Ask Alisha: Getting the best value from Avios

Can Avios really save you money on flights?

Absolutely. When compared to the cash price you would pay for the flight, you are likely to save money on an Avios flight redemption for long-haul first class, business and premium economy, and short-haul business and economy tickets.

However, an Avios flight redemption for long-haul economy tickets tends to be of poor value because the taxes and charges alone often exceed the cash price you can get from travel agents.

Let's take a British Airways flight from London to New York, for example.

Off-peak return Club World (Business Class) seats from London in October 2026 cost around 110,000 Avios and £950, while the cash price is £3400. This is a saving of £2450 by booking Avios reward seats. If you're happy to fly from elsewhere to get a bigger cash savings, fly from Dublin. You'll pay more in Avios but less in cash. Comparing the same dates and cabin class gives you a cost of 130,000 Avios and £320, a further saving of £680 for an extra 20,000 Avios, but this excludes the cost of getting to Dublin, so you'd need to consider if the overall savings would be worth it.

Now let's look at the value of Avios used to book Economy reward seats. Off-peak return World Traveller (Economy) seats from London next October cost about 9,100 Avios and £520, while the cash price is £490, actually making reward seats more expensive, not something you want.

The really big savings come with BA Companion Vouchers, which you can earn with a British Airways American Express credit card linked to a British Airways Club account. Using a BA Companion Voucher means that you'll pay the taxes and charges for two people but the Avios for one. Using the same Business Class example between London and New York above, the London departure costs 110,000 Avios and £1900 for two people, against a cash price of £6800, a huge saving of £4900!

To make sure you find the best value reward seats on your preferred travel dates, it's best to set Alerts with our Reward Flight Finder (RFF) as early as possible, so you don't miss out on them when they become available.

Do I have to be a frequent flyer to get value from Avios?

This is a myth. You DO NOT have to be a frequent flyer to maximise the benefits from Avios. You can collect and spend Avios in many different ways, and not just from booking BA flights. Depending on your preferences, you should easily be able to get value from and enjoy using Avios.

Using a British Airways Avios credit card is a quick route to accumulating enough Avios for a European flight. Especially given that you get sign‑up bonuses and earn Avios on each pound you spend. Using a card for all everyday purchases quickly increases your balance, especially when you purchase items through the BA e‑portal, where retailers offer extra bonuses.

The British Airways American Express® Premium Plus Card and the British Airways American Express® Credit Card both allow you to collect Avios even when you're not flying.

As a new Cardmember, the Premium Plus Card gives you 30,000 bonus Avios when you spend £6,000 in your first three months of Cardmembership, and you earn 1.25 Avios per eligible £1 spent on purchases, including those with British Airways and BA Holidays. You also receive a Companion Voucher each year after spending £15,000 on the Card, which you can use to either take a companion with you in the same flight and cabin or, if travelling solo, a 50% discount on the Avios you pay for your flight. Vouchers are redeemable when you book a British Airways, Iberia or Aer Lingus Reward Flight in any cabin, and Premium Plus Cardmembers may have access to additional Reward flight seats within Club World (business) when booking with a Companion Voucher, subject to availability. Taxes, fees and carrier charges apply per person.

You can still collect Avios without flying, but factor in the Premium Plus reduction when judging the value of future spending. As of 8 September 2026, it earns 1.5 Avios per eligible £1 on general purchases and 3 with British Airways or BA Holidays. Both become 1.25 Avios per eligible £1 from 7 October 2026. Compare the Avios you expect to earn with the card's costs and the travel benefits you will use.

The Premium Plus Card includes travel accident and travel inconvenience insurance, and you can add complimentary supplementary cards for family members or a partner so you can earn Avios faster across household spending. You can also use Avios to partially pay for or upgrade your BA flight to business or first class when reward‑seat availability exists.

In terms of credit terms, the Premium Plus Card has an annual fee of £300 and a 29.1% variable APR for purchases, with a representative 135.7% APR variable (based on a £1200 limit and including the annual fee). The cash‑advance APR is 36.3% per annum, and a foreign‑transaction fee of 2.99% typically applies on non‑sterling purchases. There is no intro balance‑transfer fee or intro annual fee, but late‑payment and return‑payment fees of £12 can apply, and the minimum payment due in any month is at least £25. Full details on APR, penalties, fees and eligibility are set out in the official Amex terms, so you should always check the American Express credit card terms and conditions before applying.

With the British Airways American Express® Credit Card, you collect 5,000 bonus Avios when you spend £2,000 in your first three months of Cardmembership and earn 1 Avios for every £1 spent on purchases. You also receive a Companion Voucher when you spend £15,000 each Cardmembership year on the Card, which you can use to either take a companion with you on the same flight and cabin or, if travelling solo, a 50% discount on the Avios you pay for your flight. Vouchers are redeemable when you book a British Airways, Iberia or Aer Lingus Reward Flight in Euro Traveller, World Traveller and economy class cabins only. Taxes, fees and carrier charges apply per person.

