The Best Airline Miles to Use for Booking Business Class Flights

Want to fly in a business class seat somewhere overseas? Unless you’re prepared to shell out thousands of dollars per ticket (and let’s be honest, you’re reading a site called Thrifty Traveler…), you need the right airline miles.

No matter where you’re heading or what cabin you want to fly in, airline mileage programs are not created equally. Some go much further than others – especially for booking business class flights. Sorry, loyal Delta aficionados: SkyMiles don’t make the cut. Same goes for you, United flyers.

But earning the best miles for booking business class is even easier thanks to credit card transfers. That means you can easily earn the miles you need for that lie-flat seat from popular travel cards like the *chase sapphire preferred*, the *amex gold card*, or the *venture x*, among many others.

Here are seven of the best airline mileage programs where we frequently turn to book business class flights for less.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada’s mileage program isn’t just one of the best for booking business class flights like United Polaris business class, SWISS business class, and even Singapore Airlines to Southeast Asia or Etihad to the Middle East. Honestly, Air Canada Aeroplan is easily one of the best airline loyalty programs, period.

It’s got reasonable mileage rates and low taxes, so you won’t have to spend a boatload of miles and cash to book your lie-flat seat abroad. Its website is easy to use with excellent features, like the ability to add a stopover to any flight for an extra 5,000 points. Air Canada has more airline partners than any other carrier on the planet, meaning you can use those Aeroplan points to book flights on roughly 50 airlines all around the world.

But this article is about business class, and that’s one area where Aeroplan really shines. Thanks to Air Canada’s quirky pricing scheme, exactly how many miles business class will cost you depends on which regions you’re flying between and the length of the flight. From the U.S., you can:

• Book business class to Europe on airlines like United, SWISS, Lufthansa, Austrian, and more starting at 60,000 points each way from the East Coast
• Fly from Seattle (SEA) to Tokyo in ANA business class for just 55,000 points – literally half of what you’d pay booking the exact same flight using United MileagePlus miles.
• Get a lie-flat bed from many U.S. cities to almost anywhere in Southeast Asia for 87,500 points each way
• It’s even a solid way to book Lufthansa First Class, typically for 90,000 or 100,000 points each way

Read our guide to booking award tickets through Air Canada Aeroplan! 

The savings go beyond points and miles, as Air Canada tacks on incredibly reasonable taxes and fees when redeeming points – almost always under $70 or so when departing the U.S. It’ll save you stress, too: Unlike so many airlines (including others on this list), the Air Canada website is incredibly easy to use and reliable. 

There are some niche options with Aeroplan, too.

Singapore Airlines is the world’s reigning top carrier with fantastic first class suites and business class seats flying to Southeast Asia. With premium cabins so nice, the airline typically doesn’t let travelers use other airlines’ miles to book them … but Aeroplan is an exception. 

Not only can you book Singapore Airlines business class with Aeroplan points, but it’s a tremendous deal: Even business class on the world’s longest flight from New York City (JFK) to Singapore (SIN) is bookable for just 87,500 points, substantially less than what Singapore’s own Krisflyer program charges for the same route.

Get alerts to fly business class with your points and miles with Thrifty Traveler Premium!

You can even book business class on many airlines that aren’t part of Air Canada’s Star Alliance, like Emirates, Etihad, Oman Air, and many more!

The one knock against Aeroplan is that it’s increasingly hard to find award availability through Air Canada that you can book through other programs. Then again, the same goes for many other airlines on this list: Many airlines are clamping down, reserving their premium cabin seats for members redeeming their own miles.

How to Earn Aeroplan Points

Don’t worry about racking up miles on Air Canada flights to earn these points. It’s gotten even easier to pile them up over time.

Aeroplan is a Chase transfer partner, Amex transfer partner, Capital One transfer partners, and a Bilt transfer partner, too. That means you can transfer all the points you need from cards like the *chase sapphire preferred*, the *amex gold card*, and the *venture x*, among others.

Air France/KLM Flying Blue

Sacré bleu! Yes, Air France/KLM’s Flying Blue program needs to be on your radar if business class is on your bucket list.

This is the joint mileage program of Air France and Dutch carrier KLM. And while it’s loaded with sweet spots to book flights for fewer miles, it’s a go-to for redeeming miles for a business class flight overseas. 

