Qantas is the official airline of Australia. It’s remarkably old, having launched in 1920 — less than two decades after the Wright Brothers’ rickety Kittyhawk experiment.
The behemoth airline now serves over 95 destinations worldwide. Thanks to its long list of airline partners, you can use Qantas points to visit over 1,300 destinations around the world.
Its loyalty program isn’t without its foibles, though. That’s why it scored middle-of-the-pack in the point.me ranking of the best airline rewards programs.
Table of contents
Overview of Qantas Frequent Flyer
Qantas isn’t exactly teeming with award sweet spots. But it holds a strategic place in the travel strategy of many award hackers, namely, for quick jaunts that otherwise cost a lot of money (think travel around the Caribbean, short hops to Grandma’s house a few states away, etc.).
The rewards are easy to come by, too. Let’s take a look at the best ways to earn and redeem Qantas points.
Credit card transfer partners of Qantas Frequent Flyer
Qantas partners with three major transferable rewards currencies:
You can also convert Marriott Bonvoy points into Qantas points at a rate of 3:1. Plus, you’ll get a 5,000-point Qantas bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points you transfer.
Airline partners of Qantas Frequent Flyer
Qantas is part of the Oneworld alliance. This means you can use Qantas points to book travel on partner airlines to reach just about anywhere you want to go.
For example, you can’t fly to Morocco on Qantas, but you can use Qantas points to book a flight to Casablanca (CMN) on partner airline Royal Air Maroc.
Qantas also partners with some non-Oneworld airlines, such as Air France, EL AL, and Emirates. Take a look at Qantas’ impressive list of partners:
| Air France | British Airways | IndiGo |
| Air New Zealand | Cathay Pacific | Japan Airlines |
| Air Tahiti Nui | China Airlines | Jetstar Asia |
| Aircalin | China Eastern | Jetstar Japan |
| Airlink | China Southern | KLM |
| Airnorth | EL AL | LATAM |
| Alaska Airlines | Emirates | Network Aviation |
| American Airlines | Fiji Airways | SriLankan |
| Bangkok Airways | Finnair | WestJet |
What we love about Qantas Frequent Flyer
Qantas has a handful of noteworthy perks that make it worth the investment for just about any type of traveler:
- Qantas points are great for short hops.
- You can use Qantas points to fly on carriers that don’t partner with many airlines.
- Qantas still publishes award charts for its partners (which is becoming a rarity).
What we don’t love about Qantas Frequent Flyer
Paired with lots of good qualities, Qantas has its drawbacks:
- Taxes and fees can be steep.
- You’ll pay up to 6,000 points for changes or cancellations to award flights.
- Long-distance flights are exorbitant.
Qantas elite status tiers and how to earn them
Qantas has four elite status levels. You can earn status by doing a combination of two things: completing a specific number of flights each year and collecting “Status Credits” (which you’ll earn when flying on Qantas and its partners).
Here’s the low-down on each Qantas elite status tier.
Silver
You’ll get Silver status by earning 300 Status Credits and taking four eligible flights with either a Qantas or Jetstar number in a year. You can keep the status the following year by earning 250 Status Credits (along with the same flight requirements).
Silver elite status comes with the following benefits:
- 50% Status Bonus Points with Qantas, Jetstar, and American Airlines
- Priority phone service
- Preferred seating
- Complimentary seat selection
- Priority waitlist/airport standby
- Additional checked baggage allowance
- 1 free Qantas Club lounge visit
- Ability to put status “on hold” for up to 18 months (when going on parental leave)
- Oneworld Ruby status
- Free Qantas luggage tag
Gold
To earn Gold status, you’ll need to earn 700 Status Credits and take four eligible flights with either a Qantas or Jetstar number in a year. You can maintain status each year after that by earning 600 Status Credits (along with the same flight requirements).
Gold status gets you all the stuff from Silver, plus the following:
- 75% Status Bonus Points with Qantas, Jetstar, and American Airlines
- Priority boarding
- Access to premium security lanes when flying within Australia
- Priority checked baggage
- Upgrades on departure for intra-Australia Qantas award flights
- Complimentary access to Qantas Club and International Business lounges
- Oneworld Sapphire status, which comes with perks like lounge access (including business class lounges) and priority check-in with partner airlines
Platinum
Platinum status requires 1,400 Status Credits and taking four eligible flights with either a Qantas or Jetstar number in a year. To keep the status after that, you’ll need to earn 1,200 Status Credits (along with the same flight requirements).
