Qantas Frequent Flyer status is the gateway to a more enjoyable travel experience with Qantas and its partner airlines.
Earn Qantas status and you’ll enjoy perks like lounge access, bonus points, more upgrades, extra baggage allowance and many more benefits! You’ll also be able to skip the airport queues with access to priority check-in, security and boarding lanes.
Every Qantas Frequent Flyer member starts out at the Bronze level. To earn Qantas status, you’ll need to accumulate enough status credits and take enough Qantas or Jetstar flights during your personal membership year, which is based on the month you joined the program.
Status credits are not to be confused with Qantas Frequent Flyer points. Points are the loyalty program’s currency and can be redeemed for free flights, upgrades and other rewards. But status credits help you climb to a higher status tier level within the program.
It’s not possible to buy Qantas status credits. These need to be earned – generally by flying with Qantas, Jetstar or Oneworld partner airlines.
Your Qantas status credits balance will reset to zero at the end of each membership year. Status credits are separate to frequent flyer points and, with some limited exceptions, can only be earned by flying. But as we’ll explain in this mega guide, there are a few shortcuts!
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The benefits of Qantas Frequent Flyer status
There are four Qantas Frequent Flyer status levels – Silver, Gold, Platinum and Platinum One – with increased benefits at each new tier. You’ll find a full list of tier benefits on the Qantas website.
When you earn status with Qantas, you’ll also receive reciprocal status benefits with Oneworld airlines. Qantas Silver, Gold and Platinum is equivalent to Oneworld Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald status, respectively. This means your loyalty will also be recognised when flying with Oneworld airlines including Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and British Airways.
Qantas Frequent Flyer Silver (Oneworld Ruby) tier benefits
Upon reaching Qantas Silver status, you’ll receive benefits including:
- 50% bonus points on Qantas, Jetstar & American Airlines flights
- An annual Qantas Club lounge pass
- Extra baggage allowance
- Priority check-in
- Free seat selection on Qantas international flights (seat selection is free on domestic flights anyway)
See our Guide to Qantas Silver Status for more details.
Qantas Frequent Flyer Gold (Oneworld Sapphire) benefits
The benefits really start to add up once you reach Gold status. Key benefits include:
- 75% bonus points on Qantas, Jetstar & American Airlines flights
- Complimentary Qantas Club membership and international Business Lounge access
- Priority access to Qantas Classic Flight Reward seats (particularly in premium cabins on Qantas international flights)
- Priority boarding (if Qantas actually manages to offer it)
- Priority baggage
See our Guide to Qantas Gold Status for more information.
Qantas Frequent Flyer Platinum (Oneworld Emerald) benefits
Key additional benefits of Qantas Platinum status include:
- 100% bonus points on Qantas, Jetstar & American Airlines flights
- Qantas domestic Business Lounge access (with up to two guests, instead of one)
- International First Lounge access
- Access to Qantas domestic lounges on arrival at your destination
There are also a few unpublished benefits of Qantas Platinum status:
- The ability to request the release of additional Classic Flight Reward seats
- You likely won’t have to wait on hold for ages to get through to the Qantas call centre (and are more likely to get the wonderful Hobart call centre)
- On international flights, you might get a personal welcome from the Customer Service Manager
You can read more in our article on the perks of Qantas Platinum status.
Qantas Platinum One perks
For high flyers, additional Platinum One benefits include:
- Gift complimentary Platinum status to a family member or friend
- Two complimentary Business/First Lounge invitations to gift
- Qantas VIP Service Team support
- Highest upgrade priority and confirmed international flight upgrades 2-7 days before departure on Qantas flights
- Complimentary exit row seats and access to up-front seats from the time of booking on Qantas flights
- Many service fees are waived
- Invitations to special events
You can read more about the benefits of Platinum One status – and whether it’s worth it – on the Australian Frequent Flyer forum.
How to reach a higher Qantas Frequent Flyer tier
This table shows the number of Qantas status credits and minimum flights required per membership year to qualify for or renew Qantas Frequent Flyer status:
| Silver | Gold | Platinum | Platinum One | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| oneworld equivalent | oneworld Emerald | oneworld Emerald | oneworld Emerald | oneworld Emerald |
| Status credits to earn | 300 | 700 | 1,400 | 3,600 |
| Status credits to retain | 250 | 600 | 1,200 | 3,600 |
| Minimum Qantas/Jetstar marketed flights | 4 sectors | 4 sectors | 4 sectors | 4 sectors |
| Status credits for lifetime status | 7,000 | 14,000 | 75,000 | N/A |
How to earn Qantas status credits from flying
You can earn status credits when flying on any Qantas marketed flight (i.e. when booked on a “QF” flight number), regardless of the operating airline.
