How do frequent flyer programs work? Are they worth it for UK travellers?

If you're a Brit that loves to travel or you need to take regular flights for work or business, you might be interested in frequent flyer programs. Offered by a number of airlines, these let you earn rewards for every flight you take.

But how exactly do frequent flyer programs work, who offers them and who is eligible to join one? And the big question is - are they worth it?

Find out everything you need to know here in this helpful guide, including a list of airlines which have frequent flyer programs worth checking out if you’re a UK traveller.

What is a frequent flyer program?

A frequent flyer program is essentially a loyalty scheme. Once you enrol, you’ll earn points or air miles every time you book an eligible flight with the airline or operator.

These can be redeemed for discounts on future travel. Depending on the scheme, you may also be able to use your earned rewards for things like:

• 💺 Seat upgrades
• 🧳 Extra baggage
• ✈️ Airport lounge access
• 🚗 Car hire.

Some schemes give you extra points or miles the further you travel. So, you might earn more for a long haul flight to Australia compared to a short hop from the UK to Europe.

How many frequent flyer programs are there?

There are quite a lot of frequent flyer programs out there, with major airlines in most countries offering one. In the UK, there are a handful to choose from - including schemes offered by British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and even budget airlines like easyJet.

How do you earn miles or points?

Although the details vary between airlines, all you usually need to do to start earning miles or points is sign up for the frequent flyer program. You’ll need to create an account, opt in and then book a flight.

What qualifies someone as a frequent flyer?

There’s no one set definition of a frequent flyer. But for the purposes of joining a particular program, you’re most likely to benefit if you take regular flights with the same airline (i.e. British Airways). You might travel around 4-5 times a year, or take the same number of flights per month if you need to travel for work or business.

Can I join a frequent flyer program?

Yes. But you’ll need to check the eligibility requirements with the particular airline. In most cases, anyone over the age of 18 can join.

However, some airlines have different tiers of membership, such as British Airways which has Bronze, Silver and Gold levels. You’ll need to meet different requirements to move up a tier, which usually involves taking more flights and earning more points.

Other airlines like easyJet make their frequent flyer programs available by invitation only.

Can you be a frequent flyer with multiple airlines?

You can join frequent flyer programs with multiple airlines if you wish. But for it to be worth it, you’ll need to be booking a lot of flights.

What are airline alliances?

Airline alliances are partnerships between a number of different airlines, often spread across different countries.

The main benefit of these alliances for passengers is that you can often earn frequent flyer points, miles or rewards with all (or most) partner airlines in the same scheme.

Some of the biggest airline alliances are:

• Star Alliance - including Aegean, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, United Airlines and more.
• SkyTeam - including KLM, Air France, Delta Airlines and more.
• Oneworld - including American Airlines, British Airways, Finnair, Qantas and more.

Which airlines have a reward program?

Here’s a quick at-a-glance look at which of the most popular airlines in the UK have a frequent flyer reward program:

Which airline has the best program for frequent flyers?

The airline with the best frequent flyer program will depend on how often you travel and what's important to you. So, let’s take a look at five of the best frequent flyer programs for UK travellers, including features and perks:

British Airways frequent flyer program ✈️

easyJet frequent flyer program ✈️

KLM frequent flyer program ✈️

Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer program ✈️

Turkish Airlines frequent flyer program ✈️

Next, we'll dig a little deeper into each of these airline reward programs.

British Airways - Executive Club¹

The British Airways Executive Club is one of the most perk-packed frequent flyer programs out there. It uses Avios, where points can be collected on shopping as well as travel - to be redeemed for travel rewards.

You’ll join the BA Executive Club as a Blue member, but book enough flights or earn enough Avios points and you can move up to the Bronze, Silver and even Gold tiers.

Each tier comes with extra benefits, including:

• 🧳 Extra baggage allowance
• ⚡Priority boarding
• 💺Upgrades
• ✈️ Exclusive airport lounge access.

easyJet - Flight Club²

If you’re a regular traveller with budget airline easyJet, you may be invited to join the easyJet Flight Club. It’s an invitation-only frequent flyer program, so you can’t apply to join.

