How To Upgrade For FREE On Southwest

        One of the perks of the Southwest Priority card is 4 upgrades on flights per year. So is this perk worth it? And how does it work?
        Southwest has a different kind of boarding plan. When you check-in 24 hours before your flight, you are assigned a boarding group and a number. The number is your place in line to board. Then once you are on the flight, it is open seating. When you check-in, if you get boarding group A, then you are styling. But if you get boarding group C, then you might want to think about using your upgrades if you like window or aisle seats or if you are concerned that the overhead luggage bins may fill up.

If you are a family with children under the age of 5, disabled or military, Southwest has special boarding between the A and B groups. However, the upgrade is good for spots A6-A15 which could make a difference.
With the Southwest Priority credit card, you get four upgrades per year. You can use them for yourself, family members or friends. You can use them all at once or one at a time. Upgrade typically costs between $30-$50 and you buy it from the counter at the gate.
On a recent flight from Las Vegas, NV to Buffalo, NY, we noticed the flight was very full.
Even though I had boarding group B23, there were a lot of children waiting to board.
And the upgrades are use it or lose it, they refresh on your anniversary.
So I decided to test it out. The charge to upgrade on this flight was $50 per person and I upgraded both my daughter and I because my anniversary is in November. Use it or lose it!

We upgraded from B23 to A10. So there was plenty of space on the plane to choose from when we got on board. We were able to sit in one of the first few rows and we were able to secure an entire row which was nice so my daughter could sleep on the late-night flight.
You need to pay for the upgrade with your Southwest Priority credit card and because my daughter was flying with me on a companion pass, she had to run it as two transactions.
The Southwest employee told me that the credit wouldn't go through until my anniversary date, but it actually went through immediately.

Here are the details on the  Southwest Priority  credit card

• $149 annual fee for the first year
• $75 Southwest credit 
• 7,500 anniversary points annually
• 2x on Southwest purchases
• 1x on everything else
• 4 FREE upgrades 

If you decide to apply for this card, please consider using my referral link. Same deal for you, but it helps me continue to bring you tips and advice on how to travel for almost FREE.