More than a million Australians have a Qantas Frequent Flyer credit card. In fact, according to Qantas, 1 in 3 credit card transactions in Australia earn Qantas points!
Not all credit cards are created equally. So, which credit card gives the most Qantas points?
In this guide, we’ll compare the best personal credit cards for Qantas points in Australia. We’ll also show you the best sign-up bonus offers available this month.
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Pros & cons of a Qantas points-earning credit card
When choosing a points-earning credit card, you can opt for a co-branded credit card that earns points directly with one airline (such as Qantas or Virgin Australia). Alternatively, you could choose to earn points with a bank-operated credit card rewards program. Credit card reward points are generally flexible points currencies that you can transfer to your choice of a range of different frequent flyer programs as needed.
In Australia, almost all of the credit cards that offer the ability to earn Qantas points are co-branded Qantas Frequent Flyer credit cards. The only exceptions are the Amex Platinum and invitation-only Amex Centurion charge cards, which allow you to convert your Amex Membership Rewards Premium Ascent points to Qantas Frequent Flyer.
This means that earning Qantas points from your credit card spend requires a commitment to the Qantas Frequent Flyer program. Qantas points are valuable, but there can be some downsides to this:
- Sticking to one frequent flyer program exclusively can limit your options when it comes to redeeming the points
- With so many other Australians earning Qantas points, it may be difficult to find award availability when redeeming your Qantas points for reward flights to/from Australia compared to other frequent flyer programs (such as Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer)
- Booking Qantas Classic Reward flights can be difficult, especially if you don’t have status and need to book via the call centre
- Qantas Frequent Flyer has relatively high carrier charges on many redemptions, which need to be paid in addition to the points and third-party taxes on Classic Flight Reward tickets
Maximising credit card points: Sign-up offers & everyday spend
With a Qantas Frequent Flyer credit card, you can earn Qantas points whenever you spend money on your card. The earning rates vary by card, but you would typically earn between 0.5 and 1 Qantas points per $1 spent.
If you’ll spend a lot of money on your Qantas credit card, and you have a card that doesn’t have a monthly or annual cap on Qantas points, the points can really add up over time!
But there’s another strategy for earning points through credit cards which can be substantially more lucrative: Sign-up bonus point offers.
These are one of the easiest and cheapest ways to earn large amounts of Qantas Frequent Flyer points for minimal outlay.
By applying for a Qantas points credit card with a generous sign-up offer, you could earn up to 150,000 bonus Qantas points! From time to time, some credit card offers even come with status credits as well, which contribute towards your Qantas status tier.
How to take advantage of Qantas credit card sign-up offers
To earn bonus Qantas points from a credit card sign-up promotion, you’ll generally need to spend a minimum amount on eligible purchases within the first few months.
Beware that most banks will not award points to existing cardholders or anyone who has already held a credit card with the same bank during the previous 12 months (or 18 months for American Express cards). This restriction does not generally apply to additional cardholders, who can apply for a new card in their own right and still earn the bonus points.
There are many Qantas credit cards with sign-up bonus point offers available! As of March 2024, the highest current offer belongs to the Qantas Premier Titanium card which is giving up to 150,000 bonus Qantas points and a $400 Qantas Luxury Holidays voucher to new cardholders. This offer has been extended until 1 May 2024, although it’s not for everyone as this card has a $1,200 annual fee and requires you to have a pre-tax income of at least $200,000.
If that particular card isn’t for you, don’t worry. There are lots of other credit card sign-up offers available now with generous amounts of bonus Qantas points! These offers include NAB Qantas credit cards, ANZ Qantas credit cards and Westpac Qantas credit cards.
Which are the best credit cards for earning Qantas points?
We’ve put together two lists:
- The Australian credit cards with the best current Qantas sign-up bonus point offers, and
- The Australian credit cards that earn Qantas points at the highest rate on everyday spend.
If you’re just looking for a Qantas credit card with a great sign-up offer to churn, have a look at the first list. If you’re looking for the ideal Qantas Frequent Flyer credit card to use over the long term, earning points primarily from your everyday spending, the second list may be of more interest to you.
