Collect Avios miles
Open an account
Opening a British Airways Executive Club account couldn’t be simpler: in all cases, go to the British Airways website and follow the instructions.
Members of the British Airways Executive Club earn Avios miles.
Travels with Oneworld
British Airways Executive Club is the British Airways frequent flyer programme.
You can earn Avios miles when you travel on board :
- British Airways
- One of the 13 member airlines of the Oneworld alliance
With British Airways
Since October 18, 2023, Avios miles are accumulated according to the amount of money spent on the ticket and extras. Eligible expenses include :
- Ticket price
- Fees added by the company
- Cabin upgrades
- Pre-booked and paid seats
- Additional baggage allowance.
For tickets purchased before October 19, 2023, the accumulation of Avios miles follows the old method and depends on :
- The booking class of your ticket
- Flight distance covered
- Your Executive Club status
You’ll earn between 25% and 300% of the distance traveled in Avios miles, with a minimum number of miles for each fare category.
In addition, members with Executive Club status receive a bonus based on distance travelled:
- Blue: 25%
- Silver: 50% discount
- Gold : 100%
To find out how many Avios miles you will earn with your flight, go to this page provided by British Airways Executive Club.
With partner companies
Avios miles can also be earned for flights on any of the 13 Oneworld airlines.
Mileage calculation varies with partner airlines, either according to flight distance or the total amount spent. Details can be found on this page. Here is an example of the accumulation on Qatar Airways :
With car rentals
British Airways Executive Club partners with car rental agencies including :
- Avis (5 Avios per £1 spent)
- Budget (2 Avios per £1 spent)
This makes it easy to earn Avios miles on every rental .
With hotel stays
British Airways Executive Club partners with a number of hotel groups and online booking sites, including :
This makes it easy to earn Avios miles on every hotel stay .
With Airbnb
British Airways Executive Club is partnered with Airbnb, earning Avios miles on every rental:
- 3 Avios miles per US dollar for stays
- 3 Avios miles per US dollar for Airbnb Experiences
With credit cards welcome bonuses
British Airways Executive Club is partnered with two institutions in Canada that offer credit cards earning Avios miles directly or indirectly:
Each of these cards will:
- offer a welcome bonus
- offer Avios miles for every purchase
It’s a great way to earn lots of Avios miles fast!
American Express
American Express offersseven Membership Rewards cards. These reward points can be transferred 1:1 to the British Airways Executive Club program.
HSBC
As part of its HSBC Rewards program, HSBC Bank allows you to transfer points into Avios miles.
The transfer is possible in increments of HSBC points:
| HSBC Rewards Points | Avios Miles |
| 25 000 | 10 000 |
| 35 000 | 14 000 |
| 45 000 | 18 000 |
Thus, 2.5 HSBC points = 1 Avios mile (or 5 HSBC points = 2 Avios miles).
RBC
RBC offers a credit card directly affiliated with the program: the RBC British Airways Visa Infinite card.
In its RBC Avion Rewards program, RBC Bank offers several credit cards offering travel points transferable to Avios miles at a rate of 1:1:
- RBC Avion Visa Platinum
- RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card
- RBC® Avion® Visa Infinite Privilege* Card
- RBC Avion Visa Platinum Business
The RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card regularly offers promotions to earn between 35,000 and 55,000 RBC Avion points.
With purchases made on credit cards
To collect Avios miles more quickly, it’s best to use one of the credit cards (see choices above) as often as possible!
The rate of accumulation will often depend on the issuer and type of card:
- 1 Avios mile per dollar for most cards such as the RBC British Airways Visa Infinite Card or the American ExpressMD Gold Rewards Card
- 2 Avios miles per dollar with the American ExpressMD Gold Rewards Card for purchases at grocery stores, gas stations, pharmacies or travel.
- 2 Avios miles per dollar for British Airways ticket purchases with the RBC British Airways Visa Infinite Card
- 5 Avios miles per dollar for purchases at grocery stores, restaurants, bars, convenience stores or home food delivery with the American Express CobaltMD Card.
