Is Pursuing Status Worth It?

Depends. There are several perspectives to this and it can get complicated. Let me explain.

The occasional flyer

Those that don’t fly often, mostly people going on holiday once a year (and rarely twice a year), wouldn’t muster enough miles or points to reach a status that allows the best perks, such as: priority listing, priority boarding, extra weight allowance, complimentary seat selection, lounge access, etc. The answer here is pretty straightforward. Not worth it.

So what should the occasional flyer do? In my opinion they are better off chasing bargain priced flights and saving their money. If they want, they can purchase some of the perks associated with status, like: better seats, use of lounges and extra baggage allowance. The only perks they would have to forego are: priority listing and priority boarding.

The money saved allows the non-frequent flyer to purchase the use of a lounge, whether paid on the day at the lounge or on a yearly subscription, such as Priority Pass. Subscriptions have their purpose and are worthwhile if they fit the traveller’s requirements.

Lounges are free for status holders and there is no limit of how much time one spends there as long as it falls within the timeframe of their layover from one flight to the next. Pay-per-use lounges are usually for 3 hours. Enough time to relax before a flight and enjoy a meal and a drink (or two) and perhaps do some work.

The occasional flyer can still chase points and miles if they wish but instead of chasing status the points and miles can be used to buy tickets for future flights. Always make sure you know the difference between those points/miles for status and those for award tickets. Those for status are usually only flown and much harder to obtain, while the other miles/points can be earned with the aid of credit card spend*, etc.

How to accumulate miles or points by flying

As an example. I fly with Singapore Airlines when travelling to Europe or South East Asia. To obtain the highest status that will allow entry to their lounges and those of the Star Alliance of which Singapore Airlines is part of, one has to clock up 50,000 miles. This earns KrisFlyer Elite Gold with Singapore Airlines and an equivalent Gold with Star Alliance. On your way to Gold you gain KrisFlyer Elite Silver status at the mid way point; 25,000 miles, but Silver does not have enough perks worth sitting on. The few are: complimentary Standard Seat selection, priority wait-listing, priority airport standby and some discounted or waived service fees. Probably the best is the 25% extra KrisFlyer miles that can be used on a future award ticket. All-in-all Silver status basically is only a stepping stone to Gold.

Mileage can be earned by flying with Singapore Airlines, their partners and other carriers within the Star Alliance. Some of the more notable airlines in this alliance are: Lufthansa, United, Air Canada, Air New Zealand, ANA, Thai Airways, EVA Air and Air India. More info on status and airlines can be found on the Star Alliance website including the location of lounges.

Depending on the cabin class you travel and the fares paid there is a scale. Obviously if you fly Business Class you earn more miles than Premium Economy and Economy. First Class (and suites) and Business Class have similar perks to Gold status but have separate lounges. If one regularly travels in First or Business Class the pursuit of Gold status becomes somewhat superfluous, but when gained it lasts 12 months and if one fails to fly in the pointy end and flies Economy Class they’ll have status to fallback on. So it still has its value.

If you only fly Economy Class make sure to check how many miles or points you will earn in the different fare categories so you can work out how many flights you will have to make to earn the status you require. This of course if you are chasing status. Airlines usually have a miles or points calculator on their website to help work out what is earned for each fare class and destination.

All points and miles can be used for the purchase of award tickets. Just make sure to know whether the airline’s frequent flyer programme has an expiry date and if this can be extended (with a fee). Some airlines, like for example Aegean Airlines (Star Alliance) do not have an expiry on miles earned for award tickets. Always check to make sure. Terms and conditions can change over time.

The frequent flyer, how about domestic flying?

Status is synonymous with frequent flyers. The more you fly the more miles or points you gain and the easier it gets to achieve the highest status. International long haul is the best way to do this otherwise a lot of domestic flying can also do the same.

For Australian flyers who fly domestically with Virgin Australia or QANTAS miles and points go towards status that can be used on international flights as well as domestically. QANTAS being a member of oneworld opens up international lounges and other perks with those members. For more info on QANTAS, their frequent flyer programme etc., visit the QANTAS website. Virgin Australia is not part of any alliance but has agreements with many airlines some of which are: Singapore Airlines, United and Etihad. More info on Virgin Australia’s frequent flyer programme and membership tiers can be found on the Virgin Australia website.

Final Word

With air travel being more expensive thanks to COVID-19 during 2020-2022 and the subsequent rise in inflation, trying to achieve status has become harder for all classes of travel. OK you can still obtain the highest status with only two long haul Business Class fares but the prices are now astronomical compared what they were pre-COVID. Achieving status this way sounds crazy and you’d think what is the point? I think Economy Class flyers have been hit the hardest though. Most try to save money by flying at the lower Economy fares. These earn less miles or points. So in the end it will take more flying. Can some afford the time to do this? Probably not.

Like many rewards programmes one has to weigh up whether chasing status is worthwhile. For the occasional flyer it is best to save the money and re-invest it wisely in more travel. Those that fly often it is there for the taking. No effort required. For those that love perks and perhaps find themselves in the middle, it becomes a chase and when status is obtained it can be demoralising when it is lost. I say think hard and choose wisely.

• The HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card allows Gold status by credit card spend. I wrote a short piece on this at: Star Alliance Gold Status by Credit Card. It is the only credit card to do this as far as I am aware. It is possible the other two alliances, oneworld and SkyTeam, may in future team up with other credit card providers and do the same.

Note: In the article I mentioned KrisFlyer Elite Silver status and its benefits. From early July 2024 two new perks have been added while flying Singapore Airlines: priority airport check-in and priority boarding. Luggage allowance has also been increased: 10kg on all Singapore Airlines flights and connecting Scoot flights or one extra piece of luggage when flying to and from the United States (three bags of up to 32kg in SIA Suites, First and Business Class; and three bags of up to 23kg in Premium Economy and Economy Class).