Airline Loyalty Rewards
Lufthansa Miles & More Loyalty Program Review
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Lufthansa Credit Card
Barclays offers a co-branded credit card for the U.S. market, and it often comes with a sizeable sign-up bonus.
Other Hotel Partner Credit Cards
Transferring other hotel points to Lufthansa will result in less than a 1:1 transfer ratio, so we don’t recommend this as a way to earn Lufthansa miles.
If you are topping off an airline account or are in a bind, transferring other hotel points to Lufthansa can be an option.
Lufthansa Miles & More Program Overview
Lufthansa’s frequent flyer program is called Miles & More, and the airline miles that you earn are called Lufthansa miles.
The Miles & More program can be a great way to fly a Star Alliance airline partner like United Airlines.
You’ll earn 3 different kinds of miles in the Lufthansa Miles & More program.
The first type is called Award Miles. These miles are for award flights and are valid for 36 months.
For Frequent Travellers (lowest elite level), Senators (mid-tier elite level), HON Circle Members (highest elite tier), and JetFriends (under 18 years old), award miles remain valid as long as you maintain your elite status.
The second type is called Status Miles. These miles determine your Frequent Traveller and Senator status, and are counted in the calendar year in which they are credited. Every status mile is also counted as an award mile.
The third type is called HON Circle Miles. These miles count towards achieving HON Circle status, and they are counted over 2 successive years.
Lufthansa miles can be earned in many ways; here are the 2 most common:
- Flying Lufthansa or its partner airline flights
- Earning with Lufthansa’s hotel, travel, and car rental partners
Joining Lufthansa Miles & More
The Lufthansa Miles & More program is free to join by simply completing this application.
Once you complete your application, you’ll have the ability to earn miles by flying with Lufthansa or its partner airlines, earn elite status, and redeem miles for award flights.
How to Sign in to Your Lufthansa Miles & More Account
Head to the Lufthansa login page and enter your membership number and password.
Hot Tip: Lufthansa requires you to have at least 7,000 miles in your account to search for an award flight. If you don’t have 7,000 miles, you’ll want to use the program’s mileage calculator to determine the number of miles required for your flight.
Viewing Your Account Activity
The easiest way to check your Lufthansa mileage balance is to:
- Log in to your account
- Hover over My Miles & More on the right side of the page
- Select Mileage Account on the left side of the page
Points Expiration
Lufthansa miles expire at the end of the quarter 36 months after the miles were earned.
For example, miles earned in October 2019 will expire December 31, 2022.
The program does allow you to extend the expiration of your miles in 2 ways:
- Hold Lufthansa elite status
- Hold a co-branded Lufthansa credit card, make at least 1 purchase per month, and have an account that’s been opened for at least 3 months
Lufthansa Miles & More Mileage Program
Lufthansa Elite Status
Lufthansa’s Miles & More program has 3 elite tiers: Frequent Traveller, Senator, and HON Circle (highest tier).
Once you qualify for elite status in a calendar year, the benefits begin immediately and are valid for 2 years.
Frequent Traveller: The lowest elite tier offered by Lufthansa, which comes with the following benefits:
- No mileage expiration
- Earn up to 50% more award miles, 25% more miles towards elite Status
- Additional baggage allowance
- Access to the business class lounge
Senator: After earning this status level, you’ll have access to additional benefits including:
- All of the benefits of Frequent Traveller, plus;
- 2 vouchers to fly one class higher
- Access to Senator and Star Gold lounges
- Additional flight award availability
HON Circle: The highest elite tier that you can earn comes with the following benefits:
- All of the benefits of Senator, plus;
- 6 vouchers to fly one class higher
- First class check-in at the First Class Terminal in Frankfurt
- Access to the Lufthansa First Class, SWISS First, and Austrian HON Circle Lounges
- Limousine and transfer service for flights
If you’re interested in diving into more detail about the Lufthansa elite benefits at each tier, go here.
Value of Lufthansa Elite Status
Earning elite status with Lufthansa makes the most sense if you fly Lufthansa, Austrian, or Swiss regularly — or if you are looking for elite benefits when flying a Star Alliance partner like United Airlines.
If you meet one of these criteria, access to premium lounges, additional award availability, and mileage earning bonuses are all reasons as to why you might want to earn elite status.
Earning Lufthansa Elite Status
Miles & More is the free frequent flyer program for not only Lufthansa, but also major airlines including Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, and LOT Polish Airlines.
By signing up for a Miles & More membership, you’ll have the ability to earn and redeem Lufthansa Miles, as well as work your way toward elite status.
The Miles & More program requires you to earn miles or board a certain number of flights in a calendar year to reach elite status.
