Despite switching to dynamic pricing in 2024, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club continues to offer noteworthy Saver-level fares and attractive partner award charts. Though booking through this U.K.-based carrier loyalty program can sometimes be costly when factoring in taxes and fees and additional surcharges on award tickets, some sweet spots remain.
Plus, since Flying Club partners with major credit card rewards programs with regular transfer bonuses, points and miles enthusiasts can easily book and take advantage of these promotions.
Whether you're planning a trip to Europe or hoping to book a domestic flight on Delta Air Lines, a fellow SkyTeam partner, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club should be on your radar. Here's what to know about earning, redeeming and maximizing your Virgin points.
How to earn Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points
Joining Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is free. Simply create an account on Virgin Atlantic's website, add your Flying Club number to eligible flight bookings and link the same membership to Virgin Red. That last step matters because Virgin Red and Flying Club use the same Virgin points currency.
Once you're a member, you can earn Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points in a variety of ways. Here are the ones to focus on.
Fly with Virgin Atlantic
You can earn Virgin points by flying with Virgin Atlantic itself. The number of points you earn is based on the flight distance, your ticket's booking class and whether you hold Flying Club elite status. To calculate how many points you will earn on your flight, use the airline's earning calculator.
Here is what Virgin Atlantic currently awards on eligible paid flights, expressed as a percentage of the distance flown.
| Cabin and booking classes | Red | Silver | Gold |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Class J, C and D | 500% | 650% | 800% |
| Upper Class I and Z | 300% | 390% | 480% |
| Premium W and S | 250% | 325% | 400% |
| Premium H and K | 175% | 228% | 280% |
| Economy Delight V and Classic Y, B and R | 150% | 195% | 240% |
| Economy Classic L, U and M | 100% | 130% | 160% |
| Economy Classic Q, X, N and O | 50% | 65% | 80% |
| Economy Light T | 25% | 33% | 40% |
Since Virgin Atlantic is a member of the SkyTeam alliance, you can also earn Virgin points when flying with one of the carrier's partners, including Delta Air Lines, Air France and KLM, among others. To find out the number of points you can earn on partner airlines, navigate to Virgin Atlantic's partner page and click on the airline you are flying. You will earn redeemable points based on the cabin, the booking class and the distance flown.
You can also earn with select airlines outside of SkyTeam, including partners such as LATAM and IndiGo, although some partnerships permit earning but not redeeming points. Add your Flying Club number when booking or before check-in, keep your boarding pass and request missing points afterward if they do not post. Check Virgin Atlantic's individual airline partner pages first because eligible booking classes and earning rules vary.
We booked Virgin Atlantic's Retreat Suite. Check out TPG's review:
Earn Virgin points through credit card rewards
Flying Club partners with most major credit card rewards programs. Therefore, it's easy to boost your Virgin points balance if you have a rewards credit card that earns points or miles within the following programs:
- American Express Membership Rewards (points transfer at a 1:1 ratio)
- Bilt (Points transfer at a 1:1 ratio)
- Chase Ultimate Rewards (points transfer at a 1:1 ratio)
- Citi ThankYou Rewards (points transfer at a 1:1 ratio from eligible premium cards and a 1:0.7 ratio from no-annual-fee cards)
- Marriott Bonvoy (points transfer at a 3:1 ratio, with a 5,000-point bonus for transferring 60,000 points)
- Wells Fargo Rewards (points transfer at a 1:1 ratio)
Note that Capital One miles transfer to Virgin Red, not directly to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. However, you can easily connect your accounts and use your Virgin Red points with Flying Club.
Here are a few of our favorite travel rewards cards with notable welcome bonuses that earn transferable rewards:
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees): Earn 75,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees): Earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
- American Express® Gold Card: Find out your offer and see if you are eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership. Welcome offers vary, and you may not be eligible for an offer.
- Bilt Palladium Card (see rates and fees): Earn 50,000 Bilt points plus Gold status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 90 days from account opening. Plus, earn $300 of Bilt Cash upon approval (up to $100 of Bilt Cash earned rolls over to the next year).