Some cards may appear on both lists. This means they are a great earner and also come with a high sign-up bonus offer: a win-win!
If you’re viewing this article on a smartphone, the tables below may look better if you rotate your device horizontally.
List of the top current Qantas credit card sign-up offers
Here are the best current Qantas Frequent Flyer personal credit card sign-up offers available in Australia. This list is updated monthly and was last edited in March 2024:
Note that the Amplify Signature credit card with the same offer is also available from Bank of Melbourne or Bank SA. All three of these banks are owned by Westpac and offer identical credit card products.
You should be aware that applying for credit cards could affect your credit rating. This is particularly the case if you apply for multiple cards within a short time. You can check your credit rating for free using services such as Equifax or Get Credit Score.
Many of the current Australian credit card sign-up deals are discussed on the Australian Frequent Flyer forum:
List of the highest-earning Qantas Frequent Flyer credit cards
The Qantas points credit cards in this list are ranked in order according to the following criteria:
- Highest earn rate on everyday spend,
- Least restrictive earning caps, and
- Lowest annual fees.
The earn rates quoted are based on everyday expenditure. Some cards may earn at a higher rate for spend with Qantas or overseas.
Unfortunately, many credit cards on the Australian market cap the number of points that can be earned each month at the full rate. Once this threshold is reached, some cards will award points for any remaining spend during that month at a reduced rate. There are also some cards with a fixed maximum number of points that may be earned each month or year. If you’re a high spender, it’s worth looking for a card that doesn’t have any earning cap such as an Amex Qantas credit card!
Of the credit cards featured below, the Bankwest Qantas World card also has no international transaction fees on credit card purchases.
Without further ado, here’s our list of the top Qantas point-earning personal credit cards in Australia. This list was last updated in March 2024:
Card | Annual fee | Qantas Points earned per $1 | Cap on full earn rate | More information |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. Qantas Amex Ultimate | $450 | 1.25 | $80,000/year | |
2. Qantas Premier Titanium | $1,200 | 1.25 | $12,500/month | |
3. Amex Platinum | $1,450 | 1.125 | – | |
4. Qantas Amex Premium | $249 | 1 | – | |
5. G&C Mutual Bank Platinum Visa | $299 | 1 | $20,000/month | |
6. HSBC Premier World (with Qantas Rewards & Premier status) | $0 | 1 | $120,000/year | |
7. HSBC Platinum Qantas | $299 | 1 | $120,000/year | |
8. Qantas Premier Platinum | $399 | 1 | $10,000/month | |
9. BOQ Specialist Signature | $400 | 1 | $10,000/month | |
10. ANZ Frequent Flyer Black | $425 | 1 | $7,500/month | |
11. Bankwest Qantas World | $270 | 1 | $5,000/month | |
12. NAB Qantas Rewards Signature | $395 | 1 | $5,000/month | |
13. Qudos Bank Visa Platinum | $249 | 1 | $2,500/month |
Qantas business credit cards
While this article mainly features personal credit cards, there are also a range of Qantas points-earning credit and charge cards available to businesses. Here’s a selection of our favourite business cards that earn Qantas points:
Our Favourite Business Cards for Qantas Points
- Card Name
- American Express Platinum Business Card
- Earn
- 2.25
- Signup Bonus
-
250,000 bonus Membership Rewards points + $500 Credit
Apply by 02nd Apr 2024
- Annual Fee
- $1,750 p.a. ongoing and up to 99 Employee Cards at no additional cost
- Read more
- Read the guide
American Express Membership Rewards (Ascent Premium) Points on everyday purchases
- Card Name
- American Express Qantas Business Rewards
- Earn
- 1.25
- Signup Bonus
-
175,000 bonus Qantas Points
Apply by 03rd Apr 2024
- Annual Fee
- $450 p.a. ongoing and up to 99 Employee Cards at no additional cost
- Read more
- Read the guide
Qantas Frequent Flyer Qantas Points on everyday purchases
If you’re specifically looking for a business credit card to earn points for government payments, including to the ATO, you may also consider the NAB Qantas Business Signature card. This business card awards points at the full rate on tax payments and other government spend.
