Editor’s Observe: This can be a recurring submit, repeatedly up to date with new data and presents.
Probably the greatest offers in journey is the Southwest Companion Move. No different journey perk means that you can create your individual buy-one-get-one airfare voucher that may final for almost two years.
This cross means that you can carry a companion, little one, dad or mum or good friend with you on all your Southwest flights — for simply the price of taxes and charges on their ticket. Plus, even when you e-book your Southwest flight with Southwest Fast Rewards factors, your designated companion can nonetheless come alongside for the journey utilizing the Southwest Companion Move.
That is a tremendous profit regardless of the way you slice it — however you may get essentially the most out of this deal when you time issues rigorously (extra on that in a minute).
Initially of 2023, Southwest carried out modifications which have made incomes the Companion Move barely tougher. The qualifying benchmark is now 135,000 factors — up 10,000 factors — to get the Companion Move. Fortunately, I am going to present you how you can safe a Southwest Companion Move for almost 24 months (when you hurry).
How you can completely time a Southwest Companion Move
Incomes the Southwest Companion Move requires incomes 135,000 qualifying factors in a calendar 12 months.
When you get hold of the Companion Move, it is legitimate for the remainder of the 12 months by which you earn plus your entire subsequent calendar 12 months. Thus, when you earn the Companion Move in November or December 2023, will probably be legitimate by the remainder of 2023 and all of 2024. Nevertheless, when you earn the Companion Move in January 2024, then will probably be legitimate till the top of 2025 — almost two years of validity.
Which means the optimum time to try to earn the Companion Move is on the very starting of a calendar 12 months.
For the reason that various for incomes the Companion Move requires taking 100 flights with Southwest, incomes by way of factors is the best path for most individuals. Here is how Southwest defines what varieties of factors exercise will rely towards incomes the Companion Move:
Day by day E-newsletter
Reward your inbox with the TPG Day by day e-newsletter
Be part of over 700,000 readers for breaking information, in-depth guides and unique offers from TPG’s consultants
The next don’t rely as qualifying exercise:
- Purchases of factors
- Factors transferred between members
- Factors transformed from different loyalty applications or Valued Opinions surveys
- New member bonuses for becoming a member of Fast Rewards
- Flight bonus factors
- Companion bonus factors apart from Southwest Airways bank cards
Southwest additionally mentions that the Companion Move is earned from factors which can be posted to your account throughout the similar calendar 12 months, so you should begin once more from zero on Jan. 1 of every 12 months. What does all of this imply? That bonus factors from sign-up bonuses on Southwest Airways bank cards rely towards incomes the Companion Move and (ideally) you need them to hit your account in January to earn a Companion cross that is legitimate for almost two years.
Briefly, opening a Southwest Airways bank card late within the 12 months after which finishing the minimal spending requirement in early January could be your easiest path to a buy-one-get-one cross with Southwest Airways.
Incomes the factors you should obtain the Companion Move
This makes these previous couple of months of the 12 months the right time to begin plotting your Southwest Companion Move acquisition. With bonus presents on Southwest bank cards it’s best to apply for one — and even two — Southwest playing cards to earn the cross in 2024 and 2025.
The Southwest Fast Rewards Plus Credit score Card ($69 annual payment), Southwest Fast Rewards Premier Credit score Card ($99 annual payment) and Southwest Fast Rewards Precedence Credit score Card ($149 annual payment) all supply the identical bonus proper now: New candidates can earn 75,000 bonus factors after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. All three presents finish Dec. 11.
Associated: 13 classes from 13 years’ price of Southwest Companion Passes
Keep in mind that the Companion Move requires incomes 135,000 factors in the identical calendar 12 months, so this bonus would put you nicely in your strategy to hitting that benchmark. Plus, there are various methods to earn the remaining factors, equivalent to extra bank card spending, really flying on eligible Southwest fares, companion exercise — even opening a Southwest enterprise bank card in tandem together with your Southwest private card.
As well as, Southwest’s two small-business playing cards are at present providing eye-catching bonuses of their very own:
Technique for incomes the Southwest Companion Move in 2024-2025
Sadly, Chase would not let you have multiple Southwest private bank card open at a time. However these restrictions do not apply to the enterprise variations.
