Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Program: Everything You Need to Know

While Singapore Airlines offers routes to just six U.S. airports (Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Newark and Houston), it’s also a member of Star Alliance, which means that you can book a flight to virtually any airport in the world through the Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer program. Some of the notable members of Star Alliance include Air Canada, Copa Airlines, Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines, United Airlines and others.

So, whether you’re interested in redeeming for award flights with one of the Star Alliance partners or you want to have a luxurious experience on Singapore Airlines itself, it’s worth getting to know the ins and outs of the KrisFlyer program.

The KrisFlyer program still utilizes a fixed award chart to price its redemptions, meaning that you can find sweet spots within this program on flights that offer exceptionally high value. Singapore KrisFlyer redemptions start at just 15,000 miles and $24 in taxes and fees, making it easy to find affordable redemptions within the program.

Singapore KrisFlyer is also partnered with every major transferable credit card points program, including American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou Rewards, which makes it easy to boost your KrisFlyer miles balance. Unfortunately, Singapore Airlines doesn’t currently offer any co-branded credit cards to U.S. consumers.

Let’s go over everything you need to know about the Singapore KrisFlyer program from elite status to how to earn miles and the best possible ways to redeem KrisFlyer miles. So, if you find yourself flying with Singapore Airlines or any other Star Alliance carrier, you’ll definitely want to familiarize yourself with this program.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Program Overview

The national airline of Singapore based at Changi Airport, Singapore Airlines has been around since 1947 and has consistently held a five-star rating from Skytrax since the 1990s. Singapore Airlines was also the first commercial carrier to put the Airbus A380 as well as the Boeing 787-10 into service.

This airline is known for operating some of the world’s longest flights, including a nonstop route from Newark (EWR) to Singapore (SIN) that takes more than 18 hours.

Luckily, if you’re flying some of these incredibly long routes, you have the option to do so in Singapore’s coveted “Suites” class, which can include a double bed, reclining chairs, a 32-inch HD touchscreen entertainment system and gourmet meals.

Singapore Suites are undoubtedly one of the most spacious and luxurious premium products in the entire airline industry. Although booking a ticket in Suites class is going to cost you a lot of cash, booking it with miles is considerably more affordable.

Although the vast majority of Singapore Airlines’ routes are operated within Asia, the airline also has several routes to Europe and Australia. In terms of flights to the Americas, Singapore Airlines operates flights to Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, New York, Newark and Vancouver, Canada.

However, Singapore Airlines also owns a smaller low-cost airline called Scoot that operates a route to Honolulu. It also owns a smaller regional airline called SilkAir that operates flights in Asia and Australia.

Through Singapore Airlines’s partner airlines, you can redeem KrisFlyer miles for flights to nearly every airport in the world.

First of all, Singapore Airlines is a member of Star Alliance, meaning that you can redeem KrisFlyer miles for award flights on any of the following Star Alliance partners:

On top of the aforementioned Star Alliance partners, Singapore Airlines also has several other codeshare partners, meaning you have even more options when redeeming your KrisFlyer miles.

Here are Singapore Airlines’s other airline partners:

As you can see, Singapore Airlines has quite a few codeshare partners that you can book flights with using KrisFlyer miles. So, even if you live in the United States and never travel to Singapore (or anywhere in Southeast Asia), Singapore KrisFlyer is still a program worth paying attention to.

Singapore KrisFlyer Elite Status

Singapore KrisFlyer has only two elite status tiers: Elite Silver and Elite Gold. These levels can be achieved by earning Elite miles, which you can rack up by flying on Singapore Airlines, Scoot, Star Alliance carriers, selected Star Alliance Connecting Partner airlines and selected other partner airlines.

The number of Elite miles that you earn for a flight is derived from the distance flown. However, certain fare classes earn more Elite miles per mile flown than others. The following table explains how many Elite miles you’ll earn in each fare class while flying with Singapore Airlines.

For instance, if you were to fly 1,000 miles in Singapore Airlines first class, you’d earn 2,000 Elite miles on that flight (1,000 miles flown x 200% = 2,000 Elite miles).

You’ll also earn 2.5 Elite miles for every KrisFlyer mile that you earn when you fly with Scoot.

In terms of how many Elite miles you’ll earn for flying with Singapore Airlines’ other partners, there’s very little information on the Singapore Airlines website. So, if you’re planning on flying with one of Singapore’s partner airlines, you’ll need to inquire with that airline as to whether it offers the option to earn Singapore Airlines Elite miles and how many Elite miles you’re eligible to earn on your flight.

