As one of the more interesting Star Alliance airline loyalty programs, Singapore KrisFlyer is one to look to when searching for award flights. Indeed, its loyalty program isn’t competitive across the board. That’s when you’re comparing it to Air Canada Aeroplan, ANA Mileage Plan, Avianca LifeMiles, and United Airlines. However, there are instances where using KrisFlyer miles can make sense.
When setting up this article, it’s helpful to note members earn KrisFlyer miles and Elite miles. The main difference between the two is that Elite miles are used for elite status qualification and not to book award flights. In contrast, KrisFlyer miles are used to book award flights and do not correlate to your elite status. With that context, let’s see how you can get your hands on both sets of miles.
For more Points With Q articles delivered to your inbox, sign up for my travel newsletter.
Best Credit Cards to Earn Singapore KrisFlyer Miles
One of the things to appreciate about the Singapore Krisflyer program is that it partners with American Express, Capital One, Chase, Citi, and Marriott. This means the credit card and hotel points that you earn can be transferred directly to Singapore KrisFlyer to book an award flight. Amex and Chase point transfer instantly at a 1:1 ratio. Capital One Miles transfer in 36 hours at a 2:1 ratio. Marriott points transfer in 24 hours at a 3:1 ratio. You receive a 5,000-mile bonus with every 20,000 Marriott points that you transfer to an airline.
Some of the top cards in these programs include the Amex Gold Card, Chase Sapphire Preferred, and Citi Premier Card. You earn 4x points at restaurants and US supermarkets with the Amex Gold Card. The Capital One Venture Card earns 2x miles on all purchases. Chase Sapphire Preferred cardmembers earn 5x points on travel booked through Chase, 2x points on all other travel purchases, 3x points on online grocery purchases, 3x points on dining, and 3x points on streaming services. You earn 3x points at restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, airfare, and hotels with the Citi Premier Card.
Best Ways to Earn Singapore Krisflyer Elite Miles
Earn when you fly
When flying Singapore Airlines and its partner airlines, you earn miles with every flight. The number of miles that you earn is determined by the booking class and the distance of your travel. Singapore Airlines Mileage Accrual Chart shows both the booking class and accrual rate for Singapore Airlines and its partner airline flights. Or you can use the Miles Calculator to see the number of miles you will earn. Note that these miles are ones you use to book award flights and separate from miles earned for elite status qualification.
KrisFlyer Elite miles are used to determine your elite status in the Singapore KrisFlyer program. Singapore Airlines also has PPS Club which unlocks benefits based upon the amount you spend on Singapore Airlines and SilkAir first and business-class flights. Said another way, KrisFlyer elite miles are based upon flying and PPS Club points are based upon dollars spent.
Members can earn KrisFlyer Elite Silver and KrisFlyer Elite Gold. Elite Silver and Elite Gold are earned with 25,000 and 50,000 Elite miles respectively within 12 consecutive months. The Booking Class and Earning Rate determine the number of KrisFlyer Elite Miles you earn with your flight.
PPS Club has PPS Club and Solitaire PPS Club status tiers. You earn this status based upon the amount you spend on Singapore Airlines and SilkAir first and business-class flights. 25,000 PPS Club points earn PPS Club and 50,000 PPS Club points earn Solitaire PPS Club status. 1 PPS Club point = 1 Singapore dollar. So, $50,000 Singapore dollars = PPS Club status.
Earn With Credit Card Partners
Give credit to Singapore Airlines for the sheer number of partnerships the brand has. While the airline doesn’t offer a co-branded airline card for the US market, its financial partners in American Express, Capital One, Chase, Citi, and Marriott allow you to earn points that can be transferred to Singapore Airlines.
There’s no shortage of credit cards offered by these banks and Marriott. It feels like every week we see a new credit card offer, a new credit card benefit, or a new credit card launched. Now is certainly an ideal time to be a consumer in the travel credit card market.
Earn On The Ground
The airline also has partnerships with well-known car rental companies like Avis, Budget, and Hertz. With these partnerships, KrisFlyer members earn miles with every car rental. For example, you earn 500 KrisFlyer miles with Hertz.
In addition to its car rental partnerships, Singapore Airlines has hotel partnerships. Hotel brands like Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, and Marriott partner with Singapore Airlines. Similar to car rentals, KrisFlyer members earn miles with each. For example, you earn 500 miles with every qualifying Hyatt stay.
Retail partners are another way to earn KrisFlyer miles. When you make qualifying purchases with these retail partners, you earn miles. For example, you can earn up to 80,000 KrisFlyer miles with every qualifying purchase at F1 Auto Cars.
Lastly, while not extremely relevant for the US market, Singapore Airlines has a list of “Other” partners that give you the ability to earn miles. The earn rates with these partnerships vary so look through each partner’s page to see the number of miles you’ll earn. It’s important to note that all of these ways earn KrisFlyer miles, and not KrisFlyer Elite miles.
Earn When You Shop
Online shopping offers an interesting way to earn bonus miles with each purchase. These miles are earned in addition to the credit card points earned to make the purchases themselves. With KrisFlyer Spree, Singapore Airlines members earn miles when making qualifying purchases online. For example, you can earn 11 KrisFlyer miles with every $10 that you spend at Apple.
KrisFlyer Shop is another Singapore Airlines online platform that allows you to redeem miles to purchase products from participating merchants. These merchants also have discounts on their products exclusively available on krisshop.com.
Earn Bonus Miles
Similar to what you see with other travel brands, Singapore Airlines has partner promotions throughout the year. Partner categories range from Financial Services, Ground Transport, Hotels, and Others. For example, Singapore KrisFlyer members can earn 500 bonus miles with every IHG stay between Mar 1 to September 30, 2021.
KrisFlyer FAQs
How much is KrisFlyer membership?
Free!
Which airlines are under KrisFlyer?
Singapore Airlines owns or has an interest in Scoot, SIA Engineering Company, Singapore Airlines Cargo, and Vistara.
Can I transfer KrisFlyer miles to United?
Unfortunately, no.
How do I link my KrisFlyer account?
KrisFlyer for Families allows you to link your account with your child, who is at least two years old, to pool your airline miles into one family account.
Conclusion on KrisFlyer
Singapore Airlines has clearly positioned itself as the airline that wants to set up partnerships. This translates into wins for its members as you have fairly easy paths to earn KrisFlyer miles. That’s in addition to the Elite Miles you earn when flying Singapore Airlines and its partner airline flights. For travelers looking for elite benefits, give KrisFlyer a look to see if elite status makes sense for you.
What do you think about KrisFlyer? Please let me know in the comments below or by sending me an email on my contact page.
Disclaimer: If you click and/or sign up for a credit card through certain links on this site or any of my related social media platforms, I may make a commission from that click-through. The editorial content on this page and the user comments are not provided by any of the companies mentioned and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. The opinions expressed here are mine alone.
