The 7 best airline loyalty programmes in Europe

One way to make the business travel experience a little more enjoyable is to collect loyalty points and redeem miles from airlines.

If you’re already a frequent flyer, it takes minimal effort to sign up for a loyalty programme, earning you access to nicer lounges, better seats at no cost and sometimes even a free flight that you can put towards an upcoming vacation. What’s not to love?

Every company’s travel policy has different guidelines around collecting and using loyalty points, so make sure to check with your travel manager or office manager first.

A common rule of thumb is that it’s okay to choose your preferred carrier, so long as the cost is not more than 10% greater than an alternative, but some companies request that you choose the lower-priced carrier every time–no matter what.

TravelPerk allows travellers to save their loyalty programme numbers so that they get used whenever possible. The more loyalty programmes, the merrier!

Below, you’ll find information on all of the best frequent flyer programmes in Europe, including partner airlines, destinations and rewards.

But how do you choose the right one? The only way to get great benefits is to fly often, so choose the programme whose airlines you’ll frequently fly with.

Most airlines are part of alliances, and their loyalty programme partners overlap. We’ve done the heavy lifting for you by selecting the best of the best programmes.

Flying Blue

Flying Blue is the Air France and KLM frequent flyer programme. A standout feature of Flying Blue is that they allow you to collect points when flying with one of their 18 different partner airlines. The programme allows you to earn air miles for every euro spent–miles that can be used for class upgrades and new trips!

Certain tiers of Flying Blue also give you access to airport lounges and offer steep discounts on seat options. If Paris and Amsterdam are business travel hotspots for you, then there’s no reason not to sign up.

Another bonus—you can link your American Express credit card to Flying Blue, helping you rack up additional miles with normal household expenses.

Partner Airlines:

Aerolíneas Argentinas

Aeromexico

Air Corsica

Air Europa

Air France

Air Mauritius

airBaltic

Aircalin

Bangkok Airways

Chalair Aviation

China Airlines

China Eastern

China Southern Airlines

Copa Airlines

Czech Airlines

Delta Air Lines

Etihad Airways

Garuda Indonesia

GOL

Japan Airlines

Kenya Airways

KLM

Korean Air

Malaysia Airlines

Middle East Airlines

Qantas Airways

Saudi Arabian Airlines

TAROM

Transavia

Twin Jet

Vietnam Airlines

Virgin Atlantic

WestJet

Winair

Xiamen Airlines

Tiers & Benefits

Check out the different levels of this programme and how to move up the ladder of benefits.

Experience (XP) can be earned in many ways. E.g. you can get 5 XP on an economy flight under 2,000 miles and 36 XP on a business class flight over 5,000 miles. View all the ways to collect XP here.

Tier Name

Explorer

Silver

Gold

Platinum

Qualification

Free

100 XP (Experience Points)

180 XP

300 XP

Earn and spend miles with all partners

Use miles to upgrade in advance or on board

Earn miles per £ spent on flights and options

Earn 4 Miles per £ spent

Earn 6 Miles per £ spent

Earn 7 Miles per £ spent

Earn 8 Miles per £ spent

Extra baggage allowance

Up to £10 discount on 1st paid check-in baggage on AirFrance, KLM and HOP!

1 extra baggage allowance on AirFrance, KLM and HOP!

Lounge access

With air miles

Free for you and a guest on international AirFrance and KLM flights

Priority check-in

Other awesome benefits from Flying Blue include free transfers for Gold and Platinum members from Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Paris-Orly. Discover the full list of benefits here.

Get the ultimate travel management guide. It's a game-changer.

Flying Club

Brought to you by Virgin Atlantic, Flying Club also allows you to rack up flights for Delta Airlines, Air France or Hawaiian Airlines. Unfortunately, tea with Sir Richard Branson is not part of the perks, but there are plenty of other cool rewards, such as exit row seats and premium check-in.

Always wanted to chillax in the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse instead of your usual madhouse terminal at Heathrow? Now’s your chance. The swanky clubhouse isn’t just for first class flyers, it’s open to Gold Tier members of the Flying Club as well.