To earn KrisFlyer Elite Silver status, you’ll need to earn at least 25,000 Elite miles within any consecutive 12-month period. Singapore KrisFlyer automatically keeps track of your Elite miles, and once you earn enough Elite miles to achieve Elite Silver or Elite Gold status, your status will be automatically upgraded the next day.

KrisFlyer Silver Elite status comes with the following benefits:

• 25% bonus miles earned on flights with Singapore Airlines and Scoot
• Automatic Star Alliance Silver status match (which includes priority reservations waitlist and priority airport standby)
• Complimentary Standard Seat selection when you fly in economy class on Singapore Airlines

Obviously, the most valuable benefits that come with KrisFlyer Elite Silver status are the 25% bonus miles and complimentary seat selection. However, the priority reservation waitlist and priority airport standby benefits could help you get on a flight in a pinch.

To earn KrisFlyer Elite Gold status, you need to earn 50,000 Elite miles within a consecutive 12-month period. Just like with Elite Silver status, when you earn enough Elite miles to achieve Elite Gold status, your status will be updated within the next day.

Here are the benefits that come with KrisFlyer Elite Gold Status:

• 25% bonus miles earned on flights with Singapore Airlines and Scoot
• Complimentary access to more than 1,000 airport lounges worldwide, even when you fly in premium economy or economy class with Singapore Airlines, Virgin Australia, Virgin Atlantic, Vistara, Star Alliance and Star Alliance Connecting Partner airlines (including United Club lounges)
  • You can bring a guest into any of these lounges free of charge with the exception of Virgin Atlantic Clubhouses.
• Automatic Star Alliance Gold status match (which includes priority airport check-in, extra baggage allowance, Gold Track priority security and immigration, priority boarding, priority baggage handling, priority reservations waitlist, priority airport standby and complimentary upgrades to Business First Class on Heathrow Express)
• Automatic Shangri-La Golden Circle Gold status match (as well as accelerated upgrade to Golden Circle Jade status when you stay just one night at any Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Kerry Hotel, Traders Hotel or Hotel Jen worldwide)

The most valuable benefit that comes with KrisFlyer Elite Gold is definitely the complimentary access at more than 1,000 lounges worldwide. Since United Airlines is a member of Star Alliance, Elite Gold status will get you complimentary access to United Club lounges, which are located in many airports across the United States.

PPS Club

In addition to KrisFlyer elite status, Singapore Airlines has another parallel status program that can provide you with even more benefits if you qualify: PPS Club. While KrisFlyer elite status depends on the number of miles flown with no minimum spending requirement, PPS Club membership is earned by spending money on premium cabins (including Suites, first class and business class).

There are two PPS statuses: PPS Club and Solitaire PPS Club. To earn these statuses, you’ll need to accumulate a certain number of PPS points. You earn 1 PPS point for every Singapore dollar you spend on flights in Suites, first class or business class. This applies to your total airfare and any applicable surcharges, but not to airport taxes.

Once again, your PPS Value will be calculated in Singapore dollars, so if you’re purchasing your ticket in U.S. dollars, you’ll need to make the conversion to figure out how many PPS points you earned for a flight.

PPS points are not earned on any portion of the airfare, and no PPS points will be awarded for booking in premium economy or economy class.

The following chart breaks down the requirements to earn PPS Club and Solitaire PPS Club and the benefits that you’ll receive at each status tier:

It’s worth noting that any PPS Club points that you earn in excess of 25,000 as a PPS Club member are known as Reserve Value and will roll over to the next year. For instance, if you were to earn 32,000 PPS Club points in a year, you would achieve PPS Club status and then have 7,000 PPS Club points in your Reserve Value balance (32,000 – 25,000 = 7,000).

The next year, those 7,000 PPS Club points in Reserve Value will be automatically applied to your membership renewal, meaning you’d have to earn 18,000 PPS Club points in that year to retain your PPS Club status (18,000 + 7,000 = 25,000). In fact, your Reserve Value can be used for up to 36 months after you earn it.

At any time, you can log in to your KrisFlyer account and track your Reserve Value balance. You can also see your Reserve Value on the monthly e-statements sent to the email address connected with your KrisFlyer account.

So, if you’re someone who tends to spend a lot of money annually on premium airfare with Singapore Airlines, you’ll definitely want to pay attention to the PPS Club program as it can provide many valuable benefits in addition to those provided by KrisFlyer Silver or Gold Elite status.

