Avios or Virgin Points: Which Are Better?

If you're trying to decide where to focus your loyalty, you've probably found yourself wondering: should I be collecting Virgin Points or Avios? Which are better? Is Avios better than Virgin Points?

British Airways' Avios and Virgin Atlantic's Virgin Points represent two different philosophies: fixed-price reliability versus dynamic-pricing flexibility. By understanding these differences, you should get a better understanding of what will work for you. Let's break down which might suit you better.

Photo courtesy of Mark O'Harris

Better Value?

This one's complicated because it depends entirely on how you fly and when you book.

Virgin Points: Dynamic Pricing in Action

Virgin Points give you access to every single seat on every Virgin Atlantic flight. That sounds brilliant, doesn't it? And sometimes it is. Provided the flight isn't sold out, you can book any seat you want with points. The catch? Dynamic pricing.

One day your Upper Class flight to New York might be 47,500 points, the next it's 120,000. We've seen the Maldives priced as low as 35,000 Virgin Points one-way in Upper Class for November, but a few weeks later they were asking a ridiculous 350,000 Virgin Points for the exact same route. That's an increase of 10 times the amount for the same seat! If you're fortunate to be sitting on a massive points balance, but Virgin don't want you using it on a peak date, they'll jack up both the points and the cash taxes into the thousands of pounds. Hardly the dream.

The saving grace? Virgin Atlantic's pricing is a gift to the flexible, with Upper Class fares going for just over 20,000 Virgin Points at less popular times.

Avios: Fixed Charts with Recent Increases

Avios, meanwhile, work on zone-based fixed pricing charts. Want to fly Club World to New York? It's 166,000 Avios return off-peak, 198,000 peak (as of December 2025). No surprises, no checking back a week later to find they've added a zero to the end.

However, British Airways have recently increased their prices by roughly 10% across the board in December 2025, affecting all destinations and cabin classes. While frustrating, this relative predictability means you can budget your points and plan redemptions months in advance without worrying about price fluctuations.

The Value Verdict

If you're organised and can plan ahead, Avios can be incredibly consistent. Virgin Points can be spectacular value on quiet dates, sometimes offering Premium Economy or Upper Class seats for remarkably low points when demand is low. But they can also be eye-wateringly expensive when demand is high. The key is flexibility: if you can search multiple dates and be adaptable, Virgin's dynamic pricing can work in your favour.

How Flexible Are They?

Availability: Virgin's Clear Advantage

Virgin Points win this one hands down when it comes to seat availability. You can book any seat, any time, on any Virgin Atlantic flight. There's no limited allocation, if there's a seat on the plane, you can buy it with points. That flexibility is very valuable, especially if your travel dates aren't flexible or you're booking close to departure.

British Airways, however, only guarantees to release a fixed number of reward seats per flight: 8 in Economy, 2 in Premium Economy, and 4 in Business Class, and it does this at midnight GMT, 355 days in advance. BA does have discretion to add more seats for sale using Avios across these cabins, but only if the flight isn't selling well. First Class availability is even more restricted, with no amount of seats guaranteed to be put on sale. These are only released at BA's whim depending on how well the cabin is selling.

Popular routes like Tokyo, Sydney, or the Maldives see seats in all cabins disappear faster than Prosecco at a hen do. If you don't book the moment seats are released 355 days out, you might be out of luck.

To counter this scarcity, BA has introduced "Avios-Only" flights on select routes and dates, where every seat on certain aircraft can be booked with points. Recent examples include Cape Town over Christmas 2025 and various European destinations during school holidays.

Expiry Policies: Both Generous

Virgin Points never expire. Ever. This policy was introduced in September 2020 when Virgin Flying Club miles were rebranded as Virgin Points. You can earn and bank them indefinitely without worrying about losing them.

Avios also have a generous expiry policy. They remain valid as long as you have some account activity every 36 months. "Activity" means any earning or redeeming transaction – even something as simple as taking an Uber ride with your linked account, converting a small number of Nectar points, or making a tiny purchase through the Avios eStore. For active collectors, it's virtually impossible to let Avios expire.

Both programmes give you breathing room to accumulate points without the stress of impending expiration dates.

Which Has More Uses?

Avios: Extensive oneworld Network

Avios absolutely dominate in terms of reach and partner variety. Thanks to the oneworld alliance, British Airways' partnerships, and other airlines using Avios, there are currently over 30 airlines where you can earn and redeem Avios. The oneworld alliance includes 15 full members.

