How to Get Cheap First Class Tickets With Points and Miles in 2026

By Joseph Hellman-Benjamin, Founder and CEO of The Points King. Last updated: October 12, 2026. Editorial Policy

How do you get cheap first class tickets? Pay with miles instead of cash, usually by booking through a partner airline’s program with points transferred from a credit card. In October 2026, ANA first class from the West Coast to Tokyo costs 72,500 Virgin Atlantic points one way, Japan Airlines first class on a nonstop is 80,000 American miles, and Qatar’s Qsuites business class to Doha is about 70,000 Avios. The cash price of a long-haul first class seat can run past $12,000. The hard part is not the miles; it is finding a seat, so search for availability before you move a single point.

I am Joseph Hellman-Benjamin, and I have run The Points King since 2017. We buy miles and points, and we also book premium-cabin award tickets for customers, so I have a stake in this subject. There are no affiliate links on this site, and the prices below come from airline charts and the outlets named next to them.

Contents hide
1 First and Business Class With Miles: 2026 Prices
2 What Changed in 2025 and 2026
3 Business vs. First: Where the Value Is
4 How to Book It, Step by Step
5 Is It Worth the Miles?
6 Earning Enough Points
7 If You Want Help Booking
8 Frequently Asked Questions
8.1 What is the cheapest way to fly first class?
8.2 Can you use credit card points for first class?
8.3 Is business class easier to book with miles than first class?
8.4 Can you still book Lufthansa First with miles?
8.5 Do award tickets have fees?
9 Sources

First and Business Class With Miles: 2026 Prices

Program Airline and route Cabin Miles, one way Bank points that transfer
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club ANA, US West Coast to Tokyo First 72,500 (85,000 from the Central and East US) Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One, Bilt
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club ANA, US West Coast to Tokyo Business 52,500 (60,000 from the Central and East US) Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One, Bilt
American AAdvantage Japan Airlines, US to Tokyo nonstop First 80,000 Citi; Marriott at 3:1
Qatar Privilege Club or British Airways Qatar Qsuites, US to Doha Business From about 70,000 Qatar: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Citi. BA: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
Turkish Miles&Smiles Turkish, US to Istanbul Business 65,000 at the saver level Bilt, Capital One, Citi
Air Canada Aeroplan Star Alliance partners, East Coast to Europe Business 60,000 (75,000 from farther west) Amex, Chase, Capital One, Bilt
Air France-KLM Flying Blue Air France or KLM, US to Europe Business From about 60,000; 45,000 in the July 2026 promotion Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One, Bilt
United MileagePlus United Polaris, US to Europe Business 80,000 saver; 72,000 for United cardholders Chase, Bilt
Emirates Skywards Emirates, New York to Dubai First 188,000, plus about $835 in surcharges Bilt 1:1; Amex and Citi at 5:4; Capital One at 4:3. Chase no longer transfers to Emirates

Sources: ANA via Virgin from Upgraded Points and One Mile at a Time; JAL via American from View from the Wing; Qatar from Frequent Miler; Turkish from Frequent Miler; Aeroplan from Prince of Travel; Flying Blue from Frequent Miler; United from One Mile at a Time; Emirates from Upgraded Points. Most transfers are 1:1. Taxes and fuel surcharges are extra and vary by airline: ANA and Emirates pass on surcharges, Turkish adds about $220 to $260 each way to Istanbul.

Premium cabins with miles: what each seat costs one wayMiles one way from the 2026 price table on this page, business class in navy and first class in gold.
Business classFirst class
ANA businessVia Virgin Atlantic
52,500
Aeroplan businessStar Alliance, East Coast to Europe
60,000
Flying Blue businessAir France or KLM
From about 60,000
Turkish businessUS to Istanbul
65,000
Qatar Qsuites businessUS to Doha
From about 70,000
ANA firstVia Virgin Atlantic
72,500
United Polaris businessSaver price
80,000
Japan Airlines firstVia AAdvantage, nonstop to Tokyo
80,000
Emirates firstNew York to Dubai
188,000
050,000100,000150,000200,000

Virgin Atlantic prices for ANA are for the US West Coast (85,000 first and 60,000 business from the Central and East US). Flying Blue was 45,000 in the July 2026 promotion, United cardholders pay 72,000, and Emirates first adds about $835 in surcharges.

What Changed in 2025 and 2026

  • June 1, 2026, Lufthansa First: Lufthansa stopped releasing first class seats to partner programs such as United and Avianca LifeMiles. It is now bookable mainly through Lufthansa’s own Miles & More at dynamic prices (The Points Guy, June 30, 2026). For years this was one of the best first class redemptions; it is effectively gone.
  • June 1, 2026, Aeroplan: a new partner chart. Business to Europe beyond 4,000 miles rose from 70,000 to 75,000, and business to Asia in the longest band from 87,500 to 102,500.
  • July 2026, American: Japan Airlines awards with a connection rose to 100,000 in first and 80,000 in business, without notice. Nonstops stayed at 80,000 and 60,000.
  • May 20, 2026, Emirates: award prices rose about 15%; New York to Dubai in first went from 163,500 to 188,000.
  • April 2026, Avianca LifeMiles: business class to Europe rose again, for example Washington to Brussels on United from 80,000 to 92,400 (Thrifty Traveler).
  • April 2, 2026, United: cardholders now pay at least 10% less on United awards and see extra Polaris saver seats.

