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If you're new to using points and miles to book flights, you may be wondering, “What is this Southwest Companion Pass everyone keeps talking about?!” The Southwest Companion Pass allows you to fly with another person fare-free — just paying taxes and fees, which are typically just $5.60 each way. You may think of it as an unlimited buy-one-get-one-free flight pass.
We consider the Companion Pass among the industry's best travel perks because this isn't a one-time pass. You can use it as much as you fly, as long as there's a seat available. It doesn't even matter whether you use points or cash.
To help design your strategy, we’ve summarized ways to accelerate your progress to earn the Southwest Companion Pass.
Page Contents
How Do I Earn the Southwest Companion Pass?
You can earn the Southwest Companion Pass by reaching either the required number of flight trips or the qualifying point requirement in a calendar year.
Earning the Southwest Companion Pass via flights
For those who fly a lot, it's possible to earn the Companion Pass by taking 100 one-way trips (not segments) on Southwest. Even worse, these flights need to be purchased with cash — not Rapid Rewards points. According to Southwest:
“Qualifying flights include flights paid entirely with dollars, Southwest LUV Vouchers, gift cards or flight credits, and with no portion of the purchase price paid for with Rapid Rewards points.”
This qualification method is completely separate from earning the required number of Companion Pass-eligible points. It doesn't matter how many points you earn if you earn the pass via flight trips.
While it's great that you can earn the Companion Pass via flights alone, flying 100 trips in a calendar year isn't practical for most people.
Earning the Southwest Companion Pass via points
The easier path to the Companion Pass is by earning 135,000 qualifying points in a calendar year. You can earn these points through sign-up bonuses and spending on Southwest co-branded credit cards, which is a much more likely path for many.
But where should someone start to earn this sum of points?
Strategies To Earn the Southwest Companion Pass via Points
Earning 135,000 Companion Pass-eligible points can feel like a huge goal to hit. Fortunately, Southwest provides several different methods to earn the required 135,000 points, and you can mix and match the earning strategies that best suit your needs. Here are the most widely used options:
- Spending on co-branded Southwest credit cards
- Welcome bonuses on Southwest credit cards
- Flying on Southwest Airlines
- Booking hotel stays and car rentals through Southwest
- Rapid Rewards Shopping
- Rapid Rewards Dining
- Occasional promotions that offer bonus qualifying points on eligible activities
Southwest co-branded credit cards
All of the ways listed above can help you incrementally earn points toward the Southwest Companion Pass, but the fastest way is using the co-branded Southwest credit cards issued by Chase. Southwest currently offers three personal and two business Rapid Rewards cards:
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
- Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
- Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
- Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- 7,500 anniversary points each year.
- Earn 3X points on Southwest® purchases.
- Earn 2X points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare.
- Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
- $75 Southwest® travel credit each year.
- No foreign transaction fees.
- Member FDIC
- Rates & Fees
- 3X points per $1 spent on all Southwest® purchases
- 2X points per $1 spent on all Rapid Rewards® Hotel and Car Rental Partner purchases
- 2X points per $1 spent on local transit and commuting, including rideshare
- 2X points per $1 spent on internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming services
- 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases
Each of these cards provides an array of benefits tailored to your budget and needs. We think the Southwest Priority Card is the clear winner of the group for providing long-term value for Southwest flyers. Check out our full review of the Southwest Priority Card for more details.
Southwest credit cards are also a critical part of earning the Southwest Companion Pass because cardholders receive an annual boost of 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each year.
If you are not a Southwest cardholder at the first of the year but open a new card during the year, you will receive the 10,000-point boost up to 30 days after opening your card. Only one boost can be earned each calendar year per account, no matter how many Southwest credit cards you have.
Lastly, Southwest cards occasionally offer a Companion Pass as part of the sign-up bonus. These Companion Passes are much easier to earn, as you only need to meet the minimum spending requirement on the card to qualify. However, the caveat is that the Companion Pass is typically only eligible for around 12 months. That's much shorter than enjoying a Southwest Companion Pass for a better part of two years by timing your card applications and spending.
