Not sure if this has been addressed on the forum before - if it has, my apologies (you can feel free to point me to that discussion). Here's the situation:

I have a trip coming up this fall that will involve flying 8,000-10,000 miles total.

I have the lowest FF "status" level on Airline X. HOWEVER - so far Airline X and its alliance partners do not have the least expensive tickets.

If I earn the miles on Airline X's alliance, I will keep the low-level FF status for next year. If I fly another airline/alliance, I will not make status on either of them. Also, I have an FF credit card with Airline X, so I accumulate miles with them that way as well. I have a decent number of miles in my Airline X account, but I don't have many miles in any of my other FF accounts (and in some I have zero miles right now).

Here's the question: Given all that, how much of a premium is it worth paying to fly on Airline X (over Airline Y) to have the miles go to that account?

For example, paying $200 more for the ticket on Airline A to get 8,000 miles means the "extra" cost is $0.025 per mile. Paying $100 more to get 10,000 miles would be $0.01 per mile.

I should add here that this is a business trip and that I have the freedom not to book the least expensive flight, but the difference comes out of my pocket. So in that sense, it is only the difference in fares that matters, not the total fare.

Thanks!

The value is different for each person. The most important thing is the elite status. That's way more important in terms of travel experience. But a status is only useful WHEN you actually fly on that airline or airline of that alliance, during the next year. So, how much are you going to travel next year? Do you live in a hub of that airline or alliance and actually prefers this airline or alliance when you fly? All that matters, and it's subjective. $xxx/mile means little.

I have never heard of Airline X.

Not a good deal save the #200 if that is your choice.

personally jump around to all the carriers CCs

for the big bump for signing up use them for a few

months cancel do another have picked up over 10 free flights

that way like 500000 miles for my wife and myself.

Most recently AAdvantage Cards 80000 for us already booked

two Free RTs US to Milan

Use them or use them have had FF elite status means little

unless u travel a tonne have had them...got me first on the

plane maybe in a lounge or 2 that was it.

flyertalk.com has a tonne of stuff on this

also a good resource for you.

How much do you travel on Airline X? Particularly for business trips (or, any travel) ..... it can be valuable to maintain standing, even if it's lower tier.

I used to be Gold w/ AA --- didn't fly enough to keep that status for this year. By letting go of that, I no longer have priority status to board & thereby be assured of space for my carry-on luggage. Also, no longer able to book emergency row seating when buying an AA ticket ..... relegated to waiting 'til get to airport if want to get that row.

So, besides $$$ there may be other value in choosing to maintain your status with Airline X.

Maintaining status in a frequent flyer program is often difficult for the non-business flyer. My suggestion is that you evaluate your future plans, and make a list of just what important benefits accrue if you commit to a single airline or alliance and keep your frequent flyer status.

For example, in my program, frequent flyers are shielded from baggage charges, in fact I don't even know how much they charge for baggage, but if it is, say $50 a bag, and you have two bags, a round trip could cost you $200 in baggage fees, money you could save by having status in the frequent flyer program.

We also have priority in selecting some of the better seats in tourist, and the hope of an upgrade. We also board first, or nearly first, which helps getting a place in the overhead bins, which are now almost always oversubscribed.

We also earn a bonus on miles flown, for what that is worth. And when I am browsing my airline's web site planning future trips, I often get (if not signed in) a message that says options are better for members, and urges me to sign in.

So if you can find an airline that will serve your future needs, committing to that airline and maintaining status in their frequent flyer program may be advantageous.

I know some people advocate hopping around and signing up for various credit cards for a mileage bonus, but I also know that most credit card rebates are progressive, and that you earn more by using one credit card a lot than you would by using many credit cards a little. Also, while the mechanism for rating your credit worthiness is guarded better than the Pentagon's war plans, one factor appears to be how many credit cards you have cancelled: i.e., I think a lower credit score would be assigned to someone who had cancelled ten credit cards over the last five years than to someone who had not.

IMO <b>clevelandbrown's</b> comment about bag charges hits the nail on the head. Even low-level FF status with some (most?) airlines exempts you from checked bag fees, gives you access to controlled seating (exit rows, windows etc.) that others have to pay for.

