“Avios” is the name of the points currency shared by several airline frequent flyer programs: British Airways, Iberia, Finnair, Aer Lingus and Qatar Airways. Points earned through one of those programs can be moved around to any of the others. That provides quite a bit of flexibility, but also creates some complexity as well.
Each of these Avios programs have slightly different rules and pricing for booking awards. In some cases British Airways (BA) is the best choice. Other times, it might be Iberia or Qatar. This post explains the best uses of Avios across all programs.
Avios Redemption Tips
Avios can provide great value with short flights
One key sweet spot for Avios is short flights on oneworld airlines. Since the various Avios programs use distance-based award charts, you’ll pay fewer points for shorter flights. You may only need a small number of Avios to fly to a nearby city or country and that can be very useful when moving between nearby countries on the borders of different award pricing “zones.”
Many of the best uses highlighted below focus on the best values to/from North America in economy class and business class, but keep in mind that Avios can come in handy when you’re looking to take a short hop on Japan Airlines from Tokyo to Seoul or to fly between Melbourne and Sydney on Qantas or between the Maldives and Sri Lanka on Sri Lankan. In some cases, flights like those can be quite expensive when paying with cash, making them excellent value when using Avios instead.
Lap infant awards are a sweet spot with British Airways
For those traveling with a lap infant, British Airways is one of the few programs to charge a percentage of the award cost rather than a percentage of the cash cost. Lap infant award tickets booked via British Airways Executive Club cost 10% of the Avios for an adult ticket. In other words, if an adult ticket costs 60,000 Avios, the lap infant ticket costs 6,000 Avios.
Unfortunately, Iberia follows the more common pricing model of 10% of the cash fare and Qatar Privilege Club charges 15% of the cost of a revenue fare (and the process sounds difficult). If you’re traveling with a lap infant, you probably want to book via British Airways in most cases.
Taxes and fees can vary dramatically between programs
British Airways is well known for having very high carrier-imposed surcharges on its own flights; if you must fly British Airways you could easily be on the hook for over a thousand dollars round trip in premium cabins.
That said, British Airways has now made it easier to pay more Avios to reduce those surcharges. For instance, an off-peak Business Class award from New York to London was long advertised as costing 50,000 Avios one-way — and $950. These days, while you can still pay that amount, the default option when I search on an off-peak date is 80,000 Avios and $350. One still has the option to pay 50K + $950, but the alternative of paying an additional 30K Avios to avoid $600 in fees yields a reasonable value of $0.02 per Avios for the extra points:
By contrast, using Iberia Avios to fly on British Airways is not as good a deal as booking with British Airways Avios. The same British Airways business class flight from New York to London shown above via British Airways Avios would cost 80,000 Avios and $981 via Iberia Plus Avios:
Iberia charges much more reasonable fuel surcharges on its own flights when they are booked via Iberia Plus Avios. For instance, on the same off-peak date used above for the British Airways flight from New York to London, one could instead fly from New York to Madrid on Iberia in business class for 34,000 Avios and $117.10:
In that particular instance, British Airways charges the same 34,000 Avios and $117.10 one-way on Iberia. If you’re a parent traveling with a lap infant, you’d be better off booking via BA since they will charge 10% of the adult price for a lap infant ticket.
Avios award cancellation policies vary between programs
There are significant differences in the award cancellation policies of the various Avios programs:
Aer Lingus AerClub
Changes or cancellations on an award are allowed up to 24 hours before departure for a €42.50 fee by contacting Aer Lingus.
British Airways
For accounts that are registered in the US, there is a fee to change or cancel an award ticket that is equal to the total taxes and fees or $55, whichever is less. That fee goes up by $25 if it’s done via a call center.
Finnair Plus
Changes on an award are allowed up to 24 hours before departure for a €50 fee. Award ticket cancellations are allowed up to 24 hours before departure, but taxes and fees are not refunded (points are).
Iberia Plus
For travel on Iberia, you can change or cancel an award up to 24 hours before departure for a €25 fee. Within 24 hours, awards can’t be changed or cancelled for a refund. Partner awards are non-refundable.
Qatar Airways
You can change or cancel an award up to 24 hours before departure by paying a $25 fee. Between 3 and 24 hours of departure, that fee goes up to $100. Within 3 hours of departure, there is no refund for changes or cancellations.
