With all of Southwest Airline’s recent changes—assigned seating, baggage fees, the list keeps growing—it’s more valuable than ever to have a Companion Pass. On my fourth year of having one, and I’ll tell you exactly how to get a Southwest Companion Pass by opening the appropriate credit card and why it will benefit you now more than ever.
This post was last updated in February 2026. I am not compensated for this post. However, if you use my links to sign up for an account, I will also receive credit card points. So please do that as I can continue to offer my content and opinions for free!
What is Southwest Companion Pass?
If you live in a major Southwest Airlines market, you’ll likely know about Southwest Companion Pass, which is most commonly unlocked by opening a co-branded Southwest credit card. What it equates to is essentially a buy-one-get-one-free deal: You book your seat, and your companion flies for free (or for the cost of taxes, which are $5.60 each way for a domestic flight in the United States).
The cool thing about SCP is that there are no blackout dates; so long as there are seats open and you are booked on a flight, your companion can also fly for just the cost of taxes. Given that we and I fly Southwest several times a year, this is a perk we use often. And it saves us thousands of dollars a year on the travel we’re already taking, for fun, for work and to see family.
What’s new in 2026?
Well, a whole lot. For example, Southwest is now charging for checked bags, assigned seats and a whole lot more. Some credit cards like the Performance Business Card include a free checked bag for me and up to seven additional travelers on my reservation, complimentary Preferred seats at booking, extra legroom seat upgrades, boarding in Group 5, a credit to cover your Global Entry and a whole lot more. In a time where flying feels like the culling in the Hunger Games, these perks can be significant.
How to get Southwest Companion Pass
You can earn Southwest Companion Pass by earning 135,000 qualifying points or flying 100 qualifying one-way flights. What counts as a qualifying points? A mile flown or a mile earned through a Southwest credit card. You also earn qualifying points through partner hotel stays, credit car rentals and more. You do not earn qualifying points through purchased miles or transferred points. See everything that counts toward Companion Pass status here.
If you open a Southwest credit card, you fast-track your way into Companion Pass territory once you hit your minimum within the allotted points-bonus time (i.e. three months). If you’re a business owner who pays your own taxes, this is a great way to do it in a single purchases. We always have so many expenses in the first two months of the year—self-employment tax, payroll tax, property tax on all of our real estate holdings—that this is an ideal time for our own personal point accrual (i.e. free travel rewards) so long as we pay off our balance in full each month.
Note: Credit card bonuses change all the time. You can check out the current bonus offers on Southwest’s business card here.
And yes, the IRS allows you to pay your taxes with a credit card. In many cases, like ours, that 1.96% pays off in as much as $2,000 of free travel with the points bonuses.
Strategy #1: Fly 135,000 miles (or 100 one-way legs)
Southwest Companion Pass is easily achieved if you’re a corporate traveler who flies a leg out and back each week annually. But for the rest of us plebeians who spend more time on the ground than in the air? It’s a whole other game of chess that includes accumulating enough credit card points in the right calendar year.
Strategy #2: Open two Southwest business cards
You need to figure out a way to earn 135,000 points in a short amount of time. That can be achieved through two credit card bonuses, plus the dollars you spend on them. Depending on the sign-up bonus, opening a pair of Southwest business cards 30 days apart or, if you’re lucky, a single Southwest business card during a peak sign-up bonus period of 120,000 points is the way to go.
You don’t necessarily have to have a registered business to get a business credit card. Even if you have a side hobby (blogging, selling on Etsy, mowing lawns), you can get a business card by using your social security number when it asks for an EIN. You should, however, wait and apply for the second card 30 days or more after your last (assuming you can meet the SUB minimum); that’s just a good rule of thumb to follow in general.
Strategy #3: Open a Southwest personal card and a business card
Opening one Southwest personal card and one business card is your best chance at betting approved for both on the first go. If you have a high credit score and low credit utilization and have opened less than five personal cards across banks in the past 24 months, you should be good to get approved for one of the Southwest personal cards with Chase. These usually have a minimum sign-up bonus of 60,000 points, but currently are at 75,000 points for the next few weeks.
Chase is notoriously hard on card owners having multiple business cards opened in a short span of time. That said, you could always apply for a second biz card and if you don’t get approved, then you have the personal card ace in your pocket as a backup.
Note: You can only get a Southwest personal credit card bonus if you have not opened one within the past 24 months (this doesn’t apply for a business card). If you currently hold a personal card and it’s been more than 24 months, you can cancel it, wait 30 days, then reapply for the same card. This won’t hurt your credit unless it’s your oldest credit card (never cancel your oldest credit card!).
Related Article: Travel Hacking for Beginners: The Best Travel Credit Cards
When you should get Southwest Companion Pass
The best time to open a Southwest card is in the late months or one year or early months of the next, so you can hit the bonus early on in the year so you have nearly two full years of access to Companion Pass. Doing this in the fall during your holiday shopping when you’re already spending money makes sense or anytime you have a major house expense or tax payment due.
One BIG thing to remember
All your points (or miles) have to post in the calendar year you want to earn companion status, and it also depends on your credit card closing date. For example, if you use the card on Dec. 27 to meet your sign-up bonus and it clears on a credit card statement closing on Jan. 8, you’ll have Companion Pass for the entire calendar year and the following calendar year. In other words, that’s nearly two years of your companion traveling for free.
Other FAQs about the Southwest Companion Pass
Still have questions? Leave them in the comments, and I’ll answer right here.
Where all can I go with a Southwest Companion Pass?
Literally, anywhere Southwest flies!
What if I want to take my mom on one trip and my spouse on another?
You absolutely can! With the Companion Pass, you can have up to four guests a year, meaning you can change your companion up to three times. So, for example, you could take your spouse on a trip, switch it to your mom for a trip, switch it back to your spouse, then switch to your mom one final time. You should refer your spouse if you go this route, as that’s 20,000 points per card that you will bank in your own Rapid Rewards account.
How else can I earn points toward Companion Pass?
Once you’ve opened any Southwest credit card, you can refer friends for 20,000 points (up to 100,000 a year), each referral of which will go toward your qualification.
What if I have two kids? Can I get two Companion Passes?
If you have a second flier (called a “player two” or P2 in the travel points space), then absolutely. You can get SCP with your Rapid Rewards account, and P2 can do the same as you. If you’re traveling with a family, it’s always smart to mimic what the other card holder is doing and have one person refer the other to get those bonus points.
But, Kristin, these card have annual fees.
For me, $199 a year is completely worth my partner flying for free! You can always cancel them after you’ve achieved your Companion Pass—but never, ever cancel a card until you’ve passed the one-year mark—right before the annual fee for the following year hits. All the points you earn are miles, so they go directly into your Rapid Rewards account versus accumulate in Chase’s Ultimate Rewards ecosystem like the Sapphire cards.
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