You can also earn status credits when flying with Fiji Airways or any Oneworld airline, provided the flight is both marketed and operated by a Oneworld carrier. It is also possible to earn status credits when flying with Jetstar, but only if you’ve purchased a Jetstar Plus or Max Bundle with your ticket.
How many Qantas status credits do you earn per flight?
So, how many Qantas status credits can you earn per flight? This depends on three things:
- The route
- The marketing airline
- The fare class you’ve booked
In general, you’ll earn more status credits for booking longer flights and more expensive tickets. For example, you’ll earn 10 status credits on a cheap Qantas red-e-deal Economy ticket from Melbourne to Sydney. But you’d earn 20 status credits with a Flexible Economy ticket or 40 status credits for Business Class on the same route.
On a longer flight, such as Sydney to London, you would earn 70 status credits on a cheap Economy Sale fare or as many as 420 status credits each way if travelling in First Class.
You can find out how many status credits you’ll earn for your flight by using the Qantas points calculator or studying the labyrinth of airline earning tables on the Qantas website.
For example, this table from the Qantas website shows how many points & status credits you’ll earn for a Qantas or Jetstar domestic flight within Australia:
If you’re flying with a Oneworld partner airline, check to see which earn category applies to your fare class. Beware that some fare classes don’t earn any Qantas points or status credits when flying with partner airlines!
See our guide to calculating how many points and status credits you’ll earn flying partner airlines for more details.
You won’t earn any status credits for flights booked using points, unless you’re a Qantas Points Club member and flying on a Qantas marketed reward flight with a “QF” flight number.
The minimum Qantas/Jetstar flight requirement
As well as accumulating status credits, to earn Qantas status you’ll need to take at least 4 Qantas or Jetstar marketed flights within each membership year.
A Qantas marketed flight is any flight with a “QF” flight number that is eligible to earn status credits, including codeshare flights. Jetstar flights also count if you’ve purchased an add-on bundle that earns points & status credits.
To earn Platinum One status, you would also need to earn at least 2,700 of the 3,600 required status credits on Qantas and/or eligible Jetstar flights.
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How to get more Qantas status credits from flying
Generally speaking, you’ll earn more Qantas status credits for Qantas flights with “QF” flight numbers than for bookings with Oneworld partner airlines. You’ll also earn status credits at a higher rate when you book a more expensive fare or travel in a higher cabin class.
Here are some other tips and tricks to increase the number of status credits you earn…
Why fly direct, when you can connect?
As this old saying on Australian Frequent Flyer goes, flying indirect can yield greater returns. You’ll earn status credits for every single flight you take, so taking an indirect routing means more status credits! It’s often the same price – sometimes even cheaper – to choose a route with more stops.
If you need to book a connecting flight anyway, you can also be clever about which itinerary you choose.
For example, you would earn more status credits when flying from Adelaide to Brisbane via Melbourne, compared to flying via Sydney. That’s because the Melbourne-Brisbane flight is a bit longer and earns more status credits than a Sydney-Brisbane flight, while Adelaide-Melbourne and Adelaide-Sydney earn at the same rate.
Status runs
If your planned travel is going to leave you just a little bit short of the next status level, you can book what’s known as a “status run”. This is where you travel somewhere purely to earn status credits.
If you’re going to do this, make sure the benefits of the higher status tier outweigh the cost on the flights!
Popular Qantas status runs include Qantas Business Class sale fares from Australia to places like New Caledonia or New Zealand. There are also some good status run options using Oneworld partner airlines.
See our list of the best Qantas status runs for more ideas!
“Double status credit” offers
Qantas typically runs 1-2 “double status credits” promotions each year. Any Qantas flights booked during these promotional periods will earn twice as many status credits. So by taking advantage of these deals, you could earn Qantas status with half the normal amount of flying!
The most recent public Qantas double status credits offer was in March 2023.
To supplement the public offers, Qantas may occasionally send out targeted, member-specific offers of 50% bonus Qantas status credits on flights to certain destinations. If you would like to receive a targeted status credits offer, make sure you’ve opted-in to receiving emails from Qantas Frequent Flyer.
