The pros and cons of earning Velocity Points (2024)

Velocity offers some unique family-friendly perks, though it has a reduced range of partners and rewards.

What we'll be covering

Velocity Frequent Flyer is the second-largest airline loyalty program in Australia, with more than 10 million members. However, with parent airline Virgin Australia falling into voluntary administration in April 2020, the program became somewhat crippled as members tried to offload points.

But the situation is markedly improved now. In 2021, Virgin Australia is back on track and Velocity is gradually ramping up its list of partners and ways to use points for rewards, helping to bolster confidence back into the program.

This guide, aimed at beginners, offers three benefits and two drawbacks of Velocity Frequent Flyer that you should be aware of, compared to other programs such asQantas Frequent FlyerandSingapore Airlines KrisFlyer.

The pros and cons of earning Velocity Points (2)

Want to see the other side of the coin? Read about the pros and cons of collecting Qantas Points as well.

Why should I collect Velocity Points?

1. Family Pooling makes it easier to collect points, supercharge your status

Family Pooling is a very rare feature in frequent flyer programs, and Velocity does it the best. It lets you share points and Status Credits to one lucky beneficiary (e.g. the main traveller in the household).

You can add one other adult and up to four children under 18 to your pool, provided you’re all eligible family members living under the same roof. When the family travels together, everyone’s points go to the beneficiary’s account.

The pros and cons of earning Velocity Points (3)

For example, say you’re travelling from Perth to Launceston return (via Melbourne) with your partner and two children, on an Economy Elevate fare which cost $499pp. You’re also the Family Pooling beneficiary.

With Family Pooling, instead of each passenger individually earning 2,495 Velocity Points and 90 Status Credits, you’ll pocket 9,980 Velocity Points and 360 Status Creditsenough for Silver status in one trip!

Read more about Velocity Family Pooling →

2. Reach your flight goals sooner with lower pricing of reward seats

Although Virgin Australia has a smaller fleet and fewer flights than pre-COVID times, domestic reward seat availability is generally very good across the board. All members, regardless of status, are able to see available seats when they are released. Best of all, those seats cost fewer points and have lower surcharges compared to similar ones offered by Qantas Frequent Flyer.

RouteProgramPoints required Taxes and surcharges (2021)
Perth-Melbourne in Business Class (return)Velocity71,000 ptsA$63
Qantas83,000 ptsA$76

This means that it’s quicker to earn enough points for a flight with Virgin Australia, and you’ll pay less in taxes. Over time, those small ‘savings’ will add up!

The pros and cons of earning Velocity Points (4)

3. Use your points to book flights for anyone — family and friends

This is probably something you wouldn’t think about initially. But most frequent flyer programs have restrictions on who you can use points for.

For example, Qantas restricts reward seats and upgrades to eligible family members only, while others like Singapore Airlines allow you to nominate a few people you can spoil, but you can’t change that list often.

With Velocity Points, you can book reward seats and upgrade flights for anyone. Family, friend, neighbour; it’s all allowed, as long as you aren’t ‘selling’ your points for flights (which is a big no-no in just about any loyalty program).

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What are the downsides to focusing on Velocity Points?

1. Fewer reward seat opportunities

When Virgin Australia was impacted by COVID-19 in 2020, Velocity Frequent Flyer shut down the ability to use points for international airlines. Although we’re obviously not flying overseas at present, this option still hasn’t returned, along with the popular ability to transfer points to Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer.

Even domestically, not all current routes are available for reward seats. At the time of writing, this includes Perth-Christmas Island and Cocos Keeling Island, which would have been a good use of points.

2. Velocity Frequent Flyer doesn’t have as many high-earning partners

While it’s relatively easy to earn Velocity Points in Australia from credit card spend, groceries via Coles/Flybuys, online shopping, wine and more, there simply aren’t as many other high-profile partners that you can earn points with, compared with Qantas.