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Earn with the Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard
The Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard® has a $99 annual fee and currently offers 60,000 Virgin points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 90 days from account opening.
With the card, you'll earn:
- 3 Virgin points per dollar spent on eligible Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Hotels and Virgin Voyages purchases
- 2 Virgin points per dollar spent at grocery stores, on dining, on select streaming services and at eligible electric vehicle charging stations
- 1 Virgin point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases
Additionally, you'll:
- Receive 5,000 anniversary points each year when you renew the card.
- Earn 2,500 Virgin points each time you add an additional cardholder (on up to four cardholders for a maximum of 10,000 points).
- Earn 25 tier points for every $2,500 in qualifying monthly spending (up to 50 tier points per month).
- Enjoy one Personal Perk of your choice after $15,000 in cardholder-year spending or two after $30,000 in cardholder-year spending.
The information for the Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Earn through Virgin Red
Virgin Red is the wider Virgin Group rewards program. Flying Club and Virgin Red remain separate accounts, but they share the same Virgin points and show a single balance once linked.
Add your Flying Club number when you enroll in Virgin Red or later through the "Link accounts" section of your Virgin Red account. Linking opens more than 150 additional ways to earn through online shopping, travel and partner offers.
Capital One miles transfer to Virgin Red at a 1:1 ratio rather than directly to Flying Club. Once your accounts are linked, those points are combined into a single balance and can be used for Flying Club rewards.
Rove also transfers to both Flying Club and Virgin Red at a 1:1 ratio.
Related: What is the difference between Virgin Atlantic Flying Club and Virgin Red?
Purchase Virgin points
Virgin Atlantic allows you to purchase up to 200,000 Virgin points per calendar year at a rate of 2.5 cents each in increments of 1,000 points, plus a transaction fee of $22, regardless of the number of points purchased.
TPG values Virgin points at 1.5 cents per point, according to our October 2026 valuations. Since the cost of purchasing points is significantly higher than their valuation, it's not a good deal to buy them at full price. However, Virgin Atlantic sometimes runs bonus promotions on purchasing points. This can bring the price down to a more reasonable cost and may be worth it to top off your account or book a specific upcoming award flight.
Virgin Atlantic Points Booster
If you're on a Virgin Atlantic-operated flight — whether you paid cash or redeemed points for it — you can use Flying Club's Points Booster to earn extra Virgin points inexpensively. You can usually find deals for about 1.3 cents per bonus point.
You can even use the Points Booster feature for flights taken up to six months ago.
Other Virgin Atlantic earning partners
There are several partners through which you can earn Virgin points by shopping or traveling:
- Hotels: You can earn Virgin points by booking stays with Virgin Hotels, Virgin Limited Edition, Marriott, Best Western, Hilton, IHG, Rocketmiles and Hyatt.
- Car rental partners: Virgin Atlantic partners with Avis, Alamo, Hertz, Enterprise and National.
- Virgin Trains Ticketing and Eurostar: Earn points for train trips across Great Britain and Europe.
- Heathrow Rewards: You can earn points for shopping or parking at London's Heathrow Airport (LHR) and transfer them to Flying Club.
- Shops Away: Earn Virgin points when you choose to shop at over 1,000 retailers through Virgin Atlantic's shopping portal.
There are also ways to earn Virgin points through airport lounge purchases, online surveys and airport parking.
Related: The beginners guide to airline shopping portals: How to earn bonus points and miles
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club elite status
Flying Club uses two separate currencies. Virgin points are redeemable, while tier points determine your membership status.
| Currency | What it is | How you earn it | What it does | Expiration or reset date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virgin points | Redeemable rewards currency | Paid flights, partner activity, credit cards, transfers, shopping and other partners | Enables you to book flights, upgrades and other Virgin Red rewards | None |
| Tier points | Status-qualification metric | Eligible flights, Virgin Atlantic-operated reward flights, Virgin Atlantic Holidays and limited spending on Virgin's U.S. cobranded card | Unlocks or renews Silver and Gold status | Measured within your status-qualification period and reset under membership-year rules |
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club offers three membership tiers: Red, Silver and Gold. When you fly with Virgin Atlantic or its partners, you earn tier points, and the higher the status you have with the airline, the more perks you'll receive.
