If I upgrade my British Airways flight what tier points and Avios do I earn?

In this article I want to look at what Avios and tier points you earn if you upgrade your British Airways flight.  Do you earn Avios and tier points for the original class you booked or the class you flew in?

As you are probably aware, the number of tier points you earn depend not only on your length of flight but also the class of travel – with higher classes earning more. The Avios you earn are based on the original cost of your flight.

In this article we will examine whether you earn at the upgraded level or if you simply earn the points of your original booking.

British Airways allows you to upgrade your flight at different stages, including any time before your flight as well as at check in. Upgrades at check in are often at a reduced price and offer an excellent opportunity to experience a higher cabin class without paying through-the-nose for it.

If you choose to upgrade your flight, for example from economy (World Traveller) to premium economy (World Traveller Plus), you may be wondering if you get the higher earning rates for Avios and tier points associated with premium economy.

Upgrading before check-in:

The good news is that, unlike many carriers, British Airways does honour cash upgrades arranged in advance via ba.com with the relevant upgraded tier points.

You will not earn additional Avios because these are based on the original cash cost of your flight, and the upgrade payment is not added to this.

Upgrading at check-in:

The rules are different if you pay to upgrade at check-in. You will only receive the tier points for the cabin your originally booked and not the cabin you sat in.

The reason for this is that, if you upgrade at check-in, your ticket is not reissued. You are simply reseated in the higher cabin. Your underlying ticket in the lower class is unchanged.

You also won’t receive any additional Avios.

Upgrading an Avios ticket:

Like standard reward flights, redemption flights upgraded with cash do not earn Avios or tier points.

If you want to learn more about how to upgrade your British Airways flight with Avios, read this article.

(This article is part of our ‘BA Q&A’ series which explains how British Airways Executive Club works.  You can see all of our ‘BA Q&A’ articles here. )

(Head for Points is the UK’s biggest frequent flyer website with 2.5 million monthly page views.  Want to learn more about earning and spending Avios?  Click here to read our latest news stories and click here to join the mailing list for our weekly or daily email newsletters.)

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.