What are the best value British Airways On Business points redemptions vs Avios?
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What is the best way to spend your British Airways On Business points?
Yesterday we published the redemption chart for the British Airways On Business loyalty programme, aimed at small businesses. This is more radical than it sounds, since this chart is not published by BA.
You can book reward flights with either On Business points or Avios if you have both currencies. However, there are odd discrepancies in reward pricing between British Airways On Business and Avios.
If you have points in both schemes (and you can’t really have On Business points without having any Avios!) you may not know that there are specific routes where you should spend On Business points instead of Avios.
Let’s take a look.
What is British Airways On Business?
On Business is the British Airways loyalty scheme for small businesses.
British Airways On Business allows the company booking your travel – which can be your own company if you are self employed – to earn additional points on top of the Avios and tier points earned by the traveller.
You can find out more about On Business on the BA website here.
However, you’ll learn more by reading our comprehensive review of British Airways On Business here. There is also a referral code in that article to get you a bonus of 1,500 points when you credit your first flight.
On Business points are not the same as Avios, and you can earn both On Business AND Avios points on the same booking. You can then use your On Business points to book flight redemptions or upgrades.
Redeeming On Business points for premium cabins is very difficult. A Business Class flight needs roughly 5-6x more On Business points than an Economy one. Avios, remember, only charges 2x the Economy points for Business Class on short-haul and 3x on long-haul. We recommend you only use On Business points to redeem for Economy flights.
The Avios and On Business redemption charts do NOT match up
Because On Business is a fairly niche scheme we have never really delved into its depths. Surprisingly, On Business and Avios redemptions are not priced from the same zonal chart.
Whilst Avios redemptions are priced (by and large) on the distance from London, the categorisation is clearly different for On Business rewards. Cities that are priced on the same level in the Avios program can be priced differently in On Business.
This means that there are some sweet spots where it makes more sense to redeem On Business points (if you have them) than Avios.
How does On Business and Avios pricing compare?
The chart below, which is a re-ordered version of the one we published yesterday, looks at the cost of off-peak Avios and On Business Economy redemptions to all BA destinations. It includes routes currently suspended due to the pandemic but which may return.
Here are the key findings, based on Economy redemptions. I have ignored Business Class redemptions entirely as these are ALWAYS poor value compared to Avios.
- The value of an On Business point ‘bottoms out’ at 2.5 Avios. In other words, in a worst-case scenario you will be saving 2.5 Avios for every 1 On Business point you redeem instead on that route. Try to avoid redeeming On Business points on these routes.
- Conversely, an On Business redemption never exceeds 4.9x Avios. In a best-case scenario, you will be saving 4.9 Avios per 1 On Business point you redeem on a particular route. These are the best routes to redeem On Business points, as you are saving more Avios for future use.
- There are flights that are priced in the same category in Avios that have differing On Business costs. For example, Toronto costs 13,000 Avios or 4,500 On Business points. Miami also costs 4,500 On Business points but is 16,250 Avios. In this case, you are better off using On Business points for Miami and Avios for Toronto.
Here is one caveat about our analysis
British Airways On Business has slightly better redemption availability than Avios. This used to be just for Economy but I have also seen it in Business Class recently.
You could argue, on this basis, that the best On Business redemption – ignoring the comparative Avios cost – is one which you can get when there are no Avios tickets available.
Here are the On Business redemption sweet spots
Based on the full table below we can easily see on which routes it makes more sense to use On Business points rather than Avios.
Remember that this is based on Economy off peak redemptions.
The following long haul destinations – some, admittedly, currently suspended – all save you more than 4 Avios per On Business point used:
- Buenos Aires
- Kuala Lumpur
- Santiago
- Singapore
- Sydney
- Amman
- Cairo
- Tel Aviv
You should prioritise your On Business points for long haul Economy redemptions on these routes if possible.
Here are the three WORST places to redeem On Business points:
- Abuja
- Jeddah
- Kuwait
On these routes, you are only saving 2.5 Avios for every On Business point you spend.
Remember that On Business is NEVER good value when redeeming for Business Class, compared to using Avios.
Which On Business routes are cheapest vs Avios pricing?
Here is the full list of British Airways On Business redemption pricing sorted by best to least value vs Avios. You can also download the full spreadsheet here if you want to filter or sort the table yourself.
The prices below are based on a one-way off-peak Economy redemption.
