Perpetually earn TWO Southwest Companion Passes {here's how}

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In-depth blog post about tricks for earning a Companion Pass:
katiestraveltricks.com/southw...
Southwest Companion Pass Email Course
{includes pdf guide timeline}
katiestraveltricks.ck.page/sw...
5/24 Rule Explained:
katiestraveltricks.com/chase5...
KZbin Video on the basics:
• The Easiest Way to Ear...
More on business cards for side hustles:
• Business Credit Cards ...
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Hi, I’m Katie from Katie’s Travel Tricks! I am here to help you learn the secrets that my family has been using for over a decade, using everyday expenses and welcome offers to supercharge your points earning. When you learn to do this, you can cover entire vacations every year.
Our family has been to Hawaii, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe - and more - all thanks to strategically earning and redeeming points. We've done this on a limited travel budget and now want to help you do it, too.
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[@todddavis9426]

Great explanation!

[@katiestraveltricks]

Thanks!

[@knickerbocher]

The most complete informative review I've heard period also very simplistic and straightforward, no confusion. Well done

[@katiestraveltricks]

Thank you so much! -Team Katie

[@user-ro9gd3rj3n]

I totally agree

[@brentclark4204]

This is FANTASTIC. What’s the game plan if we apply now (Feb 2024) to immediately qualify for the free companion pass until Feb 2025? I like your plan for getting companion for 2 years and perpetually doing this back and forth with player 2 / spouse.

[@jvanaskey]

I hope this question gets answered.

[@meganfleming9071]

I need to know as well. I have the personal card with companion pass until Feb 2025 but would like to start doing the method suggested in this video.

[@katiestraveltricks]

Sorry for my delay here. If you get the shorter promo companion Pass it doesn't necessarily preclude you from doing this method but it will have to be altered. The biggest limiting factor is that any individual can only get the personal card bonus every 24 months. So if you open a personal card in Feb -- then you'd also have to to be the person to open the Performance business card. So essentially the first time it becomes 4 cards total but then you are still getting lots of points. Then you can switch to 3 cards. It would be like this: P1 - gets promo pass in Feb 2024 with 1 SW personal card (valid for about a year) P1 - starts the 2 pass 3 card method in November 2024. Gets SW business card and then refers P2 to two cards. Two years later, P2 will start with the Performance business card and then refer P1 to a personal + business card.

[@alexpike4767]

Thank you for the video! It’s incredibly helpful! Quick q, are you guys doing the referrals and both earning companion passes because you have a family of 4?

[@katiestraveltricks]

Yes we are a family of 4 which is why we like to have 2 companion passes. But for full transparency, we don't actually earn the Companion Pass this way anymore because my business grew to a point where we renew it every year just from referrals, we don't need to keep opening cards. But we DID open cards from 2016-2020 in order to earn the bonus and the Companion Pass (though it has changed a bit through the years).

[@user-do5xz6gh5b]

Thank you so much for this - so helpful! So as P1, I will need to do my $5000 spend on the business card AFTER my December statement posts, correct?

[@katiestraveltricks]

Any spending in 2023 (before your December close date) will not count and will put you a little bit short. I think the easiest to top off would be to use the Rapid Rewards shopping portal. For instance, right now, if you do one Blue Apron deal, it will cost about $30 and you will get 2600 points. I will send out some suggestions to this list in the first week of January to my SW Bootcamp if you are in that for easy deals to complete if anyone needs to top off their earning.

[@mrsmakeuplover]

Thank you Katie! We would like to earn 2 cp with 3 cards but having a hard time figuring out the timeline… Step 1: P1 - open business card on Oct 15. P1 spend all $5000.P1 Refer P2 in December after statement, twice. Step 2: P2 - In Dec, with the referral, apply for 2 cards ( business and personal). P2 spends all minimum spendings. Q: is there specific time on the P2 spending? Ex. When to finish? Doesn’t all need to be done by Dec? Thank you!

[@katiestraveltricks]

I have a timeline here: katiestraveltricks.com/southwest-companion-pass-guide/ P1 can open the business card on October 15 but CANNOT complete spending until after December statement closes. P2 can pretty much spend ASAP because if they apply in December, their points would post in January at the earliest.