How to Earn Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Miles

There are many ways to earn KrisFlyer miles, both in the air and on the ground. First of all, you can earn miles for taking flights with Singapore Airlines as well as with partners. In fact, Singapore Airlines provides an easy-to-understand chart on its website that explains how many miles you’ll earn for flights on Singapore AIrlines or any one of their partners.

In addition to earning miles on flights, you can rack up KrisFlyer miles through booking hotels, renting cars, transferring points from other programs, shopping online or in person, and many other ways.

Unfortunately, at the moment, no Singapore Airlines co-branded credit cards are available to the U.S.-based consumers. Singapore Airlines does offer four co-branded credit cards issued by American Express. However, these cards are available in Singapore only. Several other co-branded cards are also available in Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines.

Flying with Singapore Airlines and Scoot

If you’re a member of the KrisFlyer program and you fly on Singapore Airlines or Scoot, you’ll earn flights on every flight you take. However, the number of miles that you earn on each flight is based upon your fare class and the distance of your flight.

In general, flying on Singapore Airlines will earn you far more miles than flying on Scoot (because Scoot is Singapore’s low-cost subsidiary).

Below are the earnings rates for each fare class on Singapore Airlines.

So, for instance, if you were to take a 1,000-mile flight in first class on Singapore Airlines, you’d earn 2,000 KrisFlyer miles. However, if you were to take the same flight in economy class (fare code Q), then you’d earn only 500 KrisFlyer miles.

Likewise, you can also find out how many KrisFlyer miles you’d earn on any flight with Singapore Airlines by using the Miles Calculator tool on their website. You simply need to enter your origin, destination and whether you’re flying round trip or one way, and the Miles Calculator tool will tell you how many miles you’d earn in each fare class.

When flying on Scoot, Singapore Airlines’ wholly owned low-cost subsidiary, you’ll earn significantly fewer KrisFlyer miles per mile flown. This table breaks down how many miles you’ll earn in each fare class on Scoot.

So, if you were to fly 1,000 miles in business class (fare code X) on Scoot, you’d earn 250 miles for that flight. However, if you were to take the same flight in economy class (fare code X), you’d earn just 100 miles. So, if you plan on flying with Scoot, don’t expect to rack up many KrisFlyer miles.

Flying with Partner Airlines

On top of earning KrisFlyer miles with Singapore Airlines and Scoot, you also can earn miles for taking flights with partner airlines. To do so, you’ll need to select KrisFlyer miles as your rewards currency of choice when booking your flight.

If you choose KrisFlyer miles, you’ll forfeit the opportunity to earn that airline’s native currency. So, before you complete your booking, it’s important to assess which currency is going to be more beneficial to you.

Each one of Singapore Airlines partners has its own unique earnings chart. So, if you want to find out how many miles you could earn on a particular flight with a partner airline, you’ll need to check this chart from the Singapore Airlines website.

From there, you can simply find the partner that you’re flying with, find your fare class and multiply the corresponding mileage accrual percentage by the distance of your flight. If you’re unsure what the distance of your flight is, you can find it using the Great Circle Mapper tool.

For example, let’s say that you’re taking a flight from Newark (EWR) to Munich (MUC) on Austrian Airlines in business class (fare code C). To calculate how many KrisFlyer miles you could earn, first, you need to find out the distance of this flight. Using the Great Circle Mapper, we can see that the distance is 4,052 miles.

Then, refer to the mileage accrual chart from the Singapore Airlines website and find Austrian Airlines.

As you can see, business-class flights on Austrian Airlines (fare code C) earn 150% redeemable miles. So, you can find out how many KrisFlyer miles you’d earn by multiplying 4,052 miles (the distance of the flight) by 150%, which would come out to 6,078 KrisFlyer miles. This same methodology applies to all partner airlines.

Transfer Partners

One of the best ways to boost your KrisFlyer miles balance is by transferring points from credit card rewards programs. Singapore KrisFlyer is a transfer partner of every major transferable points program, including:

• American Express Membership Rewards
• Brex
• Capital One Rewards
• Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Citi ThankYou Rewards
• Marriott Bonvoy

Each of the aforementioned transfer partners offers a 1:1 transfer ratio, with the exception of Marriott Bonvoy (which offers a 3:1 transfer ratio). So, it’s probably better to spend your Bonvoy points in their native program than transfer them to Singapore KrisFlyer.

