British Airways announced that, starting December 15, 2025, it will make adjustments to all British Airways and partner award tickets. The increase is about 10%; not only will the mileage component go up, but taxes and fees will also rise by 10%. If you need to book, try to lock it in before the change takes effect. Official examples below

About Avios

Avios used to be British Airways' own mileage currency, but it is now a shared mileage system used by British Airways, Iberia, Qatar, Finnair, and Aer Lingus. Avios earned through one program can be transferred to any of the others. That offers a lot of flexibility, but it also adds some complexity. Each airline's award chart is different, and in some cases British Airways is the best choice, while in others Iberia or Qatar may be better.

In addition, British Airways, Iberia, and Qatar are all members of oneworld, so Avios can also be used to redeem award tickets on partner airlines. Using Avios to book AA, JL, and CX awards can be a very good deal. This article will introduce how to use Avios.

Earning Avios

We usually talk about rules for earning miles through flying, but personally I do not recommend crediting flight miles to Avios, because there are simply too many ways to get Avios. For oneworld flights, you can choose to credit miles to AA or Alaska Airlines instead.

Credit cards

As mentioned above, Avios is the shared mileage system used by British Airways, Iberia, Qatar, and Aer Lingus. All of these airlines have corresponding co-branded credit cards in the U.S., and each offers a solid welcome bonus, typically in the 40,000-100,000 Avios range. If you really like Avios, you could apply for each one. But if you are only after the welcome bonus, these cards are not great for everyday spending, so there is no need to keep them long term.

If you have not applied for any of them yet, you can start with the British Airways card.

Apply now

Full review

Chase British Airways Credit Card

Up to $600 per year in award ticket taxes and fees reimbursement!

  • Welcome bonus: 90,000 BA miles (spend $5,000 in 3 months)
  • Rewards: 3x on flights with Iberia, British Airways, and Aer Lingus (5x in the first year); 2x on hotel bookings made directly with the hotel (3x in the first year); 1x on all other purchases
  • Redemption: Redeem for British Airways award tickets or award tickets with oneworld partner airlines
  • Annual fee: $95
  • Apply now>>

Points transfers

Avios (British Airways miles) is a transfer partner of AMEX, Chase, Capital One, and Bilt, and all of them transfer at a 1:1 ratio with instant posting, so you can move a large amount of Avios from these credit cards and use them. You can first search for award availability on British Airways, and once you confirm there is a seat and an itinerary you like, transfer the points and book right away. Besides these bank points, Marriott points can also be transferred at a 3:1 ratio, but they do not post instantly, and transferring to Avios is not very worthwhile, so it is generally not recommended.

AMEX, Chase, and Capital One all have many credit cards, and you can earn a lot of points through welcome bonuses and everyday spending.

Avios transfers between programs

If you have British Airways, Iberia, Qatar, or Aer Lingus accounts and want to move Avios from one program to another, you can do it through avios.com. Link the two accounts first, then move the miles from one side and transfer them out again.

If you cannot find it there, you can also go to the British Airways combine points page.

Household Account

If your parents come to the U.S., the miles they earn from flying generally cannot be credited to your account, especially with the three major U.S. airlines. But if you earn British Airways miles, you can create a Household Account, also known as a household pool. Members in the household account can pool miles earned from flying, and those miles can be used to redeem award flights for any member. The miles used are deducted proportionally from each member's Avios account.

Family members must have a British Airways membership account before joining a Household Account.

For example, if you book your parents on next year's Cathay Pacific flight from Qingdao to Hong Kong to New York in fare class N, and also help them register British Airways membership accounts using your own address, then add them to the Household Account, their miles can be pooled together after the trip. Once the Household Account is set up, you can also redeem miles for other family members and friends who do not live with you, up to five people total. But note that friends who do not share the same address cannot credit their flight miles to the Household Account. And once the Household Account is set up, you cannot freely redeem tickets for anyone else; you can only redeem for those five people.