So I'd add up the dollar value of those perks over a year's time, subtract that from the ticket cost differential, and see where you are. My hunch is that if you're a frequent-enough flyer to attain even the lowest level status (usually 25,000 elite-qualifying miles) then that implies several annual flights, x maybe $60 - $100 per segment... it adds up.

In addition to everything that's been mentioned above:

If you give all your business to a single airline and its partners (as best you can), then the FF miles build up more rapidly and that means you can redeem them for award tickets. Flying on several airlines means that the miles are not going to accumulate enough on any of them.

I would be happy to make a trip to earn status miles at the rate of 3 cents per status mile.

keep in mind that STATUS miles, also called Elite Qualifying Miles, are NOT the same as miles earned through credit cards, dining etc. TO maintain status you need EQM's not just miles accrual.

If I could keep low level status on an airline for $200 it is totally worth it. Bag fees, elite boarding etc.

Thanks, everyone, for the replies so far! Concerning some of the specific comments:

rkkwan/JBX/clevelabdbrown/Gardyloo - I don't fly but a few times a year, but I do prefer Airline X and I am likely to fly it multiple times next year. There is the possibility I might fly it and its alliance partners internationally as well next year, thus potentially having enough miles in 2012 to maintain status again. No guarantees, though. As far as the benefits of elite status go, no checked baggage fee is valuable to me, as I usually end up needing to check at least one bag.

DonTopaz - You don't travel enough! I purposely was vague to avoid introducing distracting talk on the merits of Airlines Y, Z, etc. versus Airline X.

qwovadis - I agree with clevelandbrown that switching credit cards really does not make much sense for me right now, although I have friends who have done exactly what you have and think it is wonderful. Thanks for the link to flyertalk, too - I had forgotten about them (obviously I am partial to Fodor's!).

clevelandbrown - Yes, I would earn a bonus on miles flown if I use Airline X, so for a trip of several thousand miles that is a decent bonus (and thus reduces the "cost" of the flight miles, although not the EQM miles).

Jeff_Costa_Rica - I have been loyal to Airline X for quite a few years now and have gotten several free trips out of it. I also have enough miles now for some free trips. I am a member of several FF programs, but I have only ever gotten a free trip out of any of the others two or three times total, I think, among all of them combined (over the last 20 years or so!). And NOT flying on Airline X for the trip in question probably would result in miles that would be "wasted" in the long run (although it's possible I would fly enough on the "other" airline often enough over the next few years to accumulate 25,000 miles).

mrwunrful - Thanks for the "price point" for FF miles.

mztery - Yes, I know EQM and credit card miles are different. That's why having these extra few thousand miles would be so helpful!

From what you've described, I think you should pay a little more to maintain the status.

Thanks, rkkwan. Sorry for all the detail, but it seems like the question is hard to answer otherwise.

You are right; it is not a simple question.

I minimize the miles earned because they are not valuable in my situation. When you buy a ticket with miles, you don't earn EQM for that flight, and we need all the EQM we can get to maintain our FF status. I try to use my miles to upgrade to the front cabin, but those opportunities are limited, at least on my airline.

You also tend to limit yourself to one airline to earn miles. My airline (Continental) merged with United to give, they said, more destinations; unfortunately, in the process they dropped coverage of Fairbanks, a place I really wanted to revisit. Darn.

If you visit Flyertalk, you will see the subject of mileage runs. Those people are so concerned with earning miles and upgrading their status that they seek out odd mispriced itineraries and post them. The idea is that you fly to podunk, and fly right back, and earn a lot of miles for little time and money. I don't think I would do that, but at the end of the year when you need a few miles to maintain status, you get desperate.

My own personal calculation is that I'd probably pay the $100 out of my own pocket, or even $150, without blinking. But $200 would make me pause - probably wouldn't do it.

If X=UA/CO then you would also earn the benefit of Economy Plus seating. Perhaps with airline X you would also get the benefit of free preferred seating.

Just figured I would update everyone on the story.

As it turned out, two things happened over the last 3 months - my itinerary changed a little, and prices on my preferred airline dropped. That means that my preferred airline was one among several with the lowest prices for the transatlantic portion of my trip, which was great.

For the intra-European flights, the best fares were with carriers in the other alliances (or by rail in one case), and the price differences were enough that booking with an airline in my preferred alliance was not worth the significantly higher cost (not to mention the routings would be awful for where I am going).

So mission mostly accomplished! Thanks again for the advice.