Deal Alert: Should you get the Southwest Companion Pass now?
I had a post about Southwest Companion Pass teed up on my content calendar for sometime in March, mostly because I got a Community Question submission about it. However, there’s a new deal available that means we should talk about it now!
First, what is Southwest Companion Pass?
The Southwest Companion Pass allows you to book another passenger for free when you book a flight on Southwest Airlines, either by paying for it with cash or points. This passenger could be anyone and can be changed up to three times per year.
Although other airlines offer a Companion Pass as well (Delta and Alaska for example), the Southwest pass is much more valuable. The other passes allow you a companion on just one flight each year, while the Southwest pass allows you a companion on an unlimited number of flights during the valid period! Also, those other passes require you to pay a flat fee (at least $99) to use your pass. It’s usually still a good deal, but does not compare to Southwest, where you pay only taxes and fees for your companion ($5.60 one way in the US)!
Who is it good for?
Before deciding whether signing up for credit cards to earn the Companion Pass is a good idea, let’s talk about who can take advantage of the pass.
You need to be able to fly Southwest. While the Companion Pass could very well be the best deal in domestic travel, it’s only valuable if you can use it. Check to see if Southwest flies to your airport. Often, they fly to a secondary airport in the area. For example, when I lived in the Bay Area, I would frequently travel to fly out of OAK because Southwest offered a larger route network from there than SFO (the closer airport to my home).
You need to regularly fly with a travel partner. Your companion can be changed up to 3 times a year, so it doesn’t necessarily need to be the same person. However, if you only fly solo, this pass will not be of much use to you.
How to Get Companion Pass
You can earn Companion Pass by flying 100 flights in a calendar year or by earning 125,000 Rapid Rewards points. That’s a lot of flights, and the average traveler won’t come close to flying 100 flights in a year. Luckily, credit card points (including sign up bonuses) count towards the 125,000 points.
I’ve earned my Companion Pass in the past by signing up for two credit cards in one year - one business and one personal - when sign up bonuses are high. Then I typically need to spend a bit on the credit card or fly a few times to make up the difference. For a full guide on how to earn the Companion Pass through the traditional methods, visit this post from Frequent Miler.
Sometimes, Southwest will offer a Companion Pass for a promotional period through a credit card bonus. On 2/10/22, Southwest launched a credit card offer for a sign up bonus of 30,000 Rapid Rewards points + a Companion Pass that lasts through 2/28/23. This offer is set to expire 3/14/22, so if you’re interested, now is the time to jump on it.
Should you get a Companion Pass?
Here’s the framework that I think you should use when deciding whether or not to go for Companion Pass generally. We’ll talk about this specific offer next. For a more nuanced deep dive into this decision, check out Nick’s analysis at Frequent Miler.
Do you plan to fly Southwest frequently in the next 1 - 2 years? If not, focus your time on earning miles for airlines that you will actually fly!
Do you frequently travel with another person? If not, focus on earning miles that you can use yourself (Southwest or otherwise) rather than the Companion Pass.
What is the opportunity cost? Check out the next section reviewing the options to get Companion Pass via credit card spending. Consider whether your credit card spending would be better placed elsewhere.
My husband or I have had the Companion Pass for the last five years. It was a great fit for us because we frequently traveled together and Southwest offered direct flights from our area (SFO/OAK) to places that we frequently traveled (MSP/BWI).
The value that we got from having this pass was so high! We saved thousands of dollars per year with Companion Pass because Southwest’s route map fit our travel patterns extremely well. We were easily able to use the Companion Pass on 5 - 10 flights per year. This might be the case for you as well if you live near a Southwest focus airport and frequently fly domestically.
However, for 2022 I decided not to pursue Companion Pass. Why? First, we plan to travel less this year because we will be welcoming our son soon. Second, out of the few trips that we do have planned, two are international to destinations where Southwest doesn’t fly! Although we probably will do a couple trips where the Companion Pass might help out, I don’t like the idea of being tied to flying one specific airline, especially because I have one-time Companion Passes that I could use with Alaska and Delta through those credit cards. Since there is an opportunity cost to getting the Southwest Companion Pass through credit card spend, I’d rather use my energy on earning points that I know I will have a use for. I do expect that I will try to earn Companion Pass in early 2023 so we can use it next year.
How should you get it?
If you got through the questions above and realized that you are a great candidate for the Southwest Companion Pass, here’s how you can get it through credit cards:
The “Traditional” Method
Sign up for a Southwest business card and a personal card. Right now, the Performance business is offering a sign up bonus of 80k points when you spend $5k in three months. In a few months, the personal card sign up bonus is set to change, but is typically at least 40k points. Assuming that this will be the bonus when you apply, you would be able to earn ~130,000 Rapid Rewards points and Companion Pass by meeting the spend on both of these cards.
Pros:
That’s a lot of points to spend on free flights!
The Companion Pass will be valid from when you earn it through the end of the following calendar year (if you earn in June 2022, your Companion Pass will be valid through December 2023).
Cons:
This requires a lot of spending. You need to meet the minimum spend on two cards, which could be up to $10k total.
Because of that spending requirement, it will take longer for you to earn the pass.
New Signup Offer
Sign up for a Southwest personal card with the offer for 30k points + Companion Pass by spending $5k in three months. The offer is valid on all three personal cards.
Pros:
You can earn Companion Pass relatively quickly with just one card sign up bonus!
Cons:
30k points isn’t necessarily a lot to earn with $5k spend.
The Companion Pass will expire 2/28/23 rather than at the end of 2023.
Which will you choose?
If you aren’t set on either of the above options, but still want points to fly on Southwest, keep in mind that the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred, and Chase Ink Preferred allow you to transfer your points to Southwest (but these points will not count towards earning Companion Pass.
Before applying, keep in mind that Southwest credit cards are all Chase cards that use the 5/24 rule in making the decision on your approval. To read more about 5/24, visit One Mile at a Time. Additionally, if you decide to go for this offer, please consider using my referral links. Using referral links helps to make content like this possible.