The BA American Express® Credit Card has no annual fee and can be used to collect Avios on everyday spending, with complimentary supplementary cards for family or a partner so you can earn Avios faster across the household. You can also use Avios to partially pay for or upgrade your BA flight to business or first class when reward seats are available.

In terms of credit terms, the BA American Express® Credit Card charges a 29.1% variable APR for purchases, with a representative 29.1% APR variable (based on a £1200 limit). The cash‑advance APR is 36.3% per annum, and a foreign‑transaction fee of 2.99% typically applies on non‑sterling purchases. There is no intro balance‑transfer fee or intro annual fee, and the card carries no ongoing annual fee. However, late‑payment and return‑payment fees of £12 can apply, and the minimum payment due in any month is at least £25. As with the Premium Plus, you should always check the official American Express credit card terms and conditions before applying.

Current sign‑up bonuses are available on the British Airways American Express cards page.

Another option is the American Express® Rewards Credit Card, which earns Membership Rewards points you can convert to Avios. New Cardmembers earn 10,000 Membership Rewards® points when you spend £2,000 in your first three months of Cardmembership (no annual fee). Earn 1 point per £1 spent, redeemable with partners like Amazon and Boots, plus travel and shopping protection.

You can also collect Avios when you book British Airways flights or holidays, affiliated hotels, car hire and travel extras like airport parking, rail transfers and more.

In addition to reward flights, you can spend Avios on seat upgrades, hotel stays, car rentals, memorable experiences and exclusive deals on wine.

You can even reduce the price of regular flight bookings by paying part of the price in Avios. But remember, the more Avios you use, the less you have to pay.

What taxes and surcharges do I have to pay?

Photo Credit: Hotels for 18 year olds

The cost of a flight is formed by the airfare and then there are the taxes and surcharges. The latter include air passenger duties levied by the Government, passenger service charges levied by airports, and fuel and other surcharges levied by the airlines themselves. The surcharges for flights continue to rise due to fuel prices, and they vary by departure, the destination country and class of travel, but expect to pay £500+ in long-haul Economy, approximately £950 in Business and £1700+ in First Class.

Whilst your British Airways Avios cover your airfare, they don't cover the associated taxes and surcharges, you'll need to pay those in cash.

Do I get more value per Avios when I spend it on reward flights, or would it be better to spend them on hotels and car hire?

Reward flights give much better value per Avios than hotels and car hire. At RFF, we tend to value an Avios point at 1p, higher than the fixed value of 0.8p implied by the Avios/Nectar partnership which allows convertibility between Nectar points and Avios. We use these values to calculate whether a deal is good or not in cash terms. In general, assuming no special promotions, hotels and car hire usually offer far less than 1p per Avios. For example, booking through BA Hotels gives you around 0.6p per Avios.

What I'm not accounting for here is each person's perception of value, the flexibility that Avios rewards can have, and the emotional value we attach to flying in premium classes, staying in 5-star hotels, or using luxury lounges. Value is personal and only you can decide what options mean the most to you.

Which cabin class do I save the most on by using Avios?

In hard cash terms, probably long-haul Club World (Business) or First Class, especially if you can use a BA Companion Voucher. Flying further to say Japan, India or Thailand will save you even more in Business Class. First Class seats are becoming rarer to find as airlines reduce their available number or remove the class altogether. But, if you can find long-haul First Class reward seats, I'd consider this the ultimate saving.

Don't forget upgrades of cash-bought tickets either. There is definite value to be had using your British Airways Avios to upgrade from Premium Economy to Business Class, or Business to First, provided reward availability exists in the higher class. Upgrades can be relatively cheap, costing the difference between the Avios cost of a return flight in the higher cabin and that in the lower cabin. Strict rules apply, but a move to Business from Premium Economy can cost as little as 22,500 Avios off-peak for shorter flights. Good news if you only collect modest numbers of Avios every year.

Use our Reward Flight Finder (RFF) to find reward availability in the higher class and grab yourself an upgrade.

With a bit of careful planning, it's simple to get the best BA reward seats for your Avios. And with the savings you can make, you can treat yourself to an extra cocktail or two once you arrive somewhere you've been looking forward to.

Nothing here should be construed as financial advice, and it is your own responsibility to ensure that any product is right for your circumstances. You should seek separate specialist advice if unsure. Opinions are based primarily on the ability to earn Avios. RFF discusses products offered by lenders but is not a lender itself.

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