How to Earn Avios
Credit Cards
One of the easiest and quickest way to earn Avios is through credit card welcome offers. Below are the current cards that earn Avios directly:
| Card Offer |
|---|
75K Avios ⓘ Affiliate Earn 75K Avios after $3K spend in 6 months$95 Annual Fee This card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (click here for details). Recent better offer: Expired 7/4/22: 100K after $5K spend |
| Card Offer |
|---|
75K Avios ⓘ Non-Affiliate Earn 75K Avios after $3K spend in 6 months$95 Annual Fee This card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (click here for details). Information about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy. Recent better offer: Expired 7/4/22: 100K after $5K spend |
| Card Offer |
|---|
75K Avios ⓘ Non-Affiliate Earn 75K Avios after $3K spend in 6 months$95 Annual Fee This card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (click here for details). Information about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy. Recent better offer: Expired 7/4/22: 100K after $5K spend |
Transfer from Partners
The following transfer currencies can be converted to Avios:
Rewards Program Amex Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)Chase Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)Citi Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)Capital One Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)Bilt Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)Wells Fargo Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)
Aer Lingus Avios 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 via Qatar (~1 day) 1 to 1 via BA (Instant) 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 (Unknown)
British Airways Avios 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 via Qatar (~1 day) 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 (Unknown)
Iberia Avios 1 to 1 (~12 - 72 hours (slower over weekend)) 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 via Qatar (~1 day) 1 to 1 via BA (Instant) 1 to 1 (Instant) 1 to 1 (Unknown)
Qatar Privilege Club Avios 1 to 1 (12 - 24 hours) 1 to 1 via BA (Instant) 1 to 1 (~1 day) 1 to 1 via BA (Instant) 1 to 1 via BA (Instant) 1 to 1 via BA (Unknown)
In some cases, a transferable currency might only directly transfer to one Avios program. For instance, Citi ThankYou Rewards can only be transferred to Qatar Airways, but once you’ve done that, you can then move the Avios to your British Airways, Iberia, or Aer Lingus account.
How to combine Avios across programs
Avios can be freely moved across BA, Iberia, Finnair Qatar and Aer Lingus. To do so, you must have an account with each program.
It’s very important to ensure that all of your personal information (name, email, birth date, address, phone number) is exactly the same with each program.
If you want to move points to/from Iberia, note these additional requirements:
- You cannot move points to/from Iberia within 90 days of joining the Iberia Plus program. So, this is a good reason to enroll in Iberia Plus now, even if you don’t have any immediate need for it.
- Your Iberia account must have had some activity within the past 36 months (points earned or redeemed). An easy option is to transfer 1,000 points from Amex Membership Rewards or Chase Ultimate Rewards.
- If moving points from Iberia to British Airways, your British Airways account cannot be a household account (but you may be able to get around this by transferring points first to Aer Lingus and then to British Airways).
Interestingly, you may be able to book Qatar Airways flights using Avios in your British Airways Executive Club account without even moving them to Qatar Privilege Club. More detail can be found here: Finding Qatar availability and booking it without moving Avios.
How to share Avios with others
The best way to share Avios with others is via a Household Account, which allows to pool together Avios that were previously held previously in separate accounts. Full details about Household Accounts can be found on BA’s website here.
Avios Award Charts
When booking an award on British Airways or Iberia-operated flights, the number of Avios required depends on which airline you want to fly. Whether you book the award from your BA account or your Iberia account, the number of required Avios will be the same. Strangely, the taxes and fees often vary between the two, so it makes sense to look up award prices on both websites in order to find the cheapest option.
British Airways is notorious for the high surcharges that it imposes on its award flights. In addition to the charts listed below, it has now implemented an additional redemption option called “Reward Flight Saver.” This effectively allows you to pay additional Avios in exchange for lower fees. It can sometimes be a much better deal than paying those fees directly in cash.
Award chart for travel on British Airways, Finnair, Iberia or Qatar
The British Airways (BA) and Iberia (IB) award charts for travel on their own metal are similar but not identical. Both offer peak and off-peak pricing based on the date flown.
