Turkish Airlines Now Charges More Miles To Upgrade Its Cheapest Economy Fares

Updated: September 24, 2026, 5:48pm CDT

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What It Now Costs To Upgrade to Business Class
Final Thoughts

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For passengers with a Turkish Airlines economy ticket, you may be able to use miles to upgrade to business class. Those miles are in addition to what you paid for the ticket.

However, Turkish has changed how many miles an upgrade costs. The price now depends on whether you bought an EcoFly ticket or another economy fare package. On some long flights, that difference can be substantial.

Here’s what changed.

What It Now Costs To Upgrade to Business Class

Turkish Airlines’ new award chart shows these one-way upgrade prices for flights to or from Türkiye:

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Region	EcoFly ticket	Other economy packages
Europe 1	22,000 miles	20,000 miles
Far East	90,000 miles	65,000 miles
North America	90,000 miles	65,000 miles

For example, if you buy an EcoFly ticket from the U.S. to Istanbul, it now costs 90,000 miles to upgrade that flight to business class. Buy a different economy fare package, and the upgrade costs less: 65,000 miles. These figures are for upgrading an existing ticket; they are not prices for booking a business class award ticket outright.

Turkish AIrlines Business Class 787-9 middle seat. — Upgrading an EcoFly ticket to business class from the U.S. to Türkiye will now cost a whopping 90,000 miles. Image Credit: Juan Ruiz

The change is especially noticeable for Far East flights, where upgrades previously cost 65,000 miles. The new EcoFly price is 25,000 miles higher, an increase of about 38%.

For North America flights, Turkish hasn’t introduced a new mileage price. It has changed when each price applies. Previously, an upgrade confirmed more than 72 hours before departure cost 65,000 miles; one confirmed closer to departure cost 90,000 miles.

Now, an EcoFly upgrade costs 90,000 miles even if you arrange it early, while an upgrade from another economy fare costs 65,000 miles even if you arrange it later.

Hot Tip:

If your goal is to fly business class, compare the price of an economy ticket plus the upgrade miles to the cost of booking Turkish Airlines business class outright. Upgrades depend on availability, too.

Final Thoughts

If you’re flying between North America and Türkiye and want a business class seat, I’d compare 3 options before booking: an EcoFly ticket plus 90,000 miles to upgrade, another economy fare plus 65,000 miles to upgrade, or booking a business class award ticket from the start.

The EcoFly ticket might have the lowest cash price, but it also takes 25,000 more miles to upgrade. Instead, look at the ticket price and miles together, then choose the option that works best for you.