Companion Vouchers are earned annually through British Airways American Express and British Airways American Express Premium Plus credit cards. The perk is given to cardholders who have hit a required spend within the previous 12 months, that’s £15,000 on the free Amex card or £15,000 on the fee-paying Premium Plus card. 

Customers of the free BA Amex credit card can redeem their Companion Vouchers in Economy. Those with the Premium Plus card can use theirs in any class – economy, premium economy, business, or first. 

Companion seats must be booked in the same class on the same flight as the original reward seat and only with British Airways and its subsidiaries. Both the original and second traveller must pay all the fees and taxes for their ticket in cash (unless they are reduced with a Reward Flight Saver fare).

Naturally, if you’re getting a matching reward seat (or half your solo seat fare) for free, you’re getting the best deal if the original reward seat is a valuable one. Most people with Companion Vouchers earned on a Premium Plus card save them to use on business or first class flights, saving thousands in cash, or the Avios equivalent, on the overall deal. 

Bagging a free economy seat through the British Airways Companion Voucher scheme tends to save you much less, in the hundreds of pounds, and quite often nothing at all if there are heavily discounted cash tickets available on that route. So, this can be a comparatively bad move if you have a Premium Plus Amex card. 

There are, however, some scenarios where you might consider doing so. Below we help you weigh up your options. 

There’s high demand for premium seats 

The cost-of-living crisis has prompted a spike in people joining loyalty schemes, including the British Airways Club, previously known as the British Airways Executive Club. The knock-on effect of these extra Avios collectors is a squeeze on BA reward flight availability, particularly on routes where the service isn’t super frequent. 

As premium cabins are the most popular for an Avios flight redemption you may have problems getting two matching seats in business or first class on which to use your Companion Voucher, especially if the clock is ticking down towards its expiry date. 

You’re going long-haul, but not too long-haul

Of course, we’d all rather fly business class on a long journey but if it’s not too epic - say around eight hours or fewer to New York, Barbados, Bermuda or Montreal instead of 11 hours plus for the US or Canadian West coasts, South America, Asia or Australasia - flying economy might not be too uncomfortable. 

Long-haul flights naturally cost more so you’re already getting good value if your companion’s seat is free, or your solo reward seat is half-price. Also, remember you still have to pay fees and taxes on reward flights and these will be considerably more in the premium cabins. 

You’re booking daytime flights

If you’re taking a night flight, comfort is king. A fully flat bed in Business or first class compared to about 100-to-115-degree seat recline angle in Economy makes all the difference to get some sleep. 

Las Vegas, Buenos Aires, and Hong Kong are among long-haul night flight destinations you’ll likely want to hunt down BA reward flight availability in business or first class. 

If you’re flying by day, your seat is less important, so it’s worth checking the timings when you’re making an Avios flight redemption. Seattle, the Dominican Republic, and New York are among popular destinations where flights leave by day and last nine hours or fewer, the time you’ll likely spend watching films. 

You’ve reached British Airways Silver or Gold tier status

One of the great perks of flying business and first class is getting the lounge experience at the airport. 

If you have elite BA Club status this isn’t an issue because you’ll have lounge access already as one of your perks even if you’re flying in economy.

In fact, your whole airport experience will be made smoother. With Silver tier status you get business class check-in and priority boarding, besides a luggage allowance of 32kg per person and access to the Club World lounges.

Gold tier status meanwhile gets you first-class check-in and boarding besides the extra baggage allowance and access to First Class lounges.

Even without elite tier status, you can pay (about £40) to book an airport lounge. These are generally not as swanky as airline lounges but you still get comfy chairs, relative peace, and complimentary food and drinks. 

You may even consider paying for an annual airport lounge pass, which gives you discounts.

When you’re saving with your Companion Voucher it’s a treat worth considering. 

Your Companion Voucher expires soon, but you’re also saving for a dream trip

Because you need to use British Airways Companion Vouchers earned through an Amex Premium Plus card by flying within 24 months, you could end up having to do so while you’re saving your Avios for a bigger goal. 

You can only use a Companion Voucher on reward flights, meaning you’ll have to blow some of your Avios stashes to cash it in but of course, you don’t want to lose out on this juicy perk you’ve spent a year earning. 

Here economy flights can be the solution, especially if you choose long-haul economy daytime flights as we’ve suggested. You’ll still get that bonus holiday but can keep more of your points for a bigger Avios flight redemption, which if it’s for a special occasion is likely to mean business class. 

Of course, if you travel solo with a Companion Voucher, you’ll only pay half the price of your reward seat in Avios. So, if that’s an option it’s another way to minimise the impact on your balance.

Your Avios balance isn’t that big

Though you’ll earn Avios as well as Companion Vouchers on your BA Amex card if you’ve only just hit the minimum spend needed for your Companion Voucher, you’re unlikely to have enough Avios for reward flights in business or first unless you’ve been building up a lot of Avios through flights or spending elsewhere. 

If you’ve achieved the £15,000 spend required by the British Airways American Express Premium Plus credit card you will also have earned 1.5 Avios per £1, giving you an Avios balance of 22,500. 

New card members also get a 25,000 Avios bonus when they spend £3,000 in their first three months. This means an overall potential balance of 40,000 Avios.

40,000 Avios could get you to Antigua, Saint Kitts, Jamaica, Los Angeles, Dubai, or New Orleans in Economy but not in business class, let alone first class. 

If one of more of our above scenarios applies to you it could be time to make peace with spending your British Airways Companion Voucher on an economy break.

