Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Guide for Beginners

Start here: what is an award flight?

An award flight is a seat you book with KrisFlyer miles instead of paying the full cash fare. You will still pay the airport taxes, charges and fees shown at checkout.

KrisFlyer is Singapore Airlines’ free loyalty programme. For this beginner guide, we focus only on redeeming flights operated by Singapore Airlines.

Choose the trip before collecting miles

Begin with a destination, a rough travel period and the number of travellers. Then check both the miles needed and the available award seats.

This matters most for popular routes and busy periods such as the Singapore school holidays. If your dates are fixed, search as early as you can and be ready to try nearby dates, another flight time or a different destination.

Know the three choices you may see

When you search, compare the miles and cash needed for the same flight. The lowest mileage option is usually the place to start.

How to book your first award flight

Use singaporeair.com or the SingaporeAir app. You can search before transferring any bank points.

1. Sign in to your free KrisFlyer account.
2. Enter your route and dates, select “Redeem flights”, then search.
3. Compare Saver, Advantage and Access options, including the taxes and fees.
4. Check the same trip’s cash fare. Make sure using miles feels worthwhile to you.
5. Only if you need more miles, transfer the required bank points and book as soon as they arrive.

Where your miles can come from

For many Singapore-based beginners, most miles come from credit-card spending rather than flying. Your card usually earns the bank’s reward points first. You later instruct the bank to convert those points into KrisFlyer miles.

You can also earn from eligible Singapore Airlines flights and selected partners such as Kris+. Each bank has its own conversion rate, minimum transfer amount, fee and processing time, so check these before you move any points.

Is the redemption good value?

Use a simple check: subtract the award’s taxes and fees from a comparable cash fare, then divide by the miles required. A S$1,200 fare with S$80 of award taxes using 60,000 miles gives about 1.87 cents per mile.

Business Class can produce stronger value because its cash fare often rises faster than its mileage price. But choose the cabin you actually want and compare against a fare you would realistically pay. A high theoretical value is not a saving if you would never buy that ticket.

Options such as paying partly with miles or spending miles outside flight awards may be convenient, but often give a lower return. Compare them with a full award booking before confirming.

Your miles have a fixed expiry

For KrisFlyer Basic, Elite Silver and Elite Gold members, miles normally expire three years after the month in which they were earned. Ordinary earning or spending does not restart that clock. Check the expiry dates shown in your KrisFlyer account.

Bank points receive their KrisFlyer credit date when the transfer arrives, but moving them early also starts their KrisFlyer lifespan. This is another reason to transfer with a trip in mind.

Five beginner mistakes to avoid

• Assuming every empty seat can be booked with miles. Award inventory is separate from normal cash-seat availability.
• Transferring bank points before finding a likely award. Transfers are usually irreversible and the seat may not remain available.
• Looking only at the mileage number. Always include taxes, fees and the comparable cash fare.
• Searching only one date. A day earlier, a day later or another flight time may have Saver space.
• Forgetting expiry. KrisFlyer miles do not stay valid merely because your account remains active.