Destination | Avios | On Business | Ratio |
Bucharest | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Catania | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Corfu | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Kalamata | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Kefalonia | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Malta | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Marrakech | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Reykjavik | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Skiathos | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Sofia | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Thessaloniki | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Tirana | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Zakynthos | 9,250 | 1,900 | 4.9 |
Athens | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Chania | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Dalaman | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Funchal | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Gran Canaria | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Heraklion | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Istanbul | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Lanzarote | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Larnaca | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Mykonos | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Paphos | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Rhodes | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Santorini | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Teneriffe | 9,250 | 2,000 | 4.6 |
Alicante | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Barcelona | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Bologna | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Budapest | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Cagliari | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Figari | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Florence | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Ibiza | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Krakow | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Lisbon | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Madrid | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Menorca | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Olbia | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Oslo | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Palma | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Pisa | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Porto | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Pula | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Rome | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Seville | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Split | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Stockholm | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Valencia | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Venice | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Verona | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Vienna | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Warsaw | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Zagreb | 7,250 | 1,600 | 4.5 |
Aberdeen | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Amsterdam | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Basel | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Belfast | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Bergerac | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Billund | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Bordeaux | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Brussels | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Cologne | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Dublin | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Dusseldorf | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Edinburgh | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Frankfurt | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Geneva | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Glasgow | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Hamburg | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Hannover | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Inverness | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Jersey | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Luxembourg | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Lyon | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Manchester | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Newcastle | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Paris | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Quimper | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Rotterdam | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Stuttgart | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Zurich | 4,750 | 1,100 | 4.3 |
Buenos Aires | 22,750 | 5,500 | 4.1 |
Kuala Lumpur | 22,750 | 5,500 | 4.1 |
Santiago | 22,750 | 5,500 | 4.1 |
Singapore | 22,750 | 5,500 | 4.1 |
Sydney | 32,500 | 8,000 | 4.1 |
Naples | 7,250 | 1,800 | 4.0 |
Amman | 10,000 | 2,500 | 4.0 |
Cairo | 10,000 | 2,500 | 4.0 |
Tel Aviv | 10,000 | 2,500 | 4.0 |
Bangkok | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Hong Kong | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Osaka | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Rio De Janeiro | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Sao Paulo | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Seoul | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Shanghai | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Tokyo | 19,500 | 5,000 | 3.9 |
Algiers | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Almeria | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Bari | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Brindisi | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Dubrovnik | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Faro | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Gibraltar | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Helsinki | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Malaga | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Palermo | 7,250 | 1,900 | 3.8 |
Moscow | 9,250 | 2,500 | 3.7 |
Antigua | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Atlanta | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Barbados | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Calgary | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Delhi | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Grenada | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Miami | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Mumbai | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Nairobi | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Nashville | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Nassau | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Orlando | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Port of Spain | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Punta Cana | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
St Kitts | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
St Lucia | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Tampa | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Tobago | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Turks and Caicos | 16,250 | 4,500 | 3.6 |
Lima | 19,500 | 5,500 | 3.5 |
Mauritius | 19,500 | 5,500 | 3.5 |
Accra | 13,000 | 4,000 | 3.3 |
Austin | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Bahrain | 13,000 | 4,000 | 3.3 |
Beijing | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Bengalaru | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Cancun | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Cape Town | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Chennai | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Dallas | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Denver | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Dubai | 13,000 | 4,000 | 3.3 |
Durban | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Grand Cayman | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Houston | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Hyderabad | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Johannesburg | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Kingston | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Lagos | 13,000 | 4,000 | 3.3 |
Las Vegas | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Los Angeles | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Mahe (Seychelles) | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Male | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Mexico City | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
New Orleans | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Phoenix | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Portland | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Riyadh | 13,000 | 4,000 | 3.3 |
San Diego | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
San Francisco | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
San Jose (CA) | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
San Jose (C’Rica) | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Seattle | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Vancouver | 16,250 | 5,000 | 3.3 |
Berlin | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Bilbao | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Chambery | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Copenhagen | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Genoa | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Gothenburg | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Innsbruck | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Marseille | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Milan | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Munich | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Nice | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Prague | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Salzburg | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Toulouse | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Turin | 4,750 | 1,600 | 3.0 |
Abu Dhabi | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Baltimore | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Bermuda | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Boston | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Chicago | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Doha | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Islamabad | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Montreal | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Muscat | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
New York | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Philadelphia | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Pittsburgh | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Toronto | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Washington | 13,000 | 4,500 | 2.9 |
Abuja | 10,000 | 4,000 | 2.5 |
Jeddah | 10,000 | 4,000 | 2.5 |
Kuwait | 10,000 | 4,000 | 2.5 |
How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (March 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:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
British Airways American Express
5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £12,000 Read our full review
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.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review
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.
Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa
Get a 10,000 points bonus plus an extra 500 points for our readers Read our full review
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.
British Airways Accelerating Business American Express
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
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.
SPECIAL OFFER: You receive a huge 120,000 Membership Rewards points if you apply for American Express Business Platinum by 9th April 2024. You receive 80,000 points for spending £12,000 within 90 days and a further 40,000 points if you retain the card for 14 months. Click here to apply.
SPECIAL OFFER: You receive 60,000 Membership Rewards points if you apply for American Express Business Gold by 9th April 2024. Remember that the card is FREE for the first year. You receive 40,000 points for spending £6,000 within 90 days and a further 20,000 points if you retain the card for 14 months. Click here to apply.
American Express Business Platinum
Crazy 120,000 points bonus (to 9th April) and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
Huge 60,000 points sign-up bonus (until 9th April) and free for a year Read our full review
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.
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