Here is the award chart for British Airways:
| Distance (in miles) | Economy Off-Peak/Peak | Premium Economy Off-Peak/Peak | Business Off-Peak/Peak | First Class Off-Peak/Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-650 | 4,000 / 4,500 | 5,750 / 6,750 | 7,750 / 9,000 | 15,500 / 18,000 |
| 651-1150 | 6,500 / 7,500 | 9,500 / 11,250 | 12,750 / 15,000 | 25,500 / 30,000 |
| 1151-2000 | 8,500 / 10,000 | 12,750 / 15,000 | 17,000 / 20,000 | 34,000 / 40,000 |
| 2001-3000 | 10,000 / 12,500 | 20,000 / 25,000 | 31,250 / 37,500 | 42,500 / 50,000 |
| 3001-4000 | 13,000 / 20,000 | 26,000 / 40,000 | 50,000 / 60,000 | 68,000 / 80,000 |
| 4001-5500 | 16,250 / 25,000 | 32,500 / 50,000 | 62,500 / 75,000 | 85,000 / 100,000 |
| 5501-6500 | 19,500 / 30,000 | 39,000 / 60,000 | 75,000 / 90,000 | 102,000 / 120,000 |
| 6501-7000 | 22,750 / 35,000 | 45,000 / 75,000 | 87,500 / 105,000 | 119,000 / 140,000 |
| 7001+ | 32,500 / 50,000 | 65,000 / 100,000 | 125,000 / 150,000 | 170,000 / 200,000 |
Here is Iberia’s award chart (which also applies to Vueling flights):
| Distance (in miles) | Economy Off-Peak/Peak | Premium Economy Off-Peak/Peak | Business Off-Peak/Peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-650 | 4,500 / 5,000 | 9,000 / 10,000 | |
| 651-1150 | 7,500 / 8,250 | 15,000 / 16,500 | |
| 1151-2000 | 10,000/ 11,000 | 20,000 / 22,000 | |
| 2001-3000 | 11,000 / 12,500 | 21,250 / 31,250 | |
| 3001-4000 | 17,000 / 20,000 | 25,500 / 35,000 | 34,000 / 50,000 |
| 4001-5500 | 21,250 / 25,000 | 31,750 / 43,750 | 42,500 / 62,500 |
| 5501-6500 | 25,500 / 30,000 | 38,250 / 52,500 | 51,000 / 75,000 |
| 6501-7000 | 29,750 / 35,000 | 44,250 / 61,250 | 59,500 / 87,500 |
| 7001+ | 42,500 / 50,000 | 63,750 / 87,500 | 85,000 / 125,000 |
As you can see above, during off-peak dates, it is almost always a bit cheaper to fly BA economy vs. Iberia economy. However, to fly business class, BA is only cheaper for short flights whereas Iberia is much cheaper for long flights. Peak dates follow a similar pattern, but the award price differences are more modest.
Finnair’s award chart for flights on its own metal looks a bit different than both Iberia and BA, primarily because it still prices everything based on zones instead of distance and doesn’t use peak/off-peak pricing:
| Zone | Economy | Premium Economy | Business |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1: Finland and Northern Europe | 6,500 | 10,000 | |
| 2: Central Europe | 12,000 | 18,000 | |
| 3: Western and Southern Europe | 13,000 | 20,000 | |
| 4: Canary Islands, Madeira and Israel | 15,000 | 25,000 | |
| 5: Doha, Dubai and India | 28,000 | 42,000 | 55,000 |
| 6/7: Asia and North America | 30,000 | 43,500 | 62,500 |
In general, Finnair tends to be slightly more expensive across the board for most flights, with the notable exception of some long-haul business routes (especially when compared to peak Iberia/BA pricing). Award flights on Finnair’s own metal are priced by segment, so a connecting itinerary will cost the sum of the prices for each individual leg.
Qatar Airways doesn’t publish a chart for its own flights, instead offering an online calculator tool, which allows you to search the amount of Avios that are required for various redemptions. Even though there’s no published chart, Qatar still prices its awards by geographic zone and utilizes peak and off-peak pricing. All cities in the US and Canada belong to the same zone. In general, a saver flight between Doha and North America cost 35,000-47,500 in economy, 70,000-94,500K in business and 105,000-142,000 in First Class (depending on whether the pricing is peak or off-peak)
Award chart for travel on a single Avios partner
If you intend to fly another airlines using British Airways, Finnair Iberia or Qatar Avios, then the following chart is in effect for most partners:
| Distance (in miles) | Economy Class | Premium Economy | Business Class | First Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-650 | 6,000 | 9,000 | 12,500 | 24,000 |
| 651-1151 | 9,000 | 12,500 | 16,500 | 33,000 |
| 1152-2000 | 11,000 | 16,500 | 22,000 | 44,000 |
| 2001-3000 | 13,000 | 25,750 | 38,750 | 51,500 |
| 3001-4000 | 20,750 | 41,250 | 62,000 | 82,500 |
| 4001-5500 | 25,750 | 51,500 | 77,250 | 103,000 |
| 5501-6500 | 31,000 | 62,000 | 92,750 | 123,750 |
| 6501-7000 | 36,250 | 72,250 | 108,250 | 144,250 |
| 7001+ | 51,500 | 103,000 | 154,500 | 206,000 |
Not all partner airlines follow this chart completely and there are numerous exceptions, as outlined below.
