How to earn 100,000+ points in 90 days

Credit card companies have been shelling out enormous introductory sign-up bonus rewards points to new cardholders.

What are introductory bonus rewards points? Besides being a mouthful, it’s a lump-sum of rewards points offered as an incentive for you to sign up with a credit card provider. Points can be spent on free products, services, technology, flights and accommodation.

Unlocking the bonus points usually requires hitting a spending target within 90 days. 

From now, until the new year is a points goldmine, with multiple big-ticket shopping events on our calendar for November and December that will help you meet the spending targets, pocket the points, and use them for flights.

We’re talking about Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas and Boxing Day, where regular Aussies spend the most money each year. 

Before we show you exactly how to snap up the big points, let’s look at frequent flyer miles and how rewards points turn into free flights.

How many points do you need to fly free(ish)?

No matter who you fly with, you’ll have to pay taxes and fees, so there’s no such thing as a completely free flight. For example, a flight from Melbourne to Sydney on Virgin Australia will cost around $28 in taxes and carrier charges.

Any extra costs are calculated when you make your booking.

Rewards points usually give you the most bang for buck when you spend them on flights and travel, compared to physical products. The longer the flight, the more value you’ll get from your points.

Qantas Frequent Flyer points for flights:

For example, you could fly economy class Sydney to Adelaide for 9,600 points, or Melbourne to Perth for 18,000 plus applicable taxes and fees. 

Internationally, you could head to London from Melbourne for just 62,000 each way (with a stopover via Frankfurt) which may be within reach with an introductory offer.

Examples of Virgin Australia’s Velocity points for flights:

Velocity points are calculated in units of miles, with as little as 7,800 points needed for a free short-haul domestic flight, plus taxes.

An economy one-way flight from Sydney to Adelaide will cost 11,800 points, while Melbourne to Perth is 17,800 points. 

You can also use Points + Pay, where every 2,500 points deducts $15 from your flight, and you pay any remaining costs.

How to use introductory rewards points

Credit cards with introductory bonus rewards points are the fastest way to amass big points quickly.

You can use our Credit Card Bonus Reward Point Offers comparison table to find the best cards with all types of bonus points and other features. Or, you can look at the Frequent Flyer comparison table to see the best cards for earning frequent flyer points like Qantas or Velocity points with your spending.

Here’s a snapshot of some of the best introductory offers on the table right now:

Credit cards with introductory bonus point offers:

All rates, fees and offers correct at the time of publication as of 11th October 2021. Offers are subject to change. We’ve chosen the cards on this page based on the offers available to CreditCard.com.au. The credit cards on this page are not representative of the entire market. The use of terms ‘Best’ or ‘Top’ are not product ratings and are subject to our Terms and Conditions of Use. Read the provider’s Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD) before applying.

Example scenario:

Jason signs up for the ANZ Frequent Flyer Black Credit Card. He has until mid-January (90 days from application approval) to spend $3,000. He knows he needs to pay down the balance by the due date each month, so he’s going to decide what he’ll use the card for and stick to it most of the time.

Spending on his credit card:

Black Friday: Jason spends $400 on a new couch, and $100 at The Iconic

Cyber Monday: he buys a discounted $209 Apple watch, and $95 wireless Bluetooth ear buds

Christmas gifts: $850 for his family 

Passes to the Sydney Christmas Family Show: $125

Boxing Day sales: Jason nabs a $150 Dyson vacuum cleaner on sale

Pays the group bill for dinner and has everyone give him cash: $250

Groceries and other: $850

= $3,029

Rewards points: 

Jason earns 120,000 Qantas points after spending $3,000 in three months. 

He also earns the full rate of 1 Qantas point per dollar spent, because he didn’t reach the limit of $7,500 spent in one month, earning him an extra 3,029 Qantas points.

Jason has 3,000 Woolworths Everyday Rewards points, which he converts to 1,500 Qantas points.

Total points: 124,529

Jason also received free Qantas Flyer program membership, complimentary international travel insurance, two Qantas club lounge invitations, and $200 cash back onto his credit card.

With his points, Jason books two return flights from Sydney to Auckland for his family of three to visit relatives for 120,000 points, plus taxes.

