How to use Southwest Companion Pass effectively begins with understanding its value: it’s among the travel industry’s most prized offerings.
Until the pass expires, this pass lets you bring a companion along for free (except for relevant taxes and fees) on an unlimited number of Southwest Airlines flights. This advantage by itself can readily save thousands of dollars yearly for regular Southwest fliers.
Still, the subject of how one gets this much sought-after golden ticket begs itself. You have to accumulate 135,000 qualifying points—or full 100 one-way qualifying flights—within a calendar year to get the pass. This accomplishment will award you the pass for the whole following year as well as for the rest of the calendar year you achieved it.
Although having such a high point count could be intimidating, you can speed the process by using the welcome bonus a Southwest cobranded credit card offers.
Let’s go through the procedures to get the pass and discuss how to use this amazing privilege best once it is yours.
Getting the Southwest Companion Pass
There are two ways to get the Southwest Companion Pass: either complete 100 qualifying one-way flights within a calendar year or earn 135,000 qualifying points.
Qualifying points can be earned by flying with Southwest or engaging with its partners, among other ways. The latter consists of booking accommodations with Southwest partners, making purchases on the Southwest shopping portal, and running daily expenses with a Southwest credit card.
Since it lets you easily earn points and the welcome bonuses count toward the criterion, using a Southwest cobranded credit card is usually the easiest approach to get the Companion Pass.
A Southwest cobranded credit card holder also earns 10,000 qualifying points annually, therefore lowering the overall annual need to 125,000 qualifying points.
Southwest runs several credit card campaigns meant to help one achieve the Companion Pass.
The cobranded consumer credit cards listed below have the same welcome offers: Spending $1,000 throughout the first three months of account opening earns 50,000 bonus points.
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card
Southwest also offers business cards, and by fulfilling the tiered spending criteria, you can get up to 120,000 extra points.
- Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card: Spend $3,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening to earn 60,000 bonus points; then, spend $15,000 in nine months to earn another 60,000 bonus points.
- Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card: Spend $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening to earn 80,000 bonus points; then, spend $15,000 in nine months to earn another 40,000 bonus points.
If you aim to qualify for the Companion Pass, which you may grab for the rest of 2024 and 2025, make sure your spending meets the required level before the end of the year, as qualifying point totals win the valuable pass restart on January 1.
How To Use Southwest Companion Pass
Southwest makes using a Companion Pass quite simple once you have earned one.
Step 1: Set Up Your Companion Pass
Southwest will email you congrats within a few days to celebrate your major accomplishment after obtaining the Companion Pass. Log in to your Southwest Rapid Rewards account on Southwest.com to monitor your progress in real-time.
After getting the email, click the links that match your first companion option. You have to include the whole name of your companion (that matches their ID), birthdate, email address, and Rapid Rewards account number.
You might also call Southwest to designate your companion. For this particular step, though, there is no need to call the carrier as the online choosing process is simple.
Step 2: Confirm Flight Availability for Your Entire Travel Party
Now that you have selected a friend, it’s time to savor the fantastic part: arranging a flight whereby your companion may fly for free (apart from fees and taxes). But you have to be sure the desired flight has enough seats for your whole travel party before you reserve. Only if a seat is for sale can one add a Companion Pass fare.
For example, search for four seats on the Southwest website if you are a family of four intending to travel with one individual utilizing the Companion Pass. Not all four of the seats must fall into the same fare range. You can proceed with your booking even if there are just three seats left with Wanna Get Away fares, and there are also Anytime and Business Select fares available (in addition to the less expensive fares).
Related Article: For optimal seat selection on your journey, check out our guide on how to get the best seats on Southwest Airlines.
Step 3: Book Flights for Everyone Other Than Your Companion
Making flight plans for every member of your vacation group—except for the companion—is the next step towards using your Companion Pass. If you are a family of four with one adult carrying the Companion Pass and another adult serving as the companion, for example, you should first book tickets for the Companion Pass bearer and the two children. At this point, the companion should not have tickets purchased.
