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There are few things that bring me as much joy as (basically) free travel, and through strategic use of travel rewards credit cards I’ve been able to make it happen. One of my favorite strategies? The Southwest Companion Pass promotion that lets me bring a guest for almost-free every time I fly the airline!
Fall is when a lot of families start planning for the Companion Pass. If you earn your pass early in 2027, you can use it for the rest of 2027 and all of 2028, so now’s a great time to map out how you’ll get there. (My husband and I have already requalified for 2027, and I’ll share how later in this article.)
It’s been a year of big changes at Southwest, from assigned seats to new fare types, but the Companion Pass itself has no announced changes as of September 2026. After most of a year flying under the new rules, I can confidently say it’s still one of the most valuable travel perks out there for families.
In this article I’ll explain why the Southwest Companion Pass is still worth it, the strategy we use to earn ours, and how to book trips before your pass is even active!
Southwest Companion Pass cheat sheet
In 30 seconds, here’s how to earn the Companion Pass with credit cards:
- Your designated companion flies with you for just taxes and fees for the rest of the year you qualify and all of the next year
- You need 135,000 Companion Pass qualifying points in one calendar year, and points from eligible credit card welcome offers and everyday spending count
- Many families pair a business card with a personal card to get there. Compare business credit cards and compare travel credit cards to see current options
- Time your spending so that you earning your qualifying points early next year, which gives you the most time with your pass
Plan now, and you could be flying with your companion for just taxes and fees through the end of 2028!
What is the Southwest Companion Pass
Southwest gives its most loyal flyers some serious perks, like boarding ahead of most other passengers. (Free inflight Wi-Fi is now available to every Rapid Rewards member, so you don’t need status for that!) But separate from its A-List tiers, Southwest offers another perk: Companion Pass.
What is the Southwest Companion Pass? In short, it allows the holder to bring their designated companion with them on any flight with an open seat for just the cost of mandatory government fees. Within the United States it’s just $5.60 each way, while international tickets could run up to $150 round trip for your companion. That’s still a lot less than an entire plane ticket!
How long does the Southwest Companion Pass last? It’s good for the rest of the year in which you earn it and all of the next year! If you’re really strategic about when you earn your Companion Pass (more on that in a moment) you’ll have it for around 23 months.
How does Southwest Companion Pass work? Just buy your ticket as you normally would, using points, flight credits or your credit card, and then add your companion after you’re done – keep reading to see screenshots of exactly what it looks like.
The even more amazing part of the Southwest Companion Pass is that there’s no limit to how many times you can use it until it expires. I’ve used my Companion Pass for Hawaii, Costa Rica, Florida, Mexico, Los Angeles, Texas, Nashville and even Alaska! It’s saving us thousands of dollars on travel and allowing us to travel more, totally guilt-free.
If your travel patterns change, the good news is that you can switch your companion up to three times per year with a quick phone call. I’ve done it and it was no big deal!
How to earn the Southwest Companion Pass
Ok now your big question is probably “how do you earn a Southwest Companion Pass?” There are two ways.
The hard way to earn the Companion Pass is to fly 100 one-way trips/50 round trips or earn 135,000 Companion Pass qualifying points in a single calendar year. That would require about $67,500 in spending if you stick to the least expensive Basic fares (which start at earning 2 points per dollar but get marginally more valuable as you hit A-List and A-List Preferred status).
But I’d rather do things the easy way, which is to open eligible credit cards, put our regular spending on them and call it a day. Points you earn from eligible credit card welcome offers and purchases count toward the 135,000 qualifying points, and cardholders get a 10,000-point head start, so you’ll really need about 125,000 qualifying points in a single calendar year.
❗Timing matters, a lot. Companion Pass qualifying points count in the calendar year they post to your Rapid Rewards account, not the year you open a card or make a purchase. If you open cards this fall and meet the spending requirements right away, your welcome offer points will likely post in 2026 and count toward 2026, not 2027.
For a Companion Pass that lasts through the end of 2028, you want your welcome offer points to post in January 2027. That generally means applying no earlier than mid-October, so your window to meet the spending requirement stretches into January, and timing your spending so you meet the requirement on a statement that closes in January. Check your card’s terms for the exact timeframe, and make sure you still meet the requirement before the deadline!