What does 100,000 Qantas points get you?
The value of Qantas points depends on how you spend them. You’ll generally get the most value when redeeming for Classic Flight Rewards or upgrades.
To give you a rough idea, 100,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer points would be enough for the following rewards (excluding taxes & carrier charges):
- 15 one-way Jetstar Economy Class flights between Adelaide and Melbourne,
- 6 return Qantas Economy Class flights between Sydney and Brisbane,
- 5 one-way Qantas Business Class flights between Melbourne and Hobart,
- 9 Business Class upgrades from Qantas Red e-Deal fares between Sydney and Melbourne,
- A return Business Class flight from Brisbane, Sydney or Canberra to Nadi with Fiji Airways, or
- A one-way Qantas Business Class flight from Sydney to Johannesburg
A large serve of bonus Qantas points would also get you well on your way to booking a Qantas Oneworld Classic Flight Reward, which can be used to fly around the world with up to five stopovers! This starts from 132,400 Qantas points + taxes & carrier charges for Economy Class.
This article contains a more detailed list of what you can do with different amounts of Qantas Frequent Flyer points.
Credit card points count towards Qantas Points Club membership
Up to 125,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer points earned from a Qantas credit card sign-up offer will also count towards your Qantas Points Club membership! You’d need to earn 150,000 Qantas points during your membership year to reach Points Club status, or 350,000 Qantas points for Points Club Plus membership. No more than 20,000 of those points can come from flights.
Points Club benefits include Qantas Club lounge passes or membership, and the ability to earn status credits on Qantas reward flights.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
One of the fastest ways to earn a large amount of Qantas points, other than buying top-up points, is to take out a Qantas Frequent Flyer credit card sign-up offer. If you’re eligible for the offer, are approved for the card and meet the minimum spend criteria (e.g. $4,000 spend in the first 3 months), you could receive tens of thousands of bonus Qantas points.
Yes, Qantas owns Qantas Money which offers the Premier Titanium, Premier Platinum and Premier Everyday credit cards. Most Australian banks also offer co-branded Qantas Frequent Flyer credit cards that earn Qantas points directly.
The value of Qantas points depends on how you redeem them. If redeeming for Classic Flight Rewards, 10,000 Qantas points would be enough for a one-way Economy Class flight on Qantas, Jetstar or any of Qantas’ other partner airlines on a route up to 600 miles in distance flown. For example, you could book a Qantas Economy Class flight from Melbourne to Sydney for 8,000 Qantas points + taxes & charges, or a British Airways Euro Traveller flight from London to Paris for 10,000 Qantas points + taxes & charges. In addition to the points, you’d need to pay any applicable taxes & carrier charges when booking Classic Flight Rewards.
A points-earning credit card is one of the easiest ways to accumulate a large amount of frequent flyer points. You can earn lots of bonus points with a great sign-up offer, then continue to earn more frequent flyer points for every dollar spent on the card. In addition, many frequent flyer credit cards come with complimentary travel insurance and other benefits such as airport lounge passes. The trade-off is that you’ll often need to pay an annual fee, and if you don’t pay off the card’s balance in full each month, you may need to pay interest. The rewards offered by the card often justify the annual fee, however, a high-interest credit card may not be suitable if you don’t think you’ll be able to make full repayments each month.
Generally, when you have a Qantas credit card, any Qantas points earned will be automatically deposited into your Qantas Frequent Flyer account after each month. They are yours to keep, even after you cancel your credit card. However, beware that Qantas points expire if your Qantas Frequent Flyer account is inactive for 18 months.
Would you like to learn more about credit cards?
Australian Frequent Flyer has a free training course on Credit Cards that’s available to all AFF members! This course will teach you about maximising credit card points and can help you to choose a credit card that’s right for you. View course →
Disclaimer: This article is not intended as financial advice. Consider your personal circumstances before applying for credit cards or any other type of credit.