Why now could be the very best time to use for a Southwest bank card

Editor’s Note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers.

One of the best deals in travel is the Southwest Companion Pass. No other travel perk allows you to create your own buy-one-get-one airfare voucher that can last for nearly two years.

This pass allows you to bring a partner, child, parent or friend with you on all of your Southwest flights — for just the cost of taxes and fees on their ticket. Plus, even if you book your Southwest flight with Southwest Rapid Rewards points, your designated companion can still come along for the ride using the Southwest Companion Pass.

That’s an amazing benefit no matter how you slice it — but you can get the most out of this deal if you time things carefully (more on that in a minute).

At the beginning of 2023, Southwest implemented changes that have made earning the Companion Pass slightly more difficult. The qualifying benchmark is now 135,000 points — up 10,000 points — to get the Companion Pass. Luckily, I’ll show you how to secure a Southwest Companion Pass for nearly 24 months (if you hurry).

Since the alternative for earning the Companion Pass requires taking 100 flights with Southwest, earning via points is the simplest path for most people. Here’s how Southwest defines what types of points activity will count toward earning the Companion Pass:

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The following do not count as qualifying activity:

• Purchases of points
• Points transferred between members
• Points converted from other loyalty programs or Valued Opinions surveys
• New member bonuses for joining Rapid Rewards
• Flight bonus points
• Partner bonus points other than Southwest Airlines credit cards

Southwest also mentions that the Companion Pass is earned from points that are posted to your account within the same calendar year, so you must start again from zero on Jan. 1 of each year. What does all of this mean? That bonus points from sign-up bonuses on Southwest Airlines credit cards count toward earning the Companion Pass and (ideally) you want them to hit your account in January to earn a Companion pass that’s valid for nearly two years.

In short, opening a Southwest Airlines credit card late in the year and then completing the minimum spending requirement in early January can be your simplest path to a buy-one-get-one pass with Southwest Airlines.

This makes these last few months of the year the perfect time to start plotting your Southwest Companion Pass acquisition. With bonus offers on Southwest credit cards you should apply for one — or even two — Southwest cards to earn the pass in 2024 and 2025.

The Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card ($69 annual fee), Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card ($99 annual fee) and Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card ($149 annual fee) all offer the same bonus right now: New applicants can earn 75,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. All three offers end Dec. 11.

Related: 13 lessons from 13 years’ worth of Southwest Companion Passes

Remember that the Companion Pass requires earning 135,000 points in the same calendar year, so this bonus would put you well on your way to hitting that benchmark. Plus, there are many ways to earn the remaining points, such as additional credit card spending, actually flying on eligible Southwest fares, partner activity — even opening a Southwest business credit card in tandem with your Southwest personal card.

In addition, Southwest’s two small-business cards are currently offering eye-catching bonuses of their own:

Strategy for earning the Southwest Companion Pass in 2024-2025

Unfortunately, Chase doesn’t allow you to have more than one Southwest personal credit card open at a time. But those restrictions don’t apply to the business versions.

This makes the easiest way to achieve a Companion Pass simple: earn both a small-business card bonus and a personal card bonus — minimal activity is required.

For example, the Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Credit Card offers several Southwest perks. If you were to open this card along with any Southwest personal card, you could earn the Companion Pass by:

• Spending $3,000 on the Southwest Performance Business (60,000 points).
• Spending $1,000 on a Southwest personal card (50,000 points).

Just $4,000 in spending would net you 110,000 points (worth $1,540, according to TPG valuations). You would need 25,000 points more to reach 135,000 points to qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass. Plus, you don’t have to “cash in” your points to earn the Companion Pass. You still keep the points in your account and can use those for award flights — and bring your companion as well.

Related: How to redeem points with the Southwest Rapid Rewards program

Again, transferring points earned on cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve or the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card to your Southwest Rapid Rewards account does not count toward the Companion Pass. However, once you have the Companion Pass, you can transfer points to Rapid Rewards from Chase Ultimate Rewards to book your Southwest award tickets and have your designated companion fly with you basically free of cost.

Since you want all of these points to show up in your Southwest account in early 2024, it’s imperative that you don’t complete your spending requirement on either of these credit cards before Jan. 1, 2024. Otherwise, bonus points may be deposited in your account in 2023 — ruining your plan for two years of Companion Pass.

Who is eligible for a new Southwest credit card?

The personal Southwest cards are offering their best-ever bonuses. If you’re curious about your eligibility, here’s what Chase has to say:

“The product is not available to either (i) current Cardmembers of any Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Credit Card, or (ii) previous Cardmembers of any Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Card who received a new Cardmember bonus within the last 24 months. This does not apply to Cardmembers of the Southwest Rapid Rewards Business Card and Employee Credit Card products.”

This means that you can only get the new cardmember bonus on one Southwest personal credit card within a 24-month cycle, so be sure you are getting the best bonus possible. Also note that, if you currently have any open Southwest personal credit cards, you won’t be eligible for these offers.

The same restriction does not apply to the Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Credit Card or the Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business Credit Card. The business card restrictions state:

“This new Cardmember bonus offer is not available to either (i) current Cardmembers of this business credit card, or (ii) previous Cardmembers of this business credit card who received a new Cardmember bonus for this business credit card within the last 24 months.”

This means you can earn a bonus from a small-business credit card and a personal credit card from Southwest in the same calendar year to get closer to obtaining a Companion Pass.

Related: Who qualifies for a business credit card?

Alternatively, you could get two small-business card bonuses; you just can’t get two personal cards.

And don’t forget about Chase’s 5/24 rule. If you’ve opened five or more new personal credit cards across any card issuers in the last 24 months, you’ll likely be denied if you apply for a Southwest card.

Apply here: Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card
Apply here: Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card
Apply here: Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card
Apply here: Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business Credit Card
Apply here: Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Credit Card