You'll receive the following benefits at each elite status tier:
Red (new member)
Just for signing up for the Flying Club program, you'll enjoy the following perks as an entry-level Red member:
- The ability to board first in economy
- The ability to pool your Virgin points in a household account
- Dedicated phone support
- Complimentary economy seat selection seven days before departure with Virgin Atlantic Holidays for everyone on your booking
- Discounts with Holiday Extras and Hertz Car Hire
Silver (400 tier points required)
As a Silver member, you'll receive the same benefits as Red members, as well as:
- Premium check-in for everyone on your booking when flying in any cabin class
- Priority boarding
- Priority baggage delivery when flying with Virgin Atlantic, Delta, Air France or KLM
- 30% more bonus points on flights, plus 3 Virgin points per British pound (about $1.33) spent on Virgin Atlantic Holidays
- 30% bonus points when you fly with SkyTeam partners
- Status extension for maternity or paternity leave and adoption
- Member benefits with Virgin Hotels
- One additional checked bag
- Complimentary economy seat selection seven days before travel for everyone on your booking with Virgin Atlantic and Delta and for the lead booker with Air France and KLM
- Priority phone support
- Complimentary room upgrade with Virgin Hotels, subject to availability
- 2,000 Virgin points when you renew Silver status
Gold (1,000 tier points required)
As a Gold member, you'll receive the same benefits as Silver members, plus:
- 60% more Virgin points on flights and 4 points per British pound spent on Virgin Atlantic Holidays
- Upper Class check-in when you fly from LHR with Virgin Atlantic or Delta, plus Upper Class check-in for everyone on your booking at other airports
- Additional checked and cabin luggage allowance
- Complimentary standard seat selection when flying with Virgin Atlantic, Delta, Air France or KLM
- Complimentary economy exit-row and Premium Preferred seat selection for the Gold member on Virgin Atlantic flights
- Lounge access (plus lounge access for one guest in select lounges)
- 2,000 bonus points on your birthday
- The ability to gift Silver status to a friend for 12 months
- A guaranteed economy seat when the cabin is sold out, subject to booking more than 24 hours before departure and purchasing the eligible full-fare economy booking class
- Complimentary breakfast with Virgin Hotels
For a comprehensive list of benefits, visit Virgin Atlantic's website.
Additionally, Flying Club has introduced High Five rewards, which will award elite members with 12,000 Virgin points if they have flown with the program for five years, starting in January 2021.
How to redeem Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points
Every seat on a Virgin Atlantic-operated flight is, in theory, bookable with Virgin points. As with cash fares, seats booked with Virgin points are priced according to demand. However, the number of Virgin points required to book an award seat is not linked to the cash price; this has resulted in some excellent and some poor redemption rates.
When searching for award redemptions, look for Saver seats marked with a red tag. These award seats are now the most affordable options, although they will not be available on every flight.
You can use Virgin Atlantic's handy Reward Seat Checker to find the lowest-priced seats.
Unfortunately, the downside of dynamic pricing is that the number of points required can be astronomical if you want to travel on peak dates, such as school holidays and during the summer. For some routes, the number of points required for a single flight can reach 150,000 in economy or 350,000 in business class.
At these rates, check cash fares, as you may find a better deal than redeeming your Virgin or credit card points.
A downside to booking with Virgin Atlantic is the carrier-imposed surcharges it adds to your ticket. If you are booking a business-class ticket from the U.S. to the U.K., expect to pay over $700 in additional fees. Additionally, when departing the U.K., you must pay the U.K. Air Passenger Duty.
Related: Flexibility is key: Why I (mostly) like the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club changes
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club airline partners
Aside from Saver fares, which are strictly limited in capacity and may not be available on peak travel dates, the real magic of using Virgin points lies in partner award redemptions.