• Alaska Airlines

• American Airlines

• British Airways

• Cathay Pacific

• Fiji Airways

• Finnair

• Hawaiian Airlines (from April 2026)

• Iberia

• Japan Airlines

• Malaysia Airlines

• Oman Air

• Qantas

• Qatar Airways

• Royal Air Maroc

• Royal Jordanian

• SriLankan Airlines

The BA Club family extends further with Qatar Airways, Finnair, Aer Lingus, Iberia, and Vueling all using Avios, meaning you can pool those Avios across seven loyalty schemes, transferring them instantly to each scheme. Meaning you can access partnerships that these airlines have on top of BA's! A great example of this would be being able to spend Avios on Philippine Airlines through Qatar Airways. You can even earn Avios on some Star Alliance carriers like United through Aer Lingus' partnership.

Qatar Airways is one of our favourite ways to use Avios

Beyond flights, Avios shine in their versatility. You can use them for upgrades, hotels, car hire, and experiences.

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Virgin Points: SkyTeam Plus Select Partners

Virgin Atlantic joined the SkyTeam alliance in March 2023, becoming SkyTeam's first and only UK member. This gave Flying Club members access to 17 SkyTeam carriers:

• Aerolíneas Argentinas

• Aeromexico

• Air Europa

• Air France

• China Airlines

• China Eastern

• Delta Air Lines

• Garuda Indonesia

• Kenya Airways

• Korean Air

• KLM

• Middle East Airlines

• Saudia

• TAROM

• Vietnam Airlines

• XiamenAir

I used Virgin Points to fly Air France last year

However, Virgin's partnership landscape has been shrinking. In 2025, three non-SkyTeam partnerships ended:

• Singapore Airlines (ended April 2025)

• Hawaiian Airlines (ended June 2025, due to Alaska Airlines acquisition)

• ITA Airways (ending November 2025, joining Star Alliance)

  
  

Virgin's remaining non-SkyTeam partners include some valuable options:

• ANA (Japan) – excellent for premium cabin redemptions

• Air New Zealand

• EL AL

• LATAM

• South African Airways

• Virgin Australia

Finding availability on for a lot of these airlines can be difficult, with fewer airlines having a guaranteed amount of seats for sale using points, and some of these partners require phone bookings rather than simply booking online, which is a right pain in the behind.

Beyond flying, Virgin Points are also versatile within the Virgin Group and can be redeemed for Virgin Hotels, Virgin Active gym passes, Virgin Voyages cruises, box seats at the O2 in London, and experiences through Virgin Experience Days.

The Network Verdict

Avios offer more airline partners, and greater flexibility for non-flight redemptions. Virgin Points provide excellent value within the Virgin ecosystem and SkyTeam network, but the reach isn't quite as extensive. If maximising partner choice is your priority, Avios have the advantage.

Ease of Collecting?

Both programmes make it relatively straightforward to accumulate points, though Avios probably edges ahead in terms of sheer variety.

Collecting Avios

Credit cards remain the primary earning engine for most UK collectors. As standard the current options include:

• British Airways American Express – 5,000 Avios sign up bonus, no annual fee, earn 1 Avios per £1 spent.

• British Airways Premium Plus American Express - 30,000 Avios sign up bonus, £300 annual fee, earn 1.5 Avios per £1 spent.

• Barclaycard Avios Plus – 25,000 at £3,000 spend in 3 months, £20 monthly fee, earn 1.5 Avios per £1 spent.

• Barclaycard Avios - 5,000 Avios sign up bonus, no monthly fee, earn 1 Avios per £1 spent.

• American Express cards – Membership Rewards points convert 1:1 to Avios.

Beyond credit cards, Avios earning opportunities include:

• Flying with BA and oneworld partners

• Avios shopping portal with hundreds of retailers

• Uber trips (1 Avios per £1, posting within minutes)

• In-store shopping with cards registered on the Avios website at participating retailers

• Nectar points conversions (400 Nectar points = 250 Avios)

• Switching utilities through comparison sites

• Switching insurances (car/travel/home etc.) through comparison sites

• Holidays booked through BA Holidays

• Hotel bookings through Avios Hotels (10 Avios per £1)

• Car rentals with partner companies

If you haven't checked out our free Avios Guide, you should! We cover all of this in much more detail, have we mentioned its free? Click here to get it straight to your inbox.