British Airways
Starting in 2021, British Airways began introducing slightly different pricing for flights in certain zones on specific partner airlines. The following partners are affected in the listed zones:
American Airlines and Alaska Airlines (inter-North America flights only)
- Zone 1 (0-650 miles): 12,000 economy / 24,000 business
- Zone 2 (651-1151 miles flown): 16,000 economy / 32,000 business
- Zone 3 (1151-2000 miles flown): 18,000 economy / 40,000 business
- Zone 4 (2001-3000 miles flown): 20,000 economy / 50,000 business
Cathay Pacific
- Zone 1 (0-650 miles): 7,500 economy / 16,000 business
- Zone 2 (651-1151 miles flown): 10,000 economy / 25,000 business
- Zone 3 (1152-2000 miles flown): 11,000 economy / 25,000 business
Japan Airlines
- Zone 1 (0-650 miles): 7,500 economy / 12,500 business
- Zone 2 (651-1151 miles flown): 10,000 economy / 24,000 business
- Zone 3 (1152-2000 miles flown): 11,000 economy / 24,000 business
Qatar Airways
- Zone 1 (0-650 miles): 7,000 economy / 16,000 business / 21,000 first
- Zone 2 (651-1151 miles flown): 10,000 economy / 24,000 business / 39,000 first
Finnair
Finnair’s partner award pricing generally follows a similar (though not identical) structure to the BA award chart listed above. However, since Finnair still operates based on zones, it lists a separate chart for each partner with pricing displayed by region according to the home country from which that partner operates.
Unlike its own flights, Finnair prices partner awards by destination and origin, regardless of whether or not there are multiple legs.
Like British Airways, Finnair also has elevated minimum pricing for many partners, with some bizarre variances in premium cabin pricing:
Alaska Airlines
- Within Continental US/Canada: 11,000 economy / 40,000 first
American Airlines
- Within Continental US/Canada: 11,000 economy / 30,000 first
Cathay Pacific
- Hong Kong – China: 11,000 economy / 18,000 business / 30,000 first
Iberia
- Flights within Spain: 9,200 economy/ 15,000 business
- Spain – Canary Islands: 12,500 economy / 23,000 business
- Spain – Europe: 14,000 economy / 27,000 business
Japan Airlines
- Flights within Japan: 8,500 economy/ 14,500 business
- Japan – Korea: 11,500 economy / 19,000 business
Qantas Airlines
- Flights within Australia: 13,000 economy/ 22,500 business / 42,000 first
Qatar Airways
- Qatar – UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman: 8,500 economy / 15,000 business / 26,500 first
Royal Jordanian
- Flights within Jordan: 9,000 economy / 12,000 business
Sri Lankan Airlines
- Sri Lanka – India (except for Delhi), Maldives: 10,000 economy / 18,000 business
Iberia
For years, Iberia had a different award chart for each partner that they had (and still posts a separate chart for each one). That said, most are identical now, and follow the same pricing as BA for single partners.
The only redemption partner that still has a different award chart is LEVEL, Iberia’s low-cost carrier. Those awards are priced based on the following tiers:
Off-Peak LEVEL awards
- Zone 6 (4001-5500 miles): 21,250 economy / 31,750 premium economy
- Zone 7 (5501-6500 miles flown): 25,500 economy / 38,250 premium economy
- Zone 8 (6501-7000 miles flown): 29,750 economy / 44,250 premium economy
Peak LEVEL awards
- Zone 6 (4001-5500 miles): 25,000 economy / 43,750 premium economy
- Zone 7 (5501-6500 miles flown): 30,000 economy / 52,500 premium economy
- Zone 8 (6501-7000 miles flown): 35,000 economy / 61,250 premium economy
Qatar Airways
Qatar uses the same partner award chart as BA. Qatar only allows partner awards with a single partner airline, doesn’t allow stopovers, but will permit open-jaws.
Like BA, Qatar has elevated pricing for inter-North America flights on AA and Alaska:
American Airlines and Alaska Airlines (inter-North America flights only)
- Zone 1 (0-650 miles): 9,500 economy / 20,000 business
- Zone 2 (651-1151 miles flown): 13,000 economy / 27,000 business
- Zone 3 (1152-2000 miles flown): 14,500 economy / 34,000 business
- Zone 4 (2001-3000 miles flown): 16,000 economy / 43,000 business
Qatar also has a partnership with JetBlue, and this can be a surprisingly good use of Avios.
