If your relationship with British Airways status is anything like your relationship with the gym, you’re convinced you’ll “easily hit Gold this year” … right up until life happens and your grand plan becomes three short-hauls and a wistful glance at the lounge doors.
But here’s the good news: With British Airways, you’ve got a better chance of hitting your goals as the revamped system now lets you earn British Airways Tier Points in more ways than ever, with some of them not even requiring you to step on a plane at all.
In this blog, we’ll explain how to boost your tier points beyond flying, map out the status levels, what you get at each tier, and how to plan your climb.
BA switched from a miles flown system to a spend-based model in April 2025. Under this new system, you earn 1 British Airways Tier Point for every £1 of eligible spend on BA-marketed travel and a growing list of extras. The key thresholds for each tier are:
Blue (entry level):
The first level is free, and it basically means you’re in the club. It allows you to share Avios via a Household Account, access member offers, manage seat and meal preferences, and get complimentary onboard Wi-Fi messaging. You’ll earn Avios on travel and purchases and start building British Airways lifetime tier points from day one.
Bronze:
Starts after you’ve earned 3,500 Tier Points or 25 eligible flights. It offers priority check-in and boarding (excluding London City), complimentary seat selection from 7 days prior, status pause for parental leave, and a 5% Wine Flyer discount. You’ll also see boosted Avios earn on British Airways, American Airways and Iberia tickets.
Silver:
Begins at 7,500 Tier Points or 50 eligible flights. It gives you free seat selection at booking, lounge access with BA and oneworld partners, priority, extra baggage, and reservation assurance in Economy. You also get a 10% Wine Flyer discount.
Gold:
This is where things get interesting. Once you’ve earned20,000 Tier Points, you get all of the perks of the previous levels plus First Class check-in and boarding, First Class lounge access, extra 32 kg checked bags, free seat selection for everyone on your booking, extra Economy reward availability, Gold Priority Reward, and Upgrade Vouchers at high annual totals. Hit bigger milestones and you can unlock a partner card, extra Silvers, and even Concorde Room access.
BA tier point thresholds from 1 April 2027
British Airways is raising the Silver and Gold thresholds for the collection year that starts on 1 April 2027. If you're collecting Tier Points now, the current figures still apply until 31 March 2027.
Tier
Collection year 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027
Collection year from 1 April 2027
Bronze
3,500 Tier Points or 25 eligible flights
3,500 Tier Points or 25 eligible flights (no change)
Silver
7,500 Tier Points or 50 eligible flights
8,000 Tier Points or 50 eligible flights
Gold
20,000 Tier Points
21,000 Tier Points
The Tier Point milestones that pay bonus Avios also move up from 1 April 2027, to 5,750, 12,000 and 17,000 Tier Points, and you'll earn fewer extra Tier Points on long-haul World Traveller Plus, Club World and First fares. Source: British Airways, About tier points (checked November 2026).
What’s The Difference Between Avios and Tier Points?
Tier Points also have an expiry date, unlike Avios. British Airways is now standardising the collection year to run from April 1 to March 31. Once you cross a threshold, your new tier status lasts for the rest of that collection year and all of the next one.
Under the updated rules, every pound of an eligible Flight + Hotel or Flight + Car package counts towards the total. Spend £5,448 for two travellers and the pot splits evenly, crediting 2,724 Tier Points each before any cabin bonus. One smart family getaway can shove you most of the way to Bronze, especially if you’ve pre-registered for the introductory bonus.
Paid Extras:
Every pound you spend on an extra, such as seat selection for the exit row on a long-haul, an extra bag for ski season, or even a cash upgrade from World Traveller Plus to Club World at the airport, will now earn you Tier Points. A £200 upgrade becomes 200 Tier Points, often better value than booking a separate positioning flight.
SAF Top-Ups:
Buying Sustainable Aviation Fuel credits earns 1 Tier Point plus 10 Avios per pound, with a maximum of 1,000 Tier Points a year. If you’re just shy of a threshold, this is an ethical way to push your total over the line. It can be especially helpful as your membership year comes to a close. You can also pay with Avios, at a rate of 200 Avios per Tier Point.
Most oneworld partners continue to award Tier Points in the traditional manner (based on distance and cabin class). That means a well-priced short-haul Business Class hop on, say, Iberia or Finnair, can still deliver a meaningful haul of British Airways Tier Points.
Enter your flight costs
New Revenue-Based System
This calculator does not include every fixed extra Tier Point award, partner-airline rule or British Airways Holidays allocation. Check the estimate in the British Airways booking flow or Manage My Booking before making a status-led purchase.
About the British Airways Club Tier Point system:
On British Airways-marketed flights, you earn 1 Tier Point per £1 of eligible fare and carrier-imposed charges. Government and airport taxes are excluded.
From 1 April 2026, BA-marketed flights also earn fixed extra Tier Points for each flown sector, based on the route, cabin and fare type. American Airlines- and Iberia-marketed flights receive fixed extra Tier Points based on haul and cabin.
Eligible paid bags, seating and Sustainable Aviation Fuel contributions earn 2 Tier Points per £1. SAF contributions are capped at 2,000 Tier Points per collection year.
BA now sprinkles bonus Avios as you climb: hit 5,500, 11,000, and 16,000 Tier Points, and you’ll receive 2,500, 4,000, and 5,000 Avios, respectively. Use them to book flights with Avios, pay part of a fare, or book Avios award flights during shoulder season for great value.
How Fast Can You Climb Tiers?
It all boils down to how much travelling you can do in a year. With the new model, your year can look remarkably efficient:
A timely Club Europe weekend during the bonus window might clock about £1,500 in eligible spend, so around 1,500 Tier Points plus the promotional top-up.
One or two thoughtful extras (seat selection, a small cash upgrade) and a SAF top-up could put Silver within reach, without ever booking a throwaway flight.
When Does Your New Tier Kick In and How Long Does It Last?
Once you hit the threshold, BA typically updates your account within 48 hours. Your elevated status then remains in effect for the remainder of your current collection year, plus the entire next membership year (unless you achieve a higher status again).
Thanks to the new standardised cycle, it’s easier to plan your push without calendar confusion. And remember: even while your Yearly Tier Points reset, your British Airways lifetime tier points continue to grow.
Final Thoughts
Some flyers were understandably disappointed when mileage runs lost their value. But the new programme rewards planning: funnel trips through British Airways Holidays, use reasonable upgrades and add-ons as Tier Point accelerators, deploy SAF for a targeted nudge, and let your BA Amex Premium Plus spend add a steady tailwind. Look out for promotional bonus Tier Points by cabin, and use a British Airways tier point calculator to sanity-check every move.
Do that, and the journey from Blue to Bronze to Silver (and yes, even Gold) becomes a matter of orchestrated spend rather than endless flights. Ultimately, you’ve now got more ways than ever to make every pound work, on the ground and in the air.
Douglas
