The Southwest Airways Fast Rewards program Companion Cross is without doubt one of the most useful perks in all of journey. When you earn it, you may carry a delegated companion with you on each paid and award flights, paying solely the taxes and charges on their ticket.
Whether or not you are trying to fly to Las Vegas, take the household to Orlando or discover Cancun, this information will stroll you thru the present methods to earn the Companion Cross quickest, what counts and what would not, and how one can maximize the profit by 2026.
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What’s the Southwest Companion Cross?
The Southwest Companion Cross is earned if you accumulate 135,000 Companion Cross qualifying factors or fly 100 qualifying one-way flights in a single calendar yr. When you hit that threshold, you may designate one companion to journey with you on each money and award tickets.
The cross is legitimate for the remainder of the yr through which you earn it, plus your entire following yr. For instance, if you happen to attain 135,000 Companion Cross qualifying factors in September 2025, your Southwest Companion Cross is sweet by Dec. 31, 2026.
You may change your designated companion as much as 3 times per calendar yr you maintain the cross, which suggests you might probably fly with as much as 4 totally different individuals throughout two years.
Associated: earn Southwest Fast Rewards factors
What counts towards incomes the Companion Cross?
The next all rely towards your Companion Cross qualifying factors purpose:
- Base factors earned from taking Southwest income flights (earlier than taxes and charges)
- Factors from Southwest Fast Rewards bank card welcome affords and ongoing spending
- Base factors earned from purchases with Fast Rewards companions, reminiscent of accommodations, automobile leases and the Fast Rewards purchasing portal
- The ten,000-point annual Companion Cross enhance for Southwest Fast Rewards cardholders
- Factors earned on the money portion of Money + Factors bookings
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The next don’t rely towards your Companion Cross qualifying factors purpose:
How a lot does it value to earn a Companion Cross from flying alone?
Southwest has “quickly” modified its enterprise mannequin in 2025, and now sells 4 fare bundles, every with its personal incomes charge:
- Primary: 2 factors per greenback
- Alternative: 6 factors per greenback
- Alternative Most popular: 10 factors per greenback
- Alternative Further: 14 factors per greenback
To achieve 135,000 Companion Cross qualifying factors from flights alone, you’d must spend:
| Fare bundle | Incomes charge | Spending wanted for 135,000 Companion Cross qualifying factors |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | 2 factors per greenback | $67,500 |
| Alternative | 6 factors per greenback | $22,500 |
| Alternative Most popular | 10 factors per greenback | $13,500 |
| Alternative Further | 14 factors per greenback | $9,643 |
Incomes a Companion Cross from flying alone requires vital spending. That is why savvy vacationers flip to bank card welcome affords.
earn a Companion Cross sooner with Southwest bank cards
Chase points 5 cobranded Southwest bank cards. Their welcome affords are the quickest path to a Companion Cross, as they rely towards your Companion Cross qualifying factors.
The three private Southwest bank cards every at the moment supply 100,000 Fast Rewards factors after you spend $4,000 within the first 5 months from account opening:
The data for the Southwest Fast Rewards Premier Credit score Card has been collected independently by The Factors Man. The cardboard particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or supplied by the cardboard issuer.
The Southwest Fast Rewards enterprise bank cards additionally supply beneficiant welcome affords:
All of those playing cards additionally present a lift of 10,000 Companion Cross qualifying factors annually, although be aware the enhance is proscribed to at least one per Fast Rewards member per calendar yr (not per card).
This implies in case you are authorized for the welcome bonus on a private Southwest bank card proper now, you may earn 114,000 Companion Cross qualifying factors as follows (with 104,000 being redeemable Fast Rewards factors):
- Welcome supply: 100,000 factors
- Required spending to earn the welcome supply ($4,000): No less than 4,000 factors
- Annual Companion Cross enhance: 10,000 factors
You may solely want 21,000 extra factors to hit 135,000 Companion Cross qualifying factors, which might be achieved with about $21,000 in card spending on on a regular basis purchases — or much less on classes that earn greater than 1 level per greenback spent, like on Southwest flights.
Utilizing a bank card welcome supply reduces the requirement from practically $67,500 in flights to simply about $21,000 in on a regular basis card spending after the bonus and annual enhance.
Different methods to earn a Companion Cross
Whereas bank card bonuses are the quickest route, you can too enhance your stability with associate exercise:
- Motels: Earn Companion Cross qualifying factors when reserving by the Fast Rewards resort portal
- Automotive leases: Companions like Hertz, Avis and Funds award Companion Cross qualifying factors for leases
- Fast Rewards Eating: Hyperlink a card to earn Companion Cross qualifying factors when eating at collaborating eating places
- Fast Rewards Buying: Earn Companion Cross qualifying factors for on-line purchases by the Southwest purchasing portal
- Different incomes companions: Laithwaite’s Wine, Reliant Power, Xoom and different choose companions supply Companion Cross qualifying factors for on-line purchases
Have in mind: Solely base factors from companions rely towards Companion Cross qualifying factors — bonus factors usually don’t.
Backside line
The Southwest Companion Cross may be an extremely profitable profit, particularly if you happen to can earn it early sufficient in a calendar yr to get pleasure from nearly two years of companion journey for simply the taxes and charges. It isn’t too late to plan your technique to earn the cross in 2025 — and probably for some (or all) of 2026.
For these eligible, getting a pleasant bonus from a Southwest bank card or two may also help you earn a Companion Cross simply (and rapidly). When you can earn a Companion Cross by flying or bank card spending alone, a mixture is commonly the simplest method.
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