Flybuys Vs Velocity

[Mistere68]

Hi, Please forgive if there are already posting on this topic in this forum, but I can't find reference anywhere. I have just bought a new home and have an offset account attached to it, so will benefit greatly from rewards programs like Flybuys & Velocity. Every bill & purchase i make will be done via a credit card, so points should accrue quite quickly. However, I cannot determine for myself which is the best program to choose from.

Velocity Rewards seem more generous in the points offered and my experience suggests that Virgin flights are generally cheaper than qantas flights BUT there are so many people here still using Qantas rewards that i wonder what it is I am missing? Can someone help give me an overview of the two major FF rewards programs please? Also, please feel free to tell me if i'm 'barking up the wrong tree' altogether, and should be looking at another kind of rewards program entirely.

Thank-you! Mark.

 

[N860CR]

Well Flybuys is totally useless so don't even consider that.

Its between Velocity and Qantas Frequent Flyer if you want an airline problem, or you can get an American Express card and keep your points in their program before transfering to a few different airlines.

Same problem as always though... You can get an Amex card but then you'll have the problem of it not being taken everywhere. Visa's generally don't earn as many points though.

I personally have a Velocity Visa and Amex, the Visa earning 0.5 pts per $, the Amex 1 pt per $. This suits me as I fly Virgin much much more than Qantas hence I'm earning flight rewards as well as credit card points. However if you fly Qantas more, then a Qantas program would be better for you.

It comes down to your own personal needs really

 

[Damien]

Welcome to AFF, Mistere68.

Hi, Please forgive if there are already posting on this topic in this forum, but I can't find reference anywhere. I have just bought a new home and have an offset account attached to it, so will benefit greatly from rewards programs like Flybuys & Velocity. Every bill & purchase i make will be done via a credit card, so points should accrue quite quickly.

I am in a similar position to you. I have an offset account attached to my home loan and make all purchases with credit card.

Velocity Rewards seem more generous in the points offered and my experience suggests that Virgin flights are generally cheaper than qantas flights BUT there are so many people here still using Qantas rewards that i wonder what it is I am missing? Can someone help give me an overview of the two major FF rewards programs please? Also, please feel free to tell me if i'm 'barking up the wrong tree' altogether, and should be looking at another kind of rewards program entirely.

The main reason so many people here are saving Qantas points is because the program has been around for so much longer than Velocity. The number of people saving Velocity rewards will slowly increase over time.

Well Flybuys is totally useless so don't even consider that.

What he said!

 

[dajop]

I assume if you are looking at Flybuys vs Velocity you are looking nab products only as the offset is through nab. If that's the case a separate Amex (which would allow transferring to different programs) is not an option. However the best earn rates would be with a nab branded Amex (note visa's tend to earn at less than 1 FF point per dollar).

Now as far as Velocity vs Qantas FF goes - probably useful to answer a few extra questions. Do you fly frequently? Do you fly at all? If so which airline do you or would you use? What do you want to get out of a rewards program - eg the occasional domestic flight or a do you want to save for an international (not just to NZ!) flight?

 

[Mistere68]

Firstly, thanks to everyone for taking the time to respond - cheers!

Now as far as Velocity vs Qantas FF goes - probably useful to answer a few extra questions. Do you fly frequently? Do you fly at all? If so which airline do you or would you use?

Fly once or twice a year (CNS-MLB or CNS-BNE) to see family. Prefer to fly Virgin - great staff, feel safe and like to snub QANTAS for profiteering from us for decades.

What do you want to get out of a rewards program - eg the occasional domestic flight or a do you want to save for an international (not just to NZ!) flight?

I take the view that anything I receive from a rewards program is just a bonus. My previous experience was with Flybuys that an ex-girlfriend made me join once, but it never amounted to a thing (In retrospect, the title of my post should have been QANTAS FF vs. VELOCITY). This has really just landed in my lap because of the change in how we manage our finances in relation to the home loan (should have started years ago!)

Yes, would love to earn enough points for an overseas holiday, but with both my wife & I's families living in Melbourne & SE QLD respectively, I wouldn't expect to have enough left for an extra trip?

If we spent ~$3000 a month each on our cards ($6000 total) that makes about 3000 points on a NAB Velocity card right? On that basis 3000x12 months = 36,000 points. Do you think that would afford us 2 return flights a year CNS-MLB if we booked well in advance and took advantage of cheap deals? If so, that's perfect and I couldn't ask for more...for free.

Cheers, Mark

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

CNS-MEL (not MLB as that is in Florida!) return is 36,000 points per person on Qantas and between 33,400 and 156,000 points per person on Virgin Blue (all figures from online points calculators).

 

[Mistere68]

Geez thanks. What are the points per dollar for QANTAS FF?

 

[JohnK]

Geez thanks. What are the points per dollar for QANTAS FF?

It doesn't quite work that way on QF FFP! It is a mileage based program and when flying on QF you receive FF points for the total miles flown. If the distance is less than 1,000 miles then there is a minimum earning of 1,000 points. Then there are status bonuses, eg Silver +25%, Gold +50%, Platinum +100% and cabin bonuses as well, eg business class +25% and first class +50%.

It is explained in more detail here.

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

Given the OP was talking about CC spend earlier I think it is reasonable to assume they are talking about that rather than points earned from flying.

QFF affiliated cards start at around 1 point per $, with more "elite" cards giving higher points (and also higher annual fees). Watch out for capped earning.