As with almost anything in the world of travel, there are tradeoffs. Namely, Flying Blue charges higher fees than you might prefer to pay: Think $200 or so for a one-way to Europe and closer to $400 for a one-way home to the States. Both airlines’ websites can be temperamental when searching for award tickets, though their smartphone app is typically reliable for booking a flight.

But the upside is undeniable: Incredibly reasonable rates like 60,000 miles nonstop to Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG) or Amsterdam (AMS), sometimes a tad less when you connect onward to another destination in Europe. Time it right with one of the airlines’ monthly Promo Rewards discounts, and it can get even cheaper, closer to 40,000 miles each way! While it’s gotten trickier to find award availability at these rates, it can be done. 

Case in point: We’ve even sent Thrifty Traveler Premium members an alert for wide-open award space during the peak summer, when finding business class seats bookable with points is typically impossible. 

You might still see higher-priced business class redemptions of 100,000-some miles – maybe even 200,000 miles or more each way. But when you can make it work at 60,000 points or less, it’s a major bargain.

Thrifty Tip: Leave your dates blank when searching for flights to get a monthly calendar view of availability! 

Flying Blue miles have gotten even more valuable lately with a fun addition: free stopovers on any award ticket, whether you’re flying Air France business class or using miles to book a partner airline like Delta. For now, you’ll have to call the airline in order to book one of these two-for-one tickets. 

The savings go beyond booking Air France business class or KLM business class.

After Virgin Atlantic destroyed the option to book Delta One for 50,000 miles each way, Flying Blue is now the best workaround to book Delta One flights to Europe, too. There are also great deals flying China Airlines, Etihad, and more! And there’s another new way to get to Europe bookable with Flying Blue miles.

Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) joined the SkyTeam alliance, meaning you can book their flights through Flying Blue, too. While award availability is hard to come by, we’ve found business class flights to Copenhagen (CPH) for under 41,000 miles and just $10 in taxes and fees!

Throw in a transfer bonus and it’s even cheaper!

Read our guide to booking award tickets with Air France/KLM Flying Blue miles! 

How to Earn Flying Blue Miles

These are among the easiest miles to earn in the world without even setting foot on a plane.

That’s because Flying Blue is a transfer partner of all the major credit card companies. So whether you’ve got points on the *chase sapphire preferred*, the *amex gold card*, the *venture x*, or even the *citi premier*.

Plus, we frequently see transfer bonuses of 20% to 25% or more from all those banks to Flying Blue. Time it right and you’ll need even fewer points to book these business class flights.

All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club

Whether you want to fly ANA business class to Japan, hop on another airline between the U.S. and Europe, or fly around the world in business class, ANA Mileage Club is one of the best airline programs on the planet. Even after an (admittedly painful) increase , these business class redemptions are still among the best in the world.

It practically goes without saying – but I’m going to say it anyway – that flying a business class suite like this over to Japan is tough to beat. But doing it for as few as 100,000 miles roundtrip – less than most airlines charge for economy? Yes, please!

Check out our full guide to redeeming ANA Mileage Club miles!

ANA calls these business class suites “The Room,” and they live up to the name: At a whopping 38 inches wide with privacy doors and a stunning design, they’re easily among the best business class seats in the sky. But they’re hard to find: Only a handful of U.S. routes feature these suites. And ANA has gotten incredibly stingy with releasing award space to actually book its business class with miles.

But there are other options to use ANA miles for a lie-flat seat that are much easier to pull off. One of our favorites is using just 100,000 miles to book roundtrip business class between the U.S. and Europe. Focus on specific airlines like United, SAS, Air Canada, and TAP Air Portugal, and you won’t pay a fortune in fees, either.

Follow our step-by-step guide on booking this incredible deal!

Best of all, it’s gotten even easier to find and book these business class deals after ANA began allowing one-way redemptions. That means you can mix and match your way to a great redemption rather than struggling to piece together a roundtrip booking.

Here’s just how good ANA Mileage Club is for booking business class: These exact same TAP business class flights to Lisbon (LIS) next year would cost you 88,000 United miles each way or 176,000 miles roundtrip.

So yeah, it’s easy to see why ANA cracks the list of the best ways to book business class flights. That said, there’s a big caveat to keep in mind: You can only book flights for yourself and family members. No booking flights for friends using your ANA miles, unfortunately.

