Atmos Rewards Ascent Card Review: Is the $95 Annual Fee Worth It?
NCnextcard team
Loading article…
Setting up your account
This will only take a moment.
Loading article…
Loading article…
However, it might be confusing figuring out how to use the Companion Fare, as well as how you can maximize the value of your companion fare.
While I was poking around and looking at how to use it, I remembered that my family was planning a trip to Hawaii. Since flights from the East Coast to Hawaii are often expensive, the companion fare seemed like the perfect opportunity to save hundreds of dollars on our flights to the Aloha State.
TL;DR
(Potentially) save hundreds per trip: The companion fare lets a second traveler fly for as little as $122 (a $99 base fare plus taxes and fees from $23), instead of paying full price, which can save a lot of money in some scenarios
Where it's valid: North America routes only (including Hawaii) flown on Alaska Airlines or Hawaiian Airlines, booked in Saver or Main Cabin (not First Class)
Payment and expiration: You must pay with the primary cardholder's Atmos Ascent card, and the companion fare code must be booked within 12 months of issue.
Miles and gifting: Both travelers earn full Atmos Rewards mileage on Main Cabin bookings, and you can gift the fare to two other people if you won't use it yourself.
In simpler terms, the companion fare is basically a coupon that can only be redeemed on a reservation for two people. One person pays the full price of the flight itinerary they are booking, and the second person (the companion) pays a companion fare from $122, which consists of a $99 base fare + taxes & fees from $23, depending on your flight itinerary.
While the companion fare might sound simple to use, it comes with multiple restrictions and requirements for using it that make it more difficult to redeem. However, if you are able to use it in the optimal situation, you’ll be able to save hundreds of dollars on your trip.
The restrictions that the companion fare is subject to include the following, but are not limited to:
Number of passengers: The companion fare must be booked on a flight reservation for two people, in which one is the main passenger and the other passenger is the companion.
Applicable fare classes: The companion fare can only be booked on a flight itinerary in the Saver or Main Cabin fare class. It is not valid on First Class fares.
Airlines: The companion fare is only valid for eligible flights within North America operated by Alaska Airlines or Hawaiian Airlines
Destination(s) location: The companion fare is only valid on trips within North America. You might’ve been excited at the prospect of booking an international flight to Europe or Asia, but you’ll be out of luck trying to save with the companion fare.
Itinerary structure: The companion fare is only valid for round-trip or one-way travel, and multiple stopovers are not allowed. However, when I was looking to island hop between O’ahu and Maui for my trip to Hawaii, I saw that I could still apply the companion fare to my itinerary, despite the fact that I was flying on a multi-city itinerary.
Payment method: When booking with the companion fare, you must pay with your Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card.
Expiration date: You must use the companion fare within 12 months of issue. You can travel after the expiration date; you just need to book your itinerary before it expires. But, if you cancel the ticket after the underlying code has expired, it's gone forever
On the bright side, the primary cardholder doesn’t need to be traveling on the reservation to use the companion fare. This means that if you have a companion fare lying around that you won’t be able to use, you’ll be able to gift it to two other people to use together.
You'll just need to use the original cardholder's Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card to pay at checkout. Here's what BofA says:
"Primary fare and Companion Fare must be purchased with the primary cardholder's Atmos™ Rewards Ascent credit card"
Redeeming the companion fare is pretty simple. You’ll need to log in to your Atmos™ Rewards account at alaskaair.com, and navigate to your account overview, where you’ll see an option for “Discount/companion code”. And just to be clear: you can't use it on award bookings; only cash/revenue fares.
Once you click there, you’ll be redirected to your companion fare, which is simply a discount/coupon code that you can apply while searching for flights.
Simply input your companion fare code in the “Discount code (optional)” box, select your itinerary & travel dates, and press the “Find flights” button.
Here, you can see that when I’m searching for flights from Boston (BOS) to Honolulu (HNL), it indicates that the companion fare has been successfully applied, and I’ll be paying the full fare for one person + the reduced companion fare for the second person.
You may have noticed that the cost for the companion is $176, which is higher than the advertised $99 companion fare. This stems from the fact that you’re being charged $99 for the base fare, as well as taxes & fees that start from $23 (the lowest possible companion ticket is $122). This is reflected in the breakdown of the checkout page.
