Spirit Airlines — essentially the most infamous ultra-low-cost U.S. service — revamped its elite standing program in early 2021. And regardless of what you would possibly assume, it really packs some highly effective options (assume: free luggage, free seat choice, waived obese checked bag charges, exit-row seat task and rather more).
The approach you quantify the worth of those perks is essential to think about whether or not it’s best to earn elite standing with Spirit in 2023.
In this text, we’ll have a look at how a lot Spirit elite standing is basically value by breaking down the advantages of every standing tier and assigning every a set money worth.
Methodology
Here’s a fast reminder that our valuations symbolize one approach to establish what elite standing is value to a possible traveler. You ought to at all times regulate our assumptions of your journey habits to suit the way you really journey. For instance, should you by no means examine a bag, you received’t discover any worth in that profit.
Here are the underlying assumptions we’re making: We’ve assumed a set quantity of flying and a corresponding quantity of spending. Spirit awards elite standing in another way than extra conventional carriers; as a substitute of incomes standing by miles flown, you’ll earn Status Qualifying Points. You earn them within the following methods:
The data for the Free Spirit Travel More Mastercard has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or offered by the cardboard issuer.
This evaluation ignores the bank card route. You may theoretically attain Spirit elite standing via spending alone, however should you’re not flying Spirit, you’re not more likely to get worth from Spirit elite standing.
Related: Why having the Spirit Airlines bank card isn’t loopy
Our numbers are primarily based on 4 (considerably arbitrary) assumptions. Again, tweak the numbers to match your way of life:
Sign up for our day by day e-newsletter
- You earn 20% extra SQPs than the minimal required for the given stage.
- 80% of your SQPs are earned on Spirit flight purchases.
- 20% of your SQPs are earned with auxiliary purchases like Big Front Seat choice and extra baggage.
- Each flight prices a median of $100 earlier than taxes, incomes 100 SQPs.
Two closing items of data earlier than we begin: First, we’ll use our valuation of 1.1 cents every when valuing bonus factors earned for every standing tier. Second, we’ll spherical all profit values to the closest $5.
Spirit elite standing tiers
Spirit Airlines affords two tiers of elite standing. Here’s a fast rundown of what you’ll get for pledging loyalty to Spirit.
| Benefits | Silver elite standing | Gold elite standing |
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | 2,000 SQPs on flights operated by Spirit Airlines or by spending on the Free Spirit Travel More World Elite Mastercard. | 5,000 SQPs on flights operated by Spirit Airlines or by spending on the Free Spirit Travel More World Elite Mastercard. |
| Mileage incomes on Spirit flights | 8 factors per greenback. | 10 factors per greenback. |
| Points earned on À La Smarte choices (extras) | 16 factors per greenback. | 20 factors per greenback. |
| Host factors pool for group | ✓ | ✓ |
| Exit-row seat task | 180 minutes from departure. | Confirmed at reserving. |
| Seat choice | You can select your seat at check-in. | You can select your seat on the time of reserving, however you possibly can’t select the Big Front Seat (Spirit’s model of firstclass). |
| Shortcut boarding | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shortcut safety | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dedicated visitor care | ✓ | ✓ |
| Same-day standby | ✓ | ✓ |
| Overweight checked bag charge waived | ✓ | ✓ |
| Redemption charge waived | ✓ | ✓ |
| Flight flex | ✓ | |
| Free nonalcoholic drink and snack on board | ✓ | |
| First checked bag | ✓ | |
| Carry-on bag
|
✓ |
So how a lot are these advantages value realistically for a frequent flyer?
Free Spirit Silver: $805
Spirit Silver is the airline’s entry-level standing tier. It features a handful of attention-grabbing advantages that make the Spirit expertise simpler and extra seamless, and it requires 2,000 SQPs to earn. For this valuation, we’re assuming you’ll earn 2,400 SQPs. This means you’d spend $2,400 with Spirit in a given 12 months to earn and keep your standing stage:
- 80% on flights. You’d should take 19 flights primarily based on our assumption of 100 SQPs per flight (for 1,900 SQPs).