[@mrsmakeuplover]

@@katiestraveltricksso P1 has to also NOT finish spending by Dec 31, correct? Leave some for Jan? So you recommend to change the statement date on P1? Say Dec 1? So that P2 can get the card sooner with referral.

[@sakislayer]

Love this hack..... question..... If you have a SW personal card already -- can you just open the two business cards? Or should you get rid of the personal card and then wait to re-apply?

[@katiestraveltricks]

You could! Either works.

[@user-zz9xr1hx7w]

Question, when you refer someone to a card doesn't it take a while for them to show up? Or will they for sure show up the next month statement close? The reason I am asking is my husband was planning to get a SW business card in November and then refer me to a personal and business card. I want to take advantage of the elevated personal card offer right now. if he referred me the beginning of December, and his statement closes the middle of December would it take at least a month for those points to process, and they would hit in January? Or would they for sure hit in December when his statement closes? I don't have a SW card but every other Chase card I have referred on usually takes longer then a couple weeks to post.

[@katiestraveltricks]

Unfortunately while we did see the referral offers go up to the 75k offer, these offers are only valid through December 3. I'm not sure why there is a discrepancy because other links have an end date of December 11. Here are the options: 1) You can risk it and go for the 75k offer. The "Player 1" in your family can refer the "Player 2" on December 3rd and hope these referral points don't post until January. The level of risk depends on your statement close date. If it closes on December 28, it is much more risky than if it closes on December 10. Typically points take 2+ weeks to post. But they could post sooner or later. 1B) If you risk it and you fail (and your referral points post in 2023), "player one" will be 20,000 points short on a Companion Pass. They could refer someone else in case you have a friend you can rope into this whole thing. Or they could open up another SW card (business or personal) and finish up the Companion Pass using the next bonus to earn. You'll end up with even more points to spend. You'll be opening 4 cards to get 2 passes but you'll have more points. 2) You can ignore the 75k offer and just see what the offer shows on December 4 and decide from there. My guess is that it will revert to 40-50k bonus after spending $1,000. In some ways, the 50k after spending $1k if the best bang for your buck with minimal spending.

[@rachnagrunkemeier8792]

Your video is amazing! I wish I would have found this before I got approved for my business card in March of 2024. What should I do? Have I lost my 85k points for 2024 since it it’s starts overs in January 2025? Thanks for your help.

[@katiestraveltricks]

You can still do this just on a schedule this year -- so you could still refer someone to 2 SW cards and you will earn your CP and they could earn theirs for the rest of this year and then next year.

[@YamiletReyes-rn3jq]

Hi!!! What if you only need 1 companion, should I get a personal and the premier?

[@katiestraveltricks]

If you only need one, I do have another video about that. If you want to earn ASAP, you could start with Business Performance and know you lock in the 80k and follow it with a personal card.

[@mannylokuras]

Hi, thanks for all the good information. I have a question. My wife has the companion pass and it expires on the 31, she has a personal and business card "SW performance business". Would you recommend for her to open the "SW premier" and try to get the companion pass or should I apply for both credit cards. We want to get 2 companion pass by the end of 2024. TIA

[@katiestraveltricks]

Sorry for my delay in replying -- did you already figure this out?

[@tomaseenaauzenne5348]

So in terms of opening credit cards, you just open two new cards every two years? Do you close the previous ones? Have you found that it affects your credit?

[@katiestraveltricks]

Essentially yes. Or alternative with a partner. Here’s how to make sure it doesn’t affect your credit score: kzbin.info/www/bejne/naPQY4CmgsSlqZosi=zbWIbs1cXmQFnVwi

[@meganoleary584]

I have a cheese rabbit rewards card that I’ve had for many years. I have like a $20,000 limit on it so I do not want to cancel it but I just opened up the business premier card and then I’m going to open up a personal card in a month, am I able to do this? Also since I am existing card holder, will I get points in January for my old card?

[@katiestraveltricks]

You cannot open a new Southwest personal card while you currently have one. Some options would be (1) just open the business performance card. You can open both business cards. Or if you have any other personal card with Chase like a Chase Sapphire or Freedom, you can move the credit limit from your SW card over to those cards before you close it.

[@meelissasue]

Hi! What if I have already taken out the non-business version of the SW card (this month)… is there a way to work the system or have I messed everything up for us perpetually getting two SW companion passes? Thanks so much for this video!!!

