Advertiser Disclosure
Many of the credit card offers that appear on this site are from credit card companies from which we receive financial compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). However, the credit card information that we publish has been written and evaluated by experts who know these products inside out. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse. This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers that are on the market. See our advertising policy here where we list advertisers that we work with, and how we make money. You can also review our credit card rating methodology.
Michael McHugh
Former Content Contributor
63 Published Articles 1 Edited Article
Countries Visited: 15U.S. States Visited: 32
We may be compensated when you click on product links, such as credit cards, from one or more of our advertising partners. Terms apply to the offers below. See our Advertising Policy for more about our partners, how we make money, and our rating methodology. Opinions and recommendations are ours alone.
London Gatwick, London Heathrow, Manchester
Clubhouse Lounges in London Heathrow (LHR), London Gatwick (LGW), New York (JFK), Newark (EWR), San Francisco (SFO), Boston (BOS), Los Angeles (LAX), Washington (IAD), Johannesburg (JNB).
Virgin Atlantic was founded in the mid-1980s by legendary entrepreneur Richard Branson.
The airline’s loyalty program is called Flying Club, and it operates from 2 hubs in London (Heathrow and Gatwick) and one hub in Manchester.
Virgin Atlantic’s hard product and customer service receive great reviews, and it’s an airline some U.S. customers look to when flying across the Atlantic.
Flying Club members earn both Tier Points and Virgin Points. Both are earned on every flight, with Tier Points going toward your elite status and Virgin Points going toward flight redemptions.
While Virgin Atlantic isn’t in an alliance, the airline has individual partnerships with a number of airlines, which opens up unique award flight options.
The points that you earn when flying Virgin Atlantic or crediting partner flights to Virgin Atlantic can then be used on any Virgin or partner airline flight, hotel stay, or with the Virgin Group.
The frequent flyer program of Virgin Atlantic is free by simply filling out this application on its website.
With your application completed, you will get the ability to earn Tier Points and Virgin Points, as well as earn your way toward elite status.
Signing in to your Flying Club account is easy — you’ll only need your email/Flying Club number, password, and last name.
Hot Tip: Unlike the United and Delta websites, you’ll need to log in to your Flying Club account to search for an award flight.
In order to see your account activity, follow these steps:
Virgin Points do not expire.
The Flying Club program has 3 elite tiers, each of which we’ll cover in more detail below.
Red: This the base elite tier offered by Virgin Atlantic that comes with the following benefits:
Silver: Virgin Atlantic’s middle-tier elite status offers qualifying members these perks:
Gold: Flying Club’s top elite tier, which provides members with these benefits:
If you want to learn more, head to the Flying Club website for the entire list of benefits available at each tier.
The way to value elite status with Virgin Atlantic is to ask yourself if you fly Virgin Atlantic or its partner airlines frequently enough to utilize the benefits.
If the answer to that question is yes, it may make sense to invest your loyalty in the Flying Club program.
Red and Silver elite tiers do not provide a ton of perks, so I’d recommend focusing your efforts on earning the top-tier Gold status.
With Virgin’s top-tier status, a complimentary companion ticket and a cabin upgrade reward are the most valuable perks.
Bottom Line: Virgin has a simplified elite tier structure with the most valuable benefits offered to those members who earn Gold status.
The Flying Club program uses what are called Tier Points for elite status qualification.
Not to be confused with the Virgin Points that you earn from flying, Tier Points are solely used to determine whether you are a Red, Silver, or Gold member.
Tier Points will expire every 12-13 months if you are a Silver or Gold member. Red members have added runway in that you’ll have 36 months before your status expires.
To ensure that your Silver status is current, you’ll need to earn 400 Tier Points a year. If Gold is what you want, you’ll need to earn 1,000 Tier Points a year.
Red elites looking to qualify for Silver status will need to earn 400 Tier Points in what’s called an “Upgrade Cycle”, which is calculated from the current date back to the first day of that month to the previous year.
Hot Tip: From April 2022 to March 2023, members will only need 300 Tier Points to earn Silver elite status, and 800 Tier Points to earn Gold elite status
For example, if it’s November 27, 2022, you calculate back to November 1, 2022 and then 12 months back to November 1, 2021 to determine the amount of time required to upgrade from Red to Silver.
Elite status duration for Silver and Gold resembles Red, but it’s slightly different.
Silver and Gold elites will remain in those respective tiers every year that those members earn the required 400 and 1,000 Tier Points respectively in the Upgraded Fixed Membership Period.
The Period starts on the day that you earn Silver or Gold status, and continues for the remainder of that month through the subsequent 12 months.
