Here's a number that should surprise you: 3 in 5 Australians believe frequent flyer points aren't worth collecting.
That's not a small group of sceptics. That's the majority of the country, according to research from Finder. Millions of Australians are enrolled in Qantas Frequent Flyer, Virgin Velocity, or KrisFlyer — swiping cards, flying routes, shopping at Woolworths — and still walking away convinced that the whole thing is a waste of time.
And honestly? We get it.
The points game has a reputation problem. It's seen as complicated, confusing, and rigged in the airline's favour. For every person who talks about flying Business Class to Paris for "free," there's another who tried to book a reward seat, got hit with a wall of surcharges, and swore off the whole thing.
But here's the thing: those two people didn't have different luck. They had different knowledge.
This article is for the 3 in 5. The ones who've been told the game isn't worth playing — but haven't been shown how to actually play it.
The Real Reason People Give Up
Before we talk about what you're missing, let's be honest about why so many Australians have checked out.
"I can never find the seats I want"
This one is frustratingly common — and completely valid. Reward seats exist in limited numbers, and searching for them through airline websites is painful. You pick a date, find nothing. You try different dates. Still nothing. Eventually you give up and buy the cash ticket.
The problem isn't that reward seats don't exist. It's that most people don't know how to find them, or which programs give access to which routes.
👉 Need Help in Find Reward/Award Seats? Get Help Here.
"It takes forever to earn enough points"
You've had a Qantas Frequent Flyer account for three years. You have 40,000 points. That sounds like a lot until you look up a reward seat and see it costs 100,000+. So what's the point?
This is the under-earning problem. Most Australians only earn points when they fly — which, unless you're a regular business traveller, means your balance grows at a crawl. What they don't realise is that the fastest way to earn points has nothing to do with flying at all.
"The fees make it not worthwhile"
This is the big one. Someone redeems 100,000 points for a Business Class flight and then gets hit with $700 in carrier charges. They feel duped. The "free flight" cost them real money anyway — so why bother?
This frustration is legitimate. But it's also fixable, because not all redemptions carry heavy fees. Knowing which ones do and which ones don't is the difference between a great deal and a disappointing one.
"It's too complicated"
Multiple programs. Transfer partners. Award charts. Carrier surcharges. Blackout dates. Seat classes. It can feel like you need a PhD just to book a holiday.
This complexity is real — but it's also exactly the problem Pointrs was built to solve.
What You're Actually Leaving on the Table
Let's make this concrete, because abstract talk about "value" doesn't tell you much. Here are real redemptions available right now through Pointrs.
Sydney to Paris — Business Class Return — Save 260,000 Points
Imagine booking a Business Class return from Sydney to Paris. Lie-flat beds. Lounge access. The full experience.
The standard price for this flight in Business? Around 380,000 Points. But through the right redemption strategy, you can fly the same route — Sydney to Paris and back, on Etihad Airways via Abu Dhabi — from just 120,000 Aeroplan Points. That's a saving of 260,000 points, which is a staggering amount.
👉 See How to Book Sydney to Paris Business Return — 120,000 Aeroplan Points
For people who think points "aren't worth it," this is what's sitting on the other side of that belief.
Melbourne to Sydney — Business Class Return — Save 32,000 Points
Not every redemption needs to be a long-haul dream trip. If you're a frequent domestic traveller — even just a few trips a year — you can use your points smartly here too.
Melbourne to Brisbane Business Class return normally costs around 85,000 Qantas Points. With the right booking approach, you can do it for just 30,000 points — saving 55,000 points that you can put toward something bigger.
👉 See How to Book Melbourne to Sydney Business Return — 25,000 Qantas Points
These aren't hypothetical deals. These are live redemptions that Pointrs tracks and keeps updated — all in one place.
Brisbane to Bali — Economy Return — Save 26,000 Points
For the Aussie who just wants a solid holiday, this one is hard to ignore.
Brisbane to Denpasar (Bali) return economy normally requires around 60,000 Points. Book it the right way and you're looking at just 26,000 points — saving 34,000 points. A Bali trip, essentially, for less than half the points most people think they need.
👉 See How to Book Brisbane to Denpasar Economy Return — 26,000 Points
The 3 Things Most Australians Don't Know
Understanding why these deals exist — and why most people miss them — comes down to three gaps in knowledge.
1. Points are worth far more on flights than anything else
Many Australians with points balances use them for gift cards, merchandise, or to pay for groceries. These feel like good value because the redemption is easy and instant.
They're not.
When you redeem points through Qantas or Velocity for merchandise or cashback, you're typically getting around 0.5–1 cent per point. When you use them for Business Class international flights the right way, you can extract 3–6 cents of value per point — sometimes more.
The gap is enormous. Points are essentially a currency that's worth dramatically more in one place than in others, and most Australians are spending it at the discount shop.
2. You don't need to fly to earn
The fastest earners of points in Australia aren't people who fly constantly. They're people who've connected every dollar of everyday spending to a points-earning system.
The right credit card on everyday spending. Woolworths Everyday Rewards linked to Qantas. Coles Flybuys linked to Velocity. Bonus point offers at partner stores. Dining programs. All of these stack up — and none of them require you to book a flight.
For most Australians, 100,000+ points a year is achievable from everyday spending alone. The points are already there to be earned. Most people just aren't capturing them.
3. Not all redemptions are created equal
Here's why some people feel burned and others don't: the points game rewards those who know which redemptions are good and which ones to avoid.
Paying for taxes and fees with your points? Almost never worth it — you're getting terrible value for each point spent.
Redeeming for short domestic flights? Often poor value per point compared to international business class.
Using points for international premium cabin flights on the right routes with the right programs? That's where the magic happens — and it's the core of what Pointrs shows you.
👉 Learn How to Use Qantas Frequent Flyer Qantas Points To Fly Other Airlines
The Problem Isn't the Points. It's the Lack of a Guide.
The reason 3 in 5 Australians have written off frequent flyer points isn't because the points are bad. It's because navigating the system without help is genuinely hard.
Airline reward programs are not designed to make it easy. They're designed to make you earn a lot of points and then either leave them sitting idle or spend them on low-value redemptions. The more confused you are, the better it is for them.
Pointrs exists to flip that dynamic.
With over 27,000 Pointrs across more than 40 airlines, 100+ loyalty programs, and 200+ credit cards, Pointrs shows you exactly how to get the most out of every point you've earned. Not in theory — with real, specific redemptions, updated regularly, laid out clearly so you can see the saving at a glance.
You can even input your current points balances and instantly see which of those redemptions you can already afford — and how close you are to the ones you can't yet.
No confusion. No frustration. No hours of research hoping you got it right.
So — Are Frequent Flyer Points Worth It?
Yes. Absolutely yes.
But only if you know what you're doing with them.
The 3 in 5 Australians who've dismissed the points game haven't been given bad information — they've been given incomplete information. They've seen the complexity without being shown the shortcut. They've felt the frustration of the system without knowing there's a better way to navigate it.
You don't need to be an expert. You don't need to spend hours researching. You just need the right tool.
That's what Pointrs is.
👉 Browse all Spend Less Pointrs and see what your points can actually do
👉 Sign up to Pointrs and start winning the points game today
Flights are only available on award/reward seats. Seat availability may be limited. Taxes, fees and surcharges are payable in addition to points. All Pointrs are regularly updated but verify details before booking.
