBlue every time, but the flexibility of booking SW is hard to beat.
 
I would love to fly JetBlue more often, but we fly out of PHL and they ALWAYS fly to BOS first. I feel like I can never get a non-stop flight on JB. I just looked at BWI to MCO on JetBlue and they also look like they fly to BOS first, and then MCO.

SW I can usually get a NS to MCO (though they don't offer that many during the day).
 
With any airline credit card you have to consider: 1) how much you typically charge each year, 2) how often you fly and 3) if that airline flies to the destinations where you travel. Points on many airlines expire after a certain amount of time, so if you don't accumulate enough (or charge enough) to gain a benefit, you lose that value. Non-stop vs connections can also be an issue. Some of that is personal preference, but some airlines fly through one of their distant hubs adding a LOT of extra travel time which isn't always the fastest/most direct way to get to where you are going.
 
With any airline credit card you have to consider: 1) how much you typically charge each year, 2) how often you fly and 3) if that airline flies to the destinations where you travel. Points on many airlines expire after a certain amount of time, so if you don't accumulate enough (or charge enough) to gain a benefit, you lose that value. Non-stop vs connections can also be an issue. Some of that is personal preference, but some airlines fly through one of their distant hubs adding a LOT of extra travel time which isn't always the fastest/most direct way to get to where you are going.

I appreciate the response. However, I wasn't asking what you are responding to. I know what the each credit card offers from my Chase Sapphire, Chase Ink, SW RR card's, as well as my Disney. The majority of my miles/points are earned through my Chase Ink card. From there I do a 1:1 transfer to SW. All I am asking is are the point redemption's comparable between RR's and Jet Blue. For example I usually pay about 17,000 per ticket for me to fly to MCO from BWI. What I am asking is am I likely to pay the same Jet Blue points that I am SW for a non stop flight. The only place we fly is to MCO. It is rare that we fly anywhere else. I also only fly non stop on SW.
 
I can’t speak for SW (decidedly not a fan), but I fly JetBlue exclusively for domestic flights, my home airport is JFK, and I have the JetBlue Plus card. That card is well worth the AF not just because of the free checked bag but also the award flight redemption bonus. They refund 10% of the points you spend on award flights. You book a flight for 20k points, 2k will be put back on your TrueBlue account in 4-6 weeks or so after you take the flight. Some people report having to call them but I haven’t had an issue yet.

As long as you book early, MCO flights don’t cost many points. My SUB alone more than covered tickets for my gf and I in May. JetBlue prices do tend to go up over time rather than fluctuating.
 
I can’t speak for SW (decidedly not a fan), but I fly JetBlue exclusively for domestic flights, my home airport is JFK, and I have the JetBlue Plus card. That card is well worth the AF not just because of the free checked bag but also the award flight redemption bonus. They refund 10% of the points you spend on award flights. You book a flight for 20k points, 2k will be put back on your TrueBlue account in 4-6 weeks or so after you take the flight. Some people report having to call them but I haven’t had an issue yet.

As long as you book early, MCO flights don’t cost many points. My SUB alone more than covered tickets for my gf and I in May. JetBlue prices do tend to go up over time rather than fluctuating.

Thank you!!! That's what I was looking for!
 
The only way i would go with Jetblue is if it makes sense that you would fly this route...you can look at the redemption values as well to get an idea of how much it may cost you on Jetblue, but if you are a family, it is really hard to beat Southwest. If you don't already have the Southwest business card in addition to the southwest consumer card i would look in to that as that is a great way to earn extra points that will help you and your fam get to these amazing destinations.
 

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