Southwest Makes Changes. Are We Still in LUV?

Southwest Airlines has long been the go-to carrier for many travelers, known for its generous perks and unique customer-friendly policies. But recent changes leave me wondering: Will we still LUV Southwest?

Southwest made it harder to earn Rapid Rewards points on their cheaper fares last week. This morning, they took an axe to features that kept passengers loyal. You can find the summary of what is changing on their website.

Wanna Get Away fares are gone. They’re limiting free bags. Flight credits are expiring again. I don’t like any of it, but it won’t affect my choice of an airline, not until 2027 anyway. I’ll get into that in a bit.

Here’s a chart summarizing how the various fares line up starting May 28, 2025. This includes the new Basic fare that replaces Wanna Get Away.

Bags (don’t always) Fly Free

The first big change is Southwest is limiting free bags. Previously, everyone on any fare received two free bags per passenger. Now only Business Select gets that perk. All other fares will see additional bag fees. A-List members will receive one free checked bag. The announcement says that select customers will also receive one free bag, but they don’t go into any detail defining exactly who is considered to be select. If you have a Southwest Rapid Rewards card, they will offer a credit for one bag. I have both a personal and a business Southwest card, so it’s unclear if you can double up and get two bags by charging one to each card or not. Guess we’ll find out after May 28.

Not a big change for us. We rarely check more than one bag each. The only time we check a second bag is when we are bringing back a lot of purchases from a trip — like we do when we’re at Disney’s D23 Expo and hit the exclusive stores!

Flight Credits Never Expire

Originally, flight credits from canceled or changed flights would expire after one year. In 2022 they eliminated expiration dates for flight credits issued on or after July 28, 2022. Today’s announcement rolls this back and brings back the one year countdown. An even more restrictive six month expiration applies to the new Basic fare.

This change is more impactful. The one year deadline doesn’t sound all that bad, but the problem would reveal itself when using that credit to purchase a new reservation and then changing or canceling the new booking. Your new fare credit would inherit the expiration date of the original credit. I’m sure this was to prevent people from ‘walking’ forward a credit to keep it from expiring. I would regularly run into issues where I would change a flight and be unable to use the credit because it originated with an older flight.

Booking with points is a better option here because those go back into your account. No credits = no expiration. You can make a case for buying points when they are on sale instead of using cash to book a flight to maintain your flexibility. That strategy might not be as sound going forward, however, as Southwest also said they were moving towards a variable redemption policy. If the cost in points is dynamic, any points you purchase in advance might not be worth what you thought when you go to redeem. Looking forward to getting more clarity on their plans here.

This one stings a bit. We’ll see how often it becomes an issue.

Goodbye Wanna Get Away. Hello Wanna Get Away Plus.

My preferred fare was always Wanna Get Away. The added perks for a higher fare rarely were compelling enough to pay extra. Which is why Southwest is making these changes. The Basic fare that has replaced Wanna Get Away is completely unattractive to me. What’s bad about it? Here’s a list:

• No changes allowed other than cancellation.
• Flight credits expire after six months.
• Only 2x points earned.

Meh! As much as I hate to pay more, Wanna Get Away Plus will be my new go-to fare.

This change stings even more. I will be paying more and still receiving the same 6x points I used to get with Wanna Get Away. The only improvement is flight credits will be transferable. Which is good since they only last 12 months now.

Location, Location, Location

None of these changes are life changing, and they certainly won’t affect my choice of airlines. Why? As the header says: Location, location, location. I live in St. Louis and Southwest is the dominant carrier here.

They carry the most passengers

In calendar year 2023, Southwest carried 9,237,477 passengers. The next four airlines (American, Delta, United, and Frontier) combined only carried 5,123,738. (2024 St. Louis Lambert International Airport Fact Sheet)

They offer more nonstops

Southwest offers nonstop flights to 62 cities (FlightsFrom.com). American, the number two in terms of passengers carried, only serves 11 cities with nonstop flights (FlightsFrom.com).

Companion Pass Cushions the Blow

One major reason why my flying habits won’t change is Southwest’s Companion Pass benefit. With Companion Pass, you can designate a companion to fly free whenever you travel together. I don’t fly anywhere near the 100 annual one-way flights needed to earn Companion Pass. Nor do I spend enough on the credit card in a year to earn 135,000 points.

The alternative is to qualify using credit card sign-up bonuses. By opening both a personal and a business Southwest Rapid Rewards card and then hitting the bonus spending requirements, you can easily reach the 135,000 points required. The goal with this strategy is maximizing the time you have Companion Pass. Timing is the key. Companion Pass is good for the year received and the following year as well. Time it so you get the card at the end of the year and work towards the spending goal. Be careful you don’t hit the goal too early! It’s critical that you hit the goal in the new year to get the most out of Companion Pass.

I had Companion Pass for 2023 and 2024. Kristin qualified this January, so we have it again through the end of 2026. When you travel frequently, only paying for one fare whenever we travel is an incredible benefit — it keep us loyal to Southwest, even if we will have to pay for the occasional third bag now.

Should we be worried about Companion Pass?

The real question: What will happen to Companion Pass? Will they jack up the point total to make it unattainable by credit card sign-up bonuses alone? I wouldn’t be surprised if Southwest decided to drop the annual boost of 10,000 qualifying points for cardholders as a way to limit the number of people receiving Companion Pass. The number of points required went from the long-standing 110,000 points to 125,000 points in 2023 and ultimately 135,000 points in 2024. Without that bonus, Companion Pass will be out of reach for a lot of people. If we aren’t able to qualify when 2027 rolls around, then all bets are off, especially if another airline decides to make a play for the St. Louis market.

We’ll just have to see what happens. Stay tuned for updates as Southwest continues to evolve (or devolve as the case may be).