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Update 3/12/24: These welcome offers that include a Southwest Companion Pass were due to end yesterday (March 11), but they’re still available via referral links and so that’s what we’re linking to on our Best Offers page. It’s not clear when those links will expire.
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If you missed out on the Southwest card welcome offers late last year that would’ve enabled you to earn a Companion Pass in January, you (sort of) have a second chance.
That’s because the new welcome offers on all three personal Southwest credit cards give you the opportunity to earn a Companion Pass + 30,000 bonus Rapid Rewards points. The Companion Pass that comes with these offers is somewhat limited though as it’s only valid through February 28, 2025 rather than December 31, 2025.
Offer and Card Details
| Card Offer and Details |
|---|
50K points ⓘ Affiliate 50K points after $1K spend in the first 3 months.$69 Annual Fee After clicking through, be sure to manually select the exact Southwest card in which you are interested. This card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (click here for details). Recent better offer: 75K after $3K in 3 months [Expired 12/11/23] FM Mini Review: This card can be great for its new cardmember bonus, but its ongoing perks are worth the annual fee only if fully used each year. Earning rate: 2X local transit and commuting, including rideshare ✦ 2X internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming ✦ 2X Southwest Card Info: Visa Signature or Platinum issued by Chase. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. Big spend bonus: If you earn 135,000 points in one calendar year, you'll get a companion pass good for the rest of that calendar year and all of the next year. Noteworthy perks: 3000 bonus points each year upon card renewal. 2 EarlyBird Check-Ins each year. 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each year |
| Card Offer and Details |
|---|
50K points ⓘ Affiliate 50K points after $1K spend in the first 3 months.$99 Annual Fee This card is known to be subject to Chase's 5/24 rule. Recent better offer: 75K points after $3K spend in the first 3 months. [Expired 12/11/23] FM Mini Review: The combination of 6,000 points plus 2 EarlyBird Checkins each year make this card a keeper for those who fly Southwest often. Earning rate: 3X Southwest ✦ 2X Rapid Rewards(R) hotel and car partners ✦ 2X local transit and rideshare ✦ 2X internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming ✦ 1X on all other purchases. Card Info: Visa Signature or Platinum issued by Chase. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: If you earn 135,000 points in one calendar year, you'll get a companion pass good for the rest of that calendar year and all of the next year ✦ Earn 1,500 TQPs for each $5K in purchases Noteworthy perks: 6000 bonus points each year upon card renewal. 2 EarlyBird Check-Ins each year. 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each year ✦ 25% back on in-flight drinks, Wi-Fi, messaging, and movies. |
| Card Offer and Details |
|---|
50K points ⓘ Affiliate 50K points after $1K spend in the first 3 months.$149 Annual Fee This card is known to be subject to Chase's 5/24 rule. Recent better offer: 75K points after $3K spend in the first 3 months. [Expired 12/11/23] FM Mini Review: Great for frequent Southwest flyers - this card could easily be a long-term keeper. Earning rate: 3X Southwest ✦ 2X Rapid Rewards(R) hotel and car partners ✦ 2X local transit and rideshare ✦ 2X internet, cable, phone services, and select streaming ✦ 1X on all other purchases. Card Info: Visa Signature or Platinum issued by Chase. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: If you earn 135,000 points in one calendar year, you'll get a companion pass good for the rest of that calendar year and all of the next year ✦ Earn 1,500 TQPs for each $5K in purchases Noteworthy perks: ✦ 7,500 anniversary points each year ✦ $75 Southwest annual travel credit ✦ Four A1-15 boardings every year ✦ 25% back on in-flight drinks, Wi-Fi, messaging, and movies. ✦ 10,000 Companion Pass qualifying points each year |
Quick Thoughts
If you’ll be flying a lot with someone else through February next year, this Southwest Companion Pass welcome offer could provide a lot of value. It’s not necessarily a no-brainer though for a couple of reasons.