With hotel points conversion
Most hotel loyalty programs allow you to convert your points into Avios miles.
It’s a sneaky way to earn Avios miles! Especially since conversion bonuses are offered at certain times of the year.
For example, you can convert Marriott Bonvoy points into Avios miles.
By maximizing both programs, and converting during a promotional period (such as the one offering 30% extra miles), it is possible to do the following, for example:
If you have the :
But if you’d like to earn Avios miles instead of using your points for free nights, this is the solution for you!
Use Avios miles
Let’s discover all the ways in which miles can be used to :
- Airline tickets
- Car rentals
- Hotel nights
Plane tickets
The best use of Avios miles will be to book airline tickets. These are called award flights. But you still need to know the tips and tricks for using Avios miles correctly.
The fare structure for flights on British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia and Vueling
British Airways Executive Club rates are based on :
- Distance to cover (divided into 9 zones)
- Season (high/low season)
Here is the price list for flights on :
- British Airways
- Aer Lingus
- Iberia
- Vueling
Economy Class
| Zone | Distance in miles | Off peak | High season |
| 1 | 1-650 | 4 750 | 5 250 |
| 2 | 651-1 151 | 7 250 | 8 250 |
| 3 | 1 152-2 000 | 10 000 | 12 500 |
| 4 | 2 001-3 000 | 10 000 | 12 500 |
| 5 | 3 001-4 000 | 13 000 | 20 000 |
| 6 | 4 001-5 500 | 16 250 | 25 000 |
| 7 | 5 501-6 500 | 19 500 | 30 000 |
| 8 | 6 501-7 000 | 22 750 | 35 000 |
| 9 | 7 001+ | 32 500 | 50 000 |
Premium Economy Class
| Zone | Distance in miles | Off peak | High season |
| 1 | 1-650 | – | – |
| 2 | 651-1 151 | – | – |
| 3 | 1 152-2 000 | – | – |
| 4 | 2 001-3 000 | 20 000 | 25 000 |
| 5 | 3 001-4 000 | 26 000 | 40 000 |
| 6 | 4 001-5 500 | 32 500 | 50 000 |
| 7 | 5 501-6 500 | 39 000 | 60 000 |
| 8 | 6 501-7 000 | 45 500 | 70 000 |
| 9 | 7 001+ | 65 000 | 100 000 |
Business Class
| Zone | Distance in miles | Off peak | High season |
| 1 | 1-650 | 8 500 | 9 750 |
| 2 | 651-1 151 | 13 000 | 15 750 |
| 3 | 1 152-2 000 | 17 750 | 20 750 |
| 4 | 2 001-3 000 | 31 250 | 37 500 |
| 5 | 3 001-4 000 | 50 000 | 60 000 |
| 6 | 4 001-5 500 | 62 500 | 75 000 |
| 7 | 5 501-6 500 | 75 000 | 90 000 |
| 8 | 6 501-7 000 | 87 500 | 105 000 |
| 9 | 7 001+ | 125 000 | 150 000 |
First Class
| Zone | Distance in miles | Off peak | High season |
| 1 | 1-650 | – | – |
| 2 | 651-1 151 | – | – |
| 3 | 1 152-2 000 | – | – |
| 4 | 2 001-3 000 | 42 500 | 50 000 |
| 5 | 3 001-4 000 | 68 000 | 80 000 |
| 6 | 4 001-5 500 | 85 000 | 100 000 |
| 7 | 5 501-6 500 | 102 000 | 120 000 |
| 8 | 6 501-7 000 | 119 000 | 140 000 |
| 9 | 7 001+ | 170 000 | 200 000 |
Fares for flights with Oneworld partners
British Airways Executive Club has a different fare structure based solely on distance (divided into 9 zones).
