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Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card

The Southwest Companion Pass. If you have it, you basically have an ongoing Buy One Get One Free Pass. It’s not only incredibly valuable, but also one of the topics I get asked about the most. Zach, those super luxurious flights you take are super cool, but how about the Southwest Companion Pass?! Any tricks? My boyfriend and I had it last year and totally loved it…how do we get it again? See, ordinarily The Southwest Companion Pass usually requires earning 125k qualifying Rapid Rewards points.  That means either a lot of flying, making a lot of purchases on Chase Southwest credit cards, or moving your a lot points over from Chase Ultimate Rewards. Anyway you cut it…it’s a lot 😉 But not this time around. This time you can earn a Southwest Companion Pass and 30k Rapid Rewards after spending $5k in 3 months on the Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card.

The Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Benefits

I want to point something out. This Companion Pass expires 2/28/22 which is quite a bit sooner than the Companion Pass would expire if you were to earn it through traditional means. For instance, if you were to earn the 125k Rapid Rewards by March 14th of this year, the Companion Pass you would earn would expire 12/31/22. The annual fee is $149, but you do get an annual $75 travel credit and 7500 anniversary points which help offset that fee every year.

• Receive a Southwest Companion Pass ( valid until 2/28/22) + 30k Rapid Rewards after spending $5k in 3 months
  • Every time you fly, your “companion” flies free with the Southwest Companion Pass
• 7,500-point anniversary bonus:
  • After you account anniversary you’ll receive 7500 Southwest points
• $75 annual Southwest travel credit:
  • During your cardmember year, you’ll get a $75 travel credit to use on Southwest – these don’t include upgrades or inflight purchases, but the great thing is that it does count towards purchasing tickets.
• Four upgraded boardings per year ( when available ):
  • Want to get in that sweet A1-A15 spot? You can use these at the ticket counter or gate to jump to the front.
• 20% off inflight purchases
  • Wifi, inflight drinks
• Tier qualifying points boost
  • Every $10k you spend on the card you’ll get 1500 TQPs helping you get closer to A-List and A-List Preferred. Max 10x or $100k spend.
• Annual Fee $149

What is the Southwest Companion Pass?

It’s really pretty simple, and as I mentioned one of the topics I’m asked about most. Every single time you fly, whether you used cash or points to book your Southwest ticket, your companion flies with you free. Ordinarily this requires earning 125k Qualifying Rapid Rewards points in a year in order to qualify. With this offer, you’d earn it via a minimum spend requirement and have it until 2/28/22

• You still have to pay the companion taxes and fees
• You have to select the companion that will fly free with you while your companion pass is valid
  • You can change who this is 3x in the year
    • This is based on calendar year so you could change it 3x this year, and then again 3x in 2022
  • You can make changes by calling this number 1-800-435-9792

What is the Southwest Companion Pass worth?

It all comes down to how much you use it. If you have big plans to fly on Southwest between now and 2/28/21 – this is going to save your some really big bucks. If you don’t fly at all…well, it isn’t worth much.

How much are 30k Southwest Points worth?

On average, I would say that Southwest Points rattle around 1.3 to 1.6c. You can see in this example that the wanna get away price is $168 or 10,527 points. That is roughly 1.6c. However, you can see the Business Select fare of $691 would cost you 51,309 or roughly 1.35c a point. That range puts 30k Southwest Points worth $390 to $480. At least twice the annual fee, not including the Companion Pass.

Don’t forget that the Companion Pass works on flights purchased with points. So the fare listed below that costs 10,527 points would actually fly two people.

Chase Ultimate Rewards

Don’t forget if you can shore up your Southwest balance by transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards 1:1 – this could be quite good value when flying with a Companion Pass.

Go here to see our favorite Chase Ultimate Reward earning credits cards.

Overall

If you fly predominantly on Southwest, have plans to travel quite a bit on Southwest over the coming year, or you’re planning a few cool trips with a friend or lover,  then this card could provide a lot of value. I get a lot of questions regarding trips to Hawaii. If you’re looking to cut down cost on a honeymoon, getaway, etc and aren’t bothered about lie flat seats and all that jazz. This can make a lot of sense.

Will I be getting it? No. I don’t fit any of those profiles, and have rarely flown Southwest over the last 5 or 6 years. Not because I don’t think Southwest is incredible. I think it’s one of the best run airlines in the sky and offers a fantastic product. I just prefer to use my points to achieve aspirational travel that most often takes me abroad. I also cater most of my travel on airlines that earn points that also facilitate those goals. With the pandemic still going, I’m not sure if many will agree with me, and that’s why cards like this could make a lot of sense.