Lufthansa's Status Match for BA Club Members: Is €99 for Miles and More Status Actually Worth It?

Hot off the back of Air France KLM trying to poach British Airways Club members with a status match (click here for more information), Lufthansa are now vying for you all by running their own status match for British Airways Club members, offering the chance to match your BA status for their Miles & More programme. It costs €99 and lasts until February 2027. Let's work out if that's any good.

What's is a status match?

Lets start with the basics.

A status match is when an airline says "prove you've got elite status with another airline, and we'll give you equivalent status with us." It's basically poaching another airlines customers, as they try to tempt you away from your usual carrier by offering lounges, priority boarding, and all the perks that make flying that little bit nicer.

Sometimes these are free. Sometimes they charge a fee. Sometimes you have to have a flight already booked on the airline you're matching to.

If you wanted to know more about what a status match is, then Helena wrote a handy guide for you all last week, which you can find here!

This one's €99 upfront, no strings attached.

Show them your BA status, pay the fee, and your new status is locked in until February 2027.

This works even if your BA status is just about to run out, so it could be a good way to keep your status effectively running for longer.

What you'll get

The matching is simple:

Frequent Traveller and Senator are very different, so let's break down what you're actually paying for.

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First though, these are all the members of Star Alliance, the group of airlines that Lufthansa are a part of (this will be relevant for later):

• Aegean Airlines

• Air Canada

• Air China

• Air India

• Air New Zealand

• ANA (All Nippon Airways)

• Asiana Airlines

• Austrian Airlines

• Avianca

• Brussels Airlines

• Copa Airlines

• Croatia Airlines

• Egyptair

• Ethiopian Airlines

• EVA Air

• LOT Polish Airlines

• Lufthansa

• Scandinavian Airlines (SAS)

• Shenzhen Airlines

• Singapore Airlines

• South African Airways

• Swiss International Air Lines

• TAP Air Portugal

• Thai Airways

• Turkish Airlines

• United Airlines

And out of those, these airlines participate in the Miles and More programme:

• Austrian

• Brussels Airlines

• Lufthansa

• Swiss

Frequent Traveller (BA Silver): Not worth it

Here's the problem: lounge access only works when flying Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian, or Brussels Airlines. Not with any other Star Alliance airlines.

Lufthansa lounge at Heathrow T2? Yes. SWISS lounge in Zurich? Yes. But United to New York? Nothing. Air Canada? Nothing. Singapore Airlines, Turkish, Thai? Walk past the lounge like everyone else.

What you get:

• Lounge access only on Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian, Brussels Airlines

• Business class check-in (but again, only those airlines)

• Extra baggage allowance

What you don't get:

• Fast track security anywhere

• Priority boarding anywhere

• Lounge access on other Star Alliance carriers

Your BA Silver status is actually better. You get oneworld lounges when flying long-haul and fast track security at most airports. I would consider this a relative downgrade.

Unless you're only going to fly Lufthansa Group airlines and never use BA anymore, save your €99.

Senator (BA Gold): You should consider this

Senator is Star Alliance Gold. This is where it gets interesting.

Lounges:

• Flying Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian, or Brussels? You get their Senator Lounges (better than the basic Business lounges)

• Flying any other Star Alliance carrier? You get access to their lounges too

Everything else:

• Fast track security at all Star Alliance

• Priority boarding on all Star Alliance carriers

• Priority baggage handling

• First Class check-in desks

• Extra baggage allowance

• Free seat reservations

It works exactly like your BA Gold does across oneworld.

The one catch: you don't get the upgrade vouchers that normal Senators receive. But you get all the actual travel benefits.

Is €99 worth it to match your BA status to Lufthansa?

This depends on if you qualify for Frequent Traveller or Senator.

Frequent Traveller, I'd be saving my money.

And with Senator: do you ever fly Star Alliance airlines?

If you occasionally fly United, Air Canada, Turkish, or any other Star Alliance carrier because the schedule's better or the fare's cheaper, then €99 for two years of lounges and fast track is decent value.

If you fly BA and oneworld 99% of the time and don't see yourself switching? Save your money.

The free ITA option

If you have ITA Airways Volare status (some BA members grabbed this during their status matches), you can get the same Lufthansa status completely free. No €99 fee. Worth checking if you've still got active Volare status.

How to apply

1. Sign up for Miles & More account.

2. Go to lufthansa.statusmatch.com

3. Upload a screenshot from the BA app - NOT a photo of your physical card (they'll reject it)

4. Pay €99

5. Wait about three days for approval

So, should you?

BA Gold holders who sometimes fly Star Alliance: Worth considering if you fly and Star Alliance airlines. A couple of flights over the next year with use of lounges could easily cover the €99, and that's before you factor in the other benefits.

BA Silver holders: No. It's a relative downgrade to your benefits. Don't bother.

Everyone else: If you're not sure whether you fly Star Alliance enough, you don't.

Sam

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