This price list applies only to trips made with other Oneworld members.
| Zone | Distance in miles | Economy | Pr. Eco | Business | First |
| 1* | 1-650 | 6 000 | 9 000 | 12 500 | 24 000 |
| 2 | 651-1 151 | 9 000 | 12 500 | 16 500 | 33 000 |
| 3 | 1 152-2 000 | 11 000 | 16 500 | 22 000 | 44 000 |
| 4 | 2 001-3 000 | 13 000 | 25 750 | 38 750 | 51 500 |
| 5 | 3 001-4 000 | 20 750 | 41 250 | 62 000 | 82 500 |
| 6 | 4 001-5 500 | 25 750 | 51 500 | 77 250 | 103 000 |
| 7 | 5 501-6 500 | 31 000 | 62 000 | 92 750 | 123 750 |
| 8 | 6 501-7 000 | 36 250 | 72 250 | 108 250 | 144 250 |
| 9 | 7 001+ | 51 500 | 103 000 | 154 500 | 206 000 |
One rate per segment
British Airways Executive Club allows you to book one-way tickets. However, if your itinerary includes several segments, it will cost you more in Avios miles.
It is therefore more interesting to find a direct flight (like Montreal – Miami) than a connecting flight (like Montreal – Philadelphia – Miami).
Travelling with children
The British Airways Executive Club program is particularly interesting for families.
There are airfares for babies (children under 2 AND traveling on an adult’s lap).
The required fee will be 10% of the cost in miles of the adult rate (+ taxes). So if a one-way ticket costs 7,500 Avios miles for an adult, it will cost 750 miles for a child under the age of 2!
Modifying and canceling a reward flight
British Airways Executive Club allows you to change or cancel a reward flight up to 24 hours before departure.
The fee will be CA$58 (no fee if you are a Gold member). Miles and taxes will be refunded in full.
The reward flights availability
Awards will be displayed on British Airways Executive Club from 355 days before flight departure.
However, for some airlines, tickets will not be posted until 300 days before flight departure.
Carrier surcharges
On British Airways Executive Club, when you book an reward flight, a fee is added to the amount in miles.
This fee includes :
- airport taxes
- a possible “surcharge” from the carrier
The carrier surcharge was introduced by some airlines such as British Airways or Qatar Airways when the price of oil reached record highs.
Since then, this surcharge has not been removed, and is a way for airlines to make money.
Also, there is an unavoidable departure tax in the UK, so we’ll be looking to avoid leaving the UK.
However, if you look carefully for your awards, you can avoid carrier surcharges: some airlines don’t charge any surcharges at all!
Airlines without surcharge
To avoid carrier surcharges, you need to know which airlines do not charge them on award tickets.
The following airlines DO NOT charge surcharges:
- Aer Lingus
- American Airlines (excluding transcontinental flights)
- Alaska Airlines
- Cathay Pacific
- Iberia (to Spain only)
- Qantas (excluding transcontinental flights)
- Japan Airlines (excluding transcontinental flights)
Short-haul flights: the best deal
An excellent use of Avios miles: to book short-haul reward flights. These are “local” destinations.
In North America, certain flights operated by American Airlines will cost 7,500 miles one way, or 15,000 miles round trip. Like Montreal – New York for example.
However, this is particularly useful in countries such as Japan. Here is an example of an award ticket between Tokyo and Osaka:
Award ticket search tools
There are several free and paid tools to find reward tickets on British Airways Executive Club.
While Expertflyer is aimed at advanced users, Seats.aero is easier to use and offers a free version.
For car rentals
Avios miles can be used to rent a car.
Here’s an example of a one-week car rental in Miami.
For hotels
Avios miles can also be used to book hotel nights. However, point valuation is far from optimal.
Manage your Avios miles
The value of miles
The value of a thousand Avios will depend on how you use them. However, it is generally agreed that 1 Avios mile = 1.7 ¢.
You could get much more value from short-haul air awards in Asia, or flights in premium cabins (Business/First class).
Miles expiration
Avios miles do not have an expiration date based on the date they were earned.
This means that all Avios miles will remain in your account as long as you generate activity every 36 months.
Claiming missing miles
Have you travelled on British Airways or a Oneworld airline without giving your membership number?
Or have you forgotten to use your British Airways Executive Club membership number with a partner?