Collecting Virgin Points

Virgin Points are primarily earned through Virgin Atlantic credit cards and the broader Virgin ecosystem:

• Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Card – 18,000 bonus Virgin Points, £160 annual fee, earn 1.5 Virgin Points per £1 spent.

• Virgin Atlantic Reward Card – 3,000 bonus Virgin Points, no annual fee, earn 0.75 Virgin Points per £1 spent.

• American Express cards – Membership Rewards convert 1:1 to Virgin Points.

Other Virgin Points earning methods:

• Flying with Virgin Atlantic and SkyTeam partners

• Virgin Trains Ticketing (3 points per £1 normally, recently offered 9 points per £1 during promotions)

• Virgin Atlantic Shops Away portal (30% bonus on first purchase, then standard rates)

• Tesco Clubcard transfers (£1.50 = 300 Virgin Points, or set up auto-exchange at 250 Clubcard points = 500 Virgin Points)

• Virgin Experience Days

• Virgin Holidays (2-4 points per £1 depending on your membership tier)

• Virgin Red games (free entry prize draws)

• Virgin Red everyday partners (train tickets, mobile phones, experiences)

One significant advantage of Virgin's programme: you earn Tier Points on redemption flights, unlike British Airways. This can accelerate your path to Silver or Gold status.

The Earning Verdict

It should be noted that we have only included the standard sign-up bonuses and not any special offers that may be running at the moment. Click Here to go to our homepage where we will show you any current offers, or if you want them straight to your inbox, feel free to subscribe to our mailing list.

Anyway, where were we? Oh yes!

Neither of the lists are exhaustive, but Avios offer more diverse earning routes with deeper integration across travel and retail partners. Virgin Points concentrate earning within the Virgin ecosystem but offer competitive credit card bonuses and the valuable benefit of earning Tier Points on award flights. For most UK collectors, maintaining both currencies and transferring from flexible points programmes like Amex Membership Rewards provides the optimal strategy.

Ease of Redemption?

This is a tricky one.

British Airways: Online Excellence with Scarcity

British Airways makes booking reward flights straightforward online through their website. Their booking interface shows you exactly what's available, displays the Avios required and taxes/fees clearly, and lets you complete the entire process without human intervention. The frustration comes from seat scarcity rather than the booking process itself.

The "Part Pay with Avios" feature exists but offers terrible value at around 0.46p per Avios – well below the 1p target you should aim for. It's essentially paying retail prices while burning points inefficiently. Only use it as an absolute last resort.

The real strength of BA's system is the Cabin Upgrade Voucher earned through Barclays (click here for a guide to Cabin Upgrade Vouchers) products, or the Companion Voucher earned from British Airways American Express cards (click here for a guide to Companion Vouchers).

These two products differ slightly, but can each save you hundreds of thousands of Avios. Plus, both can be booked online on the BA website.

Virgin Atlantic: Mostly Online with Notable Exceptions

Virgin Atlantic's booking system is also largely online through their website. You can search availability, see the dynamic pricing in real-time, and book most redemptions in one go. The website now displays most SkyTeam partners directly, making multi-carrier bookings more accessible.

However, some partners require phone bookings. Airlines that must be booked by calling Virgin Atlantic include:

• ANA (Japan)

• Air New Zealand

• China Airlines

• Aerolíneas Argentinas

• Middle East Airlines

• South African Airways

• Virgin Australia

This phone requirement adds friction, especially for complex itineraries or when you're comparing options across dates.

Where Virgin truly stumbles is with Flying Club Reward Vouchers earned through their credit cards (click here for a guide to Virgin's Flying Club Reward Vouchers). Unlike BA's automatically deposited Cabin Upgrade Vouchers and Companion Vouchers that can be used online, Virgin's vouchers live in the Virgin Money ecosystem. This means you must phone Virgin Atlantic's customer centre to redeem them – you cannot do it online. In 2026, this feels ridiculous. The redemption process itself works fine once you get through, but it's an unnecessary extra step..

Virgin's taxes and fees can be even more eye-watering than BA's, particularly in Upper Class during peak periods. These are not fixed, and fluctuate in the same way their points pricing does. We've seen surcharges climb into thousands of pounds on popular routes when Virgin doesn't want you redeeming points on expensive peak dates.

