Best distance based frequent flyer programs

  Using Your Points for Free Travel, Fly Short Distances Using Fewer Miles by Taking Advantage of Distance-Based Frequent Flyer Programs

For a general introduction to how distance-based programs can save you points on your frequent flyer tickets, see Fly Short Distances Using Fewer Miles by Taking Advantage of Distance-Based Frequent Flyer Programs.

Multiple Oneworld frequent flyer programs use distance-based award charts: British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Japanese Airlines, Iberia, Qantas, Qatar, and Malaysia.

Because each program has different rules for calculating distances, award costs, and surcharges, there is no single program that is better than the others. Instead, your best option depends on the trip you want to take (and the types of points that you have). Nevertheless, there are still some useful rules of thumb for which program to choose.

In most cases, you'll want to take advantage of British Airways, Iberia, Cathay Pacific, or JAL. Malaysia, Qantas, and Qatar's award prices tend to be higher.

Awards are Sometimes Cheaper on the Program's Own Flight

The award prices shown below are what the program charges for flights on partner programs. Most of these programs have cheaper prices for their own flights.

Best programs for simple round trips

As long as you are flying a simple round trip, with a nonstop flight in each direction, all the programs are reasonable options. However, if your flight is within a single region, such as a flight from one part of Europe to the other, make sure to check for the lowest priced option among the region-based programs.

Economy class tickets

Travel distances up to 4,000 miles	British Airways MR UR TY C1 Mar generally requires the fewest miles for coach flights between 1,000 and 4,000 miles each way. Below 1,000 miles, Iberia and JAL are sometimes slightly cheaper.
Travel distances under about 600 miles in the US	British Airways charges a minimum of 7,500 miles each way for flights that fly to, from, or within the United States (instead of 6,000 miles). For these flights, Iberia MR UR TY C1 Mar and JAL MR UR TY C1 Mar are cheaper options for travel distance up to about 600 miles.
Travelling American Airlines to Europe or making a connection	On American Airlines flights to/from Europe, British Airways adds expensive fuel surcharges and the other programs don’t. And if you need to make a connection on any routing, British Airways will make you pay for each flight separately and the other three major distance-based programs won’t.  In either case, you are better off using Iberia MR UR TY C1 Mar , or sometimes Cathay Pacific or JAL, rather than British Airways.
Travel distances longer than 4,000 miles	If you have Marriott points, JAL MR UR TY C1 Mar is the cheapest option for longer flights. If not, the cheapest award depends on the distance you are flying.
More than two partner airlines for your trip	British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and JAL switch to more expensive multi-carrier award charts. If you don’t have Marriott Points, Iberia will generally be the cheaper option for distances up to 7,000 miles and Cathay Pacific the cheaper option for longer flights.  If you do have Marriott Points, JAL is the cheapest option for most flights longer than 2,500 miles.
If you only have Ultimate Rewards Points	Your only choices are British Airways and Iberia. British Airways is usually cheaper for non-stop flights.
If you only have ThankYou points	You’ll want to use Cathay Pacific, even for the shortest flights.

Economy Class Ticket Chart

Distance each way	Economy
	BA	Iberia	Cathay	JAL
Up to 300	12	11	20	12
300 - 500	12	12	20	12
500 - ≈600	12	17	20	15
≈600 - 750	18	17	20	15
751 - 1000	18	17	30	15
1,000 – ≈1200	18	23	30	23
≈1,200 – 2,000	22	23	30	23
2,001 – 2,500	26	28	30	37
2,501 – 2,750	26	42	30	37
2,751 – 3,000	26	42	54	37
3,001 – 4,000	42	42	54	45
4,001 – 5,000	52	65	54	47
5,000 – 5,501	52	65	80	50
5,501 – 6,200	62	65	80	50
6,201 – 6,500	62	75	80	55
6,501 – 7,000	73	75	80	55
7,001 – 7,500	103	100	80	70
7,501 – 9,000	103	100	94	70
9,001 – 10,000	103	120	94	70
10,001 – 12,500	103	120	94	90

Business and first-class tickets

Shorter flights	British Airways MR UR TY C1 Mar , Iberia MR UR TY C1 Mar , and JAL MR UR TY C1 Mar have comparable rates and Cathay Pacific is more expensive. The cheapest awards depend on the exact distance flown.
Travelling American Airlines to Europe or making a connection	British Airways adds expensive fuel surcharges and the other programs don’t. And if you need to make a connection, British Airways will make you pay for each flight separately and the other three major distance-based programs won’t.  In either case, you are better off using Iberia MR UR TY C1 Mar or JAL MR UR TY C1 Mar , rather than British Airways.
Longer flights	For most people, Cathay Pacific is the best option for distances longer than 3,000 miles in business and 4,000 miles in first. But if you have Marriott points, JAL MR UR TY C1 Mar is almost always a less expensive option.
More than two partner airlines for your trip	British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and JAL will switch to more expensive multi-carrier award charts. If you don’t have Marriott points, Iberia will generally be the cheaper option for destinations up to 2,500 miles in business and first and Cathay Pacific the cheaper option for longer flights.  If you do have Marriott points, JAL is the cheapest option for flights longer than 2,500 miles.
If you only have Ultimate Rewards Points	Your only choices are BA and Iberia. Unless you are flying AA to Europe or need to make a connection, BA is the cheaper option for most business class flights of less than 3,000 miles, while Iberia is the cheaper option for almost all first class tickets.
If you only have ThankYou points	You’ll want to use Cathay Pacific MR UR TY C1 Mar , even for the shortest flights. However, sometimes Malaysia requires slightly fewer miles (but is harder to work with).

