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What is a Southwest Airlines Companion Pass?
The Companion Pass is a sought-after highlight of the Southwest Rapid Rewards program because it’s among the most valuable benefits of its kind. It allows you to pick one person to fly with you without paying any airline charges for your travel companion, aside from mandatory taxes and fees, which start at $5.60 one-way.
To qualify for a traditional Companion Pass, you’ll need to do one of the following:
- Fly 100 qualifying one-way flights in a calendar year, or;
- Earn 135,000 Rapid Rewards points in a calendar year. Qualifying points include those that you earn through revenue flights booked via Southwest; those that you earn on Southwest credit cards; and base points you earn from Rapid Rewards partners.
If you meet either of those criteria, you’ll earn the Companion Pass for the rest of the year in which you qualified and the following calendar year. So if you earn the Companion Pass in, say, July 2023, it will be valid through the end of December 2024. You’ll need to re-qualify every year to hold on to your status.
Companion Pass is the benefit that let’s a friend fly with you free of airline charges for a year*Opens Overlay (Does not include taxes and fees from $5.60 one-way.)
If you can time it so you qualify for the pass in January, you’ll essentially be getting two-for-one tickets for nearly two years. That could add up to some serious savings.
Heads up! For a limited time, select Southwest Airlines credit cards are offering a sign-up bonus for new cardholders that’s substantially larger than the standard offer — a bonus that NerdWallet calculates could be worth more than $1,200. The offer is good only through June 26, 2024. Learn more and apply here.
References:
https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/credit-cards/earn-southwest-companion-pass