Flying Southwest
Even if you won't reach 100 one-way trips, flying with Southwest can help you earn Companion Pass-qualifying points. Southwest awards points for flying based on your elite tier level, the type of fare you choose, and the amount you spend.
| Southwest Point Earnings by Fare Class | Rapid Rewards Member | A-List | A-List Preferred |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | 2 points per dollar | 2.5 pts per dollar | 4 pts per dollar |
| Wanna Get Away Plus (Choice) | 6 points per dollar | 7.5 pts per dollar | 12 pts per dollar |
| Anytime (Choice Preferred) | 10 points per dollar | 12.5 pts per dollar | 20 pts per dollar |
| Business Select (Choice Extra) | 14 points per dollar | 17.5 pts per dollar | 28 pts per dollar |
Given that Southwest awards 6x per dollar on the base fare (excluding taxes), you would earn 1,266 redeemable points ($210.94 X 6) for booking the below flight as a base-level member.
While these points can add up quickly, it's important to remember that travelers only earn Rapid Rewards points when they fly. That means you won't get any closer to your goal with flights booked for family members. Fortunately, the other strategies listed below will work regardless of who is traveling, as long as you attach your Rapid Rewards number to the reservation.
Hotel stays
We checked Southwest Hotels through Booking.com for potential opportunities for booking a two-night stay in Chicago. Here's one possibility.
The cheapest reservation for a King bed non-refundable room would earn 13,000 points and cost $664. However, be sure to look through the different room types since pricing varies and some rates are non-refundable; others include breakfast. Sometimes, there are special offers to buy additional points, too, though there are not any offers in this case.
Unfortunately, the price you see on the page where you select the hotel and room type doesn't include the taxes. When I went to complete the reservation, the cost jumped from $664 to $779.
Make sure to compare the Southwest Hotels price with other options. The same room shown above could also be booked directly with Marriott for $740, which would save you $39. However, don't forget to factor in the value of the Rapid Rewards points and progress toward the Companion Pass. Rapid Reward points are generally worth 1.3-1.5 cents each (and AwardWallet users tend to redeem them at the upper end). An extra 13,000 Rapid Rewards points would have a minimum value of $169, and earning a Companion Pass could add a lot more value.
Keep in mind that most of the major hotel loyalty programs don't award points or recognize elite status when you book through a third-party site.
Car rentals
While I personally have found that AutoSlash works best for rentals, you might want to search the Southwest Book a Car service if you need help earning toward the Companion Pass.
Before you start your search, check the Special Offers page to see what deals are available for your trip.
For example, this promotion from Budget is tiered for point earning and offers savings of up to 30% off the base rate:
- Rent for one to two days to earn 600 points.
- Rent for three to six days to earn 1,200 points.
- Rent for seven days or longer to earn 2,400 points.
According to the offer terms, any points earned over 600 per rental will be considered bonus points. Bonus points don't count toward A-List, A-List Preferred, or Companion Pass qualification, so watch out for items like this when shopping for a car rental.
Rapid Rewards Shopping
You can also earn points toward the Southwest Companion Pass through your everyday shopping by clicking through Rapid Rewards® Shopping. You can find many of your favorite retailers among the 1,100+ shopping partners available. Popular stores include Home Depot, Macy's, Nike, and many more.
To earn credit for your purchase, just visit the shopping portal page before clicking on the merchant's website. The shopping portal will track the value of your purchase and award points based on the multiplier shown for the merchant. Here's a helpful video explaining the shopping portal.
Related: A Beginner's Guide to Shopping Portals
Rapid Rewards Dining
Southwest's Rapid Rewards Dining program allows you to earn points at participating U.S. restaurants. After you enroll in the program with your Rapid Rewards number and link one or more credit or debit cards, your dining spending will be tracked and points awarded when you dine at a participating restaurant.
While the points you earn from your dining spend count toward Companion Pass qualification, any special bonus points earned do not count. This includes the new member bonus, first step bonus, thank you bonus, and any review bonuses.
What Doesn't Count Toward the Companion Pass?
