The value of miles - some maths:

Pay attention at the back of the class!

I was dithering around with my options of booking an UC NYC>LHR, on VS, and got a bunch of prices in. So, decided to work out how much VS values its miles on redemption, and here's the maths:

An UC ticket for a month away is $3960. Earns you miles.
A miles+money ticket same dates is $3133 + 15000 miles, so they are valuing those miles at 5.5c/ mile
A full reward ticket is $1036 in 'taxes' and 80,000 miles, that's 3.6c/mile
An upgradeable PE fee (S class in my case) is $2427 after adding UC taxes when you upgrade, plus 20,000miles, BUT you earn about 14,000 miles on the PE ticket if GC (like moi) so net cost is just 6,000 miles, which values those at 25c/mile
Upgradeable EC ticket is $1425 + about $480 in UC taxes on upgrading, plus 60,000 miles, but less 8000 miles you'd earn. = 3.9c/mile

As you can see the PE upgradeable fare is the best use of miles. Easily.

However... there are a lot of variables. Your UC ticket can cost anything from $2600 to $5900+ depending on season/dates/offers. Indeed currently with the sale, in August an UC fare is cheaper than a PE S upgraded! So all the above goes out the window, and buying a PE upgradeable is like shooting yourself in both feet. You paid more, loose out on miles, are not guaranteed an UC seat!

And then you'd earn more miles by purchasing with your VS credit card, in my US case 3miles/$ so I'd get 7200 miles for that $2400 PE S fare, and more than break even on the miles. In other words an upgradeable PE fare bought using your VS card ends up costing a GC holder zero miles. Of course assuming there is availability to upgrade, which often there isn't.

Lastly all this assumes you have the $ to spend e.g. $2400 on a PE ticket. Multiple x times for a couple or family. If you don't, then paying only $1000 and being in UC, is great, and damn the $/c value of those redeemed miles!

[Decker]

Thanks for this - wish there was an app for it as I frequently stuggle with these sort of equations! BA have some of the best deals when they offer upgrades for less miles and more money!

thanks for this most important maths lesson

An awesome maths lesson and probably the only one that I can remember making sense of y)

It is very interesting and confusing when you prowl into the unknown world of upgrade prices - great job! ^)

Brilliant, I can't tell you how much time I've spent pretending I knew what I was doing - now I have some chance of getting it right y)

Talking of all things miles, is there likely to be more availability trying to buy an economy ticket and using miles to upgrade to UC as opposed to trying to get a flight with just miles???

Talking of all things miles, is there likely to be more availability trying to buy an economy ticket and using miles to upgrade to UC as opposed to trying to get a flight with just miles???

No because they come from the same 'G' bucket.

Ah ok. Shame, but makes sense.

For miles plus money however, you also lose the miles earned if you had bought a revenue fare. So the miles plus money option for UC is quite bad value if you consider the loss of 10,000+ miles , which is 14k if FC gold. I have found that by far the best value is upgrading to UC from a revenue fare. Even if you have a low fare code, the upgrade to an L at the aiport can be remarkably cheap. I was on a 'O' economy once to JFK, asked about upgrades and it was £151 plus 20k to get into UC. I was lucky but that's good value for miles! Remember its not 30k any longer to upgrade from econ the UC, it's 20k.

Isn't it 20k per sector, econ to PE and then another 20k from there to UC????

NYC-LHR is 10k per cabin per sector. They just reduced the PE-UC cost to 10k. V good value!

But M+M fares are flexible aren't they - an added benefit that a Z class isn't (and more flexible than an S / upgradable economy I think) - and less restrictions as to when it can be bought