For the third year running, the best airline rewards program in the world belongs to a European carrier. Point.me’s 2026 ranking puts Air France-KLM’s Flying Blue in first place with a score of 88.8 out of 100. United MileagePlus came second at 85.0, followed by Air Canada Aeroplan at 82.2, Atmos Rewards, the combined Alaska and Hawaiian program, at 80.9, and American AAdvantage at 80.6.
The rest of the global top ten was Qatar Airways Privilege Club at 72.5, JetBlue TrueBlue at 72.2, The British Airways Club at 71.3, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club at 70.0 and Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles at 69.4. This year Point.me assessed 33 programs, down from 59 in its 2025 report, using a formula that gives 60% weight to the value of points, 25% to ease of use and 15% to customer service and change fees.
Two British programs slipped. The British Airways Club dropped from sixth to eighth place worldwide after higher Avios prices and surcharges, while Virgin Atlantic Flying Club fell from fourth to ninth. In the European table, behind Flying Blue came BA, Virgin Atlantic, Aer Lingus AerClub at 65.6, Iberia at 65.0 and Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles at 64.4. Lufthansa’s Miles & More scored only 55.0, with TAP on 53.8 and SAS EuroBonus on 50.0.
US travellers do not need to fly Air France or KLM to benefit. Flying Blue partners with most major transferable credit card currencies in the US, which is a large part of why it scores so well. Anyone collecting bank points should compare award prices across several programs before redeeming rather than defaulting to the airline they fly most.
Sources: Euronews Travel, Point.me
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