The list of Rapid Rewards activities that do not qualify toward earning the Companion Pass isn't surprising, but it is important to know:
- Purchased points
- Points transferred or gifted between members
- Points transfers from Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Points converted from hotel and car loyalty programs (such as Marriott Bonvoy)
- Points earned from e-Rewards, Rewards for Opinions, and Diners Club
- Points earned from Rapid Rewards program enrollment
- Points earned from tier bonuses
- Flight bonus points
- Promotion bonus points (with the exception of the Rapid Rewards Credit Cards and Southwest Business Refer a Company promotion)
- Partner bonus points (such as a new member bonus from Rapid Rewards Dining or tiered-spend bonuses from Rapid Rewards Shopping)
- Purchased promotional tier-qualifying points
- Cash + Points bookings
You should remember what points qualify and work under the assumption that everything else does not. When in doubt, check Southwest's website or run a small test before you commit to an earning strategy. You also won't earn toward the Companion Pass on any flights where you paid with points.
Do Chase Ultimate Rewards points count toward the Southwest Companion Pass?
Unfortunately, no. When you transfer Chase points to Southwest Rapid Rewards, you won't earn any Southwest Companion Pass-eligible points. That means you can't top off your Companion Pass earnings through Chase point transfers.
Final Thoughts
The Southwest Companion Pass is easily one of the most valuable perks available in award travel, and it can potentially save you thousands of dollars on flights while you hold it.
Earning the 135,000 points required for the Companion Pass can appear daunting, but Southwest offers various ways to accumulate the points you need to secure the pass for 2024 & 2025. Once you've earned the Companion Pass, here's how to select your companion and start using your new perks.
Are you trying to earn the Companion Pass this year? Let us know some of your best strategies in the comments.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees), and Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
The comments on this page are not provided, reviewed, or otherwise approved by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
If I close my current SW card, how long do I have to wait to apply for a new one?
Hi Connie, you’ll see these terms on personal SW credit cards:
“The product is not available to either (i) current Cardmembers of any Southwest Rapid Rewards® Credit Card, or (ii) previous Cardmembers of any Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Card who received a new Cardmember bonus within the last 24 months. This does not apply to Cardmembers of the Southwest Rapid Rewards Business Card and Employee Credit Card products.”
That means you can’t have another SW personal card at the time you apply for one, plus you can’t earn the bonus if you got one within 24 months. But as for actually applying, there’s no specific rule.
Looks like I missed the companion pass by only about 2300 points. Didn’t realize it until 12/29/22. Wish there was a way to earn a quick 2500 points that would post immediately. Guess you really have to earn all your points by the end of Nov so they will post with the first of Dec statement.
When do you actually get credit for the “spend” or acquisition of the points?
For example, I qualified for companion pass in November in a year that we spent more money that normal on our Southwest Credit Card; which means I am set for 2023 and my focus shifts to what can I do to hit again in 2023 for 2024.
Now that we are in the holiday season and spending money on big ticket items etc. is it smart to hold off on paying the credit card balance until January so that you are awarded the spend/points in the 2023 calendar year on purchases made towards the end of 2022 -OR- do you get credit for those points at the time the card is charged regardless of when its paid?
The points usually count to whichever year the statement closes. So, December 23 purchases will count toward 2023 if those purchases don’t appear on a statement until 2023.
I had earned companion since last August 2021, currently half year is gone and reached companion again until end of 2023; kept a spreadsheet of all companion flights since I had earned companion and to any flight i have booked
To end of 2022, saved over $3000 in airfare on 1 person alone; let me just say, majority of all my flights are booked by points, a couples of island hop to 1 round trip, did paid in revenue…LOVE SOUTHWEST!
That’s awesome! It’s really neat that you’re keeping track of exactly how valuable this perk is to you.
I signed up for the a Southwest Rapid Reward’s Card in June of 2021. I have 110,788 points as of now. Do you know if I will qualify for the 25,000 point boost towards the Companion pass and when those will be given. I am scared that I will not hit the 125,000 points by December. Thank you for your help.
The 25k boost should already be reflected in your account. Note that this isn’t bonus points, rather it’s just Companion Pass-qualifying points. The easiest way to see your progress is to log into your Rapid Rewards account and go here: https://www.southwest.com/loyalty/myaccount/rapid-rewards.html
On 11/10/2020 swa had a companion pass promotion. I flew from Reno to Las Vegas and back the same day to get the pass
We have been members since 2000. Did I do something wrong (pilot error)?
Want to take my wife on a trip somewhere warm.
We need to know why we didn’t get the pass.
Thanks for your help,
Marc van hees
Note: Original comment has been edited to remove personal information.