The first is the time it’ll take you to actually receive the Companion Pass. You need to meet the minimum spend requirement of $4,000 in three months, then you’ll get the Companion Pass after the statement closes where you finished that spending requirement. As a result, March is likely the earliest you’ll get the pass if you spend $4,000 almost immediately, or as late as May or June depending on when you apply for the card and finish that $4,000 of spending.
This is also a Companion Pass-lite offer. That’s because if you earn the Southwest Companion Pass organically, you get it for the rest of the year you earned it and the entirety of the following year. That means if you earned the Companion Pass through normal means this year, it would be valid through December 31, 2025. The Companion Passes from these credit card welcome offers expire a year earlier though on February 28, 2025.
For someone in the right situation though, getting a Companion Pass that’s valid through next February could still prove to be very useful. You’ll just need to do the calculations for yourself as to whether it’s better to give up a Southwest welcome offer with a higher number of bonus points in the future in order to get this bird in the hand now.
If you have a Southwest credit card already, you can refer to this Companion Pass offer from your card. That’ll add 20,000 bonus points to your own Rapid Rewards account which could make these latest offers a little more enticing for those in two player mode.
Seeing as these are Chase cards, the 5/24 rule will apply.
To determine your 5/24 status, see: Easy Ways to Count Your 5/24 Status. The easiest option is to track all of your cards for free with Travel Freely.
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While referral links generated prior to the 3/12 expiration still seem to go, as Stephen notes, to the 30K + CP offer, newly generated links seem to now go to the old 50K offer (which is what I’ve been hoping and waiting for).
[…] Update 3/12/24: Still available via referral link (ht FM) […]
I’m in the same boat. I was working on the 2-yr companion pass and planned to apply for the personal SW card with the 50k bonus. I really only need 20k to hit the required 135k points. If I apply for the 30k Personal card now, will the 30k apply towards the 135k? Or will I be forced into a 1-yr companion pass?
If I am working on the SW Performance Biz 80K bonus, I’d guess it would be best to wait and see if the 50K bonus on personal SW cards returns after 3/11? In order to get the CP thru Feb 2026? Any reason to jump on the 1 year CP from this offer vs the 2 card 2 year traditional CP path?
I’m not sure what the welcome offer will be after 3/11, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see the offers being 50k+ points. Like you suggested, for your situation it sounds like waiting could be the better option.
I’m in the same boat. I was working on the 2-yr companion pass and planned to apply for the personal SW card with the 50k bonus. I really only need 20k to hit the required 135k points. If I apply for the 30k Personal card now, will the 30k apply towards the 135k? Or will I be forced into a 1-yr companion pass?
Yes, it would count. However, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see the number of bonus points you earn increasing after this Companion Pass welcome offer ends next week, so it could be worth holding off applying in order to earn even more points.
I guess at this point, I may as well wait for 3/12 after this 30k promo expires
Thanks for the quick response!
Are the previous 50K sign up bonus offers gone? Is this the only offer on personal SW cards now?
If you go directly to Chase’s website, it looks like the 50k points offers are still available.
I just checked and didn’t see the 50K offers even there. Could you clarify where exactly you went to see them? (I went to Chase.com => credit cards => Southwest.)
I think they must have taken those previous offers down at some point in the last few weeks
Ah, got it. No worries. Will just wait until 3/12 with hopes that the 50K offer returns then. Thanks.
Stephen, any resources you can point out to maybe get around 5/24? I’d love to get SW credit cards but I’m currently at 7/24 but I keep getting pre-approval offers for both the consumer and biz cards.
There isn’t really any way to get around 5/24 if that’s what Chase decides to look at. We do get reports sometimes that people have been approved for certain cards despite being well over 5/24; I’m not sure if the Southwest cards fall into that category though.
Are you collecting referral links to be rotated on the site?
Not right now; if we do, we’ll set up a referral thread on Facebook
Stephen is that for sure correct regarding the expiration of the companion pass when you earn it organically that it lasts through February? I’ve had it in the past and I always thought it was just good through the end of the calendar year after the year in which you earn it. I just earned mine again at the beginning of this year so my expectation is it is only good through 12/31/2025.
You’re right, I was getting it mixed up with something else. I’ll get that fixed.