If you can make it work for you, here’s a killer deal – get Companion Pass with a Southwest credit card plus 30,000 bonus points! All of their consumer cards are eligible for this offer too! But hurry, there’s no telling how long this offer will stick around for.
For those of you that don’t know, Companion Pass is a valuable tier in Southwest’s Rapid Rewards loyalty program. As the name suggests, the status allows you to designate one person that can fly with you for free (you pay taxes and fees of $5.60+) for a whole year. Typically, you need to fly 100 segments or earn 125,000 Tier Qualifying Points to get Companion Pass. However, for a limited time, you can earn Companion Pass just for opening a credit card and meeting the minimum spend requirement!
Get Companion Pass with a Southwest Credit Card
The current deal listed on both Chase’s and Southwest’s websites state that you can earn Companion Pass good through February 28, 2023, plus 30,000 Rapid Rewards points when you open a Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus, Premier, or Priority credit card. The minimum spend requirement to obtain both bonuses is $5,000 within the first three months of account opening. The typical offer I’ve been seeing these days is for just the 30,000 points after spending $1,000 in the first three months. That’s a HUGE difference in requirements. However, if you fly Southwest often with a companion, the difference is worth it.
Which Card Should I Get?
Chase and Southwest offers three different consumer cards – the Plus, Premier, and Priority. Benefits vary by card and include:
- Plus
- $69 annual fee
- 2x points on Southwest, local transit, commuting, rideshare, hotel, car rental, internet, cable, phone, and streaming services purchases
- 1x point on all other spend
- 3,000 annual anniversary points
- 25% statement credit on in-flight purchases
- 2 EarlyBird check-ins per year
- Premier
- $99 annual fee
- 3x points on Southwest purchases
- 2x points on local transit, commuting, rideshare, hotel, car rental, internet, cable, phone, and streaming services purchases
- 1x point on all other spend
- 6,000 annual anniversary points
- 25% statement credit on in-flight purchases
- 2 EarlyBird check-ins per year
- 1,500 Tier Qualifying Points for every $10,000 spent
- Priority
- $150 annual fee
- 3x points on Southwest purchases
- 2x points on local transit, commuting, rideshare, hotel, car rental, internet, cable, phone, and streaming services purchases
- 1x point on all other spend
- 7,500 annual anniverary points
- Annual $75 Southwest Airlines statement credit
- 25% statement credit on in-flight purchases
- 4 EarlyBird check-ins per year
- 1,500 Tier Qualifying Points for every $10,000 spent
In my opinion, if you’re going to get a Southwest credit card, you should spring for the Priority. Assuming you fly Southwest at least once per year, the net cost of the card for you is just $75 – $6 more than the Plus card. Plus, if you take the widely accepted Rapid Rewards points valuation of 1.4 cents per point, the card actually gives you more value than you’re spending. At $0.014/point, you’ll get $105 worth of points every year, bringing your net cost down to -$30.
Final Thoughts
If you plan on traveling with Southwest this year, can make the $5,000 minimum quickly without doing anything stupid, don’t already have/have not had a Southwest card in the past two years, and have applied for less than 5 credit cards in the past 24 months, then this promotion is a no-brainer. Chase’s offer and application rules aside, though, the key here is being able to spend the $5,000 as quickly as possible. Since the promotional Companion Pass status expires on February 28, 2023, it’s best to earn it as quickly as possible. Otherwise, you’ll have far less time to use your status, which isn’t ideal. Still, even if you use it once for, say, a roundtrip between Hawaii and the West Coast, that alone can save you at least $240.
Me? I’ve been considering the Priority card, but only have plans to fly Southwest inter-island once this year. Further, I have no big purchases coming up in the next couple of months, so this promo makes no sense for me. If I do get the card, I think I’ll wait until the normal sign-up bonus comes back.