So if British and Asian destinations are part of your regular routes with Virgin Atlantic, consider signing up. Even better, you’ll get free seat selection every time you fly.

Partner Airlines:

Aerolíneas Argentinas

AeroMexico

AirEuropa

AirFrance

China Airlines

China Eastern Airlines

Czech Airlines

Delta

Garuda Indonesia Airlines

ITA Airways

Kenya Airways

KLM

Korean Air

MEA

Saudia

Tarom

Vietnam Airlines

XiamenAir

Air New Zealand

ANA

Hawaiian Airlines

IndiGo

Latam Airlines

Scandinavian Airlines

Singapore Airlines

South African Airways

Virgin Australia

Tiers & Benefits

Learn about the benefits of each tier and how to qualify.

Tier Name

Red Tier

Silver Tier

Gold Tier

Qualification

No qualifications

400 Tier Points per year (approximately 4 economy round-trip flights in one year)

1000 Tier Points (approximately 10 economy round-trip flights in one year)

Earn miles on every flight

Additional bonus miles on every flight

30%

60%

Spend miles on Reward Flights

Pay for flights with Miles Plus Money

Free seat selection ahead of your flight in Economy Light

Anytime for member only

Anytime for member and party

Complimentary Exit row seats in Economy Classic

Extra hand and hold baggage

Upper-Class check-in flying in any cabin

Premium check-in flying in any cabin

Exclusive Clubhouse passes for you plus one guest

One complimentary Clubhouse spa treatment plus 10% off thereafter

Access to London Heathrow Revivals Lounge

Little extras like bonus birthday miles and cabin upgrades (when you earn 2,000 Tier Points within a membership year) make this loyalty programme particularly enticing. Another special feature is the Flying Club’s Points Booster, enabling you to score extra points for cheap using bonus promotions.

Even better, Virgin Atlantic is now a member of the SkyTeam alliance, helping you reap even more rewards when you book with one of the sixteen member airlines. Learn more and get started by signing up for the Red Tier of the Flying Club.

Miles & More by Lufthansa

One of the largest frequent flyer programmes in Europe, Lufthansa’s Miles and More is particularly attractive for those in the DACH area.

In addition to airlines such as Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines and SWISS, you can reap your rewards with Air China, Air New Zealand, Turkish Airlines, United Airlines and South African Airways.

With so many Star Alliance partners, it’d be almost silly not to sign up and start racking up points. The standout benefits of this programme are the cabin upgrades and priority check-in. Better yet, you can redeem mileage points at over 300,000 hotels worldwide.

In any airline rewards programme comparison, this one will rank towards the top, simply because there are so many big airlines in this partnership—and hotels including the international Marriott chain.

Partner Airlines:

Aegean Airlines

Air Astana

Air Canada

Air China

Air Dolomiti

Air India

Air Malta

Air New Zealand

All Nippon Airways

Asiana Airlines

Austrian Airlines

Avianca

Brussels Airlines

Cathay Pacific Airways

Copa Airlines

Croatia Airlines

Discover Airlines

EGYPTAIR

Ethiopian Airlines

Eurowings

EVA Air

LATAM

LOT Polish Airlines

Lufthansa

Luxair

Olympic Airlines

SAS

Shenzhen Airlines

Singapore Airlines

South African Airways

Swiss International Air Lines

TAP Portugal

Thai Airways

THAI Smile Airways

Turkish Airlines

United

Vistara

Tiers & Benefits

Tier Name

Member

Frequent Traveller

Senator

HON Circle Member

Qualification

1 award mile

35,000 status miles or 30 scheduled

100,000 status miles in a calendar year

600,000 HON Circle miles in 2 consecutive calendar years

Miles don’t expire

Fly one class higher

2 vouchers for class upgrade upon status attainment and when status is extended

6 vouchers for class upgrade upon status attainment and when status is extended

Guaranteed booking

Up to 48 hours before departure in the highest booking class in Business Class, Premium Economy and Economy

Up to 24 hours before departure in the highest booking class in Business Class, Premium Economy and Economy

