BA Companion Voucher + Barclays Cabin Upgrade: Can You Use Both?

The short answer: you cannot use a BA Companion Voucher and a Barclays Cabin Upgrade Voucher on the same booking - but with a bit of planning, you can use both on the same trip. Here is exactly how that works, what each voucher actually does, and why the distinction matters if you want to squeeze maximum value out of both cards.

These two vouchers are often mentioned in the same breath, but they serve very different purposes. Understanding the difference is the key to using them together effectively.

The BA Companion Voucher - earned from the British Airways American Express card - gets two people on a return flight in any cabin. You pay Avios for one seat, and your companion flies for free (plus taxes and fees for both passengers). It is a two-person, any-cabin voucher.

The Barclays Cabin Upgrade Voucher - earned from either the Barclaycard Avios Plus card or the Barclays Avios Rewards card - works differently. It lets you upgrade the cabin on a booking that already exists, paying a reduced Avios cost to move up one class (for example, from World Traveller to World Traveller Plus, or from Club World to First). Crucially, the upgrade voucher can only be used on British Airways-operated flights that depart from the UK - so it must be applied to your outbound leg, not the return.

The workaround is straightforward once you know it. The key is to split your outbound and inbound journeys into two separate bookings rather than booking the full return in one go.

For example, you could use your Barclays Cabin Upgrade Voucher on the outbound leg - it must start from the UK - to move up a cabin. Then make a separate booking for the return leg and use your Companion Voucher there for two passengers. Both vouchers get used on the same trip, just not on the same booking reference. The key point: because the upgrade voucher has to depart the UK, the upgrade always goes on the outbound, never the return.

There are a few things to keep in mind when splitting bookings this way. You will need to ensure award availability exists on both legs independently. Taxes and carrier surcharges will apply to each booking separately. And you will want to double-check that the cabin you want to upgrade into has availability when you apply the upgrade voucher.

Let us run a rough example. Say you are travelling to New York in Club World (business class). A return Club World ticket might retail for £3,000+ per person. Using a Companion Voucher, you pay Avios for one seat and your travel companion flies on the same booking for free - potentially saving you the full cost of the second ticket.

On the outbound booking, a Cabin Upgrade Voucher could move a passenger from World Traveller Plus to Club World at a fraction of the standard Avios cost - and because it must depart the UK, the outbound is exactly where it has to go. You can use our BA Avios flight calculator to see exactly how many Avios a given route costs in each cabin, so you can work out the upgrade differential before committing.

When you combine both vouchers across a trip, the combined saving can easily reach £1,000-£3,000 or more depending on the destination and cabin, making this one of the most powerful voucher combinations available to UK cardholders.

The Companion Voucher comes from the British Airways American Express card - either the free card (which requires £20,000 of spend in a membership year) or the BA Amex Premium Plus card (which requires £10,000 spend and comes with a higher annual fee). The Premium Plus voucher is more flexible, as it can be used in any cabin including First.

The Cabin Upgrade Voucher is issued by Barclaycard Avios Plus or the Barclays Avios Rewards card, both of which earn Avios on everyday spending. The upgrade voucher is typically awarded annually as a card benefit, so you will need to hold one of those Barclays products to access it.

The split-booking strategy is not without its complications. Here are the honest limitations you should factor in before assuming this will work for your trip.

If you want to check whether award seats exist on your preferred dates before committing, the BA Reward Avios Flight Finder can help you spot availability across multiple dates quickly.

No - the two vouchers cannot be applied to the same booking. However, you can use them on the same trip by splitting your outbound and inbound journeys into two separate bookings, applying one voucher to each. Note that the Barclays Cabin Upgrade Voucher must depart from the UK, so it has to go on your outbound leg - use the Companion Voucher for the return.

The BA Amex Premium Plus card is generally considered the stronger option because its Companion Voucher can be used in any cabin including First Class, and it requires only £10,000 of annual spend to trigger (versus £20,000 on the free card). The annual fee is higher, but the voucher flexibility often justifies it for frequent travellers.

The voucher works on British Airways-operated flights only, and the flight it is applied to must depart from the UK - meaning it can only be used on your outbound leg, not the return. Upgrade availability must also exist on your specific flight for the voucher to be applied. Not every flight will have upgrade space, so flexibility on dates or routes increases your chances of using it successfully.

Yes. The Companion Voucher is exclusive to British Airways American Express cardholders, while the Cabin Upgrade Voucher is only available on Barclaycard Avios Plus or Barclays Avios Rewards. You need both cards to access both vouchers - but many serious points collectors in the UK do hold both for exactly this reason.

Combining a BA Companion Voucher with a Barclays Cabin Upgrade Voucher on the same trip is absolutely possible - it just requires two separate bookings rather than one. Remember that the upgrade voucher must depart from the UK, so it goes on your outbound leg, with the Companion Voucher covering the return. The split-booking approach takes a little more planning, but the combined value can be exceptional: a cabin upgrade at reduced Avios cost on the way out, and a companion flying for free on the way back. If you hold both cards and have a long-haul trip coming up, this is one of the most effective ways to stretch your Avios further. Just make sure award and upgrade availability aligns on both legs before you commit.

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