Most travelers will find it handy to book flights online at Southwest.com. Still, if preferred, flights can also be reserved over the phone using Southwest phone agents. Both ways work with the Companion Pass; hence, you can pay for these flights with cash or Rapid Rewards points.
Remember to add the Rapid Rewards numbers of every passenger in your booking whether you decide to pay for these tickets with cash. There’s no need to miss out on point earning since Southwest lets even young children accumulate frequent flying points.
Step 4: Book Your Companion’s Flight
It’s time to get an airline ticket for that person once you have booked flights for every member of your trip party except your companion. Booking your companion right away will help you to make sure you don’t miss the ticket availability you verified in Step 1.
For flights that typically fill up fast, such as those during busy Christmas dates to and from major travel destinations, this is especially important.
The first adult in our example, the Companion Pass holder, should go back to the Southwest website and log in using their Rapid Rewards account before moving on. View the “My Account” part found at the top of the homepage.
On the left side of the screen, under “My upcoming trips,” you should find your newly made flight reservation as well as any other forthcoming Southwest travel plans. Should you have several flights booked, you will need to select the “See all trips” tab to have all of your reservations shown.
Beneath your flight information, you will find a button that says “Add Companion.” Click on it.
You’ll see that the flight details, tax, and cost charged have already been prefilled in the “Trip & Price Details” section.
To visit the next page—which comprises “Passenger & Payment Info”—click “Continue.” There you will find the name and identifying details of your companion filled in. Given everything is prefilled, a booking error is extremely rare.
At last, you will be asked to pay the relevant taxes and fees to guarantee the flight reserve for the companion. You can speed things up if you already have a credit card registered to your user profile.
Booking subsequent flights using a Companion Pass seems to take just a minute or two after you observe how it goes the first time. It’s really that straightforward.
Additional Southwest Companion Pass Tips and Tricks
There are certain quirks, even though using the Southwest Companion Pass is practically always simple.
You Will Get Separate Confirmation Numbers
Everyone will receive the same confirmation number when you purchase flights for a group or family. Your companion will always be assigned a distinct Southwest confirmation number than the rest of the party using the Companion Pass, though. Although this is not a major issue, it can affect Southwest’s approach toward its distinctive check-in policy.
Having two reservation numbers slows you down in the Southwest fastest-finger game to acquire an excellent boarding slot exactly 24 hours before your flight when it’s time to check in. I advise having two devices ready to check your companion and you at once. You can miss some of the top boarding spots if you check in one person first and then the second person next.
You Have To Call To Change Companions
Although you can change your companion three times a calendar year, Southwest Companion Pass members should be aware that this calls for a phone call.
According to Southwest’s fine print on their website, processing might take up to 21 business days. Our experience tells us that the companion always changes almost immediately. A new Companion Pass card will not show up in the mail for your new companion right away. Still, the adjustment is frequently done within seconds for online booking needs.
Look Out for Reservations Close Together With Different Companions
You can change companions up to three times a year, but you won’t be allowed to change your companion until you have completed all travel with your present one. Things can get a little complicated if you have two close-by vacations with different companions.
For instance, you cannot add your spouse as a companion to that second trip on June 15 until after June 1 if you have one with your child on June 1. Theoretically, the June 15 flight can sell out before June 1, leaving your partner without food for the trip.
Though this is not a common occurrence, it is a significant factor if you intend to fly on well-liked routes or at busy hours. Should a ticket sell out, you could find yourself in the situation of needing to pay more for a new flight in order to find an itinerary allowing for your companion.
Bottom Line
Using the Southwest Companion Pass is easy; bonuses on Southwest credit cards also make earning pretty simple. Furthermore, suppose you can meet the expenditure criteria before January 1, grabbing a Companion Pass for the remaining years of 2024 and 2025 is within reach with the raised business card welcome bonus.
All things considered, the Southwest Companion Pass is the ideal approach to frequent travel without stretching the budget.