How to Earn Mileage Club Miles

Got points on *amex platinum card* or the *amex gold card*? You’re in luck.

ANA is one of the many Amex transfer partners – and one of the best if you ask us. That means you can easily transfer a stash of 100,000 Amex points to get the 100,000 ANA Mileage Club miles you need to book these flights.

The big hitch is that, unlike many airline transfers that go through instantly, sending points to ANA often takes 48 hours or so. That’s a bummer, as it means those business class flights you found through ANA could disappear by the time the miles get to your account.

With these kinds of deals, though, it could easily be a risk worth taking … or you could speculatively transfer some Amex points to ANA to ensure they’re ready when the next deal pops up.

American AAdvantage Miles

These days, you’re likely to find sky-high rates when trying to use American AAdvantage miles to fly at the front of the plane with American. But where AAdvantage miles shine brightest isn’t flying with American: It’s using them to book some of AA’s stellar partner airlines in business class.

How about flying Japan Airlines (JAL) business class to Tokyo or back for just 60,000 American miles each way? And not just nonstop flights from JAL’s major U.S. outposts, but maybe including a connection on American from your home airport?

But forget business class. You can even fly one of the best first class seats in the world, the heralded Etihad Apartment onboard the airline’s double-decker A380, using American miles for an unforgettable flight between London-Heathrow (LHR) and Abu Dhabi (AUH).

How to Earn American Miles

For years, transferring points to American wasn’t an option, period. That’s changed: Citi finally added American as a transfer partner last year, meaning you can now send points straight to American from cards like the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card or the new Citi Strata Elite℠ Card, among others.

Plus, American’s got a bevy of co-branded cards from Citi to choose from.

Avianca LifeMiles

I need to be honest: Avianca LifeMiles is not for the faint of heart.

Its website sometimes works fine … but often doesn’t. Customer service by phone or email is spotty even in the best of times. With that in mind, it can be a real pain if you need to change plans – it requires a phone call and hefty fees of up to $200 per ticket to cancel a business class award to get your miles back.

But for many, it’s worth putting up with LifeMiles for some unbeatable sweet spots to book business class on two dozen Star Alliance airlines for fewer miles – and low taxes and fees, to boot. Even after a devaluation that saw award rates increase across the globe, it’s still among the best ways to book business class.

Here’s just a small sample:

• Whether you start in New York or D.C. or all the way on the West Coast, you can fly from the U.S. to almost anywhere in Europe in business class for 69,000 LifeMiles each way
• There are some incredible exceptions, like New York (JFK) to Zurich (ZRH) costs just 55,000 miles in business class! 

How to Earn LifeMiles

It’s gotten far easier to earn LifeMiles over the years. Odds are, you’ve got a way to get them and may not even know it.

LifeMiles is a Capital One transfer partner, American Express transfer partner, and Citi ThankYou transfer partner. That means the miles you earn from the bonus on the *venture x* could be more than enough for many of the options you see listed here.

Avios … From 5 Different Airlines

Long-haul business class seats are often pricey when booking with British Airways Avios. Thanks to the distance-based award chart British Airways and its partner airlines (like Iberia and Aer Lingus) use to determine how many miles it costs to book a flight from point A to point B.

But there are a few tremendous exceptions where turning to Avios is the best bet for getting a bargain.

Let’s start with the cream of the crop: Flying Iberia business class from the U.S. to Madrid (MAD). While most airlines charge at least 60,000 miles (or much more) for a one-way business class ticket to Europe, you can book for as low as 40,500 Avios each way! It’s not too good to be true: In fact, there are only a few hoops to jump through to make it happen:

• You have to fly nonstop between Madrid (MAD) and select U.S. cities like Boston (BOS), New York City (JFK), Newark (EWR), Washington, D.C.-Dulles (IAD), and Chicago-O’Hare (ORD) – at least for now… – to get this low rate.
• You have to fly at the right time: These low, 40,500-mile rates are only available during off-peak periods – peak summer trips are pricier, though still a bargain for as low as 59,000 miles each way.
• Your searches might still turn up blank, as you need to find the award availability to actually book these flights with your miles.