It’s also worth noting that Singapore KrisFlyer is not a partner of the Bilt Rewards program (which allows members to earn points for paying rent).

However, Singapore Airlines is partnered with a number of other major foreign and domestic banks such as Bank of China Limited, Bank of Melbourne, Bank SA, BCA, BNI, BPI, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, EastWest Bank, Federal Bank, HSBC, ICBC and others.

So, if you’re currently a client of any of these banks, you should be able to transfer your bank points to Singapore KrisFlyer.

Car Rentals and Ride-Hailing

Singapore KrisFlyer is partnered with several car rental and ride-hailing companies that allow you to earn KrisFlyer miles for using their services. However, with most of these companies, you won’t be able to earn both KrisFlyer miles and the company’s native rewards currency. You’ll be able to earn one or the other.

The following table breaks down all of Singapore Airlines’s ground transportation partners and their earnings rates.

Grab is a Singaporean ride-hailing company that operates in Singapore and several other countries in Southeast Asia. ZUZUZCHE.com is a car rental company that operates primarily in China. So, if you’re a U.S.-based traveler, these two programs won’t be of much use to you.

However, if you rent cars from one of the aforementioned companies often and Singapore KrisFlyer is your rewards program of choice, renting cars can be a great way to boost your KrisFlyer miles balance.

Hotel Stays

The KrisFlyer program also gives you the option to earn miles by booking stays with one of their hotel partners. Again, if you elect to earn KrisFlyer miles for your stays, you will most likely forfeit the ability to earn that hotel’s rewards currency. So, you want to weigh which rewards currency is going to be more beneficial to you before you complete your booking.

If you decide that you want to earn KrisFlyer miles for your stay, you simply can choose Singapore KrisFlyer as your preferred rewards program when making your hotel booking.

Below is a list of the hotel partners at which you can earn KrisFlyer miles:

Most of the aforementioned hotels allow you to earn KrisFlyer miles directly for stays. However, some of these programs allow you only to convert their own rewards currencies to KrisFlyer miles (typically at an unfavorable rate). Still, if you have an upcoming stay, it’s worth checking Singapore Airlines’ list of hotel partners to see if you could earn some extra KrisFlyer miles for your stay.

Buying Merchandise

Like many other frequent-flyer programs, Singapore KrisFlyer has its own online shopping portal called KrisShop that allows you to rack up KrisFlyer miles for purchasing merchandise online from a wide variety of different merchants (including Apple, Disney, Polo Ralph Lauren, Samsung, Sony, Swarovski and more).

To do so, you’ll need to sign up for a KrisShopper account through the KrisShop website and link that account to your KrisFlyer account. Then, you’ll earn between 2 and 4 miles per Singapore dollar spent through KrisShop.

Unfortunately, prices for merchandise on KrisShop are often higher than their regular retail prices. For instance, you can currently buy third-generation Apple Airpods with Magsafe Charging Case for $194.57 through KrisShop.

However, if you were to purchase the same item directly from Apple, it would cost you $179.

Thus, it’s probably better to avoid making your purchases through KrisShop. Although you’ll earn some KrisFlyer miles for buying through this portal, that doesn’t offset the increase in price over retail.

Singapore KrisFlyer also partners with several other retailers that allow you to earn KrisFlyer miles for making purchases both online and in person. Here are some of Singapore Airlines’s retail partners:

In general, buying merchandise isn’t the best way to boost your KrisFlyer miles balance, but if you’re going to make a purchase from one of the previously listed retailers anyway, you may as well link your KrisFlyer account and earn a few extra miles while you’re at it.

Other Partners

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer has several other partnerships that allow you to earn KrisFlyer miles, including magazines and other publications, social media platforms, gas stations, tax refunds, travel agencies and more.

For instance, you can earn up to 2,500 KrisFlyer miles when you subscribe to Forbes Asia magazine. You can also earn 1.5 KrisFlyer miles per dollar spent on tours, activities and ground transfers through Viator. Or you earn 1.5 KrisFlyer miles for every dollar spent on visa and passport services through VisaCentral.

How to Redeem Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Miles

There are many ways to redeem KrisFlyer miles from buying merchandise to booking hotel stays to renting cars. However, if you want to get the most value out of your miles, you’ll probably want to stick to booking award flights on Singapore Airlines, Scoot or one of the airline partners.

Nevertheless, we’re still going to cover all of the ways that you can redeem your KrisFlyer miles and which ways offer the most value per mile.