Unlike other frequent flyer programs, it doesn’t let you earn points, miles or rewards to redeem for discounted flights. However, the easyJet Flight Club does offer a range of other benefits that could be worth having if you fly with the airline regularly. These include:

• 📅 Unlimited fee-free changes to bookings
• 💷 Price Guarantee – easyJet will refund the difference (and give you a 10% voucher) if you find an equivalent flight of another airline cheaper within 48 hours of making your booking.
• 🤝 Price Promise - you’ll always get the best fares for your easyJet flights.
• 🔔 Exclusive previews of scheduled sales and seat releases - so you can book before anyone else.

KLM - Flying Blue³

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines also has a popular frequent flyer program, called Flying Blue. It has different membership levels, starting with Explorer. This lets you earn 4 Miles for every euro you spend, plus a 10% discount on your first paid checked baggage item.

Every time you fly with KLM or one of its partner airlines, you’ll earn Miles. You can also pick up extra miles for booking hotels or renting a car with a KLM partner, as well as spending on a travel credit card from Flying Blue.

You’ll also earn experience points (XP), which can help you move up to the next Flying Blue membership level. These include Silver, Gold, Platinum and Flying Blue Ultimate.

Each has a longer list of perks, including:

• ✈️ Airport lounge access
• 🧳 Extra baggage
• ⚡ Priority check-in and boarding
• ... and much more.

Virgin Atlantic - Flying Club

The Virgin Atlantic Flying Club lets you earn Virgin Points every time you fly, or book a package holiday. You can also earn points by opting into the Virgin Red reward scheme, or when spending on your Virgin Atlantic Credit Card.

Points can be redeemed for flights, upgrades, reward seats and more. They don’t expire either, so there’s no rush to use your points until you’re ready.⁴

Like other frequent flyer programs, the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club has membership tiers - Red, Silver and Gold. Once you have enough points, you can move up a tier and benefit from extra perks such as:

• ⚡ Premium check-in
• 🧳 Extra baggage
• 💺 Upgrades
• ... and the chance to earn more points.⁵

Turkish Airlines - Miles&Smiles⁶

Travelling to Turkey? It could be worth taking a look at the Miles&Smiles frequent flyer program from Turkish Airlines. It comes in four tiers - Classic, Classic Plus, Elite and Elite Plus.

You’ll join as a Classic member, getting the following benefits:

• ✈️ Earn miles as you fly with Turkish Airlines and Star Alliance Program partners
• 🎫 Award tickets
• 💳 Earn miles with Miles&Smiles credit card transactions
• 💺 Cabin and seat upgrades
• 🎁 Welcome gift of 1,000 miles after your first flight.

If you earn enough miles, you can move up to the other tiers and get even more perks. These include: airport lounge access, extra baggage, free seat selection and much more.

How to choose the right frequent flyer program

The right frequent flyer program for you will mainly depend on where you fly to, and which airlines go there. Plus, which airlines fly from your local airport. Your travel habits and how often you visit certain destinations will also be a factor in which program fits your needs the best.

If you regularly use an airline, it’s always worth checking if it has a frequent flyer program you can join. Most of them do, and you might as well enjoy some extra benefits if you’ll be using the airline anyway.

You might also want to check out the airline’s partner organisations, to see if you can pick up some extra points there.

Is it better to collect miles or points?

It all depends on the particular scheme, and what you can use your rewards for. Generally speaking, points schemes such as Avios are better to collect as you can usually use them on a range of rewards - including hotels and car hire as well as flights.

💡TIP: If you only use one airline though and you’re focused solely on getting free or discounted flights, it could be worth clocking up those air miles instead.

Are frequent flyer programs worth it?

Let’s quickly run through a handful of the pros and cons of frequent flyer programs, to help you decide whether to take the plunge.

Pros:

• 💷 Earn extra rewards and save money if you’re a regular customer of the airline anyway
• ✈️ Access airport lounges, get free baggage, upgrades and priority boarding (depending on the program and your membership tier).
• 💼 Great for business travellers who are flying on expenses and want some extra travel perks.

Cons:

• ❌ Points or miles aren’t always worth it compared to finding a cheaper flight elsewhere
• ❌ If you’re not a frequent flyer, you may not see the benefit of joining a program.

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And that’s it - our handy roundup of the best frequent flyer programs available for UK travellers. We’ve looked at all the perks on offer, plus the pros and cons of frequent flyer schemes so you can work out if they’re worth joining. Happy travels!

Sources used for this article:

Sources checked on 17-04-2024.