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Southwest Companion Pass.

What is it:

The SW CP is arguably the most valuable airline perk available today. It allows you to bring a companion with you for free on any Southwest flight, regardless of whether you are on a revenue or award ticket. All you pay are the government taxes on the ticket. The pass works for all Southwest flights, including international flights. The pass also works on Airtran flights that are sold on Southwest.com. Airtran flights that are not sold on Southwest.com are not eligible.
Like all other Southwest award bookings, the CP is not subject to any capacity controls, and as long as there is still a seat for sale on a particular flight, it is yours.
The pass is valid for the year it is earned in and the entire next calendar year. If you earned your CP in July 2014, your pass will be valid for the remainder of 2014 and the entirety of 2015.

How to get it:

The SW CP is obtained by earning 125,000 Southwest points in one calendar year. For example, if you earned 8k points by flying at the beginning of 2014, you need to earn another 117k points throughout the rest of 2014 in order to qualify for CP. Once 2015 rolls around, the points you've earned in 2014 no longer qualify for earning your CP, although they will still be redeemable points.

The primary method of accumulating Southwest points is CC signup bonuses. The Southwest CC frequently offers 50k point signup bonuses on all 4 flavors of Southwest cards and signup bonuses count towards earning the CP. Get approved for 2 of these cards, meet the 2k spending requirement on each and you are only 21k points away from the CP.

All points earned through the Rapid Rewards shopping mall also count towards SW CP eligibility.
Points transferred from Hyatt, Club Carlson, Marriott, and Wyndham all count towards CP status.
Points transferred from Ultimate Rewards do not count towards CP, although you can transfer can transfer 50K Ultimate Rewards points into 50K Hyatt and 50K Hyatt transfers into 30K Southwest.

Points earned by crediting hotel stays and car rentals to Southwest also count towards CP.

Using the CP:

Using your CP is very simple. Once you book a flight on Southwest, an "Add a companion" button will appear under your reservation. Just fill out the info and pay the taxes and you are done.
It is best to add your companion right when you book your own flight as there have been instances where people have forgotten to add their companion, the flight subsequently sold out and they were not able to add their companion. One thing to keep in mind is that online changes with a companion booked are not possible, you need to cancel the companion, wait 10-15 min, make the change and then add the companion again. You can make the necessary changes over the phone though.
You can change your companion up to 3 times during the life of your CP. (I believe you can change it 3 times per calendar year.)

« Last edited by pointer on January 23, 2020, 03:35:55 PM »

Author Topic: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread  (Read 316312 times)

Offline as2

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1280 on: October 19, 2017, 02:11:02 PM »
Now public offer available for all California residents, make single purchase on new card to get CP.

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/now-public-california-residents-can-get-the-southwest-companion-with-any-version-of-southwest-card-up-to-60000-points/
I started making a new thread for this about 2 hours ago, then got busy before I posted it Either way, what will constitute as a CA resident? Just an address?
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Offline ludmila

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1281 on: October 19, 2017, 07:40:27 PM »
I started making a new thread for this about 2 hours ago, then got busy before I posted it Either way, what will constitute as a CA resident? Just an address?
Nice start, address is easy, my daughter lives in LA, unless they request more verification.
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Offline DaveInLA

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1282 on: October 22, 2017, 10:28:11 PM »
My wife applied and was approved for 2 Southwest personal cards (Plus and Premier) on 10/1. Statement date isn't announced yet but next payment is on 11/26. Chase seems to post statement 3 days after due date. I'm aiming for the Companion Pass in early January, so I'm trying to figure out when to complete spending requirements. It has to be within 90 days (I don't want to risk the 120 days other people are reporting), which willgive me until 12/30. I could complete the spend requirement on 12/29 (which will probably be statement date), but I worry that the points may not post automatically if transaction finalizes after 12/30. If I make the purchase too early, then I risk having the Pliny's post in late December. I've never called Chase to change statement date-- do I need to wait for first statement to close before I call?

Offline keemster26

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1283 on: October 22, 2017, 11:01:41 PM »
My wife applied and was approved for 2 Southwest personal cards (Plus and Premier) on 10/1. Statement date isn't announced yet but next payment is on 11/26. Chase seems to post statement 3 days after due date. I'm aiming for the Companion Pass in early January, so I'm trying to figure out when to complete spending requirements. It has to be within 90 days (I don't want to risk the 120 days other people are reporting), which willgive me until 12/30. I could complete the spend requirement on 12/29 (which will probably be statement date), but I worry that the points may not post automatically if transaction finalizes after 12/30. If I make the purchase too early, then I risk having the Pliny's post in late December. I've never called Chase to change statement date-- do I need to wait for first statement to close before I call?
Send chase an sm asking when you need to finish spending and also when statement closes

Offline lubonics

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1284 on: October 24, 2017, 02:30:22 PM »
I applied for two SW cards, one in June (and received the signup bonus) and one at the end of September. 
I know I need to accrue 110,000 miles in the 2017 year to get the cp through 2018, but is there any way to get the companion pass to be good through 2019 based on how/when I finish my spending?