Doing this will net you the benefits of Gold status, plus:
- 100% Status Bonus Points with Qantas, Jetstar, and American Airlines
- Priority Economy seat purchase (until the day before travel)
- Access to premium security lanes where available
- Access to Qantas domestic business lounges
- Oneworld Emerald status, which comes with benefits like lounge access (including first class lounges) and extra baggage with partner airlines
- Platinum Bonus Reward (after earning 2,400 Status Credits in a year): Choose either 50,000 bonus Qantas points or complimentary Gold elite status for a friend or family member.
Platinum One
Earning Platinum One status is hard work. Qantas requires you to earn 3,600 Status Credits in a year — with 2,700 of them earned from travel with an eligible Qantas flight number specifically. To keep the status each year after that takes the same requirements.
From the highest Qantas status level, you’ll get all the benefits of Platinum, along with the following:
- Confirmed international upgrades from two days to departure (and up to seven days, when available)
- Highest upgrade priority
- Preferential access to international upgrades for family members
- Free Platinum status for a friend or family member
- VIP service team support
- Access to extra seats for Qantas flight and upgrade awards
- Waived fees for award flight assistance, eligible bookings, family transfers, and fare difference on intra-Australia flexible fares
- Complimentary extra legroom seating (when available)
- 2 free lounge visits for friends or family members
- 75,000 bonus Qantas points after earning 5,000 Status Credits in a year
- 100,000 bonus Qantas points after earning 70,000 Status Credits in a year
- Free Qantas Wine Premium membership
- Invitations to special events and experiences
How to earn Qantas Frequent Flyer miles
There are loads of simple ways to amass Qantas points. You can spend with Qantas directly or with any of its many partners to quickly earn the rewards you need for super inexpensive travel:
- Pay for flights. When you pay cash for travel on Qantas, Jetstar, or any other eligible partners, you’ll earn Qantas points. The amount you earn will depend on where you’re flying, the airline you’re on, and the type of fare you buy.
- Earn credit card rewards. Popular transferable rewards currencies, such as American Express Membership Rewards points and Capital One miles, transfer to Qantas at a 1:1 ratio. This makes it super easy to accrue Qantas points by using cards like the American Express® Gold Card or Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card for your everyday purchases.
- Book tours and packages. Qantas operates online travel agencies through which you can book more than just airfare. You can book special hotel packages and excursions while earning Qantas points.
- Reserve hotels and rental cars. When you book directly with many hotel chains and car rental agencies, you can elect to earn Qantas points. Eligible brands include Marriott, Hyatt, Airbnb, Hilton, Avis, and Budget. Qantas also has a hotel booking platform that awards points for booking just about any hotel — even those that aren’t its partners.
Redeeming miles with Qantas Frequent Flyer
Qantas makes the redemption process simple. You don’t even need to sign into your Frequent Flyer account to search for award flights.
Head to the Qantas homepage and click the “Rewards” toggle to search for points-eligible flights. Enter your travel details, and click “Search Flights.” As you can see, it’s possible to book hotels, Airbnb stays, and rental cars through this page, too.
If Qantas doesn’t serve the route you want to fly, it will automatically pair you with an airline partner that does. This makes it easy to sift through flights operated by Qantas and other carriers to find the best (and cheapest) option.
For example, Qantas doesn’t fly to Morocco — but its partner, Royal Air Maroc, does. Here’s a nonstop flight from Washington Dulles (IAD) to Casablanca (CMN). To the right of the page, you’ll see that Qantas has automatically recommended Royal Air Maroc as the top choice.
In many of the same ways you can earn Qantas points, you can also redeem them. You can offset the price of things like vacation packages and excursions, hotel stays, and seat upgrades.
How much are Qantas Frequent Flyer miles worth?
Qantas points don’t have an intrinsic fixed value. Instead, the value varies depending on how you use them.
Qantas prices its awards according to two things:
- The airline you fly
- The distance you fly
Qantas publishes four award charts. The one you’ll be subject to depends on the specific airline you’re flying. For example, Here’s the award chart for Qantas and American Airlines. As you can see, the farther you fly, the more points you’ll spend.
Let’s look at a few different award flights to better understand how your return for Qantas points can vary greatly.
25,000 points
A one-way economy class ticket from Philadelphia (PHL) to Rome (FCO) costs 25,200 points and a painful $264 in taxes and fees.