This may impact your ability to earn Velocity Points slightly if the partners you normally interact with offer bonus Qantas Points instead.

See the latest Velocity Frequent Flyer partners →

Summing up

Velocity Frequent Flyer is still a solid program, with some unique features that make it stand out from the pack. It’s a user-friendly loyalty scheme with innovations such as Family Pooling.

In terms of points expiry, your balance is safe as long as you spend or earn points at least once every 24 months, which is very easy — that’s one of the best policies out there.

Unfortunately, COVID-19 has hampered things with Velocity, with many redemption options not available yet, as well as a reduced pool of partners to earn and use points with. But we’re hopeful this will get better over time.

What do you like and dislike about earning and using Velocity Points? Let us know in the comments section below.

The pros and cons of earning Velocity Points was last modified: April 19th, 2022 by Brandon Loo

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Comments

  1. Ross says:

    March 15, 2021 at 9:52 pm

    Ability to redeem for business is fabulous on Virgin. SO glad they’re back flying and I’m back earning Velocity points to spend on those flights 🙂

    Reply

  2. Audrey says:

    March 8, 2021 at 12:42 pm

    Best thing about Velocity is their customer service, the ability to redeem business class flights and the no. of seat availability. It’s almost impossible to find more than 2 seats in biz with Qantas on most international routes, but with Velocity, I found the the Singapore Airlines award availability is very generous.

  3. Ross says:

    November 5, 2018 at 11:27 am

    I am quite new to Virgin and I really like Velocity, because at least the staff are actually allowed to call me ‘Mister’

    And further along those lines, when I’m flying with Virgin, I enjoy not supporting Alan Joyce in his various political agendas…

    Reply

  4. sixtyeight says:

    October 30, 2018 at 12:59 pm

    A good article. I agree. I’m Velocity Gold and find it quite easy to maintain that each year thanks to FlyBuys and Family Pooling. If I flew with Qantas I don’t think I’d even make Silver. Also domestic reward flights are much easier to find. And the general consensus is that the Virgin Lounges are a bit better than Qantas Clubs (though admittedly not as good as the Qantas Business Lounges).

    Reply

  5. drsmithy says:

    October 30, 2018 at 12:47 pm

    I spent the better part of 10 years as a QANTAS Platinum and over the last few years have transitioned over to Velocity.
    * It’s MUCH easier to redeem points for flights and upgrades, especially as a low-status FF (though I will soon be Velocity Platinum, that’s unlikely to last more than the year). These days I spend most of my QFF points on things like gift cards because they are so hard to redeem on flights (and long gone are the glory days of earning status from points flights).
    * It’s much easier to attain status, and in particular maintain it (thanks to FlyBuys, AMEX Velocity and family pooling).

    On the downside:
    * It’s harder to collect points (nowhere near as many credit card signon bonuses and they tend to be less generous).
    * There’s no equivalent to QFF lifetime status (I am lifetime Silver, about halfway from there to lifetime Gold). But per above status being easier to maintain, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

    Reply

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The pros and cons of earning Velocity Points (2024)

FAQs

Is it worth getting Velocity Points? ›

The beauty of Velocity Frequent Flyer points lies in their flexibility. Whether you're dreaming of a luxurious business class flight, a relaxing hotel stay, or even a thrilling adventure experience, Velocity points can be redeemed for a wide range of travel rewards.

How much is 100000 Velocity Points worth? ›

Based on the rewards examples in this guide, a Velocity Point is typically worth between 0.52 cents and 8 cents. So 100,000 Velocity Points is worth around $520 and $8,000. If you have a different amount of Velocity Points, you can also get an estimate of the value using Finder's points to dollars calculator.

What are the advantages of Velocity? ›

Velocity is a speed of something in a given particular direction. So that's the difference between speed and velocity. Speed has just magnitude whereas velocity has a magnitude as well as a given direction. There are as such no advantages OR disadvantages for a technical term like velocity.

