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Here is your free Southwest Companion Pass Guide bonus from Travel Reward University! Join Travel Reward University to learn more about our tried and true method that allows you to take dream vacations for nearly free using credit card points and miles!

If you want to learn how to fly a companion of your choice for free on any Southwest flight you take for up to two years, then keep reading! We (Annie and Kamree) have earned a Southwest Companion Pass for the last three years, and we want to help you earn one as well! After going through this guide, you will realize that earning a Southwest Companion Pass is a lot simpler than you think!

How we have used our Southwest Companion Passes this year!

IN JUST ONE YEAR, using Southwest points and a Southwest companion pass, Kamree and Annie booked:

• Roundtrip flights from Phoenix to Maui for 5 for only $56 
•  Roundtrip flights from Phoenix to San Francisco for 2 for only $22.40 
• Three different one-way flights from Phoenix to Orlando to Salt Lake City and back to Phoenix for 5 for only $84.
• Roundtrip flights from Phoenix to Kauai for 2 for $22.40. 
• Roundtrip flights from Salt Lake City to Phoenix for 2 for $22.40.
• Roundtrip flights from Salt Lake City to Fort Myers, Florida, for 6 for $67.20.
• Roundtrip flights from Salt Lake City to Long Beach for 2 for $22.40
• Roundtrip flights from Salt Lake City to Maui for 6 for $67.20
• Roundtrip flights from Salt Lake City to Kauai for 3 for $33.60

THAT IS 66 ONE-WAY FLIGHTS FOR ONLY $369.60!!! 

We can't wait to show you how to do this, too!

What is the Southwest Companion Pass & How Does It Work?!

Using the companion pass for flights to Hawaii or the Caribbean is one of the best ways to get the most out of this pass!

• The Southwest Companion Pass allows you to fly 1 person for free with you on any Southwest flight, plus the cost of any taxes and fees, which are generally $5.60 one way for domestic flights.
  
  
• You can use this pass on as many flights as you want, including flights booked with points, from the time the pass is earned until the end of the following year. (For example, if you earn the pass in April of 2025, it will be good for the rest of 2025 and all of 2026!)
  
  
• You can change your companion up to 3 times per year (not including the initial companion), meaning you can have as many as 7 people as your companion over two calendar years, in theory. However, all travel with the previous companion must be completed before switching and booking travel with a new companion.
   

HOW TO EARN A SOUTHWEST COMPANION PASS:

You must earn 135,000 qualifying points OR fly 100 qualifying flights with Southwest in a calendar year (Jan - Dec) to earn the Southwest companion pass.

LET'S BREAK THIS DOWN:

Timing is important when working towards a Southwest Companion Pass! It is ideal to earn it as early in the calendar year as you can so that you can enjoy the pass for as long as possible! (Example: If I earn the pass in April of 2025, I will have the pass for the rest of 2025 and all of 2026. If I earn the pass in December of 2024, I will only have the pass for December of 2024 and all of 2025)

Another reason that timing is important is that you need to have ALL of the 135,000 points earned and posted to your account by December 31st in order to qualify for the pass. If you earn ALMOST enough points by December, you have to START ALL OVER on January 1st because the points need to be earned in a CALENDAR YEAR (January 1-December 31), not in any 12 months. For that reason, we recommend working toward a Southwest Companion pass for the given year earlier in the calendar year, versus later in the year.

The EASIEST and FASTEST way to earn a Southwest Companion Pass is to:

1. Create a free account on Southwest.com
   
   
2. Apply for 2 Southwest Credit Cards and earn the welcome offers within the same calendar year.
   
   

Option 1: Earn the welcome offers on 1 Southwest personal card & 1 Southwest business card

Option 2: Earn the welcome offers on 2 Southwest business cards

(We will go into these strategies in more detail below)

IF YOU ARE WORRIED THAT YOU WON'T BE APPROVED FOR A BUSINESS CARD, KEEP READING. IT'S EASIER THAN YOU THINK TO GET ONE!

IMPORTANT:

• There are 3 personal Southwest credit cards (but we only recommend 2 of them) and 2 business credit cards that earn Southwest Rapid Rewards points that count toward the Companion Pass, INCLUDING the points earned from the welcome offers! (Points transferred from Chase or from another Southwest account DO NOT COUNT toward the Companion Pass).
  
  
• Depending on the current offers, two welcome offers from these credit cards will be enough or almost enough to reach the 135,000 points to earn the pass! Be sure to do the math of the current Southwest Credit Card offers to make sure that the current offers will be enough to earn the pass!
  
  
• Referral bonuses and points earned from purchases on the card also count towards the 135,000 point requirement.
  
  
• We recommend waiting at least 30 days between Southwest credit card applications and to apply for a Southwest Business credit card FIRST.
  
  
• Both credit cards need to be under your name, not one for you and one for your spouse.
  
  
• Southwest only allows you to have ONE personal Southwest card. You cannot apply and earn a welcome offer for a personal card if you currently hold a personal Southwest Credit Card or have earned a personal Southwest credit card welcome offer in the last 24 months.
  