It is possible to make a claim for missing miles up to 6 months after the transaction. To do this, you will need to fill in the claim form on the Missing miles request page.
The family and friends account
This is a major advantage of the British Airways Executive Club program.
There are three components to know about your British Airways Executive Club Account:
- My family account (7 people)
- My family and friends (5 people)
- My travel companions
Family accounts can be opened for :
- people with an individual British Airways Executive Club account
- residing at the same address
And it’s a way for children under 18 to earn Avios miles on their travels!
Once the accounts have been combined, Avios milescan be collected and used together!
Transfer Avios miles
It is possible – but very expensive – to transfer miles from one British Airways Executive Club member to another. We do not recommend this option (prefer the Family and Friends account option). A maximum of 27,000 Avios miles can be transferred per year.
Status
British Airways Executive Club has four levels of status:
- Blue
- Bronze
- Silver
- Gold
Status points
To obtain one of these statuses, it is necessary to accumulate status points (which are different from Avios miles).
The only way to earn status points is by traveling with British Airways or its Oneworld Alliance partners.
The amount of status points earned will depend on the type and fare class of the ticket.
Here’s an example of a one-way ticket between Montreal and London as a Blue member.
At the lowest economy fare (Q, O, G), you’ll earn 813 Avios miles and 20 Status points.
Status qualification year
Unlike other frequent flyer programs that are based on the calendar year, British Airways Executive Club takes into account the date of joining the program. The amount of status points earned in the 12 months from that date determines your status for the remaining period and the following year.
Status advantages with British Airways
Blue
At this level, there are no particular advantages other than the ability to earn and use Avios miles and Status points.
Bronze
- 25% bonus Avios miles on British Airways, Iberia and American Airlines flights
- Free choice of seat 7 days before departure
- Priority check-in and boarding
Silver
- 50% bonus Avios miles on British Airways, Iberia and American Airlines flights
- Free choice of seat upon booking
- Access to Business Class lounges
- Additional baggage allowance
Gold
- 100% bonus Avios miles on British Airways, Iberia and American Airlines flights
- Access to First Class check-in desks
- Access to First Class lounges
- Free seat selection including emergency exit seats
- More choice for reward tickets
Status advantages with Oneworld
Obtaining British Airways Executive Club status means having an equivalent on the Oneworld side.
Bronze = Oneworld Ruby
- Access to Business Class check-in desks
- Access to more comfortable seats (depending on the airline)
- Priority in waiting lists
Silver = Oneworld Sapphire
- Access to Business Class lounges
- Priority online check-in
- Priority luggage delivery
- Additional baggage allowance
Gold = Oneworld Emerald
- Access to First Class lounges
- Access to First Class check-in desks
- Access to priority security lines
- More seating options (including emergency exit seating)
Avios credit cards
Many credit cards in Canada allow you to earn Avios miles directly or indirectly. See our best cards on this page.
Bottom Line
The British Airways Executive Club is a major frequent flyer program in the world. In Canada, as you saw above, it’s very easy to collect Avios miles thanks to credit card partners such as American Express and RBC.
This program will appeal to :
- those who want in travel to North America with American Airlines
- those who want to travel to Asia (with Cathay Pacific or Japan Airlines) and within Australia (with Qantas)
- those wishing to travel within Europe (with British Airways or Iberia)
However, don’t count on crossing oceans: surcharges will often be too high, or flights without surcharges very rare (like Aer Lingus). Or the distance will mean that the number of Avios miles required will be inordinate!
There are many great uses (sweetspots) in this program. To further your knowledge of the program, here are several articles we recommend:
Questions
How much are Avios miles worth?
The value of Avios miles is subjective and varies according to several factors. In 2023, Milesopedia estimates an average of 1 Avios mile = 1.7¢. So 50,000 Avios miles are worth around $850.
Do Avios miles expire?
Avios miles expire when there is no activity in the account for 36 consecutive months.
How much does it cost to join the British Airways Executive Club?
Membership of the British Airways Executive Club frequent flyer program is free of charge.