1) Consider a business credit card. If you have a business, even a small one or a side business, a business credit card for your business expenses can earn a big chunk of the points you need. Eligibility is up to the card issuer. When you compare business credit cards, look at the welcome offer and its spending requirement alongside the annual fee and the perks you’ll actually use, like:
- Seat selection benefits: With assigned seating, being able to choose your seats at booking makes a big difference for families who want to sit together. This has been one of our family’s favorite perks. We haven’t had to stress about getting seats together since Southwest switched to assigned seating!
- Anniversary bonuses: Some cards add bonus points each year you renew, which can help you requalify for the Companion Pass in future years and be used to book more travel in the meantime.
- Annual credits: Some cards include credits, like yearly travel credits or a fee credit for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry every few years, that can offset part of the annual fee.
2) Add a personal credit card. A personal card’s welcome offer and everyday spending can cover the rest of your qualifying points. When you compare travel credit cards, look for:
- Everyday earning: Look at where the card earns bonus points, like groceries or dining, so your regular spending does more of the work toward your 125,000 points.
- Overlapping perks: Many benefits, like seat selection and checked bags, show up on both business and personal cards. If one card already covers what you need on travel days, you may not need the same perks twice.
- A lower annual fee: Since perks can overlap, a card with a lower annual fee may be all you need on the personal side. We went the budget route on our personal card, since our other card covers the perks we use most.
Is it worth paying annual fees for the Companion Pass? For us, absolutely. For a real-world data point, in 2024 I used 58,000 points per person for round trip tickets from Ohio to Hawaii for spring break, and my companion’s ticket was just $5.60 each way in taxes.
If you’re a family with multiple adults and multiple kids, each adult can earn their own Companion Pass and bring a different kid along for just taxes and fees. All of a sudden, family travel got a lot more affordable!
You can always check your progress in your Rapid Rewards account’s status tracker on the right side.
How to Maximize Your Southwest Companion Pass
Now that you’ve figured out how to earn a Southwest Companion Pass, the real fun begins: using it!
Southwest makes it really easy to book flights for your companion. When you’re looking at flights, make sure at least one more seat is available besides your own. However, you only need to book one ticket with your money, credits or Southwest Rapid Rewards points. After you’ve booked your ticket, you’ll see a big blue plus icon on the flight details screen of your app or a white button in the reservation box on the website – both clearly say “Add Companion”. You’ll be taken through screens to confirm the flight and then select how to pay the taxes and fees. If you’ve already designated your companion, the whole thing takes just a few seconds!
But there are a few little Southwest Companion Pass tips I want to share with you from my own experience to help you squeeze out the most value.
Adding a Southwest companion – READ THIS
Once you earn enough points, you’ll see this beautiful banner show up in your Southwest Rapid Rewards account. Congratulations! But not so fast…
One glitch we’ve noticed is that the online form to add a companion does not have a field for your companion’s Rapid Rewards number. Hopefully this will be changed at some point. I recommend that you call Southwest customer service at 1-800-I-FLY-SWA and have them add the companion with their Rapid Rewards number. They’re very friendly and the process is quick!
If you add your companion online, a new “customer number” will be assigned. While that’s not the end of the world since companions don’t earn points or qualifying flights, it’s one more thing to keep track of (especially if your companion has other non-companion flights or prior credits).
When to add a companion on Southwest flights
First, one of the things I love about Southwest is the ability to quickly hit the “change” button to reclaim credit if the price of a booked flight drops. It’s so simple and quick, and has saved us thousands of dollars. But if you have a companion itinerary attached to the flight, you need to either cancel the companion and then make the change or call Southwest to request a fare adjustment. I’ve done both.
This gets me to my next point: sometimes you’ll want to add a companion ticket right away if you expect the flight to sell out (like spring break to Hawaii) but sometimes you can wait on the companion if the route doesn’t look busy (like Nashville in summer). Postponing the companion ticket makes it easy to check frequently for fare drops, but if I see that Basic fares are almost gone that’s a good time to add my companion to ensure a seat.
However, even if you don’t see a seat available for a companion just keep checking. Thanks to their generous policies people cancel Southwest tickets alllllll the time.