Hey Mark, you’ll need to contact southwest to get some answers. We wrote about the opportunity, but we don’t have any way to help with how southwest awards the CP for this promo.
Hi! I’m so confused! So, we have traveled a ton this year AND I took a credit card with southwest and I’m showing 75k points towards this companion pass. It’s showing I need 125K. Does this mean the 25K for 2021 you talk about is maybe included in my 75K total? I have recruited several friends and family members to sign up for their cards, and had an email that said I will get 20K points for each referral, so I think I could hit the 125K mark by the EOY. My girlfriend and I are planning a ton of travel into 2022 and beyond, and think this companion pass would be an awesome tool for saving and traveling cheap. My question is, should I try to hit the points before the end of this year and then would have it for the remainder of 21 AND 2022, and then they offer like 80k points for getting a business card, which I would do in January to try to hit it for 2023, does that sound right? I realize the 80K would mean I would still be 40K short in 2022 but think maybe a couple referrals and our points for travel would meet that?
Southwest has launched increased offers on biz and personal cards around mid-October for the past several years. I’d recommend waiting a little longer to see if something good pops up that could help you decide whether to push for 2021 or qualify in 2022.
I’m not 100% sure how Southwest is displaying the 25K “boost” towards companion pass. Based on my (limited) flying this year, and the fact that my account shows around 30,000 towards CP, I’d guess the 25K is already included in the total.
I was wondering if you can tell me how many points I need this year to qualify for a companion pass for 2021?
Members need to collect 100,000 qualifying points in the 2021 calendar year to earn the Companion Pass. Normal qualification is 125,000 points, but Southwest has provided all members with a 25K boost for 2021 qualification.
I hate credit card companies keep changing their rules. It is not fair. As long as they honour the previous rules ti will be fine. But they keep raising the required points to be qualified. As a consumer there is nothing we can do?
So my son finally got the SWA Performance card after a long period of hearing nothing. He applied under the 80k points offer. I got the 80k offer and I’m now shopping for the personal card for SWA to get the other 40k. Happy Days are here again.
I’m really hoping they come out with another credit card promotion that involves receiving the companion pass. My girlfriend and I were able to have the companion pass the last two years via this method and got about $3500 in value out of it. Earning the points required even with sign up bonuses will be hard for us.
wish southwest will expand to europe and israel
I hope the companion pass program sticks around forever. I don’t travel much now, but will in the distant future.
so my daughter got the card in the mail without any explanation for the 70k points after missing out on the 80k by just hours. She was given the message that it’s going to think about it when she applied. My son has not heard yet (he applied when it was 80k) and I’ve been urging him to call the recon line but he has not done that yet.
We have to work, to travel, its an excellent way to work and have quality of life, remarkable!!!
This change seems caused by their Boeing 737 Max news 🙁
Great summary. It’s getting harder and harder to earn rewards these days, but thanks for the tips!
I’m SO Happy that I got the 80k offer. My daughter missed it by a couple of hours. My son is still waiting to hear if he got it (80k) (his was not an instant approval like mine). Now I can finish the CP requirements soon (by early January) by getting the personal card and finishing spend by Jan 1st.
This is really great information on companion passes
This news makes we reconsider if I should go for the companion pass next year. If credit card sign up offers are attractive, I may consider doing so. I’m glad southwest points no longer expire.
The companion pass is still a great deal if you can use it, even at 125,000 points in a year. I have used it in the past and definitely nice to fly your kid for free!
Still worth it for Hawaii, though the AS CP is “easier” to get
Excellent deal for some travellers profiles, not for an always single person, but it’s attractive as loyalty program in this market.
muy buen resumen, gracias por la ayuda
Harder and harder to get rewards these days…
Until the next recession (not that I’m wishing for that!) this trend will continue.
It is the first time I read about the compagnion pass. I find it fascinating. Does it exist in other companies?
Companion pass going up is another example of the inevitable reward points inflation. Still a great deal I think.
Thanks, great review, will forward to a friend who is starting with miles. My first companion pass was used for traveling on long weekend style trips to see relatives with one of my kids. You can change the named companion up to – I think – 3 times each calendar year. So I was able to alternate kids and plan for great one on one time with each.
The second cp we got was used by my spouse to travel with my daughter to tournaments with her travel softball team for two seasons before she was recruited with a college scholarship to play softball.