This makes the best strategy to obtain a Companion Move easy: earn each a small-business card bonus and a private card bonus — minimal exercise is required.
For instance, the Southwest Fast Rewards Premier Enterprise Credit score Card presents a number of Southwest perks. In case you had been to open this card together with any Southwest private card, you might earn the Companion Move by:
- Spending $3,000 on the Southwest Efficiency Enterprise (60,000 factors).
- Spending $1,000 on a Southwest private card (50,000 factors).
Simply $4,000 in spending would web you 110,000 factors (price $1,540, based on TPG valuations). You would want 25,000 factors extra to succeed in 135,000 factors to qualify for the Southwest Companion Move. Plus, you do not have to “money in” your factors to earn the Companion Move. You continue to maintain the factors in your account and may use these for award flights — and produce your companion as nicely.
Associated: How you can redeem factors with the Southwest Fast Rewards program
Once more, transferring factors earned on playing cards just like the Chase Sapphire Reserve or the Chase Sapphire Most popular Card to your Southwest Fast Rewards account doesn’t rely towards the Companion Move. Nevertheless, after getting the Companion Move, you possibly can switch factors to Fast Rewards from Chase Final Rewards to e-book your Southwest award tickets and have your designated companion fly with you principally freed from price.
Because you need all of those factors to indicate up in your Southwest account in early 2024, it is crucial that you do not full your spending requirement on both of those bank cards earlier than Jan. 1, 2024. In any other case, bonus factors could also be deposited in your account in 2023 — ruining your plan for 2 years of Companion Move.
Who’s eligible for a brand new Southwest bank card?
The non-public Southwest playing cards are providing their best-ever bonuses. In case you’re interested in your eligibility, here is what Chase has to say:
“The product shouldn’t be out there to both (i) present Cardmembers of any Southwest Fast Rewards® Credit score Card, or (ii) earlier Cardmembers of any Southwest Fast Rewards Credit score Card who obtained a brand new Cardmember bonus throughout the final 24 months. This doesn’t apply to Cardmembers of the Southwest Fast Rewards Enterprise Card and Worker Credit score Card merchandise.”
This implies you can solely get the brand new cardmember bonus on one Southwest private bank card inside a 24-month cycle, so make sure you might be getting one of the best bonus attainable. Additionally observe that, when you at present have any open Southwest private bank cards, you will not be eligible for these presents.
The identical restriction doesn’t apply to the Southwest Fast Rewards Premier Enterprise Credit score Card or the Southwest Fast Rewards Efficiency Enterprise Credit score Card. The enterprise card restrictions state:
“This new Cardmember bonus supply shouldn’t be out there to both (i) present Cardmembers of this enterprise bank card, or (ii) earlier Cardmembers of this enterprise bank card who obtained a brand new Cardmember bonus for this enterprise bank card throughout the final 24 months.”
This implies you possibly can earn a bonus from a small-business bank card and a private bank card from Southwest in the identical calendar 12 months to get nearer to acquiring a Companion Move.
Associated: Who qualifies for a enterprise bank card?
Alternatively, you might get two small-business card bonuses; you simply cannot get two private playing cards.
And do not forget about Chase’s 5/24 rule. In case you’ve opened 5 or extra new private bank cards throughout any card issuers within the final 24 months, you may seemingly be denied when you apply for a Southwest card.
Backside line
Now is a superb time to solidify your plans for incomes the Southwest Companion Move.
In case you can open a private card and small-business card, you possibly can time the sign-up bonuses in order that they submit to your account in early 2024. That’ll provide you with almost two full years of the Companion Move.
Further reporting by Chris Dong, Joseph Hostetler and Ryan Smith.
Apply right here: Southwest Fast Rewards Plus Credit score Card
Apply right here: Southwest Fast Rewards Premier Credit score Card
Apply right here: Southwest Fast Rewards Precedence Credit score Card
Apply right here: Southwest Fast Rewards Efficiency Enterprise Credit score Card
Apply right here: Southwest Fast Rewards Premier Enterprise Credit score Card