Award chart for travel on multiple British Airways partners
Unlike Iberia and Qatar, BA will allow award bookings with multiple partners and it can be a appealing sweet spot for Avios. That said, it’s a complex award to book and, if you plan to fly multiple BA partners on a single award, yet another chart comes into play:
| Distance (in miles) | Economy Class | Premium Economy | Business Class | First Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-650 | 30,000 | 45,000 | 60,000 | 90,000 |
| 1501-4000 | 35,000 | 52,500 | 70,000 | 105,000 |
| 4001-9000 | 60,000 | 90,000 | 120,000 | 180,000 |
| 9001-10000 | 70,000 | 105,000 | 140,000 | 210,000 |
| 10001-14000 | 90,000 | 135,000 | 180,000 | 270,000 |
| 14001-20000 | 100,000 | 150,000 | 200,000 | 300,000 |
| 20001-25000 | 120,000 | 180,000 | 240,000 | 360,000 |
| 25001-35000 | 140,000 | 210,000 | 280,000 | 420,000 |
| 35001-50000 | 160,000 | 240,000 | 320,000 | 480,000 |
Rules for booking a multi-partner award with British Airways
- Currently, multi-carrier awards must be booked over the phone
- There is a maximum of eight flight segments and seven stopovers
- Travel must be completed within twelve months
- One open-jaw is allowed
- Your route must follow whatever BA considers to be a “logical” sequence
- You can only use oneworld partners
- You have to include at least two oneworld airlines besides British Airways
-
The Avios price of your trip is based on the cumulative distance of your flight segments, as opposed to pricing each segment individually (like a normal BA award).
Best uses of Avios for Economy Class
Domestic US from 6K one way on JetBlue
- The short story: Qatar Airways Privilege Club offers distance-based award pricing on JetBlue, which can be a decent value for economy class in some instances.
- Miles required: From 8.5K for the shortest domestic flights to 25K in economy class on transcontinental flights.
- How to find awards: You search for space via QatarAirways.com, but to see a calendar of availability, you'll need to find "P" class space for business class awards. You can find this via a paid tool like ExpertFlyer or with advanced routing codes via ITA Matrix.
- How to book awards: Book online at QatarAirways.com.
- Change and cancellation fees: $25 more than 24 hours in advance / $100 Between 3-24 hours in advance / Nonrefundable within 3 hours or after departure
- Key warnings: The Qatar Airways website sometimes can not find major airports. We hope this is a temporary glitch.
- Transfer from: Amex, Citi. Also transfer to BA and then to Qatar with: Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
North America to Europe from 13K one-way
- The short story: You can use British Airways, Iberia or Aer Lingus Avios to fly on those airlines for low mileage prices on nonstop routes.
- How to find awards: Search for British Airways available space at britishairways.com for Aer Lingus at United.com, Avios.com or using the award search tool. For Iberia, use the Advanced Avios tool. It's always best to search before transferring.
- How to book awards: Book British Airways flights online at britishairways.com or over the phone at 800-452-1201. You can book Aer Lingus over the phone with British Airways, use Avios.com or use this award search tool.
- Key warnings: Note that it may be worth checking all 3 booking options (Avios.com, BritishAirways.com, and Iberia.com) to determine your best deal, though keep in mind that things like cancellation policies differ (note that Iberia offers no changes or refunds at all on most partner flights whereas British Airways offers cheap cancellation). Aer Lingus and British Airways charge for each segment separately, so multi-segment trips can get expensive quickly (Iberia charges based on cumulative distance each way, which can be cheaper on connecting itineraries).
- Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo. Also transfer to Qatar and then to BA with: Citi.
Hawaii for 13K from the US west coast
- The short story: Qatar Airways Privilege Club offers a distance-based chart that offers tone of the best deals for economy class flights between the west coast of the US and Hawaii.
- Miles required: 16K Avios + $5.60 each way in economy class on Alaska or American Airlines for flights covering a distance of 2,000-3,000 miles.
- How to find awards: Search and book at QatarAirways.com or use Qantas.com to see an availability calendar.
- How to book awards: Book online at QatarAirways.com
- Change and cancellation fees: $25 more than 24 hours in advance / $100 Between 3-24 hours in advance / Nonrefundable within 3 hours or after departure
- Key warnings: Awards become expensive or nonrefundable to cancel close to departure, so this is not a good option for booking backup flights.