For each Upgraded Fixed Membership Period, your Tier Points will reset to 0. If the member doesn’t earn the 400 or 1,000 points needed, the member will drop down to the membership tier directly below the one the member holds.
For example, if you are a Gold elite and don’t earn 1,000 points within the Upgraded Fixed Membership Period, you will drop down to Silver elite status.
Effective Septemeber 1, 2020, members will earn elite-qualifying Tier Points on all bookings with Virgin – including award tickets!
Similar to cash fares, you’ll earn Tier Points based on the fare class of your ticket. However, award tickets will earn tier points at 50% of cash tickets. But seeing as before you earned none, this is still great for frequent Virgin Atlantic flyers.
All one-way Upper Class redemptions will earn 100 Tier Points, Premium one-way redemptions will earn 50 Tier Points and economy one-way redemptions will earn 25 Tier Points.
Ticket Type: | Economy | Premium | Upper Class |
Tier Points Earned: | 25 | 50 | 100 |
In addition to earning Tier Points from flying, Virgin Atlantic has a credit card that provides an avenue toward earning elite status:
Bottom Line: Virgin Atlantic uses Tier Points for elite status qualification and doesn’t have a revenue or segment qualification requirement like you’ll find with American Airlines, Delta, and United Airlines.
Virgin Atlantic is one of a few airline programs that partners with all 4 major transferable point programs: Amex Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy.
What this means that you’ll have plenty of ways to earn Virgin Points for your next award flight!
Members in the Virgin Atlantic program earn points based on the route, ticket class, and their elite status. A full list of the mileage that you’ll earn can be found on this earning table:
Virgin Atlantic also has partnerships with individual airlines, which allows you to earn points when flying with those partners.
Bank of America is the Virgin Atlantic co-branded credit card partner, and it offers 2 cards that earn Virgin Points.
In addition to the Virgin Atlantic credit cards, you’ll want to consider cards offered by the major transferable point programs in Amex, Chase, Citi, and Marriott.
Similar to most major airlines, the Flying Club program offers its members the opportunity to earn airline points in ways that don’t involve flying.
One way to stay on top of these opportunities is to follow the airline’s Twitter, Facebook, and Offers Page for the latest deals.
Another way to earn points is to keep tabs on offers from its other partners, which include hotels, car rentals, and financial institutions.
The last way to earn points is to use the shopping portal and check out the partnerships with the Virgin Group.
Hot Tip: If you add your airline loyalty program to other services, you won’t also earn status points with these franchises (unless it’s a preferred car rental agency that has specifically partnered with the airline; this partnership acts as a sort of alliance between airline and rental agency).
In addition to partnering with all 4 of the major transferable point programs, Virgin Atlantic also offers co-branded credit cards.
Bank of America is the co-branded credit card partner, and it offers 2 credit cards in the Black and White credit card.
While neither card comes with a huge sign-up bonus, the cards do pair well with other transferable point credit cards.
American Express cards are a great way to earn points since the program is an Amex transfer partner.
Amex has a number of valuable partners, and it regularly offers bonus points when transferring points to airline partners — further increasing the value of the points you earn.
By putting your everyday spending on these Amex credit cards, you’ll be on your way toward your next redemption:
Terms Apply / Rates & Fees
The Amex Platinum reigns supreme for luxury travel, offering the best airport lounge access plus generous statement credits, and complimentary elite status.
If you're approved and accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
When it comes to cards that offer top-notch benefits, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better card out there than The Platinum Card® from American Express.
Make no mistake — the Amex Platinum card is a premium card with a premium price tag. With amazing benefits like best-in-class airport lounge access, hotel elite status, and tremendous value in annual statement credits, it can easily prove to be one of the most lucrative cards in your wallet year after year.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesThis is the best card for food lovers who dine out at restaurants (worldwide), order take-out and want big rewards at U.S. supermarkets!
If you're approved and accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
The American Express® Gold Card is a game-changer.
With this card, you can earn 4x Membership Rewards points at restaurants, up to $50,000 per calendar year, and you’ll also earn 4x Membership Rewards points at U.S. supermarkets on up to $25,000 per calendar year, then 1x.
There isn’t another card on the market that offers a 1-2 punch like this. Of course, there are several other benefits of the Gold Card as well, including extra monthly dining rewards and more.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesThis card is ideal for business travelers who enjoy luxury travel and are looking for a card loaded with benefits!
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is a premium travel rewards card tailored toward business owners who are frequent travelers with a high number of annual expenses.
When you factor in the large number of perks that the card offers like the best airport lounge access at over 1,400 lounges, along with tons of annual credits, it’s easy to see why this card can is a top option for frequent traveling business owners.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesGet 4x points in 2 select categories where your business spends the most each month (on your first $150,000 spent each year).