Business Class Award Chart

Distance each way	Business
	BA	Iberia	Cathay	JAL
Up to 300	25	22	40	24
300 - 500	25	24	40	24
500 - ≈600	25	34	40	30
≈600 - 750	33	34	40	30
751 - 1000	33	34	60	30
1,000 – ≈1200	33	46	60	42
≈1,200 – 2,000	44	46	60	42
2,001 – 2,500	78	46	60	60
2,501 – 2,750	78	100	60	60
2,751 – 3,000	78	100	122	60
3,001 – 4,000	124	100	122	80
4,001 – 5,000	155	150	122	85
5,000 – 5,501	155	150	150	100
5,501 – 6,200	186	150	150	100
6,201 – 6,500	186	175	150	110
6,501 – 7,000	217	175	150	110
7,001 – 7,500	309	250	150	130
7,501 – 9,000	309	250	180	130
9,001 – 10,000	309	270	180	130
10,001 – 12,500	309	270	180	145

First Class Award Chart

Distance each way	First
	BA	Iberia	Cathay	JAL
Up to 300	48	33	60	36
300 - 500	48	36	60	36
500 - ≈600	48	51	60	60
≈600 - 760	66	51	60	45
751 - 1000	66	51	90	45
1,000 – ≈1200	66	69	90	65
≈1,200 – 2,000	88	69	90	65
2,001 – 2,500	103	96	90	90
2,501 – 2,750	103	150	90	90
2,751 – 3,000	103	150	162	90
3,001 – 4,000	165	150	162	120
4,001 – 5,000	206	225	162	135
5,000 – 5,501	206	225	240	145
5,501 – 6,200	248	225	240	145
6,201 – 6,500	248	262.5	240	165
6,501 – 7,000	289	262.5	240	165
7,001 – 7,500	412	375	240	190
7,501 – 9,000	412	375	270	190
9,001 – 10,000	412	405	270	190
10,001 – 12,500	412	405	270	220

Best programs for one-way flights

If you only need to fly one-way, Iberia, Cathay Pacific, and JAL become less attractive options. Iberia and JAL charge based on the total distance traveled. Since longer trips have a lower cost per mile than shorter trips, you'll need to pay far more than half the number of points for a one-way trip that is only half the number of miles. Cathay Pacific charges based on the air distance between destinations, but their one-way awards require considerably more than half the number of points of round trip flights.

Coach flights	British Airways MR UR TY C1 Mar is almost always the cheapest option for non-stop flights. If you need to make a connection or you are flying American Airlines to Europe, you'll want to stick to Cathay MR UR TY C1 Mar .
Shorter business Class flights	British Airways is the best option for business class flights of up to 2,000 miles.
Longer business class flights	For most people, Iberia is the best option for flights between 3,000-4,000 miles and Cathay Pacific is the best option for longer flights. But if you are able to get JAL points MR UR TY C1 Mar , they are often a less expensive option.
First class flights	JAL is the cheapest option for longer flights. Unfortunately, it doesn't participate in the Ultimate Rewards, Membership Rewards, or ThankYou Rewards programs. If you can't get the points, Cathay Pacific and British Airways will be your best options.

One Way Tables

Distance each way	Economy
	BA	Iberia	Cathay	JAL
Up to ≈600	6	11	10	12
≈600 - 750	9	12	10	12
751 - 1000	9	12	15	12
1,000 – ≈1200	9	17	15	15
≈1,200 – 2,000	11	17	15	15
2,001 – 2,500	13	23	15	23
2,501 – 2,750	13	23	15	23
2,751 – 3,000	13	23	27	23
3,001 – 4,000	21	23	27	23
4,001 – 5,000	26	28	27	37
5,000 – 5,501	26	42	40	37
5,501 – 6,200	31	42	40	37
6,201 – 6,500	31	42	40	45
6,501 – 7,000	36	42	40	45
7,001 – 7,500	52	42	40	45
7,501 – 8,000	52	42	47	45
8,001 – 10,000	52	65	47	47
10,001 – 12,500	52	65	47	50

Distance each way	Business
	BA	Iberia	Cathay	JAL
Up to ≈600	13	22	20	24
≈600 - 750	17	24	20	24
751 - 1000	17	24	30	24
1,000 – ≈1200	17	34	30	30
≈1,200 – 2,000	22	34	30	30
2,001 - 2,750	39	46	30	42
2,751 – 3,000	39	46	61	42
3,001 – 4,000	62	46	61	42
4,001 – 5,000	77	64	61	60
5,000 – 5,501	77	100	75	60
5,501 – 6,200	93	100	75	60
6,201 – 6,500	93	100	75	80
6,501 – 7,000	108	100	75	80
7,001 – 7,500	155	100	75	80
7,501 – 8,000	155	100	90	80
8,001 – 10,000	155	150	90	85
10,001 – 12,500	155	150	90	100

Distance each way	First
	BA	Iberia	Cathay	JAL
Up to ≈600	24	33	30	36
≈600 - 750	33	36	30	36
751 - 1000	33	36	45	36
1,000 – ≈1200	33	51	45	45
≈1,200 – 2,000	44	51	45	45
2,001 – 2,750	52	69	45	65
2,751 – 3,000	52	69	81	65
3,001 – 4,000	83	69	81	65
4,001 – 5,000	103	96	81	90
5,000 – 5,501	103	150	120	90
5,501 – 6,200	124	150	120	90
6,201 – 6,500	124	150	120	120
6,501 – 7,000	144	150	120	120
7,001 – 7,500	206	150	120	120
7,501 – 8,000	206	150	135	120
8,001 – 10,000	206	225	135	135
10,001 – 12,500	206	225	135	145

Award Tickets 101: The Basics

Fly Short Distances Using Fewer Miles by Taking Advantage of Distance-Based Frequent Flyer Programs

2. Choose the Least Expensive Frequent Flyer Program for Your Ticket

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