Miles & More calculates the miles you earn on flights differently for each airline that is a part of the program, using different factors to determine the number of miles you earn.
For Lufthansa, the Miles & More program calculates the miles you earn by multiplying the fare by a factor of 6.
As an example, if you take a $290 round-trip flight from Frankfurt to Munich on Lufthansa, you’ll earn 1,740 Lufthansa miles ($290 fare x 6).
The best way to determine the number of Lufthansa miles that you’ll earn is to use the award calculator on this page.
Lufthansa and its partner airline flights are eligible to earn Lufthansa miles.
When you qualify for elite status, the benefits begin immediately and continue through the following calendar year.
The elite tiers in the Miles & More program work as follows:
- Frequent Traveller: Earn 35,000 miles or 30 scheduled flights in a calendar year
- Senator: Earn 100,000 miles in a calendar year
- HON Circle: Earn 600,000 HON Circle miles in 2 consecutive calendar years
Find more details about the Lufthansa requirements for each elite tier level here.
How to Earn Lufthansa Miles
The Miles & More program offers 2 primary ways to earn airline miles:
- Earn miles from spending on Lufthansa credit cards
- Earn miles from flying with Lufthansa
While it’s challenging to earn Lufthansa miles, when you pair the options above together, you’ll at least have a couple of ways to earn Lufthansa miles.
Earning Miles Through Flying
The Lufthansa miles you earn are based on the distance flown and the factor, which depends on your frequent flyer status and the airline operating your flight.
For example, if you fly a $290 Brussels Airlines flight from Brussels (BRU) to Berlin (TXL), you’ll earn 1,450 miles ($290 * 5 factor).
The Miles & More program calculates miles earned based on the distance flown and booking class.
For European flights, the booking class is a flat rate. For intercontinental flights, mileage is calculated by multiplying the booking class by the distance flown.
Earning Bonus Miles in Other Ways
The Miles & More program offers a few ways to earn Lufthansa miles that don’t involve flying.
For example, the airline partners with hotels like Hyatt and car rental companies like National.
How to Redeem Lufthansa Miles
The Miles & More program uses both an award chart and a mileage calculator.
Before booking your award flight, it’s important to reference both to know the amount of miles required for your route.
Hot Tip: If you’re looking for ways to use your Lufthansa miles, we put together a guide on the best ways to use Lufthansa miles.
Star Alliance Partner Awards
Since Lufthansa is in the Star Alliance, you can use Lufthansa Miles to fly on any other airline in the alliance as well.
The Lufthansa search engine requires 7,000 miles in your account to search for an award flight. Unless the miles are already in your account, we recommend using United or Aeroplan to find Star Alliance availability.
Oneworld Partner Awards
Lufthansa also partners with airlines outside of the Star Alliance like Cathay Pacific.
For Oneworld partner flights, we recommend using the British Airways and Qantas websites to search for award availability.
Booking Online
If you do not have the minimum required miles in your account, you’ll need to call Lufthansa Miles & More team at 800-581-6400 to confirm the award space you find and ticket the award flight.
Hot Tip: Child tickets for flights on Adria Airways, Austrian Airlines, Air Dolomiti, Brussels Airlines, Croatia Airlines, Eurowings, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Luxair, and SWISS can be booked at a 25% mileage discount.
The information regarding the Miles & More® World Elite Mastercard® was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Miles & More is the free frequent flyer program for major airlines including Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, and LOT Polish Airlines.
By signing up for a Miles & More membership, you’ll have the ability to earn and redeem Lufthansa Miles, as well as work your way toward elite status.
The benefits of the program will vary depending on your elite status. The Lufthansa program has 3 elite tiers: Frequent Traveller, Senator, and HON Circle.
The higher your elite status, the more benefits you will have access to, like reduced mileage required for award flights and lounge access.
The number of Lufthansa miles you earn is based on the distance flown and the Miles & More assigned factor.
With enough Lufthansa miles earned by flying Lufthansa or its partner airlines, you’ll be able to book Lufthansa and partner award flights online or by calling Lufthansa to book award flights.
Lufthansa is a member of the Star Alliance and separately has partnerships with individual airlines.
You can find a list of Lufthansa’s airline partners here.
Lufthansa also has other partners like hotels and car rental companies. You can transfer airline miles directly to these partners if you need points for a redemption.
You can sign in to Lufthansa here.
Sign up to the Lufthansa program by filling out this online form.
You can find your Lufthansa number by signing in to your account, on your membership card, or through a variety of marketing emails they send to you.