The American Express® Business Gold Card is excellent at racking up rewards for your business spend.
The card earns a whopping 4x points per $1 in the 2 categories (from a list of 6) that your business spends the most money on each month. With no need to opt-in or preselect your categories, so you can focus on what matters most — running your business.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesEarn Membership Rewards for your business spending the easy way: get 2x points for the first $50,000 in purchases per year.
As a business owner, getting a credit card that maximizes each dollar you spend does not have to be complicated or expensive. Especially when you opt for The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express.
With the Amex Blue Business Plus card, you’ll earn 2x Membership Rewards points on everyday business purchases throughout the year (up to $50,000; 1x thereafter) and receive purchase protections and no-additional-charge employee cards all for no annual fee (see rates and fees).
The simple and straightforward earning structure makes it a great fit for those looking to earn flexible rewards, without having to fixate on which purchases earn the most points.
Let’s take look at all that the Amex Blue Business Plus card has to offer.
Chase is another valuable transferable point program that allows you to earn points with credit card spending, and then use those points to book an award flight.
Chase is right up there with Amex in terms of the number of personal and business credit cards it has that earn Ultimate Rewards points, which can be transferred directly to Virgin Atlantic.
A fantastic travel card with a great welcome offer, good benefits, and perks for a moderate annual fee.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® card is one of the best travel rewards cards on the market. Its bonus categories include travel, dining, online grocery purchases, and streaming services, which gives you the opportunity to earn lots of bonus points on these purchases.
Additionally, it offers flexible point redemption options, no foreign transaction fees, and excellent travel insurance coverage including primary car rental insurance. With benefits like these, it’s easy to see why this card is an excellent choice for any traveler.
A top player in the high-end premium travel credit card space that earns 3x points on travel and dining while offering top luxury perks.
If you’re looking for an all-around excellent travel rewards card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is one of the best options out there.
The card combines elite travel benefits and perks like airport lounge access, with excellent point earning and redemption options. Plus it offers top-notch travel insurance protections to keep you covered whether you’re at home or on the road.
Don’t forget the $300 annual travel credit which really helps to reduce the annual fee!
The Ink Business Preferred card is hard to beat, with a huge welcome bonus offer and 3x points per $1 on the first $150,000 in so many business categories.
The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is a powerhouse for earning lots of points from your business purchases, especially for business owners that spend regularly on ads.
Plus the card offers flexible redemption options, including access to Chase airline and hotel transfer partners where you can achieve outsized value.
Business owners will also love the protections the card provides like excellent cell phone insurance, rental car insurance, purchase protection, and more.
This card offers great rewards and no annual fee. Any new business owner that needs to get going will enjoy this card.
The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card has a lot going for it that makes it a compelling choice for small business owners. The card features a very lucrative 5% back on up to $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on cellular phone, landline, internet, and cable TV services each account anniversary year.
When you factor in that the card has no annual fee, and 0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months; variable 17.49% - 25.49% thereafter, you could be adding big value back into your business for no cost out of pocket.
The Ink Business Unlimited card is a stellar option for business owners looking for a no-fuss uncapped 1.5% cash-back card without an annual fee.
As a business owner, you likely keep pretty busy and probably prefer a credit card that just keeps things simple.
If so, the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card might be just the card for you. From zero annual fee to a flat cash-back rate, the card is a no-frills option that you don’t have to think twice about.
Don’t forget too, 0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months; variable 17.49% - 23.49% thereafter
Earn up to 5% cash-back for your business without complex bonus earning categories!
Chase has introduced the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card to its business credit card lineup. With straightforward cash-back earnings on everyday purchases and large expenses, tools to help you monitor your business, and multiple ways to redeem your rewards, this is a great card option to consider.
Citi tends to be an off-the-radar program, but it’s another one you can use to earn transferable ThankYou points.
What many people appreciate about the Citi program is that it has regular bonuses like Amex when transferring points to some of its airline partners, providing you with additional value.
The only credit card available to new applicants that earns ThankYou Points is the Citi ThankYou Premier. More information about the card can be found here:
The Citi Strata Premier℠ Card is a great all-around travel rewards card that allows you to earn big rewards on a variety of purchases like air travel, at restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, and more, along with flexible redemption options, all for a modest annual fee.
This no annual fee card rewards cardholders for everyday purchases. Earn bonus points at supermarkets and gas stations, plus your points are rounded up on every purchase.
The Citi Rewards+ card is an excellent way to earn Citi ThankYou points with a $0 annual fee while receiving perks like point round-ups, a 10% point redemption rebate, and more.
Great card for the average spender with no specific focus category; worry-free cash-back earning on everything!
