What Are The Benefits of Airline Miles?

I’ve covered the basics of what airline miles are in this other post here on Flightsmilesandpoints.com, but today, in this beginner’s guide to loyalty points, we’re covering what are the benefits of airlines miles? So let’s get into it.

First of All Let’s Make a Distinction

Before kicking things off we need to make an essential distinction in the airline miles ecosystem. We need to keep in mind that there is a clear separation between status miles and reward miles for most airlines. I talked about it in the other post, but the gist is that status miles determine which tier you are part of and usually have more stringent requirements to be earned. Reward miles are generally easier to earn in various ways. So much so that you can even buy reward miles, but you can’t buy tier miles.

So What Are The Benefits of Airline Miles?

So now that we got that very important distinction out of the way we can start off by saying that most benefits we generally associate to airline miles come with status miles. Reward miles are a currency and they only really allow us to book flights with them. That is the one and only benefit they offer.

Status or tier miles on the other hand are a completely different beast. You build them up slower, but as you make your way into elite tiers you get to enjoy the real benefits.

The most sought after benefits that come with elite tiers associated with airline miles include:

• Lounge access – with of course a vast selection of complimentary amenities and delicacies.
• Fast track – to make your way through security or immigration faster at the airport.
• Priority boarding – so you don’t have to fight for overhead storage space for your luggage.
• Higher upgrade possibility – the higher your status more likely you are to get an upgrade in case the flight is overbooked.
• Free seat selection – upon booking or before the general public can check in.
• Extra baggage allowance – on top of what your ticket includes.

Therefore you can easily see what a huge difference to the travel experience the benefits of airlines miles can make. So still wondering what are the benefits of airlines miles? And why you should care?