Revolut customers can now collect Avios as RevPoints lands in the UK. Is that good?
- Revolut has launched its air miles loyalty program RevPoints in the UK
- RevPoints can be converted into Avios points and redeemed on flights
- Revolut customers can earn up to 1 point per pound spent
Revolut’s Airmiles loyalty program RevPoints with debit card has just landed in Britain.
Revolut launched its airline miles loyalty program with debit cards in Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Greece and Malta in September 2023 and now UK customers can collect and use RevPoints.
Customers can transfer the RevPoints they collect to more than 30 airline loyalty programs, including British Airways Avios points.
Revolut customers do not need to apply for a credit card to collect points as it is a debit card scheme.
Revolut’s Airmiles loyalty program RevPoints for debit cards has been launched in the UK. This allows customers to collect points and redeem them on flights
How to earn RevPoints
Revolut customers can earn RevPoints by spending money as usual with their Revolut payment card.
Depending on the type of subscription they have, Revolut customers can earn up to 1 point per euro spent
Bonus points can be earned by upgrading your Revolut subscription and meeting a spending goal, completing challenges in the Revolut app, booking hotel stays through Revolut and signing up for RevPoints Spare Change.
Standard plan users can enable the Spare Change feature to monetize card spends.
On top of the points they earn from spending cards, Spare Change raids convert into extra points, at a rate of up to 50 points for every pound saved.
The number of points you earn varies depending on the Revolut subscription you have. This is what you can earn:
- Standard (free) – 1 RevPoint per €10 spent
- Plus (€3.99 per month) – 1 RevPoint per €10 spent
- Premium (€7.99 per month) – 1 RevPoint per €4 spent
- Metal (£14.99 per month) – 1 RevPoint per £2 spent
- Ultra (€45 per month) – 1 RevPoint per €1 spent
New customers can boost their points with 3,000 points (equivalent to 3,000 air miles or up to £60 in travel discounts) after completing 150 qualifying transactions.
Existing Revolut customers can earn up to 10,000 bonus points if they upgrade their plan and meet the spending thresholds within the first 90 days.
For those on Revolut’s Ultra plan, customers who spend £2,500 per month can earn up to 30,000 RevPoints annually – which is enough for a free return flight from London to New York or a £600 hotel discount, according to Revolut.
What else does it offer?
RevPoints can also be redeemed for discounts on premium holiday accommodation and holiday experiences and activities via the Lifestyle tab in the Revolut app.
For everyday shopping, points can also be used for discounts on brands such as French Connection and Dermalogica when you shop online with Revolut Pay.
How does it compare to other card systems?
There are considerably more points to be gained from companies such as Amex and Barclaycard.
New American Express Gold card holders can currently get 30,000 bonus points as part of an enhanced offer running until June 16.
The credit card giant has increased the sign-up bonus on its Preferred Rewards Gold credit card from 20,000 to 25,000 points.
New Amex Gold cardholders can earn 25,000 points, a boost from the usual 20,000, when they spend £3,000 in the first three months of having the card.
While Barclaycard has a free Avios Mastercard, which comes with a new customer sign-up bonus of 5,000 Avios points when you spend £1,000 in the first three months.
There could be a call for customers who don’t want to sign up for a credit card to collect airmile points with Revolut’s program.
Rob Burgess of frequent flyer website Head for Points said: ‘To be honest, it doesn’t seem to offer much value for a frequent flyer. I don’t see anyone opening a Revolut account just to take advantage of the opportunities to earn airline miles.
‘Earning 1 Avios (or another airline mile) for every £10 spent on the free Revolut debit card is hardly going to get anyone excited, as you can earn 10 times as much with the free British Airways American Express card or the free Barclaycard Avios MasterCard. Even the £45-a-month Ultra card is no better than the free BA Amex or free Barclaycard.”
‘It’s also hard to see much crossover between the debit card market (usually teenagers or people with bad credit) and the kind of people who want to earn Avios for long-haul flights in business class.’
‘There are also additional risks associated with using debit cards for large payments, such as the lack of legal protection under Section 75 if there are problems with the transaction.’