How to collect huge frequent flyer points without flying

Spending on the ground is the key strategy for millions of people using rewards credit cards, shopping, hotel, wine and other deals that can deliver up to 10 points per dollar spent.

A big points balance has real value, given that most domestic return economy flights require fewer than 30,000 points, while long-haul international business class return flights typically require 120,000–260,000 points plus taxes.

Qantas says its Frequent Flyer program has 17 million members, up from 11 million a decade ago, while Virgin Australia says its Velocity Frequent Flyer program has added two million new members in the past two years, reaching 13 million.

Points specialists say both programs have similar offerings and deals, although the bigger Qantas program has a broader network.

They say the most powerful way to boost points is by getting a new rewards credit card – with sign-up offers of 100,000 or more points – but doing this often can impact a person’s credit rating.

Owning one rewards credit card is a must for turbocharging points, they say, but only if cardholders repay their balance each month. Otherwise interest charges above 20 per cent annually offset any points benefit.

There are other ways to collect hundreds of thousands of points. The Champagne Mile founder Adele Eliseo said people could “reach this level by using cards and partners that reward their everyday spend, then stacking high-value promotions at the right time”.

“Both Qantas and Velocity regularly run bonus-point events through their partner networks,” Ms Eliseo said.

“Planning major spend around these windows can deliver meaningful boosts to your balance.”

Velocity Frequent Flyer chief executive Nick Rohrlach said 90 per cent of Australians were loyalty program members.

“We’re seeing travellers become far more intentional in how they earn and redeem points,” Mr Rohrlach said.

“We’ve observed a 40 per cent increase in members earning points through non-air partners, including Flybuys, Myer, 7-Eleven, Didi Rideshare, DoorDash and more.”

Cards and shopping

Good rewards credit cards deliver at least one frequent flyer point per dollar spent using them – with higher rates for buying through their linked airline. Some cards offset their annual fee, such as the Qantas American Express UItimate Card offering a $450 travel credit each year, and the American Express Velocity Platinum Card offering a complementary flight.

The simplest way to earn tens of thousands of points annually is by using a rewards credit card for regular shopping, then double-dipping via retailer loyalty programs that convert to frequent flyer points.

Velocity frequent flyers flashing Flybuys cards when shopping at Coles, Coles Express, Bunnings, Officeworks and elsewhere earn 500 Velocity points for every 1000 Flybuys points. Qantas frequent flyers using Woolworths Everyday Rewards earn 1000 Qantas points for every $2000 spent at Woolworths, Big W and BWS.

“Data shows over 35 per cent of all Australian credit-card spend flows through Qantas-linked cards, highlighting how central on the ground earning has become,” Ms Eliseo said.

Combining a rewards card and shopping loyalty program can mean a household spending $400 a week on groceries and fuel can collect more than 30,000 points a year from this strategy alone.

Add hardware, gifts, restaurant meals, furniture, electronics, subscriptions and other expenses put through the credit card and the points pile up.

Accommodation

Frequent flyers generally love to travel, and here is where some huge points bonuses are available for those who time their bookings with bonus point offers.

Velocity is currently offering members six points per dollar spent on accommodation bookings, while Qantas members can earn more during promotions.

The chief executive of iFLYflat – The Points Whisperer, Steve Hui, said more frequent flyer program members were earning piles of points by taking up bonus offers.

“Qantas Hotels sometimes offers you nine points per dollar, so that allows you to bank up points very quickly,” Mr Hui said.

“There’s always new deals. I think a lot of people ignore Qantas and Virgin emails, but some of those emails have got good deals on them.”

Travel benefits multiply for Qantas members who earn a lot of points on the ground. Its Points Club (for people earning at least 150,000 points annually) and Points Club Plus (350,000 annually) programs were introduced in 2020, and deliver 25 per cent and 50 per cent more points respectively on accommodation bookings.

(This writer recently booked accommodation in Melbourne for 2026, costing about $3500, and will earn 50,000-plus points for it.)

When booking hotels, check that the room rates offered by Qantas or Velocity are as cheap as you can get elsewhere. If not, the bonus points might not stack up.

Wine

Big point hauls are available when shopping for wine and other drinks. Qantas Wines is currently offering up to 24,000 bonus points for people spending just over $500 on a selected dozen wines. That means two cases a year can deliver almost 50,000 points, plus extra benefits from Qantas-linked rewards credit cards. Virginwines.com.au also delivers bonus points through various offers.

Mr Hui said both airline programs had similar offerings but “Qantas Hotels and Qantas Wine are much more developed than the Virgin versions”.

“It does appear slightly easier with Qantas,” he said.

“They both copy each other a lot on the things that they offer. Whenever one program does something the other program does the same thing in order to maintain market share.”

Other deals

Ms Eliseo said Qantas Frequent Flyer offered the broader network “spanning hundreds of partners including credit cards, insurance, energy, fuel, retail and business spend”.

“Velocity Frequent Flyer is continuing to expand through new airline and retail tie-ups, along with regular transfer bonuses,” she said.

“For most people, the best approach now is to earn across both Qantas and Velocity, using promotions and partner offers to build balances while staying flexible.”

Virgin offers at least three Velocity points per dollar spent at car hire businesses, including Hertz, Thrifty and Europcar, while Qantas has partnerships with Avis and Budget.

Velocity offers one point per litre of fuel bought at 7-Eleven and two points per dollar spent instore.

Velocity’s Mr Rohrlach said there were more than 80 Velocity program partners and more than 300 Velocity e-store partners, and said additional ways to earn points included:

• Up to 130,000 for eligible Medibank hospital and extras cover

• Up to 35,000 on home electricity with AGL

• Up to 35,000 for some mobile and NBN plans

• Up to 8000 for pet insurance.

“We’re also proud to be the only Australian airline loyalty program that allows members to pool points and status credits with family members,” he said.

A Qantas spokesman said its frequent flyer program members were earning two-thirds of their points on the ground, representing “a growing number of frequent buyers who are incredibly engaged with the program”.

Hundreds of Qantas Frequent Flyer program partners span areas including banking, insurance, health and wellbeing, utilities and countless retailers – including a new deal with David Jones offering one point per dollar spent.

Another new Qantas deal is the ability to earn frequent flyer points for taking out a digi home loan through the Commonwealth Bank – up to 300,000 for a $1m-plus loan.

Don’t forget flying

Thousands of points can be earned flying domestically and internationally, and the amount depends on distance, seat class and the member’s status. Both Qantas and Virgin have points calculators on their websites.

A Sydney-Los Angeles return flight on Qantas earns a minimum 24,000 points for economy and 51,000 points for business.

“Qantas has boosted the number of points members will earn on Qantas domestic flights by up to 25 per cent, and removed the earn cap for tiered members travelling in premium cabins,” the Qantas spokesman said.

Ms Eliseo said people should always ask what they were paying to earn a point and what would it return when redeemed. “That’s the difference between profit and loss in points collecting,” she said.

Putting it in practice

Everyone’s situation differs, but here’s one strategy that could potentially deliver 300,000-plus points per year:

• Everyday shopping and fuel with a rewards card – 60,000

• Two domestic flights and one long-haul flight – 30,000

• Two cases of wine with bonus points – 50,000

• Bonus points for spending through airline – 20,000

• Bonus hotel points for a short domestic holiday – 50,000

• Bonus hotel points for a two-week overseas holiday – 100,000.

This article first appeared in The Australian as How to collect huge frequent flyer points without flying