Miles Calculator

How to choose a frequent flyer programme

Updated 27 September 2026

Most people join their home airline's programme and never think about it again. That can be the right choice, but it often isn't. Airlines in the same alliance recognise each other's elite status, so the programme that gets you the most value may belong to an airline in another country.

Start with the alliance, not the airline

The three global alliances each let you earn and use miles across their member airlines, and each recognises elite status from any member programme:

This is the key point: if you mostly fly Singapore Airlines, you can credit those flights to Turkish Airlines' programme, Air Canada's or any other Star Alliance programme. Whichever you choose, the status you earn is recognised on Singapore Airlines and the rest of the alliance, including lounge access and priority check-in at the Gold level.

Why your home airline isn't always best

The effort needed for the same status varies a lot

Mid-tier alliance status, the level that usually brings lounge access, takes very different amounts of flying depending on the programme:

Thresholds alone don't tell the whole story, because programmes also credit the same flight differently. A programme with a lower target may give you fewer miles for your particular fares. The only reliable comparison is to run your own typical trips through each option, which is what the status calculator is for.

Distance-based or spend-based

Programmes reward flights in two main ways, and which suits you depends on how you fly:

• Distance-based programmes (for example KrisFlyer, Turkish, Thai, ANA, Vietnam Airlines) give a share of the distance flown. They favour long flights on reasonably priced fares.
• Spend-based programmes (for example United, Delta, British Airways, Iberia, Finnair, Air Canada, Air India) count what you pay. They favour expensive fares, such as short business trips booked at the last minute.

If your employer books you on flexible fares, a spend-based programme may earn faster. If you fly long-haul economy on your own money, a distance-based one usually wins.

What you might give up

Crediting elsewhere isn't free. Some benefits only apply on the programme's own airline, so status from another country's programme may not give you everything your home airline offers its own members. Typical examples:

• upgrades and upgrade vouchers, which are usually only for the programme's own flights
• extra baggage on domestic flights, and home-airline perks such as chauffeurs or special check-in areas
• better award availability, which airlines often reserve for their own members
• family pooling of miles, which some programmes offer and others don't

Alliance-wide benefits such as lounge access, priority check-in and priority boarding still apply at the right tier.

Where you live matters

Your home country affects the maths in ways that aren't obvious at first:

• Credit cards and bank points. Local banks only transfer points to certain programmes, and co-branded cards are usually only for residents. Collecting redeemable miles from everyday spending may push you towards one programme even if you fly with another.
• Resident-only perks. Some programmes lower their targets for local cardholders. Malaysia Airlines, for example, cuts Enrich status targets by 30% for holders of its AmBank card, which is only available in Malaysia. Turkish Airlines sets different renewal targets for Elite members living in Türkiye.
• Currency. Spend-based programmes count in their own currency: Aeroplan in Canadian dollars, Iberia and Finnair in euros. Exchange rates affect what your fare is worth to them.
• Your home airport. If most of your trips start from one airport, check whose lounges you'd actually use there.

Getting the most value for money

• Decide what you want most. Status and free flights don't have to come from the same programme. Many frequent flyers credit flights to the programme that gets them status fastest and send credit card points to the one with the best redemptions.
• Concentrate within an alliance. Spreading flights across several programmes in the same alliance usually leaves you short of status in all of them.
• Work out what a mile is worth to you. Take the cash price of a reward flight, subtract the taxes and surcharges you'd still pay, and divide by the miles needed. Surcharges vary widely between programmes and routes, so the same reward can be good value in one programme and poor in another.
• Check expiry rules. Some miles last three years from when you earn them. Others expire after 18 months without activity, and some programmes, such as Etihad, now only count flights as activity. If you fly rarely, pick a programme whose miles won't disappear.
• Look for fare classes that earn well. A slightly more expensive fare can earn double the miles or more. See how to find your fare class before you book.