We are excited to have reached our goal of obtaining Southwest Companion pass for the rest of this year and 2019. What does this mean for us?
It means that every time I fly on Southwest, Kevin will get to fly free with me (and Lorelai until she is 2). So for the next 9 months we will be getting a Buy One Get 2 Free on Southwest. Granted, we were already flying free with Lorelai (as she is under 2) but the fact that Kevin will also get to fly free with me is amazing. And until Dec 31, 2019 Kevin will still be flying free with me.
So how do you get Companion Pass? You can either take 200 flights in a calendar year (who does that?!) or get 110,000 Southwest points. Since 99% of you aren't going to be taking 100 flights, I'm focusing on how to get those coveted 110,000 points.
The Southwest credit card. The Southwest credit card usually offers a 50,000 point signup bonus, however, a few times a year they bump it up to 60,000 or more. Wait until the signup bonus is at least 60,000 before singing up. You can get the signup bonus for a credit card once every 24 months. So if you've gotten a bonus for the same card before, make sure it has been at least 2 years. Also in order to get your bonus, you have to spend a minimum amount over the course of your first 3 months with the card (Usually $2,000-$3,000) Hint: If you signed up less than 2 years ago, has your spouse? It is based on the individual signing up, not household.
Get a card early in the calendar year. What catches a lot of people, is that Southwest bases the year on calendar year, not when you get the card. Each calendar year you have to work to get that 110,000 to get companion for that year and the following year. You read that correct, you get companion pass for the current year and the entire following calendar year.
Refer a friend- You get 10,000 extra points for every friend you refer to the Southwest credit card (right now, sometimes this point amount changes). Which means if you are about to signup, ask one of your friends to refer you first so they can get the points as well! Then maybe you can have them repay the favor later on down the road. You can get up to 50,000 points in a calendar year by referring friends.
Use Southwest vacations- Did you know that Southwest also has a vacations option, where you can book hotels? I had no idea. You get 3x points when booking through Southwest.
Wait to use your points- This is a hard one, but until you hit companion....don't use your points! Since you get 3x the points when you book on Southwest, you'll want to book without points to get the 3x rewards to more quickly get companion pass. Once you hit your goal of 110,000 then go for it!
If you have a business, get a business card too. A business card can get you an additional sign-up bonus! Right now you can get 60,000 points for signing up for a Southwest business card.
Southwest Shopping. If you use chrome, add a button to your browser for other website deals. It lights up if there is a perk to shopping on that website. You may get 4x points for shopping! I know I've received additional points for Walmart, Groupon and Bed Bath & Beyond. It doesn't work for my two favorites (Target and Amazon) but still doesn't hurt!
Southwest Dining. In Omaha this is pretty worthless, as only 4 restaurants give you extra perks for dining there, but other cities may be better. It is a program with Southwest that allows you to earn points by eating at select restaurants.
Racking up Points by Pre-Spending. If you have the ability to financially handle prepaying some expenses, look into doing that. By that I mean, if you can prepare expenses such as utilities or buy gift cards to pay your other expenses (such as Walmart for groceries, Netflix for your subscription, Amazon, Starbucks etc.) you can rack up points early by putting that on your credit card. That will help you hit companion earlier in the year.
Because we are all about being financially responsible in our blogging, I only advise using credit cards if you pay it off at least every month. We treat ours like a debit card, paying off the card once or twice a week. Credit cards aren't worth the perks if you are carrying around credit card debt.
It means that every time I fly on Southwest, Kevin will get to fly free with me (and Lorelai until she is 2). So for the next 9 months we will be getting a Buy One Get 2 Free on Southwest. Granted, we were already flying free with Lorelai (as she is under 2) but the fact that Kevin will also get to fly free with me is amazing. And until Dec 31, 2019 Kevin will still be flying free with me.
So how do you get Companion Pass? You can either take 200 flights in a calendar year (who does that?!) or get 110,000 Southwest points. Since 99% of you aren't going to be taking 100 flights, I'm focusing on how to get those coveted 110,000 points.The Southwest credit card. The Southwest credit card usually offers a 50,000 point signup bonus, however, a few times a year they bump it up to 60,000 or more. Wait until the signup bonus is at least 60,000 before singing up. You can get the signup bonus for a credit card once every 24 months. So if you've gotten a bonus for the same card before, make sure it has been at least 2 years. Also in order to get your bonus, you have to spend a minimum amount over the course of your first 3 months with the card (Usually $2,000-$3,000) Hint: If you signed up less than 2 years ago, has your spouse? It is based on the individual signing up, not household.
Get a card early in the calendar year. What catches a lot of people, is that Southwest bases the year on calendar year, not when you get the card. Each calendar year you have to work to get that 110,000 to get companion for that year and the following year. You read that correct, you get companion pass for the current year and the entire following calendar year.
Refer a friend- You get 10,000 extra points for every friend you refer to the Southwest credit card (right now, sometimes this point amount changes). Which means if you are about to signup, ask one of your friends to refer you first so they can get the points as well! Then maybe you can have them repay the favor later on down the road. You can get up to 50,000 points in a calendar year by referring friends.
Use Southwest vacations- Did you know that Southwest also has a vacations option, where you can book hotels? I had no idea. You get 3x points when booking through Southwest.
Wait to use your points- This is a hard one, but until you hit companion....don't use your points! Since you get 3x the points when you book on Southwest, you'll want to book without points to get the 3x rewards to more quickly get companion pass. Once you hit your goal of 110,000 then go for it!
If you have a business, get a business card too. A business card can get you an additional sign-up bonus! Right now you can get 60,000 points for signing up for a Southwest business card.
Southwest Shopping. If you use chrome, add a button to your browser for other website deals. It lights up if there is a perk to shopping on that website. You may get 4x points for shopping! I know I've received additional points for Walmart, Groupon and Bed Bath & Beyond. It doesn't work for my two favorites (Target and Amazon) but still doesn't hurt!
Southwest Dining. In Omaha this is pretty worthless, as only 4 restaurants give you extra perks for dining there, but other cities may be better. It is a program with Southwest that allows you to earn points by eating at select restaurants.
Racking up Points by Pre-Spending. If you have the ability to financially handle prepaying some expenses, look into doing that. By that I mean, if you can prepare expenses such as utilities or buy gift cards to pay your other expenses (such as Walmart for groceries, Netflix for your subscription, Amazon, Starbucks etc.) you can rack up points early by putting that on your credit card. That will help you hit companion earlier in the year.
Because we are all about being financially responsible in our blogging, I only advise using credit cards if you pay it off at least every month. We treat ours like a debit card, paying off the card once or twice a week. Credit cards aren't worth the perks if you are carrying around credit card debt.
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