The calculus on when to add a companion on Southwest flights has changed a little now that Southwest assigns seats. If your companion is a child, you might want to add them as a companion as soon as you book your ticket so that you can select your Preferred seats together. That’s what I do now. When we’re able to snag Extra Legroom seats, we board in Group 2 (and get premium snacks!), and Preferred seats typically put us in Groups 3–4. You can still take advantage of price drops by calling customer service, though it’s less convenient. If your companion will be another adult and you don’t care about sitting together, it’s fine to wait to add them.
Below you can see how the reservation screen changes when you add a companion. You’ll also see that I’ve used a different strategy for each leg of the flight (one was paid with points and the other with flight credits so I had to book them separately anyway).
Booking flights before you have Companion Pass
The next tip is a really important one for families. How can you book a companion seat if you don’t have Southwest Companion Pass yet or if you know that you’ll need to change your Southwest companion between trips? Obviously if you’re traveling to popular destinations during school breaks it’s really important to have enough seats for everyone! There are a few ways to handle this.
Option 1: If you know you’ll fly Southwest often, just book everyone together as usual. When you earn your Companion Pass, call Southwest and tell them to switch all of your companion’s flights to the Pass. I did this on a day when I wasn’t especially busy and it took around 45 minutes for a dozen flights. The representative was very helpful and we got a lot of points back in my account and flight credits back in my daughter’s account. You can see above that I’ve done this for one of our upcoming flights, which I fear might sell out because it’s a popular travel time.
The flight credits are a bit of a nuisance because your companion doesn’t need them, and keep in mind that flight credits now expire after 12 months, so make a plan to use them. If you’re booking everyone on points, this option is really simple and what I recommend.
Option 2: Book your Southwest flight as usual for everyone who will not be a companion, and then book a refundable Choice Preferred fare or a Rapid Rewards points ticket for the companion-to-be. If your companion will be an adult, that’s all there is to it. If your companion will be a child and you’re essentially just holding a seat for them, on some routes the website will specifically ask if you want to link their reservation to your own – that avoids unaccompanied minor fees and allows you to book routes with a plane change.
Once you designate your companion, you can cancel that flight for a full refund to your original payment form and then add them as your companion. This is my favorite Southwest Airlines Companion Pass approach because it allows you to hold the seats you need without racking up tons of flight credits! You can also select the seat next to yours so that someone else can’t.
Book flights the day new schedules are added
Southwest adds about six weeks of flights at a time, and at the bottom right corner of the search page you can always find out when the next round of flights will become available. I usually see them pop up around 6-8am Eastern time.
If you’re looking at popular routes (aloha!) it’s common to see fares double a few days after release. Sometimes they’ll go back down, and if they do you can use the “change” feature to get your points or credits back. But I have never regretted buying the morning of flight releases, and when I’ve been late to the party I’ve almost always been frustrated.
Over the last year Southwest has become very stingy in releasing Basic (or even Choice) fares on popular vacation routes, so by mid-morning you could be stuck with pricey Choice Preferred or Choice Extra fares. While those come with some nice perks, most of them aren’t important if your credit card already includes perks like seat selection and checked bags and you’re booking on points. Even if you’re just speculating, it’s worth locking in those tickets while you can because you can change them until 10 minutes before your flight.
Get more Southwest points from other credit cards
The cards that helped us earn our Companion Pass are great for that job, but after the welcome offer I wouldn’t say they’re the best for earning the volume of points you need for frequent trips as a family. My favorite way to get more value? I top up my Southwest points by transferring flexible rewards points from an eligible travel rewards credit card. Transfers to Southwest usually post almost instantly, which is handy when you’re just short of the points for a specific flight.
That said, flexible points can often get more value with other travel partners, so I usually only transfer to Southwest when I need to “top off” for a specific booking. And remember, transferred points don’t count toward the Companion Pass. They’re just for booking flights.
I pair that card with a no-annual-fee card that earns bonus points on everyday spending, which made paying for braces a little less painful! Some no-annual-fee cards can only transfer points when you also hold a premium card from the same program, so the two work best as a team. It’s still one of the most frequently used cards in my wallet.
How to requalify for the Southwest Companion Pass
So you’ve opened your credit cards and earned your Companion Pass for the rest of this year and all of next year. Congrats!!!! But many people want to know how to requalify for their Companion Pass when it expires. Here’s what’s worked for us.