- Transfer from: Amex, Citi. Also transfer to BA and then to Qatar with: Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
Hawaii for 13.5K – 15K from the US east Coast
- The short story: Finnair offers a zone-based award chart, so flights from the East Coast of the USA on Alaska Airlines or American Airlines can be a great value.
- Miles required: 13,500 Avios each way on Alaska or 15K on AA plus $5.60 for economy-class between North America (including east coast cities) and Hawaii. 38K Avios each way in business class on American Airlines or 50.5K each way in first class on Alaska.
- How to find awards: Search for available Alaska space at britishairways.com.
- How to book awards: Book via chat at finnair.com or over the phone at 929-474-6049 or 323-694-7646 (Mon–Fri 8 a.m.–8 p.m., Sat–Sun 8 a.m.–6 p.m. Eastern Time)
- Key warnings: The British Airways site sometimes shows phantom award space for AA (see: Phantom menace: an award search time suck). You may want to double-check Qantas.com for availability before transferring points.
- Transfer from: Capital One. Also transfer to BA and then to Finnair with Amex, Bilt, Chase, Wells Fargo or to Qatar and then to Finnair with Citi.
South America from 17K one-way via Iberia
- The short story: Iberia Plus offers a distance-based award chart that matches British Airways. However, since they don't allow changes or cancellations on American Airlines awards, you're probably better off booking via British Airways
- Miles required: From 11K miles each way depending on distance. No fuel surcharges on American Airlines. See our Avios Complete Guide for a full award chart.
- How to find awards: Search for available space at iberia.com. Use the Advanced Avios Search tool.
- How to book awards: Book online at iberia.com. Use the Advanced Avios Search tool.
- Key warnings: Most Iberia partner bookings, including those on American Airlines, are completely nonrefundable and can not be changed. Because of that policy and the fact that Iberia's chart for American Airlines flights now matches the British Airways chart for the same flights, you're probably better off booking via BA. Only book AA flights with Iberia if plans are certain.
- Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Chase, Wells Fargo. Also transfer to BA and then to Iberia with: Capital One, Citi
Best uses of Avios for Business Class and First Class
South America from 22K one-way via British Airways
- The short story: British Airways has decent award pricing for longer-distance American Airlines award flights, whereas you're better off booking with another program if you need connections (since British Airways prices each segment separately).
- Miles required: The best deals will be from Miami to central and southern South America for 62K or 77,250 miles one way depending on distance (and assuming direct flights). No fuel surcharges on American Airlines.
- How to find awards: Search for available space at BritishAirways.com
- How to book awards: Book online at BritishAirways.com
- Key warnings: Note that British Airways periodically stops showing American Airlines award availability. When this happens, phone agents are generally unable to book the space either and your best bet is to keep searching or book through another partner.
- Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo. Also transfer to Qatar and then to BA with: Citi.
Europe from 34K one-way via Iberia
- The short story: Iberia charges as few as 34K miles one-way in business class on its own flights from New York, Boston, Chicago, or DC to Madrid during off-peak season. Sometimes they run a winter travel promotion for even less.
- Miles required: Varies by distance. Best deal are the cities above to Madrid: 34K during off-peak dates or 50K during peak dates on Iberia metal. Fuel surcharges are very mild (Around $175 in total taxes & fees round trip. If booking one-way, surcharges are higher leaving Europe than flying to Europe.)
- How to find awards: Search Iberia.com using the Advanced Avios Search Tool
- How to book awards: Book at Iberia.com after using the Advanced Avios Search Tool.
- Key warnings: Iberia's website can be challenging to navigate and availability can be challenging to find. There are some surcharges, but at under a hundred bucks from the US to Europe, they are much milder than when using British Airways Avios. Note that Iberia's award chart is distance-based, so itineraries with connections will require more miles. Note also that sometimes connecting itineraries will have availability even when the nonstop legs between the US and Spain are not available on their own.
- Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Chase, Wells Fargo. Also transfer to BA and then to Iberia with: Capital One, Citi
Domestic US Transcontinental JetBlue Mint class for 74,000 Avios one-way
- The short story: Qatar Airways Privilege Club offers distance-based award pricing on JetBlue, which can be an OK value for Mint class in situations where cash prices are high.
- Miles required: 74K for a transcontinental Mint class award.
- How to find awards: You search for space via QatarAirways.com, but to see a calendar of availability, you'll need to find "I" class space for business class awards. You can find this via a paid tool like ExpertFlyer or with advanced routing codes via ITA Matrix. See more detail in this post.