The Citi Double Cash® Card has long been one of the top cash-back credit cards on the market, and the card now has the ability to earn Citi ThankYou Points!
This means that cardholders of the Double Cash card will now earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases. Cash back is earned in the form of ThankYou Points. This means each billing cycle, you will earn 1 ThankYou point per $1 spent on purchases and an additional ThankYou point for every $1 paid on your purchase balance as long as there is a corresponding balance in your Purchase Tracker.
Citi has turned the Double Cash card into a top choice for those who are looking for an everyday, no-fuss credit card.
Earn big on purchases in your top eligible spend category, up to the first $500 each billing cycle, without an annual fee!
The Citi Custom Cash® Card is inventive when it comes to cash-back credit cards. Instead of earning a set amount of cash-back on predetermined bonus categories, the Citi Custom Cash card earns 5% cash-back on your highest eligible spend category each billing cycle, with a $0 annual fee.
Thanks to that unique perk, you’ll never need to worry about whether you’re using the right card for the right purchase, as your Citi Custom Cash card will always pay you 5% back on whichever category you end up spending the most on each month.
Marriott Bonvoy credit cards are yet another to way to earn transferable Marriott Bonvoy points that can then be transferred to Marriott Bonvoy’s airline partners.
The Marriott Bonvoy program is unique in that for every 60,000 points you transfer to an airline partner, you’ll receive 5,000 bonus points.
That means 60,000 points will give you 25,000 airline points (3:1 transfer ratio + 25% bonus) to use for your next redemption.
If you’re looking to earn these transferable points, here are the credit cards we recommend:
A great option for Marriott hotel fans who want a no annual fee card and automatic Marriott Bonvoy elite status.
Casual travelers who like to frequent properties that are part of the Marriott Bonvoy collection of brands may want to consider the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card.
The Marriott Bold card rewards cardholders for Marriott stays and gives them a boost towards Marriott Bonvoy elite status.
Marriott loyalists will love this card's annual Free Night Award, automatic elite status, and up to 17x points per $1 on Marriott hotel stays.
If you’re a frequent traveler and a Marriott loyalist, there’s a lot to love about the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card. The card comes packed with several great benefits like a free hotel night once a year, automatic Silver Elite status (with a fast-track to Gold Elite status), and multiple options for redeeming points.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesThe Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card gives you automatic Marriott elite status and helps you earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on your everyday purchases.
If you're approved and accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, the latest mid-tier offering in the Marriott Bonvoy lineup of cards, offers cardholders automatic elite status and ways to earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on each of their stays and daily purchases.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesA premium card for Marriott fans who want perks like an annual statement credit and Free Night Award, plus a fast track to Marriott elite status.
If you're approved and accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card is a premium card designed with road warriors and Marriott Bonvoy loyalists in mind.
So is the card a worthwhile addition to your wallet?
Hotel programs like Hyatt and Hilton, in addition to Marriott, will allow you to convert your hotel points into airline points.
In theory, this sounds great, but it nearly always results in poor transfer ratios.
In short, we don’t recommend converting your other hotel points into airline points unless you are topping off an airline account or are in a bind.
The Flying Club program has a number of ways to redeem Virgin Atlantic points, but the best value will come from redeeming your points for an award flight.
Virgin Atlantic has 2 types of award flights:
Standard Season is half the cost of Peak Season, so you’ll want to book an award flight during the Standard Season travel dates shown above.
What’s evident when reviewing the award chart below is how high the surcharges are when flying Virgin Atlantic.
The best value in the award chart is to fly one-way in Premium Economy from the U.S. to the U.K. Other than that, you’ll likely have better options to cross the Atlantic with another program.
Hot Tip: If you’re looking for ways to leverage the Flying Club program, we have a post on the best ways to use Virgin Atlantic points.
Virgin Atlantic’s partnerships with individual airlines are where the Flying Club program really shines.
You can find the full list of partners and the redemptions rates here, and here are a few redemptions to consider:
The Virgin Atlantic website is tricky in that it doesn’t show all destinations for its partner airlines and takes time getting used to all of its quirks.
If the city you’re looking to fly from/to isn’t shown on the website, you’ll want to research partner flights elsewhere and call Virgin Atlantic to confirm award availability.
For SkyTeam partners, use the Delta or Flying Blue (Air France/KLM) websites to search for an award flight.
Star Alliance availability can be found using the United or Aeroplan websites.
Airlines not part of an alliance will require you to call Virgin Atlantic or use Expert Flyer to search for award availability.
Hot Tip: Virgin Atlantic requires you to login to your account to search for Virgin Atlantic and partner award flights.