Finding Availability

Both programmes struggle with availability in different ways:

• Avios: Limited reward seats mean you need to book early (355 days out) or be flexible with dates. Tools like Reward Flight Finder or Seatspy help by showing you a calendar of all availability on the routes of your choosing. "Avios-Only" flights solve this problem on select routes.

• Virgin Points: While any seat can technically be booked, dynamic pricing makes some dates prohibitively expensive. Use tools like our favourite free option, vseats.io, to track pricing trends and find sweet spots when points requirements drop.

The Redemption Verdict

British Airways wins for pure online convenience. Virgin Atlantic matches BA for most online bookings, but falls behind with mandatory phone bookings for select partners and the frustrating Reward Voucher redemption process. Both charge substantial fees on top of points, sometimes making cash fares more attractive than "free" points redemptions.

The Verdict

So which is better: Virgin Points or Avios? The honest answer is that neither is universally superior, and that the smart strategy involves collecting both.

Choose Avios when you:

• Can plan travel in advance and book at the T-355 day mark

• Value predictable, fixed pricing for budgeting your points redemptions

• Want access to the broadest airline network through oneworld (14+ airlines)

• Fly regularly on short-haul European routes where Avios pricing can be excellent

• Can leverage Cabin Upgrade Vouchers from Barclays products or Companion Vouchers from American Express cards for excellent value

• Prefer the most diverse earning opportunities across retail, travel, and everyday spend

• Prioritise having points that can be used across seven different frequent flyer programmes

Choose Virgin Points when you:

• Need flexibility and availability trumps predictable pricing

• Book flights close to departure or can't commit far in advance

• Primarily fly transatlantic routes

• Want points that never expire without any activity requirements

• Can take advantage of dynamic pricing sweet spots when demand is low

• Value earning Tier Points on redemption flights (unique to Virgin)

• Are part of the broader Virgin ecosystem (Holidays, Hotels, Active, Voyages)

The Strategic Reality: Collect Both

We would say that you shouldn't choose one currency exclusively. Instead, build a diversified points portfolio:

1. Earn flexibly: Use American Express Membership Rewards as your foundation – they convert 1:1 to both Avios and Virgin Points. This lets you decide which currency to use based on the specific redemption.

2. Plan ahead with Avios: When you know travel dates far in advance, book BA reward seats immediately when they're released 355 days in advance for fixed, predictable pricing.

3. Stay flexible with Virgin Points: For last-minute travel or when Avios reward seats aren't available, lean on Virgin's dynamic pricing and guaranteed seat availability.

4. Maximise both credit card ecosystems: If you can, hold both Avios and Virgin Points earning cards during periods of enhanced bonuses, then revert to whichever offers better ongoing earn rates for your spending patterns.

5. Exploit programme-specific sweet spots:

   • Use Avios for short-haul European Business Class, Iberia long-haul redemptions, and Qatar Airways to Australasia

   • Use Virgin Points for ANA premium cabins to Japan, or Delta domestic US flights

   • Compare both for transatlantic routes where overlap exists

6. Monitor partnership changes: Virgin's non-SkyTeam partners are diminishing (losing Singapore Airlines, Hawaiian, and ITA Airways in 2025). If those partners were valuable to you, you could weigh towards Avios.

So, Which Are Better, Avios or Virgin Points?

If you're organised and strategic, Avios offer predictability, vast partner networks, and excellent value through their vouchers. They're steady, dependable, and won't surprise you with sudden price hikes, though you'll need to move fast when reward seats are released.

Virgin Points offer flexibility and availability that Avios simply can't match. Any seat, any time, no scrambling 355 days out. When pricing is reasonable, they're brilliant. When it's sky-high, it's painful. Think of them as the exciting but unpredictable option versus Avios' reliable consistency.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket. The most successful points collectors maintain balances in multiple programmes, transfer strategically from flexible currencies like Amex Membership Rewards, and choose the optimal currency for each specific redemption. Stay alert to opportunities in both programmes, book strategically, and you'll maximise your chances of flying premium without breaking the bank.

Sam

Points Well Made is a passion project of Sam and Helena with a loyal following. If you like what we do, and wish to help us continue to create the content you love, please consider buying us a Kofi, or subscribing monthly. Your help is greatly appreciated. Thank you.