First, many credit cards come with anniversary points each year you renew. Those points can be used for flights and count toward Companion Pass, so they give you a head start every year without any extra effort.
Eligible cardholders also get a 10,000-point Companion Pass boost each year (these points count toward the pass but can’t be redeemed for flights). You’ll see that reflected on January 1st without doing anything.
You can also top up your Companion Pass qualifying points by flying, obviously. Keep in mind that flights booked on points don’t count, but flights booked with credits do count. If you’re going to be close to getting the Companion Pass again, pay close attention to the points earned by different fare classes: Basic nets you just 2 points per dollar, while Choice Extra clocks in at 14 points per dollar! The flight has to occur within the qualification year to count, regardless of when you book it.
Everyday spending on your credit cards contributes to requalification, but it’s not a very efficient option on its own. Some people also book prepaid rates on Southwest Hotels when there’s a special for some quick Companion Pass qualifying points. That’s usually a strategy to use if it’s nearing the end of the year and you just need a little boost.
Keep an eye on your Rapid Rewards account and email, too. Southwest periodically runs limited-time promotions that award bonus Companion Pass qualifying points in certain spending categories, and those can give you a nice boost toward your pass.
One newer option to push you over the Companion Pass threshold is the Southwest Debit Card. It comes with 7,500 qualifying points right at the start, and these stack with the 10,000-point cardholder boost! Plus you can get 2,500 points as a welcome bonus and potentially another 7,500 qualifying points as a spending bonus. All in all, the debit card can be an excellent option to push you over the finish line. It comes with some decent perks that can make it worth having, including a $35 annual credit toward Southwest purchases and an annual 20% off coupon for flights.
Finally, don’t overlook referral bonuses. Eligible cards offer bonus points when a friend or family member is approved for a card through your referral link, and in many cases those points count toward the Companion Pass. That’s how my husband and I requalified for 2027! I promise, once you’ve started traveling with a Companion Pass, you’ll probably start talking about it so much that plenty of your friends want to join the club.
Bonus tip: make sure your teens have PreCheck
Here’s a lesson we learned the hard way: TSA PreCheck allows 13–17 year olds to use the PreCheck lane with a parent, as long as they’re traveling on the same reservation.
When my son turned 13 we had a rude reminder at the airport: Southwest companions get their own reservation numbers. Obviously I knew that, but I didn’t know it. Normally that’s not a big deal, but for teens that means they are not allowed in the PreCheck lane with their parents!
There are a few ways to tackle this. The best is for parents to get Global Entry and add their children, since kids and teens can get Global Entry at no cost when they apply with a parent. Many travel credit cards include a statement credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, which makes this even easier. The downside is that everyone needs to go for an enrollment appointment, which can be tricky to schedule if you don’t have an international re-entry planned soon.
The other option is to get your teen their own PreCheck. This is generally easier because you can do the interview at many locations and times. In our case, it’s at a local Staples store during most business hours. If you’ve already used your card’s credit, plenty of other travel rewards credit cards offer one too.
Southwest Companion Pass FAQs
Companion Pass qualifying points count in the calendar year they post to your Rapid Rewards account. For a pass that lasts nearly two years, you want most of your points to post early in the year. If you’re starting in the fall, that generally means applying no earlier than mid-October and timing your spending so your welcome offer points post in January, not December. You don’t want your points split across two years, or to earn the pass in December and only have it for a year!
Unfortunately credit card points do not count toward A-List or A-List Preferred, so if you earn your Companion Pass with credit cards you will not receive A-List benefits. That said, under Southwest’s current setup, if your credit card includes perks like seat selection at booking and earlier boarding, the experience is very similar to A-List.
Point transfers do not count toward Companion Pass (or A-List status).
You’ll need to earn 135,000 qualifying points again in a calendar year. Anniversary points, the annual cardholder boost, flying, everyday spending, limited-time promotions and referral bonuses can all add up. See the requalifying section above for how we’ve done it.
Generally no. Annual fees typically don’t count as purchases toward a welcome offer’s spending requirement, so make sure your other purchases get you all the way there. Check your card’s terms for the details.
