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Published Date: October 22, 2023
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It’s Southwest Companion Pass season! In the travel hacking world that means it’s the time of year to earn Buy One Get One Free Airline tickets for 2 full years!! There is some timing to this and I am here to help you and break down some scenarios for you.
All About The Pass
Southwest has a companion pass that allows you to take a companion for just taxes and fees anywhere that Southwest flies. This has been a huge saver for our family! We have been to Cancun, Hawaii, NYC, CA many times, Utah, Arizona, Washington DC, Chicago and more!
To earn this you need to earn 135,000 points in a calendar year. Once you earn the pass this way you will have the pass the year you earn it AND the following year!!
Note: If you have a Southwest Credit card you get 10,000 bonus points for your pass each year.
You can change your companion 3x in a calendar year too!
How to Earn:
You will need to earn 135,000 Southwest points in calendar year to earn the pass. The easiest way to do this is through Southwest Credit Card Bonuses and time things that you earn your bonus in January. There are a couple of ways to do that..let’s break it down.
If you can qualify for a Business Credit Card:
- Open the Southwest Business Credit Card and earn 80,000 points when you meet the bonus. If you want a lower annual fee you can open this card but only earn 60,000 points.
- Once you get the card work on meeting the minimum spend BUT don’t meet it until January! Leave a couple hundred dollars until then just to be safe.
- About 30 days after you open the Business Card Open a Southwest Personal Card. This one only has a $1000 Minimum Spend so you will have to be VERY careful not to meet the spend until January.
- If you open both of these card you will have the 135,000 points between the 2 bonuses and the minimum spend! This will give you the companion pass for just about 2 years!
If you DON’T qualify for a Business Card:
- Open the Southwest Personal Card Card. This will earn you 75,000 points. This offer ends 12/11/23 so don’t wait!
- You will still need quite a few points but there are ways can earn it within a few months. You may not have it for a full 2 years but just a little less which is still great!
- Ways to earn extra points: REFER!! Use your referral links for friends or family members who may want a Southwest card! This will get you there the fastest! Book travel through the Southwest portal, sign up for the Southwest Dining Program, pay as many bills as you can with your card, Buy Gift Cards with you card, offer to pick up tabs for others and have them reimburse you for the expenses, the list goes on and on. It might take a few extra months but doable!
What points don’t count toward the pass:
- Purchased Points
- Points transferred from the Chase Portal
- Points transferred from another account
Last Minute Tips:
- Do NOT Meet Minimum Spends until January at the earliest!! You will have to pay attention carefully!! Leave a buffer!!
- If you have a Southwest Credit Card and it has been more than 24 months since you have applied and received a bonus you can cancel and get the bonus again!
- Remember it’s not as card to qualify for a business card as you think! Any side income counts!
- You cannot have more than one Southwest Personal Credit Card.
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Hi! I'm Aubree
I transformed my life by intentionally find ways to travel the world for less. Over the years, I have been able to take many trips to places like Hawaii, Disney, and the mountains, all without killing my bank account. Now, I get to teach others, like you, do the same!