He uses the remainder of his points to hire a car with Qantas partner Budget at a discounted rate.

Even though the card comes with a premium annual fee of $450, Jason received $200 cash back on his card as part of the introductory offer.

He saved on travel insurance for their trip. Best of all, the free concierge service that comes with ANZ premium credit cards organised the flights on his behalf.

These examples and dollar amounts are for illustrative purposes only, based on standard on-sale prices for these items.

Hitting the spending targets (without going into debt)

While you’re reaching the minimum spend to access the bonus points, you’ll also be earning points on every dollar you spend as well.

For example, the Citi Rewards Credit Card offers 150,000 bonus Velocity points when you spend $3,000 on eligible purchases within 90 days of approval, and pays 1 Citi point per $1 on your regular spending. That means you’ll earn another 3000 Citi points (that can be converted to Velocity points) just for meeting the minimum requirements. 

Your total Velocity points would be 151,200.

You can make sure you hit the spending targets by using your credit card for the big buys in the leadup to 2022.

Black Friday, November 26 2021: a day when retail stores worldwide offer heavy discounts and deals on retail products and technology

Cyber Monday, November 29 2021: an extension of Black Friday where retailers often dish out even bigger discounts, particularly in technology, gaming, and electronics.

Christmas, December 25 and Boxing day December 26 2021: they come every year, but this year you can use your regular Christmas gift shopping to meet minimum spend requirements and earn extra rewards points

To get the most out of your card, you’ll need to pay your balance in full each month before the due date. Otherwise, you risk being charged interest on your purchases, which could negate any travel savings you make.

Similarly, you’ll need to weigh up the annual fee against your travel goals too. Many cards offer a discount on annual fees, like the Citi Rewards Credit Card – Velocity Points Offer, or waive the annual fee for the first year, like the ANZ Rewards Black Credit Card.

The Qantas American Express Ultimate Credit Card offers 50,000 bonus points and a higher than normal earn rate of 1.25 Qantas points per dollar, with a $450 annual fee. However, the card also offers a $450 Qantas travel credit that renews each year, effectively cancelling out the annual fee (as long as travel is your goal).

Getting the most points per dollar

You can optimise your points by being smarter about how and where you spend. For instance, the Citi Premier Qantas Credit Card earns 1 Qantas point per eligible online and international purchase, compared to 0.5 points per dollar spent in-store and domestically. That’s a good perk for the upcoming worldwide online sales events and Christmas.

The Qantas American Express Ultimate Credit Card earns one bonus Qantas point when you buy Qantas products. 

You can also boost points by:

• converting 2,000 FlyBuys points into 1,000 Velocity Points
• converting 2,000 Woolworths Everyday Rewards into 1,000 Qantas points
• add an additional cardholder to double your points pool (just remember to pay off the card in full each month to avoid interest)

Keep an eye on airline offers to make your points go further, too. Qantas has been encouraging travel by offering flights at the lowest Classic Award Flight rate when booking using Qantas Points. Jetstar also released $22 flights and 500,000 other discounted fares across all 59 domestic routes until late December 2021, to inspire interstate travel.

A warning about earning frequent flyer points

To get the best out of your credit card you can follow some basic guidelines:

• Don’t spend extra money just to earn points. 
• Make a list of the things you want to buy and stick to it.
• Meet any shortfall in the minimum spend with regular everyday buying, but remember to pay your balance before the due date to avoid interest.

Always make sure you read the fine print for any credit card before you sign up. Look for points expiry timeframes, annual fees, interest-free periods and their cancellation policy. This is crucial if you’re planning to close the card after collecting the rewards points, as some providers require you spend the points before cancelling or you’ll lose them.

By using introductory signup bonus rewards points, you could earn thousands of points – translated into free flights plus tax – between now and Christmas just by using a credit card to buy the things you would have bought anyway.

Travel home to see family, finally lay eyes on a new grandchild, or just simply lie on a beach somewhere new. It doesn’t matter why you want to go; credit cards and their frequent flyer points might be your ticket to getting there.

(And the only thing sweeter than a flight home for Chrissy is one that cost you almost nothing at all!)

Photo source: Getty Images