The direction is clear: the best premium-cabin redemptions are getting more expensive or disappearing, usually without warning. Miles saved up for “someday” lose value. Book when you find the seat.

Business vs. First: Where the Value Is

First class is the harder of the two. Fewer airlines still fly it, cabins are small, and airlines release few seats to partners: Upgraded Points notes that Cathay Pacific typically releases a single first class seat about 331 days out. Business class costs fewer miles, has more seats and on many airlines is a fully flat bed with direct aisle access. For most people “cheap first class” in practice means business class with miles, and it is where I would start.

For a domestic first class seat, the numbers are smaller. On American, New York to Los Angeles in first has been 50,000 miles and San Francisco to New York 40,000, according to Travel Update (availability from early 2026).

How to Book It, Step by Step

  1. Pick the route and the airline, not the program. Decide where you want to go and which airline you would like to fly.
  2. Search for award seats. Google Flights does not show award availability. Tools such as seats.aero (free for about 60 days ahead; Pro is $9.99 a month) and point.me search across programs. Flexible dates help more than anything else.
  3. Find the program that prices the seat best. The same seat can cost very different amounts through different partners, as the table above shows.
  4. Check taxes and surcharges before you commit. A cheap mileage price with $800 in surcharges may not be cheap.
  5. Only then transfer points. Bank transfers to airlines cannot be reversed. Most are instant, some take a day or more.
  6. Book quickly. Award seats vanish. Some partner awards, such as ANA through Virgin Atlantic, must be booked by phone.

Is It Worth the Miles?

Run the cents per mile test: the cash fare, minus the taxes on the award, divided by the miles. NerdWallet found a Los Angeles to Paris first class fare at $18,606 (NerdWallet, updated October 7, 2026). Against that, almost any first class award is a strong use of miles. Business class is closer: a transatlantic business seat on sale can be about $2,500 round trip (View from the Wing), so 60,000 miles each way works out to about 2 cents a mile, still above what most programs are worth. Our miles vs. cash calculator does the arithmetic for any route.

Earning Enough Points

Almost every route in the table is reached through transferable bank points, not one airline’s miles. That is why I would earn Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One or Bilt points rather than a single airline’s currency; see airline miles vs. credit card points and Amex points vs. Chase points. For the full partner lists, see Amex transfer partners and Chase transfer partners. If you get the seat, the best airport lounges are part of what you are paying for.

If You Want Help Booking

The Points King also books discounted premium-cabin tickets for customers; details are on our cheap first class page. Be aware of the rules before you use any service like this, ours included: airline programs prohibit buying or selling award tickets, and Delta’s rules, for example, say award tickets obtained that way are void and can be confiscated. Read the risks of selling and buying miles first.

And if you hold miles you will never use for a trip like this, brokers, The Points King included, buy them for cash, against the programs’ rules and at the account holder’s risk. See selling airline miles.

To see which of these awards your own points can book, use the first class miles calculator.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cheapest way to fly first class?

Use miles booked through a partner program. In 2026, ANA first class from the West Coast to Tokyo costs 72,500 Virgin Atlantic points one way, and Japan Airlines first class on a nonstop costs 80,000 American miles.

Can you use credit card points for first class?

Yes. Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One and Bilt points transfer to airline programs, mostly 1:1, and those programs book first and business class seats.

Is business class easier to book with miles than first class?

Usually. Airlines release more business class seats to partners, and fewer airlines still fly a first class cabin.

Can you still book Lufthansa First with miles?

Not through partner programs since June 1, 2026. It is now mainly bookable through Lufthansa’s Miles & More, at dynamic prices.

Do award tickets have fees?

Yes. Taxes always apply, and some airlines, such as ANA and Emirates, add fuel surcharges that can reach hundreds of dollars.

Premium awards that got more expensive in 2026Before and after prices, in miles, for the increases with both figures in the What Changed section on this page.
BeforeAfter
Aeroplan business to EuropeBeyond 4,000 miles
70,000 | 75,000
LifeMiles business to EuropeWashington to Brussels on United
80,000 | 92,400
Aeroplan business to AsiaLongest band
87,500 | 102,500
Emirates firstNew York to Dubai
163,500 | 188,000
50,000100,000150,000200,000

From the What Changed section on this page (The Points Guy, Thrifty Traveler). Aeroplan changed on June 1, 2026, Emirates on May 20, 2026 and LifeMiles in April 2026. American’s Japan Airlines awards with a connection rose in July 2026 to 100,000 in first and 80,000 in business; nonstops stayed at 80,000 and 60,000.

Sources

The Points King
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