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Earning a companion pass with your favorite airline is one of the most valuable perks in travel loyalty. Like Southwest, Delta, and now even Frontier, Alaska Airlines offers its Companion Fare to eligible co-branded credit cardholders. There are currently two Alaska Airlines credit cards available: one personal and one business.
As Alaska Airlines continues to grow its route network and airline partnerships, this neat perk can take you further than you might expect. With the acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines, the Companion Fare (officially known as the “Famous Companion Fare”) is set to become even more useful. Starting in 2025, it will also be valid on select Hawaiian Airlines flights.
Here's everything you need to know about the Alaska Airlines Companion Fare.
Page Contents
What Is The Alaska Airlines Companion Fare?
The Alaska Airlines Companion Fare lets co-brand credit cardholders book a companion coach ticket for $99 (base fare) plus taxes and fees. The pass can be used once per calendar year and must be purchased with another guest on a paid published coach fare on the same itinerary.
Tickets purchased as an Alaska Airlines Companion Fare cannot be paid for with Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles. However, both the primary passenger and the companion are eligible to earn Alaska miles. These are paid tickets, after all.
Related: Ultimate Guide to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
Earn a Companion Fare with the Alaska Credit Card
Alaska's Famous Companion Fare is available to Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card and Alaska Airlines Visa® Business card cardholders. However, unless included in the sign-up bonus, the Companion Fare is not an automatic benefit of having an Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card.
At one time, this was an automatic card benefit, but unless you've been grandfathered in, you'll have to earn it each year. Newer cardholders must spend a minimum of $6,000 on the card annually to receive a Companion Fare on their card's anniversary.
Even after meeting all spending requirements for Alaska's Companion Fare, it can still take a while for the pass to post to your account. According to the terms and conditions, the Companion Fare will be posted to Mileage Plan accounts six to eight weeks after their account anniversary.
- LIMITED TIME ONLINE OFFER-60,000 Bonus Miles + a 30% Flight Discount Code!
- Receive a 30% flight discount code for a qualifying future flight after opening your new account. Additionally, earn 60,000 bonus miles plus Alaska's Famous Companion Fare™ ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23) after making $3,000 or more in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account.
- Get Alaska's Famous Companion Fare™ ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23) each account anniversary after you spend $6,000 or more on purchases within the prior anniversary year. Valid on all Alaska Airlines flights booked on alaskaair.com.
- Earn unlimited 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases. Earn unlimited 2 miles for every $1 spent on eligible gas, EV charging station, cable, streaming services and local transit (including ride share) purchases. And earn unlimited 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases. And, your miles don't expire on active accounts.
- Earn a 10% rewards bonus on all miles earned from card purchases if you have an eligible Bank of America® account.
- Free checked bag and enjoy priority boarding for you and up to 6 guests on the same reservation, when you pay for your flight with your card - Also available for authorized users when they book a reservation too!
- With oneworld® Alliance member airlines and Alaska's Global Partners, Alaska has expanded their global reach to over 1,000 destinations worldwide bringing more airline partners and more ways to earn and redeem miles.
- Plus, no foreign transaction fees and a low $95 annual fee.
- This online only offer may not be available elsewhere if you leave this page. You can take advantage of this offer when you apply now.
- Earn unlimited 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases
- Earn unlimited 2 miles for every $1 spent on eligible gas, EV charging stations, cable, streaming services and local transit (including ride share) purchases
- Earn unlimited 1 mile for every $1 spent on all other eligible purchases
Related: Ultimate Guide to Companion Fares & Passes
How To Use The Alaska Airlines Companion Fare
The Alaska Airlines Companion Fare comes in the form of a code that you use when buying airfare on Alaska's website.
As the screenshot below shows, on Alaska Airlines' homepage, there's a link to use a discount or code when searching for flights. If you don't have your discount code handy, navigate to the “Discounts and Companion Fares” section in your account. Or, click here.
The screenshot below is where the link in the above photo takes you. You can enter your Companion Fare code in the Discount code section before clicking “Find Flights.” Make sure to select a search for two travelers, or the search will return an error.
You will see Alaska Airlines-operated flights that are eligible to use the Companion Fare code on the results page. They're denoted by the green checkmark.
Restrictions of the Alaska Airlines Companion Fare
- One Use Per Year: You can only use your Companion Fare once per calendar year.
- Code Issuance Timing: Codes post 6–8 weeks after your card anniversary if you spend $6,000+ in a cardholder anniversary year.
- Travel After Expiration: While you must book by 11:59 pm PST on the expiration date, travel can take place afterward.
- Restricted to Alaska Flights: Only valid on Alaska-operated flights, including international routes. The Alaska Companion Pass will be valid on Hawaiian flights starting in mid-summer 2025.
- Booking for Others: You can also use your Companion Fare code for other travelers, even if they aren’t the primary cardholder. However, the cardholder must pay taxes and fees.
- Upgrade Eligibility: Companion Fare tickets remain eligible for upgrades.
For more information, you can find the full terms and conditions of the Alaska Airlines Companion Fare in your account profile under the discounts and codes section.
Related: Alaska Airlines Unveils Changes to How Upgrades Work Starting in 2025
Bottom Line
The Alaska Airlines Companion Fare is great for Alaska Airlines loyalists or anyone who flies the airline frequently enough to earn the pass through credit card spend. This is even more worth it now that you can earn EQMs through credit card spend.
With that said, other airlines have more flexible companion fares or passes. For example, there aren't any rules about how many times per year you can use a Southwest Companion Pass or a Frontier Companion Travel Pass. Both can be used as many times as you like. Similar to Alaska Airlines, you can only use the Delta Air Lines Companion Certificate once per year.
Whether earning an Alaska Airlines Companion Fare is worth it may come down to how you view its future potential. Alaska continues to grow and add new routes and benefits for members of the combined airline. While this might not be the most valuable perk of holding an Alaska Airlines credit card today, its value could grow over time.
- LIMITED TIME ONLINE OFFER-60,000 Bonus Miles + a 30% Flight Discount Code!
- Receive a 30% flight discount code for a qualifying future flight after opening your new account. Additionally, earn 60,000 bonus miles plus Alaska's Famous Companion Fare™ ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23) after making $3,000 or more in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account.
- Get Alaska's Famous Companion Fare™ ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23) each account anniversary after you spend $6,000 or more on purchases within the prior anniversary year. Valid on all Alaska Airlines flights booked on alaskaair.com.
- Earn unlimited 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases. Earn unlimited 2 miles for every $1 spent on eligible gas, EV charging station, cable, streaming services and local transit (including ride share) purchases. And earn unlimited 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases. And, your miles don't expire on active accounts.
- Earn a 10% rewards bonus on all miles earned from card purchases if you have an eligible Bank of America® account.
- Free checked bag and enjoy priority boarding for you and up to 6 guests on the same reservation, when you pay for your flight with your card - Also available for authorized users when they book a reservation too!
- With oneworld® Alliance member airlines and Alaska's Global Partners, Alaska has expanded their global reach to over 1,000 destinations worldwide bringing more airline partners and more ways to earn and redeem miles.
- Plus, no foreign transaction fees and a low $95 annual fee.
- This online only offer may not be available elsewhere if you leave this page. You can take advantage of this offer when you apply now.
- Earn unlimited 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases
- Earn unlimited 2 miles for every $1 spent on eligible gas, EV charging stations, cable, streaming services and local transit (including ride share) purchases
- Earn unlimited 1 mile for every $1 spent on all other eligible purchases
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