Award Flights with Singapore Airlines

In the past, the only way to book long-haul business-class and first-class award flights on Singapore Airlines was through the KrisFlyer program. However, recently, the carrier has made these flights available through partner programs, such as Air Canada Aeroplan.

Nevertheless, booking award flights on Singapore Airlines is still one of the best ways to use your KrisFlyer miles. Singapore Airlines offers two redemption tiers: Saver and Advantage. Saver awards are usually harder to find but are cheaper and allow one complimentary stopover per round-trip flight. Advantage awards are generally easier to find but are more expensive and offer one complimentary stopover on one-way flights and two complimentary stopovers on round-trip flights.

Singapore Airlines still uses a zone-based award chart to price its own award flights, which means that it’s still possible to find outsized-value redemptions for certain routes. For instance, one-way Saver economy awards between the U.S. (East Coast and Houston) and Europe cost just 25,000 miles. Also, one-way Saver economy awards within Europe cost just 11,000 miles.

For instance, Singapore Airlines operates a fifth-freedom route from Houston (IAH) to Manchester (MAN) that you can book as a Saver economy award for just 25,000 miles one way.

If you were to book the same flight with cash, it would cost you $376. That means that you’d be getting a value of slightly over 1.5 cents per mile if you booked this Saver award with KrisFlyer miles.

Singapore Airlines is also known for having an exceptional business-class product, and the KrisFlyer program is one of the best ways to book Singapore Airlines business-class awards between the United States and Singapore.

Saver business-class awards between the U.S. West Coast and Canada and Singapore cost 107,000 miles, and Saver business-class awards between the U.S. East Coast and Houston and Singapore cost 111,500 miles.

Here’s a one-way Saver business-class award flight between San Francisco (SFO) and Singapore (SIN) for 107,000 miles.

If you were to book the exact same flight with cash, it would cost you $7,136. That means that you’d be getting over 6.6 cents per point in value for this redemption. That’s a fantastic deal.

So, if you want to fly from the United States to Singapore (or most other Southeast Asian countries) in Singapore business class, booking a Saver award flight through the KrisFlyer program is a good way to do so affordably.

It’s also definitely worth taking advantage of the complimentary stopovers on Singapore award tickets if you have some flexibility in your travel itinerary. As previously mentioned, Saver awards are allowed one stopover on round-trip itineraries, and Advantage awards are allowed one stopover on one-way itineraries and two stopovers on round-trip itineraries.

For instance, you could book a round-trip award flight from Houston to Singapore with a stopover in Manchester on the way there and a stopover in Frankfurt on the way back, which would cost the exact same number of miles as if you were to go straight from Houston to Singapore and back. These complimentary stopovers are a fantastic way to see more places for no additional miles.

You can find the price of any award flight or upgrade award on Singapore Airlines using the Miles Calculator tool on the Singapore Airlines website.

Award Flights with Partners

Aside from booking award flights on Singapore Airlines, you also have the option to book award flights on any partner airline using KrisFlyer miles. To search for partner awards through Singapore KrisFlyer, select the “Redeem flights” option when searching for your flight.

After you hit the “Search” button and you’re presented with a list of flights that match your search query, filter for flights from Star Alliance or from other partner airlines.

Singapore Airlines has a region-based Star Alliance award chart that applies to all award flights on Star Alliance partners. You’ll find published award charts for Alaska Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Australia, Vistara and Juneyao Airlines on the Singapore Airlines website.

However, there are no published award charts for several of Singapore Airlines’ non-Star Alliance partners, including Air France, JetBlue and others. If you want to know award prices for these partner airlines, you’ll need to manually search for them.

In particular, it’s worth paying attention to Singapore Airlines’ award chart for Alaska Airlines if you’re a U.S.-based traveler. You could use KrisFlyer miles to book a one-way award flight from the U.S. West Coast (California, Oregon and Washington) to Hawaii for just 12,000 miles.

This is definitely one of the cheapest ways to get from mainland U.S. to Hawaii with airline miles. You can also fly between many of the other western states in the U.S. and Canada on Alaska Airlines for just 11,500 miles.

Booking United award flights through Singapore KrisFlyer is also another solid option for U.S.-based travelers. Since all round-trip flights within North America on Star Alliance partners cost 28,000 miles in economy class or 52,000 miles in business class, you could fly round trip from Newark to San Francisco in United Polaris business class for just 52,000 KrisFlyer miles.