As you can see in this example, it’ll cost $892.55 for two people to fly round-trip from Boston (BOS) to Honolulu (HNL) during the busy winter season right after the holidays. This is an amazing deal, as you’ll be saving $541 by using the companion fare.
If you’re like me, however, you might be thinking about how to (further) maximize your companion fare to the fullest. Since this will be my family’s first time visiting Hawaii, we were thinking of visiting more than one island, particularly O’ahu and Maui.
Since O’ahu and Maui are islands that are 100 miles apart and separated by water, you’ll need to fly between the islands. Luckily, Hawaiian Airlines operates a multitude of flights daily between the Hawaiian islands, meaning that you can apply the companion fare on inter-island travel.
You may recall from earlier that the restrictions on the companion fare indicate that multiple stopovers are not allowed. However, in this example above, you can see that the companion fare has been successfully applied on an itinerary from Boston (BOS) to Honolulu (HNL), Honolulu (HNL) to Kahului/Maui (OGG), and Kahului/Maui (OGG) to Boston (BOS). [I tried this exact routing when updating this article in August 2026, and it still is a valid use of the companion fare]
You’ll need to pay $932 for this itinerary, meaning that you only need to pay an extra $40 (compared to $892.55 without the island hop) for two people to visit both O’ahu and Maui on your trip to Hawaii. This is an amazing deal when taking into consideration that many inter-island flights can cost $50 to $100 per person one way.
Since you can add up to four flights on a single multi-city itinerary, you might find some luck stretching the value of your companion fare even further. However, when I tried booking an itinerary with four flights, the system would let me choose my flights, up to the last one. I wasn’t able to pick my last flight and proceed to checkout.
One important thing to keep in mind here is that all the prices I’m looking at are for the Main Cabin airfare class, not the Saver class. I highly recommend only using your companion fare for Main Cabin due to the fact that flying in Saver (as of August 1, 2026) no longer earns Atmos points or status points (limited grandfathering applies to earlier bookings).
This is an extremely important caveat due to the distance you’re flying. I believe flying from the East Coast to Hawaii is the best way to maximize your companion fare, since a one-way flight from Boston to Honolulu will cover over 5,000 miles.
When you fly round-trip, you will accrue over 10,000 Atmos™ Rewards points, which is very useful considering that you can redeem them for short-haul flights (700 miles or less) starting from 4,500 points.
Furthermore, even though you’re paying a discounted companion fare for the second traveler, both the primary and companion travelers will earn points at normal rates. So in my case, both the primary and secondary travelers will earn ~10,000 Atmos points each (despite the fact that the secondary traveler didn't pay full price)
Save the Saver fares for another booking. Always make sure that you book flights in the Main Cabin class whenever you decide to use your companion fare.
The Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card’s companion fare is one of the most powerful tools in the airline credit card space, but only if you know how to use it strategically. While the restrictions can feel limiting at first glance, pairing it with high-value routes like transcontinental flights or Hawaii vacations can easily yield savings of $400–$600 or more.
The key takeaway? Plan ahead, book in Main Cabin fares to maximize both savings and mileage accrual, and don’t forget that you can use your card to gift the companion fare if you can’t take advantage of it yourself. Whether you’re island-hopping across Hawaii or simply looking to reduce the cost of a cross-country trip, this benefit can more than offset the card’s annual fee. Just remember that after the first year, you need to spend $6,000 or more on purchases in the prior anniversary year to get a new one each account anniversary.
If you’re serious about stretching your travel budget and earning Atmos™ Rewards points along the way, this perk is one you’ll want to keep in your toolkit.
The companion ticket starts at $122 ($99 base fare + $23+ in taxes and fees). The final cost depends on your route and applicable government taxes.
Yes. However, the companion fare is valid only for flights within North America, including Hawaii, on Alaska Airlines or Hawaiian Airlines.
Yes. Both the primary traveler and the companion earn full mileage accrual when booking Main Cabin fares.
No. The benefit only applies to Saver and Main Cabin fare classes.
Not necessarily. You can gift the companion fare to two other travelers, as long as the booking is paid with the primary cardholder's Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card.
You must use the fare within 12 months of issue. Travel can occur after the expiration date, but the ticket must be booked before it expires.
Long-haul routes (like East Coast to Hawaii) provide the highest dollar savings and earn significant Atmos™ Rewards points. Always book Main Cabin instead of Saver to maximize rewards.
