BA's Companion Voucher: The £15,000 Question

The BA American Express 2-4-1, formally the "Companion Voucher", is the most valuable single perk in UK loyalty. It's also the reason a lot of British households route their entire monthly spend through an Amex they don't otherwise need. It's also, somehow, widely misunderstood. So: what it actually is, when it's worth chasing, and how to use one without squandering the good stuff.

What it is, precisely

Spend £15,000 in a membership year on the Amex BA Premium Plus and BA drops a voucher into your Executive Club account. That voucher lets you book a second passenger on the same reward flight as you, in the same cabin, on the same dates, and you only pay the Avios for one of the two tickets.

The free BA Amex earns a voucher too, but at £20,000 of spend, and only for Economy. Almost all of the real value sits with the Premium Plus version.

How the maths actually work

Take a return London → New York booking in Business (Club World). Off-peak this is around 100,000 Avios return per person plus a chunky cash component for surcharges. With the Companion Voucher:

• Avios paid: 100,000 for both passengers (instead of 200,000)
• Cash paid: taxes and surcharges for both tickets. This part is not halved

So two people fly London ↔ New York in Club World for 100,000 Avios + roughly £1,400 cash. Comparable paid Business fares can run £3,500–6,000 each. The voucher's real-world value is somewhere between £1,500 and £3,000 in most long-haul Business uses.

When it's worth chasing £15k of spend

Spending £15,000 on a 1.5 Avios/£ card just to earn a voucher only makes sense if:

• You're spending the money anyway (not manufacturing spend you don't have)
• You can realistically use the voucher in the two-year window before it expires
• You're planning a long-haul Business or First trip for two within that window

For someone who flies once a year in Economy, the voucher's value is much lower — a return Europe Economy redemption only saves you 13,000–20,000 Avios and a few pounds in tax. Stick with the free card or the Barclaycard.

How to redeem one without disappointment

1. Book far in advance. BA releases two reward seats per long-haul Club World flight at the 355-day mark. If you want a school-holiday Business pair, you're aiming for that window. Set a calendar reminder.
2. Be flexible on dates and routings. The voucher can be used to/from London on any BA route. Indirect routings (e.g. via Madrid or Helsinki) often open up when direct seats are gone.
3. Don't waste it on a route where surcharges crush the value. A £1,400 tax bill on a London-NYC Business return is fine when you'd otherwise pay £7,000. A £1,400 tax bill on a Europe Economy redemption is awful.
4. Combine with Amex MR transfers. If you're short on Avios, you can top up by transferring from a partner Amex card at 1:1.

The Barclaycard "Upgrade Voucher" alternative

The Barclaycard Avios Plus offers a different perk: spend £10,000 in a year and earn a voucher that upgrades a single reward booking by one cabin (Economy → Premium, Premium → Business, Business → First). Easier threshold, narrower use case — and an interesting complement to the BA Amex if you can carry both.

In short

Treat the Companion Voucher as a tool, not a goal. If a long-haul Business trip for two is on the horizon and you'll spend £15,000 anyway, the Premium Plus pays for itself many times over. If neither of those is true, a cheaper card will do.