  
• You can open ONE Southwest personal card and ONE Southwest business card to earn the companion pass OR TWO Southwest business credit cards to earn the companion pass.
  
  
• As a Southwest credit card holder, you will get 10,000 qualifying points every year towards the companion pass. If you opened your first card before January 1st, then the 10,000 points will be deposited into your account by January 31st. If you open a new Southwest credit card after January 1st, then your 10,000 points will be deposited up to 30 days after opening your card. These are NOT points you can use to book, just points that count towards the companion pass. (Think of it as a punch pass that gets you 10,000 points towards your companion pass goal!)

The welcome offers of these five credit cards vary throughout the year. We recommend applying for two that together will get you 125,000 or as close to 125,000 points as possible!

*Note that it can sometimes take up to 60 days after the end of the credit card cycle for your welcome offer points to post to your Southwest Rapid Rewards account.

A Quick Note:

^{Use your credit cards responsibly! This means paying your cards off in full and on time every month! NEVER go into credit card debt and only use credit cards to pay for things that you would already be paying for anyway!}

^{If you decide to apply for a credit card after reading this free guide: We would appreciate it so much if you used the credit card links listed here to apply. We earn a small affiliate commission when you apply and it helps support our small businesses at NO COST to you and we always list the highest offers on the market.}

The 2 Personal Southwest Credit Cards We Recommend Are:

1. Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card
   
• $99 Annual Fee

1. Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card
   
• $229 Annual Fee

The 2 Southwest Business Credit Cards Are:

1. Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card
   
• $149 Annual Fee

1. Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card
   
• $299 Annual Fee

→You Can Check Out Our Recommended Cards For The Southwest Companion Pass Here! 

Am I Eligible for a Business Card?

If you have any side hustle or anything that brings in extra money throughout the year, you most likely qualify! (Examples include photography, babysitting, craigslist or FB marketplace selling, dog sitting, blogging, etc) If you don't have any small work on the side, you may want to consider starting in order to qualify for a business credit card! You will also need to provide how long you've been in business (we recommend using something that is not brand new) and your annual business revenue (either past or projected). If you don't have any income yet, project your annual business revenue. You can be approved with the "intention" to produce income, not actual income. If you don't have an LLC, we recommend applying as a Sole Proprietor with your name as the business name. Use your social security number for the Tax ID.

Besides the Southwest Companion Pass, here are other things that we love about Southwest Airlines!

• Southwest credit cardholders (you’ll have one after getting the SW Companion Pass) get one free checked bag and one free bag for up to 8 additional passengers on a connected reservation.
  
  
• There are no cancellation fees! You can cancel your flight up to 10 minutes before your flight departs and receive a full refund in points or flight credit if you book with cash. 
  
  
• You can cancel and rebook at a lower cost if your flight price goes down. This gives you extra flexibility knowing that you can cancel later if needed. When you book with points, your points will be refunded. When you book with cash, you will get a flight credit that expires in 6 months when you book a basic fare.  
  
  
• Family boarding ensures that families with children ages 6 and under will sit next to each other on a flight.
  
  
• Unlimited reward seats with no blackout dates or seat restrictions! Points are based on the cost of fares and it is easy to find point availability on a flight which isn't always the case for other airlines.
  
  
• It is easy to earn a lot of Southwest points! You can earn them with Southwest co-branded credit cards and with Chase credit cards that earn Chase points. (If you or your spouse has a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, a Chase Sapphire Reserve®, a Chase Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, or a Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ you are able to pool all of your Chase points and transfer your points to Southwest)
  
  
• Southwest's amazing customer service! Post-2020 travel hasn't always gone smoothly, but Southwest does everything in its power to make it right when something doesn't go as planned.
  
  
• Southwest flies to over 100 destinations across the continental US and other destinations like Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and they just announced a new partnership with international airlines IcelandAir and China Airways so we’re excited to see what new routes they will have.
   

→You Can Check Out Our Recommended Cards For The Southwest Companion Pass Here! 

Quick Note - New for 2025-2026: Southwest is introducing assigned seating (replacing open seating), premium seats with extra legroom, and red-eye flights starting in late 2025.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Southwest's Major Changes for 2025-2026

Southwest is undergoing significant transformations that we want everyone to be aware of:

•  Assigned Seating (2026): Southwest will end its open seating policy and move to assigned seats with premium options starting in 2026. Booking for assigned seats begins in Q3 2025. If you hold the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card or the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card you can select your seats complimentary at the time of booking!
  
•  New Fare Types: Four new fare bundles (Basic, Choice, Choice Preferred, Choice Extra) were launched in 2025, with Basic fares having more restrictions.
•  Baggage Fee Changes: The famous "bags fly free" policy ended May 28, 2025. Only cardholders and elite members now get free bags.
• Credit Card Benefits More Important: With baggage fees now in place, having a Southwest credit card is more valuable than ever as it provides 1 free checked bag. 

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