Companion Vouchers are earned annually through British Airways American Express and British Airways American Express Premium Plus credit cards. The perk is given to cardholders who have hit a required spend within the previous 12 months, that’s £15,000 on the free Amex card or £15,000 on the fee-paying Premium Plus card. 

Customers of the free BA Amex credit card can redeem their Companion Vouchers in Economy. Those with the Premium Plus card can use theirs in any class – economy, premium economy, business, or first. 

Companion seats must be booked in the same class on the same flight as the original reward seat and only with British Airways and its subsidiaries. Both the original and second traveller must pay all the fees and taxes for their ticket in cash (unless they are reduced with a Reward Flight Saver fare).

Naturally, if you’re getting a matching reward seat (or half your solo seat fare) for free, you’re getting the best deal if the original reward seat is a valuable one. Most people with Companion Vouchers earned on a Premium Plus card save them to use on business or first class flights, saving thousands in cash, or the Avios equivalent, on the overall deal. 

Bagging a free economy seat through the British Airways Companion Voucher scheme tends to save you much less, in the hundreds of pounds, and quite often nothing at all if there are heavily discounted cash tickets available on that route. So, this can be a comparatively bad move if you have a Premium Plus Amex card. 

There are, however, some scenarios where you might consider doing so. Below we help you weigh up your options. 

There’s high demand for premium seats 

The cost-of-living crisis has prompted a spike in people joining loyalty schemes, including the British Airways Club, previously known as the British Airways Executive Club. The knock-on effect of these extra Avios collectors is a squeeze on BA reward flight availability, particularly on routes where the service isn’t super frequent. 

As premium cabins are the most popular for an Avios flight redemption you may have problems getting two matching seats in business or first class on which to use your Companion Voucher, especially if the clock is ticking down towards its expiry date. 

You’re going long-haul, but not too long-haul

Of course, we’d all rather fly business class on a long journey but if it’s not too epic - say around eight hours or fewer to New York, Barbados, Bermuda or Montreal instead of 11 hours plus for the US or Canadian West coasts, South America, Asia or Australasia - flying economy might not be too uncomfortable. 

Long-haul flights naturally cost more so you’re already getting good value if your companion’s seat is free, or your solo reward seat is half-price. Also, remember you still have to pay fees and taxes on reward flights and these will be considerably more in the premium cabins. 

You’re booking daytime flights

If you’re taking a night flight, comfort is king. A fully flat bed in Business or first class compared to about 100-to-115-degree seat recline angle in Economy makes all the difference to get some sleep. 

Las Vegas, Buenos Aires, and Hong Kong are among long-haul night flight destinations you’ll likely want to hunt down BA reward flight availability in business or first class. 

If you’re flying by day, your seat is less important, so it’s worth checking the timings when you’re making an Avios flight redemption. Seattle, the Dominican Republic, and New York are among popular destinations where flights leave by day and last nine hours or fewer, the time you’ll likely spend watching films. 

You’ve reached British Airways Silver or Gold tier status

One of the great perks of flying business and first class is getting the lounge experience at the airport. 

If you have elite BA Club status this isn’t an issue because you’ll have lounge access already as one of your perks even if you’re flying in economy.

In fact, your whole airport experience will be made smoother. With Silver tier status you get business class check-in and priority boarding, besides a luggage allowance of 32kg per person and access to the Club World lounges.

Gold tier status meanwhile gets you first-class check-in and boarding besides the extra baggage allowance and access to First Class lounges.

Even without elite tier status, you can pay (about £40) to book an airport lounge. These are generally not as swanky as airline lounges but you still get comfy chairs, relative peace, and complimentary food and drinks. 

You may even consider paying for an annual airport lounge pass, which gives you discounts.

When you’re saving with your Companion Voucher it’s a treat worth considering. 

Your Companion Voucher expires soon, but you’re also saving for a dream trip

Because you need to use British Airways Companion Vouchers earned through an Amex Premium Plus card by flying within 24 months, you could end up having to do so while you’re saving your Avios for a bigger goal. 

You can only use a Companion Voucher on reward flights, meaning you’ll have to blow some of your Avios stashes to cash it in but of course, you don’t want to lose out on this juicy perk you’ve spent a year earning. 

Here economy flights can be the solution, especially if you choose long-haul economy daytime flights as we’ve suggested. You’ll still get that bonus holiday but can keep more of your points for a bigger Avios flight redemption, which if it’s for a special occasion is likely to mean business class. 

Of course, if you travel solo with a Companion Voucher, you’ll only pay half the price of your reward seat in Avios. So, if that’s an option it’s another way to minimise the impact on your balance.

Your Avios balance isn’t that big

Though you’ll earn Avios as well as Companion Vouchers on your BA Amex card if you’ve only just hit the minimum spend needed for your Companion Voucher, you’re unlikely to have enough Avios for reward flights in business or first unless you’ve been building up a lot of Avios through flights or spending elsewhere. 

If you’ve achieved the £15,000 spend required by the British Airways American Express Premium Plus credit card you will also have earned 1.5 Avios per £1, giving you an Avios balance of 22,500. 

New card members also get a 25,000 Avios bonus when they spend £3,000 in their first three months. This means an overall potential balance of 40,000 Avios.

40,000 Avios could get you to Antigua, Saint Kitts, Jamaica, Los Angeles, Dubai, or New Orleans in Economy but not in business class, let alone first class. 

If one of more of our above scenarios applies to you it could be time to make peace with spending your British Airways Companion Voucher on an economy break.