Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card (See rates and fees)
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card (See rates and fees)

Right now is your best opportunity to get a Southwest Companion Pass good for nearly two full years, based on how this benefit works today. It’s arguably the best value in travel.

That’s the benefit where you can bring someone with you on your Southwest Airlines flights for just the cost of taxes, whether you’re buying yourself a ticket or redeeming points. You designate one companion and that person is eligible to travel on the Companion Pass when you fly, as long as there’s a seat available for sale.

• There’s a fantastic 100,000 point bonus offer for the Chase Southwest consumer credit cards.
  
• They are giving five months to meet the $4,000 spend requirement to earn those points.
  
• The application page says that the offer will end September 17, 2025.

Normally it takes 135,000 qualifying points in a year to earn a Companion Pass. A card’s spending and initial bonus points count. Cardmembers also get a 10,000 point head start on Companion Pass, so they only need to earn 125,000 eligible points.

• Meet $4,000 spend, and you have at least 104,000 points.
  
• You need 21,000 more points – which can be earned with card spend, flying, shopping portal (standard earning only, and not bonuses), Southwest hotels.

What’s crucial here is that when you earn a Companion Pass it is valid for the rest of the calendar year that you earn it and the full next calendar year. You can get approved for the card and finish meeting the spend for the initial bonus offer on, say, January 1. Then you’re well on your way to earn a Companion Pass for nearly all of 2026 and 2027 – thanks in large measure to one card’s iniital bonus offer.

• Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card (See rates and fees)

  This is the premium Southwest Airlines co-brand card really designed for folks who fly Southwest — it makes Southwest travel better, and spending helps earn both A-List status and a Companion Pass®.

  The card has a Limited Time Offer: Our best points offer this year, earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 5 months from account opening.

  Benefits include First checked bag free for Cardmembers and up to 8 additional passengers in the same reservation; Select a Preferred seat at booking, at no additional charge, when available; Cardmembers and up to 8 passengers in the same reservation will board with Group 5 giving them earlier access to overhead bins.*

  Ongoing category bonus spend: Earn 4 points per $1 spent on Southwest Airlines® purchases, including flights, inflight, and Southwest gift cards. Earn 2 points for every $1 you spend at gas stations and restaurants. This is a $229 annual fee card.

• Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card (See rates and fees)

  The card has a Limited Time Offer: Our best points offer this year, earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 5 months from account opening.

  Cardmembers and up to 8 additional passengers in the same reservation can check their first bag at no additional cost and can Select a Standard seat within 48 hours prior to departure, when available.

  Ongoing category bonus spend: Earn 2 points per $1 spent on Southwest Airlines® purchases. Earn 2 points for every $1 you spend at gas stations and grocery stores on the first $5,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year.

  You earn 3,000 anniversary points each year, a nice incentive to keep the card. And all points earned count towards Companion Pass®.

So you want to get this card between now and the very start of September, and meet your spend requirement before, says, your January statement close date. It’s always possible we could see changes to the Companion Pass, of course.

Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card