Using Avios Miles

This section focuses on redeeming Avios through British Airways. As mentioned earlier, Avios can also be transferred to Iberia, Qatar, and Aer Lingus for use. Their award charts are fairly similar to British Airways' and may offer slight advantages; if I get a chance, I may cover them next time.

When using Avios on British Airways, let's first go over a few key principles so you can get the general idea.

  • Award pricing is distance-based, with multiple bands. (For example, if the distance between two airports is 651 to 1,151 miles, the redemption cost is 7,250 Avios.)
  • There is a peak and off-peak difference. (For example, the 7,250 above is the off-peak price, while the same route costs 8,250 Avios during peak dates.)
  • Connecting itineraries are priced by adding the mileage required for each segment. (For example, the total mileage for A-B-C is the same as A-B plus B-C.)
  • Flights operated by non-U.S. airlines may have high fuel surcharges. (For example, British Airways-operated flights can have several hundred dollars in fuel surcharges.)
  • Business class usually costs 2-3 times economy, and first class costs 4 times economy, so premium cabins are generally not a good deal.
  • Short-haul redemptions tend to offer better value.
  • Each partner has a different award chart, but the principles are similar.

Award charts

Below is a general introduction to the award charts. British Airways does not publish a separate official chart for each partner. Here I am using a chart summarized by the blogger, which may differ slightly from the actual pricing, but it is convenient for reference. The best-redemption section below will highlight the good spots.

  • Redeeming British Airways-operated flights
  • Redeeming a single North American partner (AA, Alaska). U.S. partner taxes and fees are low, so this is a good way to book non-stop flights within North America. Even if it sometimes costs slightly more than AA miles, you can still use British Airways miles and save your AA miles for international flights.
  • Best used for single Cathay Pacific redemptions. Good for connections to Hong Kong and to Japan/Korea.
  • Redeem for Japan Airlines only

Search award tickets

British Airways makes award searches simple. Log in to the official site and search directly in the Avios redemption section.

  • Usually only one-way and nonstop flights are worth considering; connections generally are not.
  • Then you’ll see the required Avios and taxes/fees
  • It’s the same for international flights. Watch the taxes and fees! The example below has very high taxes and fees, and the connecting itinerary adds up to 65,000 Avios!

Best Avios redemptions

As mentioned earlier, British Airways Avios are generally best for nonstop economy awards. If a nonstop U.S. domestic flight is available, it’s usually the first option to consider. After all, there are plenty of ways to earn them. Of course, there are also some especially good redemptions.

  • American Airlines or Alaska Airlines to Hawaii: From the U.S. West Coast to Hawaii, a one-way economy ticket costs just 16,000 Avios plus $5.60 in taxes/fees. More distant origins such as Phoenix require 20,000 Avios.
  • Mexico or the Caribbean in economy only costs 12,000 Avios: Flights to Mexico or the Caribbean start at 12,000 Avios plus taxes/fees. For example, MIA in Miami is a great option, but the taxes are a bit higher than on domestic U.S. flights.
  • Short-haul flights outside the U.S.: Use British Airways partner airlines for short flights in Africa, South America, Europe, the South Pacific, and Asia. Note that some routes have high taxes and fees. Compare the total cost with the cash fare.
  • Aer Lingus economy from Boston to Dublin: 13,000 Avios.

British Airways Avios bookings have other advantages too.

  • No close-in booking fee: Most U.S. airlines have eliminated these, but UA and Delta increase mileage prices for last-minute flights (dynamic pricing—if they want to add it, they do).
  • Flexible change fees: For cancellations made more than 24 hours in advance, you pay the lower of the taxes/fees or $55. Taxes on U.S. flights are just $5.60-$11, which is very cheap (details).

Conclusion

Although British Airways flights have high fuel surcharges and have recently been devalued, British Airways Avios still offer strong value. They can be used with dozens of partner airlines worldwide, especially AA- or Alaska-operated flights. British Airways also has more ways to earn Avios than many other programs, with large instant transfers from Chase or AMEX. Family pooling also helps boost Avios earnings by combining points across multiple people. I recommend booking oneworld nonstop flights: first search with British Airways, and if seats are available, consider ticketing with it.

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