Southwest Airlines will pay Rapid Rewards members in points for the unread notifications on their phones. Under its Notification Vacation promotion, which opened October 5, 2026, you upload a screenshot of your phone's home screen and get one point per unread notification, from a minimum of 500 to a maximum of 10,000. Entries close at 5:00 a.m. Central Time on October 12, 2026, or sooner if the points run out.

Deal Details

  • What you earn: Southwest's official terms say "each unread notification shown in the screenshot equals one (1) Rapid Rewards point." A screenshot with fewer than 500 still earns 500, and the cap is 10,000 per member.
  • The pool: 150,000,000 points in total. Southwest expects up to 21,000,000 points to be available each day, and once a day's allocation is claimed, later entries that day don't get points.
  • Who can enter: Rapid Rewards members who are legal residents of the 50 U.S. states or D.C. and at least 18 when they enter. Southwest employees and their immediate family and household members aren't eligible.
  • The limit: one submission and one award per member and per Rapid Rewards account.
  • When points post: generally within seven days after Southwest verifies your entry.
  • What they don't count toward: A-List, A-List Preferred or Companion Pass qualification.

There's a second, separate promotion. Southwest's Burnout Quiz pays 500 points to each member who completes it, from a pool of 37,000,000, through 11:59 p.m. Central Time on December 10, 2026, or until those points are gone. Southwest's terms say members may take part in both.

How to Enter Notification Vacation

  1. Join Rapid Rewards first if you aren't a member.
  2. Open notificationvacation.com on your phone. On a computer, the site shows a QR code to continue on mobile.
  3. Before you take the screenshot, hide message previews and other personal content. Southwest's terms ask for this, and the screenshot has to show your real unread count without changes.
  4. Upload a PNG or JPEG of your home screen with every unread notification visible. Southwest's FAQ says cropped or blurry images won't be accepted, and the terms void altered, combined or stitched screenshots.
  5. For the separate 500 points, take the quiz at airplanemode.southwest.com.

Why This Deal Matters

It costs nothing but a screenshot, and you don't have to fly or spend to earn. The catch is supply. Southwest's terms say a day's points can run out, and the promotion can end before October 12 if all 150,000,000 points are awarded, so there's no reason to wait.

Points from this promotion won't move you toward elite status or the Companion Pass. Our Companion Pass guide covers what does count.

Who Should Enter

Any eligible Rapid Rewards member can enter once. If your phone only shows a handful of unread alerts, a verified screenshot still earns the 500-point minimum while that day's points last. Entries close at 5:00 a.m. Central Time on October 12, 2026.

Sources

  1. Southwest Airlines press release, October 5, 2026: Enter Airplane Mode and Notification Vacation (read 2026-10-05)
  2. Notification Vacation Points Giveaway Official Terms and Conditions (read 2026-10-05)
  3. Notification Vacation FAQ (read 2026-10-05)
  4. Burnout Quiz Points Giveaway Official Terms and Conditions (read 2026-10-05)
  5. Southwest Enter Airplane Mode promotion page (read 2026-10-05)

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