Comfort seats
Buying a comfort seat gives you a guaranteed empty neighbour seat on the plane. This product is designed for larger passengers that need a bit more space, but it’s also a little-known method of earning more points and status credits!
When buying a comfort seat, you won’t pay any taxes for the second seat but you will earn the points and status credits for it. To book a comfort seat, you would need to call the airline.
How to get Qantas status credits without flying
During the pandemic, Qantas offered various status extensions and bonuses to existing Silver, Gold, Platinum and Platinum One frequent flyers. These status extensions are due to continue until June 2023.
Qantas also offered numerous ways to earn status credits on the ground during periods where travel was affected by COVID-19. There haven’t been many of these offers since December 2021, but there are still a few ways to earn extra status credits on the ground!
Qantas Green Tier
In March 2022, Qantas launched a new “Green tier” designed to reward sustainable actions such as offsetting carbon emissions and donating to charity.
By completing activities in 5 out of 6 “Green tier” categories during your Qantas Frequent Flyer membership year, you’ll be offered a reward of 10,000 Qantas points or 50 status credits. If you’re a little bit short, those 50 status credits could help you reach the next status level.
Qantas Loyalty Bonus
Each time you earn 500 status credits from Qantas and Jetstar flights, you’ll be offered a loyalty bonus (up to 4 times per year). You can choose a bonus of 50 status credits or 8,000 frequent flyer points. By using your loyalty bonuses to your advantage, you could earn Qantas Frequent Flyer status with fewer status credits than would otherwise be required.
Bonus status credits with the Qantas Premier Titanium credit card
If you have a Qantas Premier Titanium credit card, you can earn 20% bonus status credits on Qantas flights booked using your card. This benefit applies to flights that are marketed and operated by Qantas. However, this card has an expensive annual fee of $1,200 and a minimum income requirement of $200,000 per year.
Occasionally, you can also earn bonus status credits as part of the sign-up offers of other Qantas Frequent Flyer credit cards.
The Qantas Premier Titanium card
- Card Name
- Qantas Premier Titanium
- Earn
- 1.25
- Signup Bonus
-
150,000 Qantas Points
- Annual Fee
- $1200 p.a.
- Read more
- Go to offer
Qantas Frequent Flyer Qantas Points on everyday purchases
Qantas “Tier Accelerator” status match challenge
If you’ve recently made the switch to Qantas Frequent Flyer and already have status with another airline, the Qantas status match challenge could be for you!
Qantas may offer a “Tier Accelerator” challenge to frequent flyers who already hold status with a competing airline such as Virgin Australia, Air New Zealand, Etihad Airways or Singapore Airlines. If you already hold the equivalent of Gold or Platinum status with another airline, you could be offered a challenge to earn Qantas Gold status.
If your request is approved, you’ll be given 90 days to earn at least 200 status credits on Qantas operated and marketed flights within 90 days. If you complete the challenge, you’ll then get to keep your newly minted Qantas Gold status until the end of your next membership year.
Eligible Level 3 members of Qantas Business Rewards can request a Gold Accelerator challenge as an advertised benefit of their Business Rewards membership. But, unofficially, Qantas may also offer a challenge to eligible customers who reach out and request one.
If you think you might be eligible, there’s no harm in contacting the Qantas Frequent Flyer Service Centre on 13 11 31 (+61 2 9433 2329 from outside Australia), or by emailing [email protected] to request a challenge.
Read more: How to Get a Qantas Tier Accelerator Status Challenge
Lifetime Qantas Frequent Flyer status
Once earned, your Qantas status will be valid for the rest of your current membership year and 12 months after this. If you don’t earn enough status credits in your following membership year to renew your status, it will drop to one tier below in the following year.
But Qantas does recognise loyalty shown over a long period of time through lifetime status. If you earn 7,000 status credits over any amount of time, you’ll receive Lifetime Silver status. Lifetime Gold, which is what many Australian frequent flyers aspire towards, is earned with 14,000 lifetime status credits.
Qantas also introduced a lifetime Platinum tier in 2019, but you would need to earn 75,000 lifetime Qantas status credits to reach it. Lifetime Gold may be worth aiming for, but with such a ridiculously high target, lifetime Platinum status is surely not.
If you’re doing enough flying with Qantas and Oneworld airlines to consider going for lifetime Platinum, you might be better off joining British Airways Executive Club and aiming for their Lifetime Gold tier instead.
Join the discussion on AFF!
Visit the AFF forum for more tips on the best ways to earn Qantas status credits, or to discuss this topic with the AFF community:
