Running a business means constantly juggling expenses—whether it’s flights for client meetings or covering everyday fuel costs for your team. But what if every dollar spent could go a little further? That’s where Virgin Australia Business Flyer steps in. It’s more than just a loyalty program—it’s a way to transform those necessary business expenses into something far more rewarding, like flights, upgrades, and travel perks that can help your business save and thrive.
Whether you’re jetting between Sydney and Melbourne weekly or managing a small team with occasional travel needs, the Virgin Australia Business Flyer program offers a tailored solution. Best of all? You can start earning points with your existing spending habits. No need to change much—just be a little savvier with where and how you book. Here’s how to make this program work for you and boost those Velocity Points.
What is Virgin Australia Business Flyer?
Virgin Australia Business Flyer is a free-to-join loyalty program designed to help Australian businesses earn Velocity Points on Virgin Australia flights and purchases from program partners. Points can be redeemed for flights, upgrades, or transferred to employees for personal use. Whether you fly regularly or only occasionally, the program helps you accumulate points and rewards that match your business needs.
How Virgin Australia Business Flyer Works
- Sign Up for Free – Register your ABN for free, and your business can start earning Velocity Points immediately, no matter the size of your company.
- Earn Points on Virgin Australia Flights – Until April 2025, you earn 5 points per dollar spent on Virgin Australia flights (changing to 4 points per dollar thereafter). Small businesses can leverage their travel spending while larger businesses with frequent flights can accumulate points quickly. Additionally, using a Velocity Points-earning credit card ensures you’ll continue to receive 5 points per dollar if you’ve earned points on the card in the past 12 months.
- Earn Points with Business Partners – Align your regular business purchases with Velocity partners. Earn 2 points per litre at BP or Shell and 3 points per dollar spent with Avis for car hire. This is a valuable strategy for smaller businesses that may not fly often but still want to earn significant points through day-to-day expenses.
- Redeem Points for Flights, Upgrades, and More – From using points for business class upgrades to redeeming long-haul international flights, the program offers flexibility. You can redeem 113,000 points for a business class flight to Los Angeles with United Airlines (excluding carrier charges), offering premium travel experiences for less.
Virgin Australia Business Flyer vs. Qantas Business Rewards: Crunching the numbers
When comparing Virgin Australia Business Flyer to Qantas Business Rewards, it’s essential to evaluate which program aligns best with your business’s needs.
Both programs offer unique benefits and rewards structures that cater to different types of spending and travel patterns.
Here’s how they stack up across key categories:
Eligibility and Costs
- Virgin Australia Business Flyer: Free to join with an ABN.
- Qantas Business Rewards: Requires an ABN and a one-time joining fee of $89.50 (although this fee is almost always waived during promotions).
Points Earned
- Virgin Australia Business Flyer: Earn 5 points per dollar spent on Virgin Australia flights until April 2025 (changing to 4 points per dollar after this). Earn 2 points per litre at BP and Shell, and 3 points per dollar on Avis car hire.
- Qantas Business Rewards: Earn up to 10 points per dollar with select partners (though the exact earn rate depends on the partner). For example, businesses earn 1 point per litre at BP and 3 points per dollar with Avis, mirroring Virgin Australia’s earn rates for these categories.
Flight Discounts
- Virgin Australia Business Flyer: Offers flight discounts of up to 6% off Virgin Australia flights depending on your tier status.
- Qantas Business Rewards: Provides up to 10% off Qantas flights, making it more competitive for businesses that focus heavily on flight savings.
Partner Comparison
If your business frequently makes purchases from certain sectors like fuel or car hire, aligning your spend with the right partners can help boost your point accumulation.