If you can’t find it there, try using the “forgot my password” tool to reset your account so you can get in. Alternatively, try calling the customer service desk to find your number.
Your miles should automatically be credited to your account after your flight.
If the miles don’t automatically post, it can take up to 7 days after your flight is completed.
Lufthansa miles expire at the end of the quarter 36 months after the miles were earned.
The program does allow you to extend the expiration of your miles in 2 ways:
- Hold Lufthansa elite status
- Hold a co-branded Lufthansa credit card, make at least 1 purchase per month, and have an account that’s been open for at least 3 months
Lufthansa elite status is valid in the year in which it is earned and the following calendar year.
Yes! The Miles & More® World Elite Mastercard® for the U.S. market is issued by Barclays.
The terms and conditions do not address award holds, but based on research, Lufthansa will allow holds on certain airlines from 48 hours to several days.
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About Michael McHugh
Born and raised in Mobile, Alabama, Michael took his first international trip in 2013 with friends to the Bahamas. Although he didn’t travel much in his younger years, on that trip, he caught the travel bug and has been hooked ever since.
Michael first caught wind of the points and miles game in 2014 while at a bar in Washington, DC where the conversation amongst friends was quickly derailed because of an alert on a friend’s phone about a mistake fare. That’s where the love affair with points and miles began.
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38 comments
Jennifer
July 29, 2019
Copied from above… Is this a misprint? Doesn’t look like 36 months?
Points Expiration
Lufthansa miles expire at the end of the quarter 36 months after the miles were earned.
For example, miles earned in October 2018 will expire December 31, 2018.
Christine Krzyszton
July 29, 2019
Hi Jennifer. Thanks for pointing that out. December 31, 2018 should read December 31, 2021. We have made the correction.
Robert Wota
August 03, 2019
Every year my frequent flyer status was updated up to 30 segments rule. This time it was not updated. I did much more than 30 segments. Where can I ask this to be checked and corrected?
Jarrod West
August 03, 2019
Hi Robert,
Have you contacted the customer service team for Lufthansa already? Do you still have all of your flight confirmations for each segment in your email inbox? If so, that will easily serve as proof for all of the segments you’ve flown.
Howard
August 04, 2019
Seems strange that you don’t mention the many of the benefits that actually matter the most to very frequent flyers:
– fast track security
– priority boarding
– earlier/cheaper seat selection
To me, these matter a lot more than getting a card and a baggage tag.
As a frequent flyer, what I want more than anything else is: smooth passage through the airport (=no waiting in line) and quiet/comfort at each stage (=lounge access and a good seat on the plane). All the focus on whether award tickets can be put on hold, or how long miles last before expiring, is in a distant second place behind these two primary concerns.
Even stranger that the miles and more website doesn’t even show these benefits either.
Michael McHugh
August 07, 2019
Hi Howard,
Thank you for the feedback on fast track security, priority boarding, and seat selection. We appreciate it!
Paul Christie
August 29, 2019
Hi
I travel with Lufthansa with my work and would like to join the loyalty program but for some reason, the online for will not complete, can you send me a form or something so I can become a member?
Jarrod West
August 29, 2019
Hi Paul,
We are not affiliated with Lufthansa so unfortunately, we cannot assist with that. I recommend you contact the Lufthansa customer support line at 1 (800) 645-3880.
Thanks for reading!
jun y gromet
October 17, 2019
Hi,
Can I still apply for the mileage program and get the credits when I finished my trip on Oct. 11th?
Thanks,
Jun
Stephen Au
October 17, 2019
Hi Jun,
If you finished your flight on October 11, you can request retroactive mileage credit by visiting this link:
https://www.miles-and-more.com/row/en/program/at-a-glance/mileage-request.html
You can request miles for up to 6 months after the conclusion of your trip. In your case, the latest you can request miles for that particular trip would be around April 11, 2020. Thanks for reading.
Ai Lien Toy
November 19, 2019
Airline confirmation # Austrian Airlines NX4GCX, Lufthansa # NX4GCX, 19 April 2019. My husband & I flew from San
Francisco,to Dubrovnik, Croatia. Return to SF on 12 May, 2019 from Tirana, Albania.
Please help us get credit for these miles. Thank you.
Michael McHugh
November 20, 2019
Hi Ai Lien Toy,
We recommend that you call Miles & More at 800-581-6400 as both of your flights were more than 6 months ago. If your flights were within 6 months, you can complete an online form to request mileage credit.
Dirk Stubbe
December 01, 2019
I tried to contact the helpdesk several times but they ignored me.
Nick
December 22, 2019
FYI Marriott suspended transfers to LH in Jun 2019
Jarrod West
December 23, 2019
Hi Nick,
Thanks for pointing that out. We will get this corrected!