The same seat costs $528 in cash. After accounting for the award flight fees, your points will save you $264. That’s an average value of 1.04 cents per point.
50,000 points
You can fly one-way from Dallas (DFW) to Sydney (SYD) for 51,200 points in economy class — along with a more reasonable $105 in fees.
Paying cash for this flight would cost $1,227. Accounting for the award fees, your points will save you $1,122. That’s an average value of 2.19 cents per point.
100,000 points
A fancy lie-flat seat from Dallas (DFW) to Seoul (ICN) costs a steep 94,900 points and $284.
But the seat otherwise costs a whopping $4,208. You’ll save $3,924 with points — a value of 4.13 cents per point.
The more strategically and thoughtfully you use your points, the more cash you can save. But don’t get too caught up in the “value per point.” Travel rewards are meant to make you happy — not stress you out.
Just know that if you’re getting more than 1.5 cents per point in value, you’re using them wisely.
The best Qantas Frequent Flyer redemptions
Qantas doesn’t brim with jaw-dropping deals, but they’ve certainly got a place in the utility belt of any points and miles superhero. Here are some of the best ways to use Qantas points.
Domestic American Airlines flights
American Airlines miles are harder to come by than Qantas points, as American doesn’t partner with transferable rewards like American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards. Fortunately, you can use Qantas points to fly American Airlines.
It can be a great deal, too — especially for flights under 600 miles in distance. For example, you’ll pay 8,000 points for travel between Columbus, Ohio (CMH) and New York (LGA). This same flight costs $230, giving you a value of around 2.8 cents per point.
Fancy business class to Fiji
Fiji is one of those obligatory bucket-list destinations that’s often neglected for two reasons:
- It’s far.
- It’s (usually) expensive.
Qantas has reasonable economy and business class award prices to get there on Fiji Airways (though premium seats are admittedly few and far between).
Here’s an example: A nonstop flight from Dallas (DFW) to Nadi (NAN) in business class costs 94,900 points and $29 one-way. The same flight costs more than $4,000 in cash, giving you a value of more than 4 cents per point.
Tips for using Qantas Frequent Flyer miles
The Qantas website is refreshingly straightforward. There aren’t many booby traps separating you from an award ticket. Still, there are a few principles to keep in mind to make the best use of your points.
Save your points for short hops
Again, Qantas charges according to the distance you fly. If you can use your points exclusively for short hops (say, under 1,200 miles), you’ll generally get the greatest value for your points.
Never use your rewards for hotels
Qantas likes to dangle the option to cash out your points for hotel stays, but don’t do it. You’ll almost always get a value far below one cent per point. If you plan to redeem your travel rewards like this regularly, you’re better off simply collecting hotel points (or cash back).
Beware of high taxes and fees
Depending on the airline you’re flying, you could pay several hundred dollars more in fees for your award flight. For example, you might find that British Airways charges over $1,200 in fees, while Royal Jordanian may charge just over $300. The route may be less convenient — but for savings of $900 one way, it could be a no-brainer.
Frequently asked questions about using Qantas Frequent Flyer
What are Qantas’s airline partners?
Qantas is part of the Oneworld airline alliance, partnering with carriers such as Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, and British Airways. It also partners with non-Oneworld airlines like Air France and EL AL.
What are Qantas’s transfer partners?
Qantas partners with four major transferable points currencies: American Express Membership Rewards points, Capital One miles, Citi ThankYou points, and Marriott Bonvoy.
What are Qantas’s tier status levels?
Qantas offers four elite status tiers: Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Platinum One.
How many Qantas Frequent Flyer miles do I need for a free flight?
Qantas flights start at just 6,400 points. However, U.S.-based travelers should expect to spend at least 8,000 points on domestic American Airlines flights.
Do Qantas Frequent Flyer miles expire?
Qantas points expire 18 months after your last points activity. This expiration clock resets any time you earn or redeem points.
Can I transfer or gift my Qantas Frequent Flyer miles to someone else?
You can transfer your Qantas points to family members, starting at 1,500 points. Refreshingly, there is no fee for transferring points.
Can I book a flight for someone else with my Qantas Frequent Flyer miles?
You can only use Qantas points to book a flight for yourself or family members.
Can I book a Qantas flight using a combination of miles and cash?
You can book a Qantas flight using a combination of points and cash. The feature is called Points Plus Pay.
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