- 20% on extras, for a complete of $500 in spending.
| Benefit particulars | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Mileage incomes on Spirit flights | You’ll earn 8 factors per greenback in your precise Spirit Airlines fare. This is 2 factors greater than you’ll earn as an everyday member. With $1,920 in spending on flights, this equals 3,840 bonus factors. | $40. |
| Points earned for extras | You’ll earn 16 factors per greenback for extras equivalent to checked or carry-on luggage, seat choice, shortcut boarding, and many others. This is 4 factors greater than you’ll earn as an everyday member, for two,000 bonus factors. | $20. |
| Host factors pool for group | Free Spirit Silver elite members can host a factors pool that lets the elite member and their relations pool their factors collectively. It’s onerous to place a quantity on this, however it definitely is helpful to mix factors for awards. As a member, you possibly can solely pool factors with somebody who has elite standing. | $20. |
| Exit-row seat task | You can select exit rows without spending a dime three hours earlier than departure. These seats are often dearer than customary seats, however chances are you’ll not at all times clear your seat upgrades on the final minute. Let’s assume a 30% success price with a median worth of $20 per seat task. | $115. |
| Seat choice | You can select your seats at check-in, however you received’t have the ability to choose most popular seats. Still, that is big, as Spirit can cost as much as $200 per flight for this “luxury,” although it is typically a lot much less. | $190. |
| Shortcut boarding | Free Spirit Silver elite members are eligible for precedence boarding on all flights, which prices a minimal of $5.99 per flight. | $50. |
| Shortcut safety | This perk enables you to skip the common Transportation Security Administration line and enter an expedited safety screening. Not all airports take part on this, however it might save fairly a little bit of time if touring throughout a busy time. This perk in any other case prices as much as $15. | $75. |
| Dedicated visitor care | A precedence telephone line could be a lifesaver throughout large-scale climate occasions, however it’s not essentially the most worthwhile perk. | $25. |
| Same-day standby | Free Spirit Silver members can standby without spending a dime on an earlier flight, which prices basic members $99 per flight. Let’s assume you employ this as soon as per 12 months. | $100. |
| Overweight checked bag charge waived | If your checked bag weighs greater than 40 kilos, you’ll be charged $69-plus on the check-in desk. This charge is waived for elite members, although notice that Spirit received’t settle for luggage weighing greater than 100 kilos. Let’s assume you employ this profit as soon as per 12 months. | $70. |
| Redemption charge waived | General Free Spirit members pay a $50 redemption charge for award flights booked inside 28 days of departure. This is waived for elite members and cobranded bank card members. Let’s assume you employ this twice per 12 months. | $100. |
| Total worth | $805. |
Free Spirit Gold: $4,485
Top-tier Spirit Gold standing requires 5,000 SQPs to realize. Again, we’ll assume you earned 6,000 SQPs for this valuation. This means you’d spend $6,000 in a given 12 months to earn and keep your standing stage cut up as follows:
- 80% on flights. That’s 48 flights primarily based on our assumption of 100 SQPs per flight (for 4,800 SQPs).
- 20% on extras, equaling $1,200 in spending.
| Benefit particulars | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Mileage incomes on Spirit flights | You’ll earn 10 factors per greenback in your precise Spirit Airlines fare. This is 4 factors greater than you’ll earn as an everyday member, for a complete of 19,200 bonus factors earned. | $210. |
| Points earned for extras | You’ll earn 20 factors per greenback for extras equivalent to checked or carry-on luggage, seat choice, shortcut boarding, and many others. This is 8 factors greater than you’ll earn as an everyday member, supplying you with 9,600 bonus miles. | $105. |
| Host factors pool for group | Same profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $35. |
| Exit-row seat task | You can go for an exit row on the time of reserving. This leaves little or no as much as likelihood, as with Silver members, you’re solely assured an exit row 180 minutes previous to departure. We’ll assume a 30% success price with a median worth of $20 per seat task. | $290. |
| Seat choice | You can choose a free seat at reserving. Unfortunately, you possibly can’t choose Big Front Seats. | $305. |
| Shortcut boarding | Same profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $80. |
| Shortcut safety | Same profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $120. |
| Dedicated visitor care | Same profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $40. |
| Same-day standby | Same profit however assuming you employ the profit twice per 12 months. | $200. |
| Overweight checked bag charge waived | Same profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $140. |
| Redemption charge waiver | Same profit however assuming you employ the profit 3 times per 12 months. | $150. |
| Flight flex | This profit permits you to modify your itinerary as soon as on-line, as much as 24 hours earlier than departure, with no charges. This could be a worthwhile perk if you wish to transfer to an earlier or later flight. This in any other case prices $35-plus per buyer. Let’s assume you employ this 10% of the time. | $170. |
| Free nonalcoholic drink and snack on board | You can get a free drink and snack on board. Generally, it will prevent $8 per flight, relying on what you select to snack on. Note that this isn’t essentially “savings” should you wouldn’t usually volunteer to pay for meals in your flight. | $385. |
| First checked bag | You’ll obtain your first checked bag without spending a dime on all flights. Baggage charges fluctuate, however let’s assume you’d in any other case pay $30 per flight for 50% of your flights. | $720. |
| Carry-on bag | You’ll obtain a free full-size carry-on bag on all Spirit flights. These luggage price roughly $40 per flight. Let’s assume you convey a carry-on for 80% of your flights. | $1,535. |
| Total worth | $4,485. |
What if I’m ranging from scratch?