Waitlist priority

Third highest waitlist priority

Second highest waitlist priority

Highest waitlist priority

Preferential check-in

Business class check-in

First Class check-in or Premium check-in

Free baggage allowance

1 additional bag in Economy, 2 in Premium Economy, 3 in First Class

2 bags in Economy, 3 in Premium Economy, 4 in First Class

Lounge access

Business Lounge

Senator and Star Gold Lounges

Lufthansa First Class, SWISS First and Austrian HON Circle Lounge, First Class Terminal in Frankfurt

Access to First Class

Only with First Class Ticket (Lufthansa, SWISS)

Regardless of service class (Air Dolomiti, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, SWISS)

Exclusive service hotline

Senator Tier card for spouse / partner

One last standout feature? The most unique reward of the Miles and More programme is the Round the World ticket: in exchange for 180,000 miles, you can cross the Pacific or Atlantic oceans in up to ten flight segments. Learn more about the programme and sign up here.

Save money when booking flights for business travel today!

Executive Club by British Airways

With a recently-announced shakeup to its Executive Club loyalty scheme, British Airways is switching all Executive Club members over to a fixed membership from 2025.

The update plans to remove the programme’s complexities by aligning the collection year for tier points (gold, silver or bronze) into a universal status-earning year for its members. Here’s the system as it currently stands:

Partner Airlines:

British Airways

American Airlines

Finnair

Iberia

Aer Lingus

Japan Airlines

Qatar Airways

China Southern Airlines

Tiers & Benefits

Tier Name

Blue

Bronze

Silver

Gold

Qualification

Free

300 Tier Points

600 Tier Points

1500 Tier Points

Priority check-in

Priority boarding

First Class check-in and boarding

Access to business lounges

Access to First Class lounges

Bonus Avios on every flight

25% bonus Avios

50% bonus Avios

100% bonus Avios

Free seat selection

24 hours before departure

7 days before departure

At time of booking

Additional baggage allowance

Gold Upgrade vouchers

Given at 2500 and 3500 Tier Points in a year

Pool Avios with a household account (including up to 6 people)

Avios can be spent on holidays, hotels, car hire and more. The fact that you can pool Avios together with a household of six makes this programme a no-brainer for anyone who regularly travels with kids, in addition to the usual business travel grind.

TrueBlue

Want to get points for taking surveys? You can! Surveys aren’t very fun, but when you can earn points for them… they might be tolerable. The other way to earn points with TrueBlue is to fly JetBlue, so if that’s a regular carrier for you, then go ahead and sign up for free today.

Get ready to rack up points quickly, and spend them on anything from flights to activities such as sightseeing, jet skis, you name it.

Partner Airlines:

JetBlue

JSX

Qatar Airways

Hawaiian Airlines

Icelandair

Silver Airways

Singapore Airlines

South African Airways

Tiers & Benefits

Collect three points for every pound spent. You can spend points on JetBlue Vacation packages, magazine subscriptions and flights to Hawaii with Hawaiian Airlines (a great carrier to a great destination, by the way).

You can also get bonus points for special things, such as receiving 7,000 points when you’ve booked 7 round-trip flights in a year.

Tier Name

TrueBlue

TrueBlue Mosaic

Qualification

Free

15,000 flight points in one year

No blackout dates for spending points

Use points for any seat, any time

Points don’t expire

Pool points with your family

No change or cancellation fees

1st and 2nd bag are free

Expedited security line

Early boarding

Earn points on every flight

3 per pound spent

6 per pound spent

Dedicated customer service line

Complimentary alcoholic beverages onboard

Aeroflot Bonus

The Aeroflot Bonus programme includes a range of great partner airlines including AirEuropa and Czech Airlines. You can also redeem your points with partners including banks, restaurants, hotels and car rental services.

Aeroflot Bonus points can be used towards hotel bookings and shopping sprees. Get to the top tier of the programme, and you’ll receive 3 class upgrade vouchers! You can also spend your miles on a donation to a charity of your choice.