Redemptions on SkyTeam partner airlines are distance-based, excluding flights operated by Air France, KLM and Delta. You will need the following number of Virgin points each way per person (though note that some airlines do not offer premium economy, or Flying Club may not have access to this):
| Flight distance (miles) | Economy | Premium economy (where offered) | Business |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 to 500 | 5,500 | 9,000 | 14,500 |
| 501 to 1,000 | 7,000 | 12,500 | 15,500 |
| 1,001 to 1,500 | 10,000 | 16,000 | 21,500 |
| 1,501 to 2,250 | 11,500 | 22,000 | 35,500 |
| 2,251 to 3,000 | 15,000 | 26,500 | 40,000 |
| 3,001 to 4,000 | 20,500 | 37,500 | 60,000 |
| 4,001 to 5,000 | 25,500 | 47,500 | 75,000 |
| 5,001 to 6,000 | 31,500 | 57,500 | 85,000 |
| 6,001 to 7,000 | 37,000 | 70,000 | 100,000 |
| 7,001 to 12,000 | 50,000 | 95,000 | 140,000 |
As for Air France-, KLM- and Delta-operated flights, be sure to check the award charts for these carriers on Virgin Atlantic's website.
You'll notice that partner redemption charts do not include first-class fares. This means you can't redeem your Virgin points for SkyTeam airlines that offer first class.
In addition to redeeming your Virgin points with the SkyTeam airlines, you can also book award flights with the following airlines using Virgin points:
- Air New Zealand
- All Nippon Airways
- El Al
- LATAM
- South African Airways
- Virgin Australia
- WestJet
You can also earn Virgin points — but not redeem them — with partner IndiGo.
Each non-SkyTeam partner has a different award chart. Some are distance-based while others are zone-based, so each airline can have different terms and conditions.
Best ways to redeem Virgin points for maximum value
With so many different airline partners, here are some of our favorite ways to redeem your Virgin points.
Saver fares on Virgin Atlantic
On dates with low demand, Saver fares for flights from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), Dulles International Airport (IAD) near Washington, D.C., and Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) to LHR start at 6,000 Virgin points in economy, 10,500 Virgin points in premium economy and just 29,000 Virgin points in business class.
Taxes, fees and carrier-imposed surcharges for Saver fares are substantial at roughly $160 in economy, $295 in Premium and $700 in Upper Class on a flight from New York to London. Remember that taxes for flights departing from London will be higher than those for flights to London due to the U.K. Air Passenger Duty.
These are the lowest redemption rates for flights to London among any major airline loyalty program, but the trade-off is higher surcharges.
All Nippon Airways
Consider Virgin Atlantic's incredible redemption rates for ANA-operated flights if you want to travel between the U.S. and Japan. This route is one of the best award travel sweet spots, though availability is difficult to find.
Take a look at Virgin Atlantic's award chart for ANA flights. These prices are for one-way travel; double them for a round-trip redemption.
Related: I finally flew ANA's The Room business-class product to see if it lives up to the hype
If you were to book a round-trip flight to Japan from the West Coast in one of ANA's fancy first-class suite seats, you'd spend just 145,000 points for a seat costing $20,000 or more. A round-trip business-class ticket from the West Coast to Japan would cost 105,000 points.
Air France and KLM
Virgin Atlantic has several award charts for both Air France and KLM. It divides the world into 10 zones and calculates your award price based on your origin and destination zones. Here are some notable price highlights from the U.S. on off-peak dates:
- One-way economy flight to Europe from the West Coast for 15,000 points
- One-way economy flight to the Middle East from the East Coast for 25,000 points
- One-way business-class flight to Europe from the East Coast for 48,500 points
- One-way business-class flight to North Africa from the East Coast for 66,500 points
Bottom line
Virgin Atlantic's Flying Club program is intricate, and the dynamic pricing model favors those who are flexible and can travel during off-peak periods. Those who want to travel over major holidays and peak summer months may now need to look to other programs for decent award redemptions.
However, the program remains extremely valuable for international travel, particularly for those flying ANA, Air France or KLM in premium cabins when availability allows.
Additionally, because the program has so many transfer partners, it's easy to earn points, so don't overlook it.
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.