The Southwest companion pass is really great for family travel.
Thanks for the tips, I will try them out. But it’s frustrating how the airlines keep making harder and harder to get the benefits
Great summary! This really helps!!
It is very interesting and at some point it would be good to write down since the food is very expensive if you pay it every time you fly
Not surprising as simple as it was to get prior with CC signups. Airlines are never going to make it easier to qualify for status – the bar only ever moves in one direction.
Wow!! That was a nail bitter! We applied for the 80,000 RR new SW Biz Card – finally got an approval phone call 16 days later!!
Yay – now we have a shot at SWP for 2020/2021 —HAPPY!!
It’s quite reasonable increase instead of it being gutted.
I don’t know… I never really got into the Companion Pass rat race. There are so many solid deals popping up with traditional miles and points (look at the AA 5-6K miles to New Zealand yesterday, Delta 22K to Zurich, etc.). Southwest has its place, but it isn’t what it once was in my opinion.
Even Southwest isn’t immune to market pressures. Or greed. Take your pick. ?
Jacked moved by Southwest! boo!!!!!
Perhaps, but if we’re being honest, the CP at 110k was pretty low-hanging fruit… and even now, with the SWA cards regularly offering LTOs for 60k sign-up bonuses (or now even 70k for biz card), the 125k hurdle is still well within reach.
So, if you work up points quickly enough, you can reach the needed 110,000 points. After that, or down the road, you need 125,000 points. This is the type of “moving the goalpost” that is so frustrating.
I didn’t have much interest in the companion pass until now, but after reading this post I feel stupid for missing out on it for such a long time…
I guess they timed it perfectly, as I just may not be able to get it with the new requirements.
Another devaluation in the miles/points game. It does not surprise me anymore!
I think it was only a matter of time before they raised the points required.
Wow, Great summary! This really helps!!
The companion pass is awesome. This our second round of having it. What I am trying to figure out is the best way to stack booking flights. Is there any better option than going through the Chase portal to Southwest then using the CSP for 2x on travel charges?
Booking a paid Southwest ticket through the Chase travel portal (and redeeming points instead of cash to pay) is usually only a good deal if you have the CSR card to get 1.5 cents per point. If you have the CSP, you’ll get more value transferring Ultimate Rewards to Southwest and booking an award ticket. The advantage here is also that you can cancel for free up to the day of departure. That said, if you also might use your Chase points for a longhaul flight in the future, it might be best to just buy the Southwest ticket (by paying money) and save the Ultimate Rewards for a ticket that would be more expensive to buy.
Sad to see them raising the requirements, I guess they had too many and this was the easy way to reduce the number of people with companion passes.
Hard to know the reason. No doubt the programs are always watching each other, since it’s most certainly a competition for customers. And, if everyone else is reducing benefits, there’s no need for you to maintain higher benefits.
Yes, I actually noticed Wyndham award rate hike!
I hear you. Southwest seems to be liked by lots of people. I know it’s shocking but I haven’t flown them yet. They have been constantly higher with price where I have wanted to go. I know sometime I would like to fly them. I won’t be trying for their pass until I see if I like them.
I can see why people would like their pass since you can use it more than once. I was surprised to see the increase and I am not even trying for the pass.
Ive never been particularly impressed with Southwest. I am based in BOS and generally prefer Delta & Jetblue over SW. I have the CP until end of 2020 so need to use it as I still haven’t had a chance to yet.
Unfortunately, this is the name of the game in the loyalty industry at the moment. You can’t rely on anything so best to earn and burn IMO.
The companion pass works very well for the person that has a dedicated companion to fly with on Southwest Airlines destinations, but maybe not so valuable for a single person without a dedicated travel partner.
More honorable? I don’t know about that… SWA devalues their points the same as others. The only difference is, perhaps, that SWA usually gives notice of changes.
Southwest squeezing the bottom line…
What makes this most attractive to me is how another big name keeps moving the goal post. I keep trying to book a flight and they keep upping the points required. Maybe Southwest is more honourable.
We keep spending while the companies keep increasing the threshold. Brilliant. This is life 🙂
This is certainly an excellent deal for those who like to travel coach and have a consistent travel companion. For those of us who travel with various people and aspire to premium cabins, the companion pass not a particularly useful benefit.