Qantas Classic Plus Pricing Increases 20% Since Launch

A change to Qantas’ Classic Plus Reward seat offering means some Business Class redemptions are now costing more than they used to. Classic Plus was launched in April 2024 as a way for Qantas Frequent Flyer to offer more reward seats over traditional Classic Rewards, particularly in premium cabins where availability can be quite scarce.

In exchange for increased availability, the trade-off is a higher points cost, with fares originally appearing to be set at a fixed value in cents per point (cpp). At their launch, Qantas said that the value per point for Classic Plus varies between cabins, but did not specifically mention a value. The provided examples indicated a value of 1 cent per point in Economy, and 1.5 cents per point in Premium Economy, Business and First. This was based on our research, as well as others in the loyalty space, and never corrected.

However, recent searches show some Classic Plus redemptions are now more expensive. So what's changing?

What’s The Issue?

During a number of recent award searches, we’ve noticed, along with some keen-eyed readers, that some Classic Plus redemptions are now returning just 1.25 cpp. As above, Classic Plus has been widely understood to offer a value per point of 1 cent in Economy, and 1.5 cents in Premium Economy, Business and First.

But the thing is, because Qantas doesn’t officially commit to any set Classic Plus pricing, they can devalue redemptions at will and without the need to communicate. That’s not exactly wrong, but it’s certainly interesting.

For example, a recent Sydney–Hong Kong Business Class Classic Plus fare was priced as follows:

• Cash fare: $3,980
• Taxes: $252
• Classic Plus: 298,300 Qantas Points

We can work out the value as: (cash fare - taxes) ÷ points required × 100

So for the above example: (3980 - 252) ÷ 298300 × 100 = 1.25 cpp

It’s a similar story for a number of other searches we made, such as the Brisbane to Manila below.

Qantas Responds

A Qantas spokesperson told Flight Hacks that Classic Plus has been incredibly popular since launching last year.

“Classic Plus continues to offer some of the best value across the program making points easier to use during peak periods and on popular routes,” they add.

Qantas also reaffirmed that the value settings for international Classic Plus seats in premium cabins have been adjusted to align with the roll-out of Classic Plus on domestic flights. The aim here is to ensure widespread availability of reward seats for members.

Why This Matters To Qantas Frequent Flyers

Classic Plus is pitched as a way to secure reward seats without having to battle for incredibly limited Classic Reward inventory, especially in premium cabins. But if the maths doesn’t line up, the value proposition quickly unravels.

Even at the previously easy-to-find 1.5 cpp for Business Class, Classic Plus regularly delivers poor value compared with Classic Rewards, where far fewer points secure the same seat. For many members, the pricing is already out of reach. Only businesses and mega-earning Frequent Flyers with vast balances might see it as a simple way to lock in a booking.