Other Redemption Options

As previously mentioned, the best way to maximize the value of your KrisFlyer miles is to redeem them for award flights on Singapore Airlines or one of its airline partners. However, if for some reason you’d prefer not to redeem your KrisFlyer miles for flights, here are some of the other ways that you can spend your miles.

Booking Hotels and Car Rentals

Like many other frequent-flyer programs, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer has its own portal called KrisFlyer vRooms, through which you can book hotels and car rentals with miles. To do so, visit krisflyervrooms.com and sign in with your KrisFlyer account credentials. Then, search for hotels or car rentals and input your desired dates and location.

For both hotel stays and car rentals, you have the option either to pay entirely with KrisFlyer miles or with a combination of cash and miles. Unfortunately, regardless of your payment method, booking hotel rooms and car rentals through KrisFlyer vRooms is typically not the best way to maximize the value of your miles.

There’s also no set miles-to-cash conversion rate on KrisFlyer vRooms, meaning each redemption will yield a different value-per-mile.

Travel Experiences

Singapore Airlines has its own experience booking portal called KrisFlyer Experiences that allows you to redeem miles for fancy brunches, tickets to races, concerts and many other experiences. This is a pretty unique and interesting way to redeem KrisFlyer miles, but it typically doesn’t offer good value per point.

For instance, members could redeem 34,000 miles for a “Taste of Nobu Weekend Brunch.” Assuming that KrisFlyer miles are worth a minimum of 1 cent apiece, that means you’d essentially be paying $340 for this experience, which is a lot of money for a brunch regardless of how great the food is.

Singapore Airlines also has a partnership with Pelago.co that allows you to redeem your KrisFlyer miles for travel experiences. Every 150 KrisFlyer miles you spend through Pelago.co is equal to 1 Singapore dollar (subject to a minimum of 1,050 KrisFlyer miles per transaction). This means that you’ll be getting just about 0.5 cent per mile at the current conversion rate when redeeming this way, which is poor compared to other redemption methods.

Still, there are many great experiences to book on Pelago.co from pottery workshops to ferry tours to fine dining. You’re probably better off booking these experiences with cash instead of KrisFlyer miles.

Online Shopping

On top of being able to earn KrisFlyer miles through KrisShop , you can redeem your miles for merchandise as well. Every 125 KrisFlyer miles that you spend through KrisShop is equal to 1 Singapore dollar. That means that you’ll get a value of about 0.6 cent per point when redeeming this way, which is poor.

If you have a large balance of KrisFlyer miles and don’t plan on traveling in the future, then redeeming your miles for merchandise might be worth considering. Otherwise, redeeming your miles through KrisShop is usually not the best option.

Convert Your Miles

KrisFlyer miles can be converted to several other rewards currencies at varying transfer ratios. The following chart details all of the programs to which you can transfer Singapore KrisFlyer miles and their transfer ratios:

In most cases, converting KrisFlyer miles into another rewards currency isn’t a good idea as it will instantly erode the value of your miles.

Donate Your Miles

Singapore Airlines gives you the option to donate your miles either to Make-A-Wish Singapore or The SIA Group Carbon Offset Programme. It’s unclear what the exact value of your miles will be when redeemed this way, but if you want to use your miles to contribute to a good cause, this is a great way to do so.

The Bottom Line

While Singapore Airlines operates the majority of its routes in Southeast Asia, the KrisFlyer program is still worth paying attention to for U.S. travelers.

First of all, this program still uses region-based award charts to price its own award flights as well as partner awards, which makes it much easier to find sweet spots in the KrisFlyer program than in other frequent-flyer programs that have made the shift over to dynamic pricing models.

For instance, redeeming miles for business class flights from the U.S. to Singapore or any other Southeast Asian country on Singapore Airlines is a great way to get a lot of value out of your points. Likewise, you can find excellent value on redemptions from mainland U.S. to Hawaii on Alaska Airlines. Singapore KrisFlyer is also one of the best programs for booking Star Alliance awards.

On top of that, Singapore Airlines allows you to add one complimentary stopover on round-trip Saver awards, one stopover on one-way Advantage awards or two stopovers on round-trip Advantage awards. That means you can visit another city (or two) for no additional miles when you book an award flight on Singapore Airlines metal.

Unfortunately, Singapore Airlines isn’t currently offering any co-branded credit cards to U.S. consumers. However, since Singapore KrisFlyer is a partner of every major transferable credit card rewards program (including American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou Rewards), you can always transfer your points from one of these programs to KrisFlyer.