You can use your Companion Pass for international flights in the same way as domestic flights. However, taxes can be up to $150 round trip depending on the destination. It’s still a great deal, and Southwest has flights to many fantastic destinations in Central America and the Caribbean.
Wrapping up
I hope this deep dive into the Southwest Companion Pass strategy helps you get out and explore more with your family! If you’re hoping to earn your pass early in 2027, now’s the time to compare business credit cards and compare travel credit cards so you’re ready to go.
Be sure to listen to these podcast episodes for even more info:
I know this is a ton of information to digest, so I suggest that you read over it a few times to make sure you’ve got it down! Be sure to read about my favorite travel rewards credit cards for families to help you travel more for less.
The Family Voyage has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. The Family Voyage and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
I’m sorry I’m confused – why should we sign up for two credit cards a business AND a personal card?
Doesn’t this just make it twice as hard to reach your points to qualify for companion pass?
Hi Jenny,
Thanks for stopping by! One card alone won’t give you enough points for a companion pass. If the same person gets both cards, the points all flow into the same account. Hope that helps to clarify!
Safe travels,
Melissa
My companion pass will become active on January 6, but I’d like to book mine and my daughter’s flights before then. I don’t have enough points to “reserve” her seat. I’ve read that you can purchase a fully refundable fare (Choice Preferred or Choice Extra) for your companion and have SW switch that to a companion fare once the pass is active. My question is: would I need to purchase a Choice Preferred or Choice Extra ticket FOR MYSELF in order to do that, or will SW allow me to purchase a Basic fare for myself and still switch my companion’s Choice Preferred/Extra ticket to a companion seat? Does the airline disregard fare classes when switching a purchased seat to a companion seat?
Thank you!
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks for stopping by! You can purchase any ticket for yourself and then any REFUNDABLE ticket for your daughter to make sure the flight doesn’t sell out and that you have seats next to each other. Once your CP is active, her fare class will become “companion”. Just make sure that you buy yours first if your daughter is a child, as you’ll need to put your own confirmation number in to avoid paying the unaccompanied minor fee.
Hope that helps!
Melissa
Does the companion pass renew on the anniversary date of the card being issued, (if required points are earned) is there a wait time from the time you earn it till you can use it, and are there blackout dates?
Hi David,
The Companion Pass is an annual benefit: it begins as soon as you earn it and continues until 12/31 of the FOLLOWING year – so right now mine expires 12/31/2026 for example. There’s no wait time and there are no blackout dates.
Safe travels,
Melissa
Hi! I have a question. My husband had added me onto his Southwest account as a secondary person. I am wondering, do you think I would be able to open up a business credit card and be able to utilize the companion pass promotion now? We have some travel coming up as a family of five and I want to be able to capitalize utilize this as best as possible. any tips or tricks that you can think of?
Hi Kelsey,
Eligibility is up to the card issuer, but if your family would make good use of the Companion Pass, it’s definitely worth exploring! Just keep in mind the pass stays with whoever earns it, so the points need to land in your own Rapid Rewards account.
Safe travels,
Melissa
I have a question. I used the referal link to refer a friend for the card back in November and he used the link and then received the card and began using it and got all of the points for a new card member. But they never gave me the referral points. I have been calling them and they asked me a lot of questions regarding my freind and they haven’t given me my points as of yet. Then they sent me a letter asking for my friends name, phone number & zip code which I provided and waited two more months and still did not receive the points then I called back and they sent me the same letter asking for the information again. I am unable to speak to the dept that handles this when I call. It is really frustrating. Any idea what I can do? Any help would be appreciated.
Hi Paul,
I’m SO SORRY! I’ve had that happen and it’s annoying. I’ve been able to do it via secure message by selecting account inquiry. The only time I’ve actually pushed for referral points are when my husband or another family member opened the card and I’m POSITIVE they used my link correctly – plus I can provide any info that’s needed like last four digits of the card. A lot of times people who are newer to this hobby will click your link on their phone and then it does things like spawning the app etc where tracking is suspect. If I want to make sure a referral works, I try to send it by email and specify that the recipient should open it and do the application on a real computer.
Are you going to be short for your Companion Pass qualification? If so, I’m happy to help you brainstorm how to get there – thankfully you still have a lot of time 🙂
Safe travels,
Melissa