[@katiestraveltricks]

There is always going to be a way you can do it! It just may require more spending on the credit card to earn enough points or earning in other ways. Did you get the 75k personal offer? Are you the person who will refer someone else 2x to try to get the pass?

[@meelissasue]

@@katiestraveltricksI got the personal and business card for myself & was planning on doing the same for my person 2. But will doing it that way make it impossible for us to do it again at the end of 2025 to get the companion passes again?

[@Fishbumable]

My companion pass expired at the end of December and it was amazing. I only have the normal SW card. What are your thoughts on them lowering the requirements for companion pass to 100k points this year? Would I be able to apply for the business card, get the 80k bonus points and do one referral to qualify?

[@katiestraveltricks]

If that happened that you only needed 100k points that would work -- but I haven't heard anything about that!

[@kaina732]

I got the Performance Business card in mid-October and plan to get a Premier Business card for my second business in mid-November. Both qualifying for the welcome bonuses in the first few days of January 2024. Then I will have the CP for most of 2024 and all of 2025. Then I will have my wife get the Performance Business in mid-Oct and Premier Card in mid-Nov of 2025 to qualify for the CP for most of 2026 and all of 2027.

[@katiestraveltricks]

That works great if you only need 1 of them!

[@kaina732]

@@katiestraveltricks I got them both and qualified for the CP. Best hack in the travel game.

[@erickloveres8434]

Am I able to close one of these accounts after I get my points? That way I don’t have to pay the annual fee for both

[@katiestraveltricks]

You're going to have to pay the annual fee when you open it, but after it has been a year, yes, you could close it. You don't want to close before a year because then the bank could take back your points.

[@heartofdelta04]

I have a question! I currently only have the personal SW card and I currently have 47,960 RR points as of Dec 11, 2023. If I applied for the SW business card and get the 80,000 RR points that would put me at 127,960 . I’m sure I could spend $7040 to get me to 135,000 but since those RR points that are on my tracker now for year 2023 I would only have the companion pass for 1 calendar year correct? So I should just apply for business card in January and get anniversary points which would put me at 90,000. Then I could refer 1 family member for 20,000 for 110,000 which would leave me at 25k in the hole? Correct! I need a better strategy. Thanks for your video.

[@katiestraveltricks]

I know I'm late to reply here but for anyone else with a similar question - because the tracker resets on January 1, any points you had in 2023 won't roll over or help you. Even applying for a new card takes at least a month to get your points. So like you're saying you'd need to (1) apply for the business card (2) get your 10k points on your tracker by Jan 31 and (3) refer 2 people if you want to earn a CP without opening another personal card

[@user-eg2xx5uc7i]

Do you have a video to show how to alternate 1 companion pass for a couple every 2 yrs once 1 person gets the companion pass.

[@katiestraveltricks]

If you just want 1 Companion Pass at a time, it is even easier if have two people who can earn it. One person would get a personal and business this year. Then in 2 years when it is about to expire, the other person would get a personal and business card. And you just keep swapping.

[@legendkiller718]

@@katiestraveltricks2 follow up questions. When would p1 cancel their cards and what does that do to the points they’ve accumulated?

[@reznor1718]

My statement closes every 5th of the month. If I want to get the bonus to count towards Jan 2024, what dates should I meet the spend requirement for bonus?

[@katiestraveltricks]

You will need to meet it anytime AFTER December 5th. I would not do it until you have received your December 2023 statement. Or if you want to be safe, just wait until Dec 31

[@itsjiraheta]

So, the question I have. Once I have the companion pass. I can cancel the card and wait 24 months to re-apply again. Does the business card fall into the same 24 month restriction to get the bonus?

[@katiestraveltricks]

Business cards do have the 24 month language but you CAN get each of the business cards. It's a little unclear if you could apply for the same business card for a different business and get the bonus.

[@shelleyexplores4201]

Thank you so much! You have the most complete information I have seen on earning companion passes - especially earning 2 of them. I was just trying to figure out how to get the referrals to hit in 2024 and your video explains it all. I love this idea also because it won't add to my (P1's) 5/24. I was just weighing out the advantages to just doing 2 business cards, but the idea of reducing the overall number of cards from 4 to 3 is very attractive. Questions: 1) Do you recommend waiting 30 days between card applications for P2? So a biz card mid-Dec and a pers mid-Jan? Or do you apply for them at the same time? 2) Are you CERTAIN that a business card holder gets the 10k Companion pass qualifying points boost? It is in the offer details for the personal card, but not the business card.

