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What is the Southwest Companion Pass?

Probably one of the greatest travel saving opportunities out there…especially for families.

➡️ The Southwest Companion Pass allows you to bring someone with you on every Southwest flight for FREE (*only paying the taxes/fees on that flight) for up to 2 years….IF you get the timing right.

Here is what you need to know:

• You must earn 135,000 points in ONE calendar year (January 1st- December 31st) or fly 100 qualifying one-way flights within a calendar year to receive the Companion Pass
• The Companion Pass allows you to name a companion to travel with you ANY time you travel for just the price of the taxes on that flight
• There are NO blackout dates and your pass is valid on both cash AND award flights
• UNLIMITED USES!
• You can change your designated Companion up to 3 times in one calendar year

Our Companion Pass has saved our family thousands and THOUSANDS over the years- from bucket list trips to Hawaii and Mexico, to flights to go visit family- it is a HUGEEEE money saver.

Who is eligible?

Any Southwest Rapid Rewards member who earns 135,000 points in one calendar year OR completes 100 one way flights.

For the plans I lay out below you will need:

• Good or excellent credit
• NOT be over “5/24″ (Chase’s approval rule- see below)

Also know that:

• You can only hold ONE personal Southwest card at a time
• You can hold BOTH Southwest business cards at the same time
• You can earn the welcome bonus on all the Southwest cards every 24 months (from the last time you earned the bonus!)

So how do you earn a Companion Pass?

We’re going to ignore the whole 100 one way flights thing…

And jump straight to the EASY, no brainer way to get your family BOGO flights for almost 2 years

➡️ When you earn 135,000 points in ONE calendar year and you earn the Pass for THAT calendar year and the FOLLOWING calendar year.

No we are NOTTT going to spend $135,000 to earn those 135,000 points…we are going to strategically open new credit card(s) to earn BIG welcome bonuses that will count towards that 135k Companion Pass counter.

2 Card Strategy

❶ 🚨🚨 WAIT UNTIL AT LEAST OCTOBER 15TH and apply for the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card

**If you apply too early, your 3 month minimum spend deadline will hit in 2026 instead of 2027 and ruin the whole 2 year Companion Pass plan!!

❷ Watch your spend closely – do not (I repeat do not!!!) COMPLETE the minimum spend until after January 1st, 2027

**I recommend leaving at least $500 of the minimum spend to complete after the new year

❸ 30-60 days later apply for the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card or the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card !

❹ Complete both minimum spends AFTER January 1st – BOOM BOGO flights for almost 2 years!

**This is the KEY because it allows both of those big welcome bonuses to hit in 2027 (NOT 2026!) – thus earning you the Companion Pass for nearly 2 years instead of just ONE!)

Which personal card should I go for?

Between the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card and Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card there really is not a right or wrong, it just comes down to personal preference.

• Do you want the lowest out-of-pocket cost possible?
• Is Preferred Seating a top priority?
• Do you value early bird check-in versus upgraded boarding?

**Both cards can be used for the 2-card Companion Pass Strategy!

If you are torn- I recommend going with the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card as it would allow you to choose seats at the time of booking!!

Why do you always say the timing is key?

When you earn those 135,000 points you earn the Companion Pass for the rest of THAT year and the following year.

So if you meet a big welcome bonus early or earn 135k points total in say November of 2026, you will only have the pass for 14 months…

➡️ BUT if you earn 135k+ points and those welcome bonuses hit in January 2027 you will have that pass for ALL of 2027 andddd ALL of 2028- so timing is EVERYTHING to get MAX value.

Some nitty gritty details

➡️ CHASE’S 5/24 RULE: Chase says you cannot be approved for a new card with them if you have opened more than 5 credit cards (with any bank) in the last 24 months. Chase is the bank for all Southwest cards and won’t approve you for any of the cards in this CP plan if you are over 5/24.

• You can only hold ONE Southwest personal card at a time
• 🚨🚨 So if you want to go for Option 1, you would need to cancel your personal SW card, wait 2ish weeks, and THEN reapply. If you current hold a SW Companion Pass and want to earn it again, I recommend canceling the cards you need to NOW!

➡️ CHANGING YOUR COMPANION: You can change your designated SW companion up to 3 times per calendar year. Which means, you can have 4 different companions in the first calendar year, then 3 in the second year (up to 7 total!)

• Even if you switch back to a previous companion, it still counts as one of your 3 changes

FINAL THINGS OF NOTE!

• Example if you want to earn a 2027/2028 Companion Pass, any other random Southwest points earned in 2026 would NOT go towards your 135k count. They are valuable Southwest points for booking (almost) free flights, but have no value towards earning you that full 2 year of BOGO flights.

• You will only be responsible for the taxes on your companion’s flight! ($5.60 one way or $11.20 Round Trip for domestic flights + varied cost for international tickets.)

• Points transferred from Chase do NOT count towards the 135k requirement

• YES, when you follow this plan you get to keep the Southwest points AND the Companion Pass!

• This plan works when ONE person (ONE Rapid Rewards number) is earning the points. Example: if you opened a limited time offer and your husband opens another card, NEITHER of you would earn a Companion Pass…you’re filling up two different buckets and NEITHER will reach the 135k top.

****Again, if you complete the minimum spend too early and earn a welcome offer in 2026 – you WILL NOT RECEIVE THE FULL 2 YEAR COMPANION PASS. The CP calculator starts over at 0 at the start of every single new year. I cannot stress enough to watch your spending SO carefully!!

💳 Learn how to apply for the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card

💳 Learn how to apply for the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card

💳 Learn how to apply for the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card

Cheers to cheap travel with your favorite people!