How to start earning points

There are many advantages to earning frequent flyer and shopping reward points. They can be used to book first class flights worth tens of thousands of dollars or for something as simple as lowering the cost of your weekly grocery shop.

Whether your goal is to travel luxuriously, save money or a combination of the two, the important thing is to start looking at how earning and redeeming points can benefit you. This guide equips you with all the knowledge you need to begin your points earning journey.

The big four points programmes

There are more points systems than you can count but the four key programmes Australians should focus on are Qantas, Velocity, Everyday Rewards and Flybuys. These are the points issued by Australia’s two main airlines and supermarket groups:

• Qantas Frequent Flyer – Qantas Airways.
• Velocity Frequent Flyer – Virgin Australia.
• Everyday Rewards – Woolworths Group.
• Flybuys – Coles Group.

Frequent flyer points are best used to book flights. Whilst you can redeem them on other things such as products, gift cards, hotels and car hire, you get by far the most value out of your points with reward flights.

Everyday Rewards points can be redeemed at Woolworths, Big W, BWS, MyDeal, Milkrun and participating service stations. Each 2,000 points you earn equals $10 that can be taken off your shop at any of these places.

Similarly, Flybuys points can be spent at Coles, Kmart, Target, Officeworks, First Choice Liquor, Liquorland, mycar and Reddy Express service stations. Additionally, you can redeem your Flybuys points on gift cards, products and holidays through Flybuys’ online rewards store and travel agency.

The supermarket rewards programmes also give you the option of transferring your points to their frequent flyer partners at a 2:1 rate; 2,000 Everyday Rewards points can be converted to 1,000 Qantas points whilst 1,000 Flybuys points can be converted to 500 Velocity points.

You should only convert your supermarket points to frequent flyer points if you plan to use them to book reward flights. For any other type of redemption, you are likely better off keeping your points in the Everyday Rewards or Flybuys ecosystems.

Decide which points you want to earn

It’s generally a good idea to earn points in all four of these programmes but it’s worth thinking about your circumstances and goals. If you have no interest in travelling and just want to save money then perhaps give Qantas and Velocity a miss and instead focus on Everyday Rewards and Flybuys.

If you do plan to use your points for travel, it’s a good idea to prioritise one frequent flyer programme over another. Many of the best points redemptions (e.g. first and business class reward flights) require a lot of points so you’ll get there faster if you focus on earning in one programme.

That’s not to say that you shouldn’t ever collect others points, though; sometimes you may find that you can’t earn points for a particular activity in your preferred programme but you can in another. In those cases any points are better than none.

Additionally, having multiple varieties of points on hand can give you greater flexibility when trying to redeem them. For example, I primarily collect Qantas points but I always like to have a decent number of Velocity points on hand in case I have any trouble finding suitable reward flights with my Qantas points.

Look for ways you can earn points

Whether you’re buying a coffee or a house, there’s almost certainly a way for you to earn Qantas, Velocity, Everyday Rewards and Flybuys points. Common ways include credit cards, insurance, gift cards, shopping and, of course, flying.

Unless you’re a very big spender or travel constantly for work, most people will earn the bulk of their points from bonus offers rather than ongoing activities. With a credit card, for example, often the sign up bonus alone exceeds the number of points that you could reasonably expect to earn after a year of actually using the card.

Companies use these bonus points offers to entice you to sign up for their services, betting that you’ll stay a customer for long enough that they’ll eventually profit from your laziness. However, the joke is on them if you up and leave after the bonus points hit your account.

One of the most popular ways of earning points today is by buying gift cards during the weekly bonus points promotions at Coles, Woolworths and Big W. With different cards included each week (e.g. Apple, JB Hi-Fi, Uber, Airbnb, IKEA, generic Visa gift cards etc), these offers allow you to easily earn tens of thousands of points on purchases you were already going to make.

The Everyday Rewards and Flybuys apps provide you with a steady stream of personalised offers (e.g. spend $50 to earn 3,000 bonus points) which typically require you to activate or “boost” them. Opening these apps a couple of times a week (especially before you shop) will ensure you’re always able to take advantage of the offers available to you.

Many of the best points earning opportunities are ephemeral so to make the most of your new hobby, you really need to keep an eye out for new promotions. We make this part easier by curating all the best offers for you.

Don’t get carried away

A common mistake new points collectors make is that they become obsessed with earning points and start making questionable decisions. Whilst points can save you a lot of money, if you end up spending more than you save in the pursuit of them then you’re wasting your time.

These programmes are designed to punish loyalty, not reward it. For example, if you regularly scan the same Everyday Rewards or Flybuys card when shopping at Woolworths and Coles your bonus offers will get increasingly worse or disappear entirely.

This is why we strongly encourage people to open Everyday Rewards and Flybuys accounts for all members of their family. That way, you’re only scanning the card with the best offer at a given time. If you stop scanning a card for a while, they’ll start sending you better and better offers to lure you back into store.

Also, always keep in mind the opportunity cost for every points offer that you take advantage of. If Everyday Rewards or Flybuys are offering you 500 bonus points on a $10 item that is often half price then you’re not getting those 500 points for free, you’re actually paying $5 for them.

This applies to much larger purchases too. 50,000 frequent flyer points for taking up an insurance offer may seem like a wonderful deal but if you’re paying hundreds or even thousands of dollars more in premiums until the points are credited then suddenly that deal loses a lot of its lustre.

It’s normal to spend a bit extra if it means you can earn a lot of points – just don’t overpay. A good rule of thumb for Qantas and Velocity points is that you shouldn’t ever pay more than 1 cent per point. For Everyday Rewards or Flybuys points, anything over half a cent per point is likely wasted money.

Common questions and answers

Q. Are these programmes free to join?

A. Yes, although there are a few things you should know before signing up. Qantas Frequent Flyer officially costs $99.50 but there are many links you can use to sign up for free. Velocity Frequent Flyer, on the other hand, is completely free to join.

Flybuys and Everyday Rewards are also free to join but if you sign up for the latter with this specific link you can earn 1,500 free Everyday Rewards points. Both supermarkets also have paid subscriptions (Everyday Extra and Coles Plus Saver) that offer additional benefits but you don’t need these.

Q. What are these points worth?

A. We have an in-depth breakdown of the value of frequent flyer and reward points but the gist of it can be summarised as:

• 1 Qantas point = 0.5 cents to 5+ cents
• 1 Velocity point = 0.5 cents to 5+ cents
• 1 Everyday Rewards point = 0.5 cents
• 1 Flybuys point = 0.5 cents

Q. How do I learn about new points offers and tips?

A. We curate all of the best points offers available to save you the trouble of having to find them yourself. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram or subscribe to our email newsletter for a weekly summary of the latest offers.