Southwest Changes the Companion Pass
The Southwest Companion Pass is one of the most beloved perks among award travelers. But Southwest made sweeping changes to its Rapid Rewards program recently, including to this beloved perk. While some aspects of these changes are crystal clear, others are not so much. If you find yourself wondering what these Southwest changes to the Companion Pass mean for you, we’re here to help.
Current Companion Pass Earning Strategy
If you were already working on earning the Companion Pass in 2026, nothing about that process has changed yet. Yet is the key word in that sentence. The process outlined in our Companion Pass Guide still applies. That’s the easy part. This is true regardless of whether you already have a Companion Pass through the end of 2026.
Earn 135,000 Companion Pass qualifying points in 2026 and you’ll have earned the Companion Pass for the remainder of 2026 and all of 2027. You can open a new credit card right now, either the personal cards or the business cards and if you meet the minimum spend requirement and the bonus points post in 2026, those bonus points count as Companion Pass qualifying points. Several other methods are available to earn qualifying points as well. These options include Rapid Rewards hotels, shopping portal, regular credit card spend and more. Keep in mind that all of these points have to post in 2026. And not all of them post instantly.
But remember the word “yet.” The big caveat is that you have limited time remaining to achieve this objective with a credit card. Southwest has ominously given us a date of “by December 2, 2026” to open a Rapid Rewards earning card to earn the Companion Pass this way. Presumably this has to do with when the first statement would cut on the card. Bonus points for welcome offers post after the statement with the qualifying spend has cut.
The remaining changes to implementation take effect on January 1, 2027.
New Companion Pass Earning Strategy
The process for earning the Companion Pass is changing dramatically on January 1, 2027. First, the Companion Pass will no longer be a stand-alone perk earned with Companion Pass qualifying points. Instead, the unlimited Companion Pass will be a perk of the newly unveiled Platinum status level, the highest Rapid Rewards status. Platinum status is obtained through “Tier Qualifying Points” (TQP). Earn enough of these TQPs and you earn status for the remainder of the year and through December 31 of the following year.
The change from Companion pass qualifying points to TQPs is more than just a name change, however. And as a result, the major ways of earning the Companion Pass are going away. Most notably, a welcome offer or sign-up bonus from a Southwest co-branded credit card.
How Far Can You Stretch A Credit Card Bonus?
Remember that December 2, 2026 date we talked about earlier? That comes directly from guidance given by Southwest in its FAQ:
This FAQ reads as follows: “If I get a Rapid Rewards Credit Card now, can my points still count towards Companion Pass if and when I meet the requirements through the new Cardmember welcome bonus I apply for? Yes, any Cardmembers who are approved for the Rapid Rewards Credit Card on or before Dec. 2, 2026 and meet the requirements for the new Cardmember welcome bonus will have the opportunity to have those points count as Companion Pass qualifying points, even if the spend threshold is met in early 2027.”
While at first glance this sounds great, it is confusing. “Companion Pass qualifying points” won’t exist in early 2027. Instead, we’ll only have “Tier Qualifying Points.” In fact, the Companion Pass as we know it will not exist in 2027 as a distinct benefit apart from Platinum status. The Rapid Rewards program terms that cover the Companion Pass state that once earned, the pass is valid for the remainder of the year and all of the following year. But this statement clearly de-couples the Companion Pass from status. Aside from promotional offers, status is the only way to earn the Companion Pass in 2027 and beyond. This leaves a question mark for its implementation.
Nick Reyes at Frequent Miler reports that this means there is no option to start the process now to earn a Companion Pass for 2028 in early 2027 via bonuses for credit cards opened in 2026. The basis for this seems to be that by calling the bonus “Companion Pass qualifying points”, it is effectively backdated to 2026. This backdating would would mean the companion pass is deemed earned in 2026 and therefore only valid through the end of 2027.
If this is truly the case, why wouldn’t Southwest just say that? These terms seem intentionally ambiguous. Dare I say, sneaky.
No More Companion Pass Season
In the past, we proudly announced the beginning of “Companion Pass Season” where we would carefully instruct readers regarding timing. The goal was to earn the Companion Pass for nearly two full years.
If earning the Companion Pass through 2028 is not possible with credit card welcome bonuses, the timing suddenly matters far less. Open your Southwest co-branded credit card now. Spend on it right away. Whether you earn the bonus in 2026 or early 2027 is irrelevant. And earning it sooner means you can use it sooner. You get the maximum time to use it by earning it now, since it will expire at the end of 2027 either way. Whether you earn the bonus now or if it takes you longer to meet the spend, you’ll earn the Companion Pass through 2027 and your credit card bonus points will count.
For those who are still eligible for Southwest co-branded personal and business cards, now is the time to take your last shot. For those who are not eligible, because of the 5/24 rule or the 3/24 rule, this change matters far less. And in fact, for some, who have historically achieved the Companion Pass by leveraging high spend on Southwest cards, these changes may be an improvement.
Southwest Changes Companion Pass: ToP Thoughts
We at Travel on Point(s) avoid speculation like the plague. We like to operate this blog on the facts and verifiable information directly from the source. Unfortunately, we don’t have as much information as we would like to have right now. We’re proceeding under the theory that card applications prior to December 2, 2026 will help earn a Companion Pass for 2027 only. We believe you should count on this being the case and be pleasantly surprised if anything else happens, which would be a windfall in your favor!
What is your plan for the Southwest Companion Pass? Come over to our Facebook group and let us know.
