Qantas Frequent Flyer has increased the fee it charges members to join the program to $99.50.
The new Qantas Frequent Flyer joining fee, charged to Australian residents, represents a $10 increase on the 2018 membership price. At the beginning of this year, Qantas also increased the membership fee charged to New Zealand residents from NZD50 to NZD60. This is a once-off joining fee; there are no ongoing membership costs.
Qantas Frequent Flyer would have to be one of the only airline loyalty programs in the world to charge a joining fee. Most airlines, including Virgin Australia, offer free membership. And so they should; frequent flyer programs are extremely profitable for airlines. In fact, Qantas Frequent Flyer is one of the most profitable parts of the airline’s business.
Frequent flyer programs make money when members earn and redeem points, and airlines also use their loyalty programs to collect valuable data about their customers. If anything, Qantas should be paying its members to join – and not the other way around!
The Qantas Frequent Flyer membership fee is only charged to residents of Australia or New Zealand. Anyone living outside of those two countries can join for free at any time through the Qantas website.
How to join Qantas Frequent Flyer for free
Even if you’re an Australian resident, there is definitely no need to pay anything to join Qantas Frequent Flyer!
You can easily avoid paying the $99.50 Qantas Frequent Flyer joining fee by signing up using this link.
Many banks and other program partners also regularly offer free Qantas Frequent Flyer membership to their customers.