We do all the legwork for our Thrifty Traveler Premium members: Finding availability, in-depth booking instructions, and guiding you to the best credit card points to use to book what’s typically a $4,000-plus fare. If there’s a transfer bonus to Iberia (or British Airways), it can get even cheaper, just like it did on this deal we sent subscribers for a trip to Spain next year.

But British Airways is also an amazing way to book some ultra-long flights to Doha (DOH) in Qatar Qsuites. It’ll cost you just 70,000 Avios each way and a reasonable $100 or so in taxes and fees. If you want to make a connection to Dubai (DXB) or elsewhere in the Middle East or maybe even head somewhere like the Maldives, you’d want to consider kicking those Avios over to Qatar and booking that way instead.

Whichever route you choose, Avios are all but essential these days. British Airways and Qatar Airways give you an edge to book before other travelers snap up these prized suites because you can book practically a full year in advance – as compared to just 330 days when using American AAdvantage miles. That monthlong advantage is a serious difference maker.

Read more: The #1 Trick to Booking Qatar Qsuites Right Now

The newest airline using Avios is Finnair … and it might be the best one on this list.

Using Finnair Avios, you can book:

• Finnair’s own business class seats from the U.S. to Helsinki (HEL) for 62,500 Avios each way – including a nifty trick that allows you to book two business class seats when American travelers can typically only book one.

Read more: Why You Should Care About Finnair Avios

How to Earn Avios

Avios are one big (and growing) family, which makes them among the easiest miles to earn in the world.

British Airways, Qatar, Iberia, Finnair, and Aer Lingus all use Avios as their frequent flier currency. And they break one of the cardinal rules of airline miles: Unlike almost every other carrier, you can transfer Avios between all these airlines. The carriers have introduced some new rules and processes around these transfers, but it’s still a cinch.

Read up on how to combine Avios between all five airlines!

You can transfer points from Chase, Amex, and Capital One directly to your British Airways account. Meanwhile, you can transfer Citi ThankYou points and American Express points to Qatar Airways. Only Capital One miles transfer straight to Finnair.

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank 

We might have saved the best for last. 

After becoming easier to earn this year, Japan Airlines’ Mileage Bank program is suddenly in the spotlight. Booking a Japan Airlines business class suite to Tokyo for as low as just 55,000 miles each way is about as good as it gets. The airline also offers more award availability at slightly higher award rates (like 75,000 miles or 80,000 miles) that you won’t see booking through other airline programs like American Airlines. 

But the best deals of all are flying JAL’s partner airlines.

Booking flights with carriers like American Airlines, British Airways, Finnair, and others, you can book some roundtrip awards for significantly less. And that’s true whether you’re flying economy or all the way up in business class. 

For example, Japan Airlines charges 60,000 miles each way for a one-way flying American Airlines from Miami (MIA) to Madrid (MAD). That alone is solid, especially with just $5.60 in taxes and fees.

But add a return flight and it’s not 120,000 miles – the roundtrip total drops to just 85,000 miles! That brings the one-way rate to just 42,500 miles each way. 

It even works with multi-city and open-jaw redemptions, so you could fly into Spain and jet home from Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG) or any other European city for the same roundtrip rate! From Europe to South America to … well, virtually anywhere, you can save some serious miles by booking roundtrip awards instead of one-way flights separately. 

That’s true whether you’re booking Oneworld partner airlines like American Airlines, British Airways, or Finnair, of course … but it also applies to other random partners like JetBlue and even Emirates! 

How to Earn JAL Miles

This invaluable mileage program flew under the radar for years because they were so hard to earn. That has changed. 

It starts with Bilt Rewards, which added JAL as a transfer partner last year. Capital One followed that up last fall, albeit at a poorer 2:1.5 transfer ratio. And most recently, the shopping and travel booking portal Rove Miles added JAL, too.

Just beware: If you haven’t already set up a JAL Mileage Bank account, there may be a delay: JAL typically requires accounts to be 60 days old in order to be able to redeem miles. All three companies have made deals allowing members to redeem their miles within seven days.

Bottom Line

You might have never set foot on these airlines, but these mileage programs are far and away our favorites in order to book business class flights for fewer miles than you’ll see using other carriers. And transferrable credit card points make it easy to get all the miles you need to take advantage of these sweet spots.