Virgin Velocity Vs Qantas Points: How Do They Compare?

There are four levels of Velocity membership that determine the benefits you receive when you travel.

The entry-level tier is called Red, followed by Silver, then Gold and finally the top membership level of Platinum.

Members start at Red and can move to the other levels through collecting status credits and flying eligible sectors*. For example, to move from Red to Silver, a member needs to reach a total of 250 status credits and fly two eligible sectors each for the membership year. Once they’ve reached Silver, they also need to earn a total of 200 status credits and fly two eligible sectors within a 12-month period to maintain Silver membership.

Silver members receive a 50% points bonus each year on top of the base points earned, while Gold and Platinum members receive 75% and 100% bonus points respectively.

*An eligible sector is any flight that begins with a VA flight number except for reward seats, economy lite fares and some Choice Fares operated internally in Canada

Earning Points

Virgin has recently announced changes to earn rates for flights booked from 2 April, 2025.

Airfares booked before then will be earned at a base point amount that is calculated at five points-per-dollar spent on the all-inclusive fare. This will drop to four points from 2 April 2025, except for members with an eligible velocity co-branded credit card who will still earn five points-per-dollar spent.

Virgin has relationships with a variety of airline partners for points earning, including Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways and Etihad. Each partner airline has slightly different rules regarding points earned per flight. Virgin’s partnership with United Airlines offers Velocity points based on the fare class and the number of miles flown. For example, United Airlines Flex flights earn one point per mile.

Virgin has partnered with Coles’ Flybuys program, which means you can transfer your Flybuy points in the Wesfarmers store network to your Velocity points account. When you accrue 1000 Flybuy points these are transferred to 500 Velocity frequent flyer points.

Points can also be earned when you fill-up on fuel at a 7-Eleven. You get two points-per-litre on premium fuel, one point-per-litre on regular fuel and two points-per-dollar spent on eligible in-store purchases. Virgin Australia’s partnerships with AGL Energy, Freedom Kitchens and Snooze also allow customers to spend and earn points. But by far the most common method of racking up points is with a Virgin-themed credit card via Virgin Money, Westpac, American Express and Bank of Queensland.

Earning Status Credits

Virgin has also made changes to how status credits are earned, which some argue will make it tougher to advance through the membership tiers.

For flights booked before April 2, 2025, members will earn status credits based on the fare type and number of miles flown. For example, a (cheaper) lite fair flight under 750 miles currently earns five status credits, while a business-class flight is equal to 55 status credits. A short-haul international flight of between 1701 and 2500 miles, meanwhile, earns 20 status credits.

Flights booked on or after 2 April 2024, however, will shift to a credit-per-dollar amount with lite flights earning just one status credit per $24 and all other flights earning one status credit per $12 of fare booked.

Travel Perks

Gold status is where the perks start to really kick-in with Velocity, with free lounge access for members and a guest, as well as priority boarding, preferred seat selection and increased luggage limits.

Platinum members also receive all of the perks of Gold, but with extra benefits, including four complimentary business class upgrades per year and Economy X priority seating at the pointy end of the plane guaranteed on every domestic flight.

Members of the two lower tiers receive varying degrees of access to the above perks with Silver members allowed just two-single entry lounge passes per year and Red receiving none.

Fee To Join

There is no fee to join Virgin Velocity.

Qantas’ eponymous frequent flyer program also offers membership across four tiers: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Platinum One.

Bronze is the entry level status for all new members who can advance to Silver in their second year if they earn 300 status credits and fly a minimum of four eligible flights with Qantas or Jetstar.

Silver, Gold and Platinum members will receive a 50%, 75% and 100% points bonus respectively on points accrued each year.

Although you need a hefty 700 status credits to move from Silver to Gold, you will also receive a choice of 8000 Qantas points, or 50 status credits, as a loyalty bonus when you reach 500 status points.

To advance from Gold to Platinum, you need 1400 status credits, plus flights in four eligible sectors, and to achieve the highest tier of Platinum One you need a whopping 3600 status credits with at least 2700 on Qantas-marketed flights rather than partner airlines.

Earning Points and Status credits

The number of points you earn with Qantas depends on how far you’re flying and in what fare category.

A short domestic flight (up to 750 miles) will earn you at least 400 points and 10 status credits in discount economy and 1400 points and 40 status points in business.

A discount economy flight between Sydney and the West Coast of the USA will earn you 4500 points and 45 status points if you are flying economy or 14,625 points and 190 status credits if you are flying business.

You can calculate how many points and status credits you can earn here.

Qantas’ supermarket partner for points is Woolworths’ Everyday rewards and points are earned at a similar rate to the Coles’ Flybuys offer i.e. 2000 Everyday Rewards points equals 1000 Qantas points.

Qantas also has a partnership with BP and members can earn two points-per-litre on BP ultimate unleaded, one point-per-litre on all other fuels and one point-per-dollar spent on eligible in-store items.

Qantas also has partnerships with banks in which you can earn points when you make deposits. It’s at a low rate—e.g. 0.3 points for every $100 in your account with a Bankwest Qantas Transaction account—but that’s easy points if your salary goes into the same bank account every month.

Qantas Money also offers 100,000 points per year for the life of your loan if you take out a Qantas Money home loan with it (if you’re thinking about this make sure you compare interest rates to ensure you are getting a good deal).

Travel Perks

While Silver Status members receive just one complimentary invitation to the lounge, Gold, Platinum and Platinum One members have access to over 600 lounges globally. These higher tiers also enable access to premium boarding and on-departure upgrades for domestic Qantas-operated flights via points.

The highest levels of membership, Platinum and Platinum One also receive access to Qantas, Oneworld partner and Emirates First Class lounges where available regardless of travel class as well as the use of first class check-in counters and priority booking of preferred economy seats.

Platinum One has the added benefits of a complimentary Platinum membership for a partner, priority for award seats, access to a dedicated VIP services team and free transfer to an earlier flight if seats are available.

Fee To Join

It costs $99.50 to join Qantas’ frequent flyer program, however, Hui advises to think twice before handing over the fee.

“They always have constant promotions to join for free, so hardly anyone ever pays to join,” he says.

Qantas Vs Velocity: Which One Is the Best?

In the contest between Qantas and Velocity, the winner comes down to individual flying habits and personal preference.

Before you decide on a program you need to weigh up where you are most likely to earn points and how that fits in with your lifestyle.

If the price of joining is an issue, then Velocity might be the obvious choice but if you’re a frequent international flyer, Qantas offers a much larger network of global flights. Virgin Australia flies into three territories overseas—Bali, Fiji and Vanuatu—and relies on partner airlines to ferry its frequent flyers to other destinations.

“It’s not simple. It’s like asking someone, ‘what do you think is the best car for me’?” Hui says.

“So, for example, if you drive past 7-Eleven petrol station on the way home and that’s most convenient for you, then 7-Eleven is partnered with Virgin. But if BP is less convenient, then you’re not going to go to BP to get Qantas points. It’s just all about matching your lifestyle and which one is most convenient for you.”

One Qantas point is usually equivalent to one Velocity point, but there are differences in how many points you need on each to fly business class. A business class return trip to Los Angeles with Qantas costs 216,800 points while with Velocity, via a partner airline, it costs 191,000.

Velocity business class routes cost less than Qantas, but it will likely become harder to earn Velocity points given the changes coming in from April next year.

As both programs offer differing strengths and weaknesses, the trick is to find the program that best suits your travel habits and preferred destinations.

Additional editing: Kevin Pratt