Partner Airlines:

Aeroflot

AeroMexico

AirEuropa

China Airlines

China Eastern Airlines

China Southern Airlines

Czech Airlines

Garuda Indonesia

MEA

Saudia

Vietnam Airlines

XiamenAir

Tiers & Benefits

Tier Name

Aeroflot Bonus

Silver

Gold

Platinum

Qualification

Free

20,000 miles

40,000 miles

100,000 miles

Lounge access

VIP lounge access

Priority check-in

Expedited security line

Priority boarding

Priority service at ticket/transfer desks

Dedicated check-in desks

Extra baggage allowance

One checked bag free

Priority baggage drop off

In advance seat reservation

Free

Economy class seats with more space

50% off the cost

Free

Service class upgrades

3 upgrades allowed during Tier duration

Guaranteed paid booking on fully booked flights

Priority waitlist for paid bookings

Extra bonus miles for all flights

+25%

+50%

+75%

Learn more about Aeroflot Bonus and sign up here.

AAdvantage by American Airlines

American Airlines’ AAdvantage offers frequent flyers elite status when travelling. It differs to mileage earning, which can be done through oneworld airlines when travelling with American, but allows you to build loyalty points based on flying, credit card spending or other activities.

You’ll earn miles when you fly on American or one of the 1000 partner airlines.

The largest airline membership programme in the world, with over 100 million members—and it’s free to join! You can spend your points on a huge variety of perks, from discounted holidays to car rentals, hotel stays and products from retail partners, mainly based in the US.

Partner Airlines:

American Airlines

Alaska Airlines

British Airways

Cathay Pacific

Finnair

Iberia

Japan Airlines

Malaysia Airlines

Qantas

Qatar Airways

Royal Air Maroc

Royal Jordanian Airlines

SriLankan Airlines

Aer Lingus

Air Tahiti Nui

Cape Air

China Southern Airlines

Etihad Airways

Fiji Airways

GOL Airlines

Hawaiian Airlines

IndiGo

JetBlue*

JetSMART

Silver Airways

Air Tahiti Nui

Alaska Airlines

American Airlines

British Airways

Cape Air

Cathay Pacific

Etihad Airways

Fiji Airways

Finnair

GOL Airlines

Hawaiian Airlines

Iberia

Japan Airlines

JetBlue**

Malaysia Airlines

Qantas Airways

Qatar Airways

Royal Air Maroc

Royal Jordanian Airlines

Silver Airways

SriLankan Airlines

Tiers & Benefits:

Tier Name

Gold

Platinum

Platinum Pro

Executive Platinum

Qualification

40,000 points

75,000 points

125,000 points

200,000 points

Lounge access

First class lounge access with other airlines

Priority check-in

Expedited security line

Priority boarding

Priority service at ticket/transfer desks

Extra baggage allowance

One free checked bag

Two free checked bags

Three free checked bags

Priority baggage drop off

In advance seat reservation

Free

Economy class seats with more space

Service class upgrades

Complimentary upgrades on North American American Airlines flights (lowest priority)

Higher priority than Gold

Higher priority than Platinum

Highest priority

Guaranteed paid booking on fully booked flights

Priority waitlist for paid bookings

Extra bonus miles for all flights

40% status mileage bonus

60% status mileage bonus

80% status mileage bonus

120% status mileage bonus

Make the most out of flights with these airline loyalty programmes in Europe!

Do you fly frequently for business travel to European cities? Do you wish you could book your own flights instead of dialling a travel agent or sending an email to your office manager? TravelPerk makes it easy for business travellers—flying in America, Asia or anywhere in the world—to book their own flights within policy. And even better, we allow you to save your loyalty programme information, so you can easily add it on to every booking and get those points sky-high too!

A woman working on a laptop while waiting at an airport terminal.

The best airline loyalty programmes in Europe

Flying Blue

Partner Airlines:

Tiers & Benefits

Get the ultimate travel management guide. It's a game-changer.

Flying Club

Partner Airlines:

Tiers & Benefits

Miles & More by Lufthansa

Partner Airlines:

Tiers & Benefits

Save money when booking flights for business travel today!

Executive Club by British Airways

Partner Airlines:

Tiers & Benefits

TrueBlue

Partner Airlines:

Tiers & Benefits

Aeroflot Bonus

Partner Airlines:

Tiers & Benefits

AAdvantage by American Airlines

Partner Airlines:

Tiers & Benefits:

Make the most out of flights with these airline loyalty programmes in Europe!

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