Offline @Yehuda

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1285 on: October 24, 2017, 02:44:25 PM »
I applied for two SW cards, one in June (and received the signup bonus) and one at the end of September. 
I know I need to accrue 110,000 miles in the 2017 year to get the cp through 2018, but is there any way to get the companion pass to be good through 2019 based on how/when I finish my spending?
Nope. :( Was my first DansDeals mistake. Although hard to call it a mistake when I didn't even know CP was a thing when I opened the first SW card.

Offline lubonics

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1286 on: October 24, 2017, 03:18:03 PM »
Nope. :( Was my first DansDeals mistake. Although hard to call it a mistake when I didn't even know CP was a thing when I opened the first SW card.

So just make sure I spend the amount needed to hit the 110,000 points before December statement closes and settle for the CP being good through 2018, correct?

Offline johnec4

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1287 on: October 25, 2017, 10:22:07 AM »
So just make sure I spend the amount needed to hit the 110,000 points before December statement closes and settle for the CP being good through 2018, correct?
Correct.

Offline DaveInLA

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1288 on: October 30, 2017, 03:03:24 AM »
Send chase an sm asking when you need to finish spending and also when statement closes

Both Plus and Premier personal cards statements close on 1st of each month. Will hit $2k spend requirement in late December. The SW bonus points are still posting on the next statement close, and not mid-cycle, correct?

Offline bb1836

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1289 on: November 01, 2017, 11:12:48 AM »
Question: somebody told me recently that after signing up for both cards before the end of 2017, and doing all spending to get both bonuses, once Jan 2018 rolls around, the companion pass points counter resets to 0. so although he's a few grand short of 110k points, if he doesn't do all necessary spending by the end of 2017 he wont be eligible for the CP, because the CP points counter doesn't roll into 2018. Is this true? has anyone heard or seen anything like this?
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Offline as2

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1290 on: November 01, 2017, 03:07:05 PM »


Question: somebody told me recently that after signing up for both cards before the end of 2017, and doing all spending to get both bonuses, once Jan 2018 rolls around, the companion pass points counter resets to 0. so although he's a few grand short of 110k points, if he doesn't do all necessary spending by the end of 2017 he wont be eligible for the CP, because the CP points counter doesn't roll into 2018. Is this true? has anyone heard or seen anything like this?

Correct. You need to earn all 110k in the same calendar year.
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Offline bb1836

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1291 on: November 01, 2017, 06:33:02 PM »

Correct. You need to earn all 110k in the same calendar year.
so if a friend signed up for 2 cards this week, he should wait until 2018 to even start the spending? nothing will count now?
As @davidmal says: "Likes" feed the family

Offline as2

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1292 on: November 01, 2017, 06:33:51 PM »
so if a friend signed up for 2 cards this week, he should wait until 2018 to even start the spending? nothing will count now?
He can spend all he wants, but the bonus points shouldn't post before next year to make it worth his while.
Memories last forever, make them while you can.

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1293 on: November 01, 2017, 08:12:11 PM »
He can spend all he wants, but the bonus points shouldn't post before next year to make it worth his while.
TY
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Offline DaveInLA

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1294 on: November 02, 2017, 01:34:35 AM »
I SM'd the spend by date for each of the 2 cards separate. Reply for both cards (from different people) was 1/25/18. I applied on 10/1 late night (probably early 10/2 EST), so 1/25/18 is 115-116 days from application date. This is in line with what Doctor of Credit wrote, but I don't want to rely on this. I'll probably spend up to $1900+ early December, then finish it off on 12/31. Charge wont finalize until 1/2 or so, and I'll get the points on 2/1. (My statement date is 1st of every month)

Offline HahuGavrah

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1295 on: November 02, 2017, 04:27:57 PM »
I was approved for my SW card in October and I want to be sure that I don't get the bonus until after Jan by not completing the spend threshold. 

Well my dw  :( used my SW card to make a big purchase this month $800 which threw me over the top of the required spend. I was concerned that my bonus points will post in 2017. So I went back to the store and they agreed to credit the $800 on this card and charged a different card instead. Both the charge and the $800 credit were done within the same statement period.

Am I safe to assume that the bonus will not post and I can still aim to get the bonus in 2018?

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1296 on: November 03, 2017, 12:02:21 PM »
How long does it take to get the companion pass after one makes the first purchase? (CA resident)

Offline ludmila

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1297 on: November 03, 2017, 10:47:30 PM »
I was approved for my SW card in October and I want to be sure that I don't get the bonus until after Jan by not completing the spend threshold. 

Well my dw  :( used my SW card to make a big purchase this month $800 which threw me over the top of the required spend. I was concerned that my bonus points will post in 2017. So I went back to the store and they agreed to credit the $800 on this card and charged a different card instead. Both the charge and the $800 credit were done within the same statement period.

Am I safe to assume that the bonus will not post and I can still aim to get the bonus in 2018?
Yes.
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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1298 on: November 09, 2017, 09:09:37 AM »
How long does it take to get the companion pass after one makes the first purchase? (CA resident)
bump

Offline as2

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Re: Southwest Companion Pass Master Thread
« Reply #1299 on: November 09, 2017, 11:56:25 AM »
bump
Being that this is very limited, the DPs are probably harder to come by. There is a chance nobody here knows for sure, but I'm sure many can give you an educated opinion.
I'd assume it is a day or so after the first purchase posts.
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