- How to book awards: Book online at QatarAirways.com
- Change and cancellation fees: $25 more than 24 hours in advance / $100 Between 3-24 hours in advance / Nonrefundable within 3 hours or after departure
- Key warnings: The Qatar Airways website sometimes can not find major airports. We hope this is a temporary glitch.
- Transfer from: Amex, Citi. Also transfer to BA and then to Qatar with: Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
North America to Europe from 78,000 Avios one-way on JetBlue
- The short story: Qatar Airways Privilege Club offers reasonable award pricing on JetBlue, which can be a great way to book Mint (business) class to Europe.
- Miles required: 78K each way. Taxes & fees departing the US are $10.10.
- How to find awards: You can search for space via QatarAirways.com, but it is easier to start by finding "I" class space for business class awards. You can find this via a paid tool like ExpertFlyer or with advanced routing codes via ITA Matrix. See the video instructions in this post for detailed instructions about how to find and book space.
- How to book awards: Book on QatarAirways.com
- Change and cancellation fees: $25 to change or cancel more than 24 hours in advance, $100 between 3-24hrs in advance, nonrefundable within 3 hours of departure. See more in this post.
- Key warnings: Note that Qatar only charges mandatory taxes ($10.10 departing the US and between ~$40-$100 departing Europe) with no additional carrier-imposed surcharges on JetBlue awards.
- Transfer from: Amex, Citi. Also transfer to BA and then to Qatar with: Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
Fly Qatar Airways to Doha for 70K one-way
- The short story: British Airways normally offers a distance-based award chart, in what is an exception they charge 70K Avios each way for business class between the US and Doha on Qatar Airways (these flights do not follow the distance band).
- Miles required: 70K miles each way in business class between the US and Doha. Taxes and fees add around $250 round trip.
- How to find awards: Search for available space at britishairways.com. It's always best to search before transferring.
- How to book awards: Book American flights online at britishaiways.com or over the phone at 1 800 452 1201.
- Change and cancellation fees: $55
- Key warnings: British Airways charges for each segment separately, so multi-segment trips can get expensive quickly. Taxes & fees also increase substantially with further segments on Qatar.
- Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo. Also transfer to Qatar and then to BA with: Citi.
Fly Cathay Pacific between Asia and North/South America for 75K one-way
- The short story: Finnair offers a region-based award chart and charges 75K Avios each way for business class between North (or South) America and Asia on Cathay Pacific.
- Miles required: 75K one-way on Cathay Pacific plus ~$150 for business class between the North (or South) America and Asia.
- How to find awards: Search for available space at finnair.com.
- How to book awards: Book via finnair.com.
- Change and cancellation fees: $50 (or taxes and fees if cancelling).
- Transfer from: Capital One. Also transfer to BA and then to Finnair with Amex, Bilt, Chase, Wells Fargo or to Qatar and then to Finnair with Citi.
Oceania / Multiple Carrier tickets (build-your-own-round-the-world)
- The short story: British Airways offers an award chart for travel on a single partner and a lesser-known chart for travel on two partners. That second chart could save you some Avios if you were to mix AA and Qantas for example. The Avios price of your trip is based on the cumulative distance of your flight segments, as opposed to pricing each segment individually (like a normal BA award).
- Miles required: From around 200K "round trip" in business class from most US cities (can vary based on distance). See the mixed partner chart along with an excellent explanation for how to leverage it here. In short, you could turn this into a multi-stop, multi-carrier journey and the number of miles required will vary some but still be less than booking separately via British Airways.
- How to find awards: Search for available space on each segment separately at britishairways.com.
- How to book awards: Book over the phone. There isn’t always a clear methodology for pricing mixed-cabin awards and some agents may be less well versed in this mixed chart. There is a maximum of eight flight segments and seven stopover and travel must be completed within twelve months. One open-jaw is allowed and you can only use oneworld partners.
- Key warnings: This is a lesser-known chart and some agents may not be well versed in using it. Be prepared to hang up and call again.
- Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo. Also transfer to Qatar and then to BA with: Citi.
Bottom line
Avios can be a helpful currency to keep in your tool belt for great deals on Iberia business class and for short oneworld award flights all around the world. The ability to move your miles freely between British Airways, Iberia, Qatar and Aer Lingus gives you the ability to pivot as necessary to easily take advantage of all of the various Avios sweet spots.
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The above might need clarification. I just did a transfer today. You can directly transfer from iberia to a British Airways account belong in a household.