If you are ranging from scratch, these calculations turn into a bit extra sophisticated because you received’t get pleasure from any advantages till you earn 2,000 SQPs and earn Free Spirit Silver standing. So to assist, I’ve taken the above valuations and transformed them to a price per SQP, as follows:
- Free Spirit Silver: $805 / 2,400 = $0.33 per SQP.
- Free Spirit Gold: $4,485 / 6,000 = $0.75 per SQP.
For instance, should you’re capable of obtain 6,500 SQPs, you’d get no advantages from the primary 2,000 SQPs, then get pleasure from Silver elite advantages for the following 3,000 SQPs (at a price of 33 cents per SQP) after which get pleasure from Gold elite advantages whereas incomes the ultimate 1,500 factors (at a price of 75 cents per SQP).
In different phrases, should you begin from scratch and estimate that you just’ll earn 6,500 SQPs in 2023, you’d get $2,115 value of advantages from the Free Spirit program.
As at all times, be happy to regulate the numbers above for every tier primarily based by yourself private valuation.
Related: The finest bank cards to achieve elite standing
Is it value pursuing elite standing with Spirit Airlines?
Like any evaluation we undertake right here at TPG, there isn’t a straightforward reply to this — it relies upon totally in your particular person state of affairs. However, given the truth that Spirit costs for all the pieces from carry-on luggage to seat choice, top-tier Gold elite standing could be fairly worthwhile, as you’ll be proof against many of those charges.
Here are a number of overarching questions that may assist you to arrive at a call that’s best for you.
What’s the incremental worth of 1 tier over one other?
Many of chances are you’ll wind up inside placing distance of the following tier, so think about whether or not the advantages are value pushing for it. There’s no sense in going out of your approach for perks that don’t matter to you.
How nicely does Spirit’s route map match your typical journey patterns?
There’s actually no level in pursuing elite standing with an airline should you can’t feasibly fly it repeatedly. Consider Spirit’s service from your house airport(s) and the way simple it’s to get to your required vacation spot(s).
How delicate are you to cost and comfort?
There are many trade-offs on this pastime, and some of the frequent is deciding whether or not to make use of your most popular airline or lodge chain when it’s not essentially the most handy or least expensive. Would you e-book a one-stop Spirit flight if one other airline had a less expensive nonstop choice? If the reply isn’t any, it might not be value going out of your approach to earn Spirit elite standing.
Related: Hear us out: Why Spirit provides Delta a run for its cash in our head-to-head comparability
Bottom line
The Spirit Airlines enterprise mannequin (and that of low-cost carriers generally) isn’t for everybody. The fares are low cost, however you should pay for perks like seat assignments, luggage and drinks. Some don’t thoughts these trade-offs, however others would moderately hop on a Megabus earlier than reserving a Spirit ticket.
For those that love Spirit, Free Spirit elite standing could be a approach to make Spirit flights cheaper and extra snug. So, should you’re already planning on flying Spirit sufficient to earn elite standing, you’ll undoubtedly get pleasure from all of the perks it contains.
That stated, it’s nearly definitely not value it to exit of your approach to earn it with bank card spending should you’re not flying sufficient to earn it organically. The perks don’t outweigh the price of transferring all of your flights to at least one airline (or flying greater than it’s important to).