Below is a comparison between the Virgin Australia Business Flyer and Qantas Business Rewards programs in key categories:
| Category | Virgin Australia Business Flyer | Qantas Business Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel | 2 Points per litre at BP and Shell | 1 Point per litre at BP |
| Car Hire | 3 Points per $1 spent with Avis | 3 Points per $1 spent with Avis |
| Accommodation | 3 Points per $1 spent with partner hotels | 3 Points per $1 spent with partner hotels |
| Office Supplies | Not available | Earn Qantas Points with Officeworks |
| Insurance | Not available | Earn Qantas Points with BizCover |
While both programs offer similar opportunities for earning points on car hire and accommodation, Virgin Australia Business Flyer offers slightly better options for fuel rewards.
Qantas Business Rewards, however, offers additional earning potential with partners like Officeworks and BizCover for insurance, offering broader partner categories.
Membership Tiers comparison: Virgin Australia Business Flyer vs. Qantas Business Rewards
Both programs offer tiered membership structures that reward businesses as their spend increases:
| Tier | Virgin Australia Business Flyer | Qantas Business Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Earn 5 Velocity Points per dollar spent on Virgin Australia flights and up to 2% flight discounts | Save up to 6% on Qantas flights, earn 20 points per 100 Qantas Points earned by employees |
| Tier 2 | Earn higher Velocity Points and up to 4% flight discounts | Save up to 9% on Qantas flights, earn 30 points per 100 Qantas Points earned by employees |
| Tier 3 | Earn maximum Velocity Points and up to 6% flight discounts, plus Pilot Gold memberships and lounge access | Save up to 10% on Qantas flights, earn 40 points per 100 Qantas Points earned by employees, plus fast-track to Qantas Gold status for one traveller |
Redemptions and Value
When it comes to redeeming points, both programs offer high-value redemptions for business travel, but the earning structures and benefits differ slightly.
Here’s a cost vs value breakdown based on current ballpark flight redemption rates across both programs:
| One Way Redemption Option | Virgin Australia Business Flyer (Velocity Points) | Qantas Business Rewards (Qantas Points) |
|---|---|---|
| Economy Class Domestic Flight (Sydney to Melbourne) | From 5,900 Points | 8,000 Points |
| Business Class Upgrade (Sydney to Melbourne) | 15,500 Points | 27,000 Points |
| Business Class Long-Haul Flight (Sydney to LA | 113,000 Points (on United) | 108,400 Points (on Qantas) |
It’s important to note that taxes and carrier charges apply to all flight redemptions. Depending on the airline, these can often be quite high.
Virgin Australia’s Business Flyer offers a lower starting points threshold for selected flight redemptions when compared to Qantas Business Rewards, which can make it more attractive for businesses looking to maximise value per point. That said, Velocity has recently announced a raft of program changes, including increases to redemption costs. These are due to kick in from early 2025.
Conclusion: Which airline loyalty program is right for your business?
Virgin Australia Business Flyer and Qantas Business Rewards both offer strong loyalty programs that cater to Australian businesses, but which one suits your needs depends on your business’s travel patterns and partner preferences.
- Choose Virgin Australia Business Flyer if you value lower point thresholds for redemptions, especially for domestic flights and long-haul business class redemptions with partner airlines like United, Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways, which offers only limited award space to Qantas. It could also be worth considering if you want to maximise fuel rewards and access up to 6% discounts on Virgin Australia flights.
- Choose Qantas Business Rewards if your business values flight discounts on Qantas metal (up to 10%), and if you have diverse spending needs across categories like office supplies and insurance. The broader range of partners could provide more points-earning opportunities depending on your industry.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, corporate travel accounts for over 20% of operational costs for businesses in sectors such as finance and construction. With corporate travel projected to grow in 2024 (Global Business Travel Association), now is the perfect time to optimise your business’s travel spend and start turning expenses into valuable rewards.
References:
- Australian Bureau of Statistics
- Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2023). Corporate Travel Data. Retrieved from https://www.abs.gov.au
- Global Business Travel Association
Global Business Travel Association. (2023). Global Business Travel Outlook Report. Retrieved from https://www.gbta.org