Did British Airways devalue recently? I keep seeing prices that are higher on their own metal that what is shown in the charts. I.e. I’m searching jnb-lhr and it’s pricing out to 100k off peak in business next October. From what is shown it should be 75k?
Not sure if I’m making a mistake here or what.
Re: the 34K biz class to Europe, I need to get to northern Germany in March 2025 and I found ORD to MUC, PRG, HAM, or CPH (and there are probably others) on Iberia showing as 41.5K Avios thru MAD with ORD-MAD in biz and the other leg in economy, or 49K for the whole itinerary in biz. What is most interesting to note is that Iberia does not show the 34K (or, indeed, any direct biz class flight) for ORD-MAD on that same date. So, at least for Mar 23, 2025 as of the date I am looking at it, the only way to get the cheap ORD-MAD flight is to book an onward flight to elsewhere.
Looks like there’s been a major devaluation for Latam Airlines awards on BA. LAX-LIM direct on Latam 41,250 BA Aviso o/w. It’s a little over 4,000 miles and should be 25,750 per the award chart. I found a Reddit on the topic, seems like it’s systemwide devaluation for Latam awards on BA.
Are there going to be problems combining points if the emails are different?
Great article I am sure. But you kind of lost me after you wrote,
““Avios is the name of the points currency shared by several airline frequent flyer programs: British Airways, Iberia, Finnair Aer Lingus and Qatar Airways.”
With LOVE as always, Bunny.
Booking JAL domestic with BA avios has been showing up as at least 10,500 instead of the 7,500 :/
Try using Qatar site to book the JAL domestic.
QR still not releasing much (other than flexi pricing), if anything, even using its site, J awards from US-DOH. Last week I found 2 J award seats on a single day in June 2025, but nothing else from January-July 2025. This week, I’ve checked a few times, nothing through the end if the calendar from any US gateway. It’s really disingenuous, considering they give partners nothing… but nothing to their own members who are willing to pay inflated prices, either?
I think this is a typo?
Domestic US Transcontinental JetBlue Mint class for 38,750 Avios one-way
I’ve seen the info about Iberia partner awards being non-refundable on multiple pages here on Frequent Miler, but when you go to book on Iberia, the info seems to state otherwise, at least for certain types of tickets.
Check the FAQ here under “Are my Avios refundable” for the general rules.
When you go to book an award flight, there’s an info button that gives some more info.
For normal economy, about refunds it says: “Permitted 24 hours before departure the first flight of the ticket. If ticket not contains flights IB5XXX.Only permitted on IB, YW, I2 and BA flights.”
For economy “blue,” premium economy, and business, it says: “Permitted with a fee of €25/$40 up to 24 hours before the departure of the first flight on the ticket, provided this does not include a VY flight. Refunds only permitted on flights with codes IB, YW, I2 and BA, unless the code for one leg is IB and the code for another leg belongs to another partner in the programme.”
The translation isn’t fantastic, but it corresponds to what’s stated in Spanish. While some partner awards wouldn’t be refundable (e.g., transatlantic on only AA metal), others should be refundable either with or without a fee. In any case, the policy certainly seems more nuanced than stated here.
Non refundable if you book say a BA flight on IB site. If you book an IB flight on IB site then it will be refundable.
Is there another devaluation for Cathay redemption with BA Avios, I am seeing 9750 /20800 for zone 1 (tried HKG-TPE, HKG-WNZ) instead of what you have listed here, any idea why
Cathay Pacific
There was a devaluation earlier this year but if you book award flight via Qatar it’s still the same old price. Who knows for how long.
The Qatar Avios calculator had not worked for me in months. I cannot enter a date. Any suggestions?
I’ve had the same problem. A reader from Qatar said that it works fine for him, so I tried setting my VPN to Qatar but that didn’t fix it.
Does anyone know what type of fare (blue basic, blue, or blue extra) does Qatar Avios books into for Jetblue flights?
I assume award flights for JetBlue book into Blue. This is true of the JetBlue program (they don’t allow award fares in Blue Basic).
What about Finnair. They are using Avios now. Just did a trip booked via Iberia on Finnair.
The third paragraph of the article stated:
In March 2024, Finnair also adopted Avios as its award currency. However, it’s not yet possible to transfer between the other four Avios programs and Finnair. Because of this, it isn’t included in this guide. We’ll update accordingly once that changes.
Thanks for the update!
Did I miss it? Nothing about when Avios expire? Or how to keep them alive?
36 months of inactivity. Any points activity resets the clock. Any.