[@shelleyexplores4201]

I found the answer to #2 on Chase when logged in, but would still like to hear your take on #1.

[@shelleyexplores4201]

Question #3 - Does my $5k spend need to happen after my December statement closes to be included in the $135k? I had a big car insurance bill that I paid yesterday, but I assume those points will be in 2023 and won't count towards the 2024 CP. Is that right? So If I have the 80k card + 2 referrals + 10k boost = $130k. I still need that $5k.

[@katiestraveltricks]

@@shelleyexplores4201 Though I generally recommend waiting 30-90 days, with the Companion Pass, many people apply even the same day for personal and business with no issues. It will somewhat depend on your personal situation. If P2 doesn't have any cards in the past 60-90 days, applying for both close together should not be a problem. If they have a lot of cards with Chase in the past 6 months, they may want to spread them out more. In regards to #3 - you are correct that any spending in 2023 will not count and will put you a little bit short. I think the easiest to top off would be to use the Rapid Rewards shopping portal. For instance, right now, if you do one Blue Apron deal, it will cost about $30 and you will get 2600 points. I will send out some suggestions to this list in the first week of January to my SW Bootcamp if you are in that for easy deals to complete if anyone needs to top off their earning.

[@erinyost8895]

It looks like the only way to get 135k for partner 2 is if the bonuses go up later this fall? As of now it only gets you to 120k with the 10k bonus from SW. Correct?

[@katiestraveltricks]

Correct. It is very safe to assume that the personal offers will raise. I cannot think of a year since 2014 that they didn’t. But you could adjust if they didn’t to the 80k business offer.

[@kerierickson1728]

​ @katiestraveltricks What if the same person wants to get the companion pass again? I have it now for 2023-2024, and I want to be the one to get it again 2025-2026. My husband could get it, but it's me that flies with our son most often, frequently without my husband. Is there specific timing to canceling the personal card then reapplying for a new welcome bonus? What about the business card? Thanks for your help!

[@katiestraveltricks]

It somewhat depends on the cards you already got. In some ways it is easier to earn 2 passes with 3 cards than it is to keep earning 1 pass with 2 cards -- at least currently due to referral bonuses. Which cards did you use to earn it last time?

[@jaymeedavid5485]

What is the best approach to get (1) companion pass for 2 yrs and then be able to do the same after (2) years?

[@katiestraveltricks]

If you can flip flop the person who is applying for the 2 cards every 2 years that is the easiest!

[@tommyp1967]

@@katiestraveltricks In Dec 2022 I got a performance business and priority personal and met my qualifying spend in Jan 2023 so have the companion pass through Dec 2024. So in 2025 I plan to get the Premier business card and refer my Partner2 to get the performance business and the priority personal card in Dec 2024 to finish qualifying spend by Jan 2025. When do I need to cancel my performance business and priority personal cards that I got in Dec 2022?

[@wagnerwong9966]

Wow! I didn't realize it was 20k refferal. I thought it was only 10k

[@katiestraveltricks]

It was 10k for many years but has been 20k for at least a few years now. Let's hope it sticks around!

[@KatieJerew-zz7pd]

Only if I would have seen this a few days ago 😢

[@katiestraveltricks]

Oh no! Did you open multiple cards already? Many Companion Pass issues have a solution so let me know if I can help brainstorm.

[@KatieJerew-zz7pd]

@@katiestraveltricks I opened the business card (got it 2 days ago) and referred my husband last week while waiting for it to arrive. He applied but hasn’t heard back and that was a week ago. I’m thinking to wait and have him refer me for a personal at the end of December and one for another business owner so that he won’t have to open up a personal also. We have multiple LLCs and easily can hit the minimum spend on Jan 1st. We fly southwest in November and I’m also wondering what offers they will have so he can open his personal then if it’s good enough.

[@rachnagrunkemeier8792]

I just opened my business card 2 days ago… so what are my options to try to get a companion pass for 24 months? I did not know that points have to be earned in the same calendar year.