CMH
January 13, 2020
It would be very helpful if you included a “posted on” or “last updated” date on your posts. I find them very informative but I’m not sure if I’m reading something current or old. Thanks!
CMH
January 13, 2020
And I just found the date. Well I feel pretty silly now. Maybe it wasn’t on some other posts by other posters I was reviewing? Or maybe I’m trying to read it quickly while I should be working and missed the date! Oh well. Thanks for the informative facts and recommendations!
BSRuperez
January 30, 2020
is it possible to transfer Lufthansa miles&more “status” miles (not award miles) to another airline program? For example to SAS. It is a Star Alliance airline as well. Thanks.
Jarrod West
January 30, 2020
Hi BSRuperz,
No, it is not possible to transfer your status miles to another airline.
K Quartermain
February 02, 2020
Can I transfer miles to my husband’s card?
Jarrod West
February 02, 2020
Hi K,
Which card are you referring to?
terry
February 04, 2020
Any idea when they will allow pooling in the USA? Can we suggest this to them?
Michael McHugh
February 09, 2020
Hi Terry! We are not aware of any upcoming changes to allow this but will keep an eye out.
TXOil
February 04, 2020
Any thoughts on qualifying for elite status on United vs. LH?
Thanks!
Michael McHugh
February 09, 2020
Hi TXOil! Do you have a specific question with respect to elite status qualification in these programs?
Mahendra
February 14, 2020
My miles are about to expire in March 2020. I have received mail from Mileage Services by Loylogic (https://milesandmore.loylogic.com/) who claim that I can extend my mileage for further 3 years on payment.
Can you advise if this is real
Thank you.
Jarrod West
February 15, 2020
Hi Mahendra,
This appears legitimate, but feel free to reach out to Lufthansa directly first before paying.
John
December 30, 2020
Lufthansa miles can be earned in many ways; here are the 3 most common:
Spending on Marriott-SPG credit card?
I thought the transfer is not possible anymore to M&M?
Jarrod West
January 08, 2021
Hi John,
You’re correct, thanks for pointing that out! I’ve corrected the post.
Adal
May 01, 2021
Hi Michael,
A nice read, thanks for putting this together. Although it seems that you miscalculated the award miles in Earning Miles Through Flying: just checked my Frequent Flayer account (MnM card issued by Brussels Airlines), for a BRU-TXL flight in Economy class (K) earned 215 award miles (“Prämienmeilen”), for BRU-WAW it ranges between 125 miles (Economy class K) and 500 miles (Economy class S), BRU-MUC 156 miles (Economy class W), BRU-CPH 500 miles (Economy class U), BRU-BUD 100 miles (Economy class A), BRU-FRA 90 miles (Economy class V). Intercontinental flight FRA-GIG (Rio) was credited with 2892 miles (Economy class V). All flights in 2020.
Best regards,
Adal
Bhakti Gothi
September 08, 2021
I want to be a member of Lufthansa Miles & More. How do I go about it?
Christine Krzyszton
September 08, 2021
Hello Bhakti. Here is a link to register. https://www.lufthansa.com/us/en/miles-and-more
Rob McD.
January 26, 2023
I have a LH “Traveler ID” but not M&M. When I try to register for M&M it says I my email is already registered, use another one. I’m missing a basic understanding: is M&M a frequent flyer program that works with any credit card, or a credit card that accrues miles/points? Can I “accrue” LH miles with just the Traveler ID?
Sarah
March 05, 2023
I had a Miles & More account once with Lufthansa; it went dormant in 2020 and I need to know if I can recover it. Thank you.
Keri Stooksbury
March 05, 2023
Sarah, please reach out directly to the Miles & More Service Team for support. Thanks for reading!
Daisy
April 09, 2023
If I have Star Alliance Gold Status from Singapore Airlines, will I be able to get the same equivalent status from Lufthansa?
Jarrod West
April 10, 2023
Hi Daisy,
Yes since they are both Star Alliance partners.
Till Heinichen
April 18, 2023
Just wanted to share a very frustrating experience with potential subscribers of any LH credit card. I’m a german citizen living abroad for more than 2 decades, a LH Senator for more than 10 years and I have tried in vain 2 times to apply for a senator gold card. After extensive means of veryfying my identity, numerous submitted docs as proof for residence (close to 10 !) and a processing time of about 10 weeks a short messsage has been received, confirming that the request has been denied without eleborating any further explanation.
Conclusion : a waste of time, a completely intrasparent process, no parameters upfront with a checklist – save your time for credit cards with similar benefits that are worth it!
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