Originally Posted by
volkswankin
Most elites would say zero since their company paid for most of the travel.
No kidding. I'm sure that's the answer that OP was looking for.
For me it was approx $700 in mileage runs for a free companion pass on WN, which is about as elite as it gets on Southwest
In general the quickest and cheapest way to elite status is to do an AA challenge. In prior years, you used to be able to get Gold status for $400, the price of two transcons, or Plat for $800. Without the AADER promo. These days the transcons are a bit pricier. And you can't do it every year.