How many Velocity Points is $1? ›

Velocity members earn 5 Velocity Points per $1 spent on all eligible domestic fares3, Trans-Tasman5 and International Short Haul flights6.

How many Velocity Points to fly for free? ›

The number of Velocity points required for a free flight is based on the miles you'll fly. You can redeem your Velocity points for a free domestic flight in economy across Virgin Australia network starting at 6,200 Velocity points. Free international flights in economy start at 7,800 Velocity points.

Where will 75000 Velocity Points get you? ›

For 75,000 Velocity Points or fewer, you can fly any Virgin Australia partner airline to any destination that they serve (up to 15,000 miles of travel in a one-way journey). This includes Australia to Europe, the USA, Africa and more.

Do Velocity Points ever expire? ›

When do my Points expire? Your Points expire after 24 months of account inactivity. That means no earnings or redemptions for two whole years – not a single Point in or a single Point out.

How many Velocity Points to fly to Japan? ›

For instance, a one-way Business Class ticket from Sydney or Perth to Tokyo is just 45,000 Virgin Points. Make that same booking through Virgin Australia Velocity and it'd be 78,000 Velocity Points. Or through Singapore Airlines, it's 104,000 KrisFlyer miles.

How many Velocity Points do you need to fly Business Class? ›

You can also use Points to upgrade to Business Class, starting from 4,900 Points on shorter flights from Economy Flex. Longer routes, such as Sydney-Perth, need only 9,900 Points from Economy Flex or 30,000 Points from Economy Choice.

What are 3 facts about velocity? ›

Interesting Facts about Speed and Velocity

The speed of light can also be written as 186,282 miles per second. The speed of sound in dry air is 343.2 meters per second. The escape velocity of Earth is the speed needed to escape from Earth's gravitational pull. It is 25,000 miles per hour.

Why is velocity not a good measure? ›

However it's easy to endlessly refactor without making net progress, and unfortunately the exact same culture can do both. The problem with velocity isn't poor metrics, the problem with velocity is it's trying to measure a meaningless quantity. > "Velocity ignores direction".

What's a good use for velocity? ›

Understanding the team's velocity can help with continuous improvement, allowing teams to forecast for future sprints as well as planning and setting realistic goals. This metric helps teams develop a stable work rhythm, predict project timelines, and manage stakeholder expectations.

How many Velocity Points do I need to fly to Bali? ›

If a retreat in Bali is calling your name, you'll need 44,600 Points for a return Economy ticket, and if Queenstown beckons you'll want 35,600 Points to get you there and back.

Are Velocity Points worth it? ›

How much is a Velocity Point worth? As of October 2023, a Velocity Point is worth between 0.4 cents and 4 cents, depending on how you spend it. Here's what Velocity Points are worth for some popular reward choices: Economy reward flights: 1–2 cents per Velocity Point.

How to earn Velocity Points quickly? ›

Earn Velocity Points shopping online with the Velocity e-Store
  1. Shop via a retailer's own online store or app. ...
  2. Never miss a Point with Velocity Shop & Earn. ...
  3. Download and Shop via the Velocity app. ...
  4. Use a Velocity Points earning credit card and double dip.

What does 2000 Velocity Points get you? ›

You can redeem Velocity Points to book hotels, starting from a minimum of 2,000 points plus a cash payment.

Is buying Virgin points worth it? ›

Is it worth it to buy Virgin points? Before jumping into the specifics, it's worth mentioning that TPG doesn't recommend buying points speculatively. In other words, buying a large sum of points may not be a good idea if you have no immediate use for the purchased points.

What do 40,000 Velocity Points get? ›

With 40,000 points, you can book four one-way journeys at 10,000 points each.

What is the 60000 Velocity Points offer? ›

Take out a Velocity Flyer Card, spend $1,500 on your card each month in the first 2 months and you'll get 30,000 Velocity Points each month, for a total of up to 60,000 Points.

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