Can I Get Approved for Two Southwest Credit Cards at Once?

The Chase Southwest credit cards are some of the most valuable travel rewards credit cards. That’s because they often come with great sign-up bonuses of 50,000 or 60,000 points and because they can quickly earn you the Southwest Companion Pass. Many people want to know if they can get approved for two Southwest credit cards at once. The answer is yes, but here’s what you need to know.

Update: Things have changed — read this article for up to day information about getting two cards. 

Chase Southwest cards

Chase offers three Southwest credit cards.

Two of these are personal credit cards and the other one is a small business version. Unless you have a small business of your own, you’ll probably be interested in signing up for the personal Southwest credit cards. The two personal cards are the: Southwest Premier and the Southwest Plus. 

The differences between the Southwest Premier and Plus

The two personal Southwest credit cards are very similar but there are a few key differences. The differences that will matter the most to a lot of people are the annual fees, anniversary bonuses, foreign transaction fees, and A-List.

Annual fee

• Premier: $99
• Plus: $69

Anniversary bonus

• Premier: 6,000 Rapid Rewards
• Plus: 3,000 Rapid Rewards

Foreign transaction fees

• Premier: None
• Plus: 3%

Get A-List quicker

• With the Premier you can earn 1,500 tier qualifying points for each $10,000 in purchases up to $100,000 in purchases annually which equal 15,000 TQP

So the Premier is the more equipped travel credit card but if you’re going to get both of these cards the differences don’t really matter.

Applying for both

One reason why it’s smart apply for both of the Southwest cards at the same time is that when you apply for two Chase cards at once, the credit bureaus will generally combine hard pull  inquiries. This means that you can diminish the impact on your credit score.

Sometimes you won’t automatically get approved for both of the cards. If that happens you might need to call into Chase reconsideration. Before making a recon call, it’s a good idea to know what to expect. Here are my tips and advice for calling into Chase reconsideration.

5/24 Rule

You also need to be aware the Chase 5/24 Rule and other restrictions like the Chase 30 day rule. Understanding these rules is a must before you set out to apply for credit cards from Chase (or really any other credit card issuer). You can read more about these rules and restrictions here. 

Getting the Companion Pass

In addition to the combined inquiries, the main reason you’d want to apply for two Southwest credit cards at one time is so that you can earn the Southwest Companion Pass.

If you’re not familiar, the Southwest Companion Pass allows one companion to fly with you for free for up to two calendar years. This can easily net you over $3,000 in value and allow you to fly all over the US, Mexico, Caribbean, and soon Hawaii for half the price.

• You can read more about the Southwest Companion Pass here.

But if you’re going for the Southwest Companion Pass, you probably don’t want to apply for the Southwest cards at once unless their sign-up bonuses are at least 50,000. 

Remember, you need to earn 110,000 Rapid Rewards in a calendar year to earn the Southwest Companion Pass. At times, we’ve seen all Southwest credit cards offer 60,000 points at once, so it’s much easier to earn the Companion Pass if you seek out the sign-up bonuses at the right time.

Tip: If the sign-up bonus rises within 90 days of applying for your card, call or send in a secured message to Chase and ask about being matched to the higher offer.

Note that sometimes there are promotions that can make earning the Companion Pass much easier. California residents have been given some amazing deals for the earning the Companion Pass in recent times. For example, they could earn it by making just a single purchase! So always keep your eyes out for deals like that, especially if you live in California.

Final word on getting two Southwest cards at once

Getting approved for two Southwest cards at once is definitely possible. In fact, if you want the Southwest Companion Pass and want to mitigate damage from hard inquiries, it’s recommended to do that. If you can time your apps so that you’re going for a 50,000 or 60,000 sign-up bonus and you know how to handle a Chase reconsideration call, you stand a good chance of getting two Southwest credit cards at the same time.

Cover photo by Tomás Del Coro via Flickr.