Spirit Airways — probably the most infamous ultra-low-cost U.S. provider — revamped its elite standing program in early 2021. And regardless of what you may assume, it really packs some highly effective options (assume: free luggage, free seat choice, waived chubby checked bag charges, exit-row seat task and far more).
The best way 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.
On this article, we’ll have a look at how a lot Spirit elite standing is admittedly value by breaking down the advantages of every standing tier and assigning every a set money worth.
Methodology
Right here’s a fast reminder that our valuations signify one approach to determine what elite standing is value to a possible traveler. You need to all the time alter our assumptions of your journey habits to suit the way you really journey. For instance, in the event you by no means test a bag, you gained’t discover any worth in that profit.
Listed 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 a different way than extra conventional carriers; as an alternative of incomes standing by miles flown, you’ll earn Standing Qualifying Factors. You earn them within the following methods:
The knowledge for the Free Spirit Journey Extra Mastercard has been collected independently by The Factors Man. The cardboard particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or offered by the cardboard issuer.
This evaluation ignores the bank card route. You would theoretically attain Spirit elite standing by means of spending alone, however in the event you’re not flying Spirit, you’re not prone to get worth from Spirit elite standing.
Associated: Why having the Spirit Airways bank card isn’t loopy
Our numbers are based mostly on 4 (considerably arbitrary) assumptions. Once more, tweak the numbers to match your life-style:
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- You earn 20% extra SQPs than the minimal required for the given degree.
- 80% of your SQPs are earned on Spirit flight purchases.
- 20% of your SQPs are earned with auxiliary purchases like Massive Entrance Seat choice and extra baggage.
- Every flight prices a mean of $100 earlier than taxes, incomes 100 SQPs.
Two ultimate 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 Airways gives two tiers of elite standing. Right here’s a fast rundown of what you’ll get for pledging loyalty to Spirit.
| Advantages | Silver elite standing | Gold elite standing |
|---|---|---|
| Qualification | 2,000 SQPs on flights operated by Spirit Airways or by spending on the Free Spirit Journey Extra World Elite Mastercard. | 5,000 SQPs on flights operated by Spirit Airways or by spending on the Free Spirit Journey Extra World Elite Mastercard. |
| Mileage incomes on Spirit flights | 8 factors per greenback. | 10 factors per greenback. |
| Factors 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’ll be able to select your seat at check-in. | You’ll be able to select your seat on the time of reserving, however you possibly can’t select the Massive Entrance Seat (Spirit’s model of top quality). |
| Shortcut boarding | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shortcut safety | ✓ | ✓ |
| Devoted visitor care | ✓ | ✓ |
| Similar-day standby | ✓ | ✓ |
| Obese checked bag price waived | ✓ | ✓ |
| Redemption price 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 implies you’d spend $2,400 with Spirit in a given 12 months to earn and keep your standing degree:
- 80% on flights. You’d should take 19 flights based mostly on our assumption of 100 SQPs per flight (for 1,900 SQPs).
- 20% on extras, for a complete of $500 in spending.
| Profit particulars | Worth | |
|---|---|---|
| Mileage incomes on Spirit flights | You’ll earn 8 factors per greenback to your precise Spirit Airways fare. That 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. |
| Factors earned for extras | You’ll earn 16 factors per greenback for extras reminiscent of checked or carry-on luggage, seat choice, shortcut boarding, and so forth. That 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 members of the family pool their factors collectively. It’s exhausting to place a quantity on this, but it surely actually 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’ll be able to select exit rows without cost three hours earlier than departure. These seats are normally dearer than normal seats, however chances are you’ll not all the time clear your seat upgrades on the final minute. Let’s assume a 30% success charge with a mean worth of $20 per seat task. | $115. |
| Seat choice | You’ll be able to select your seats at check-in, however you gained’t be capable of choose most popular seats. Nonetheless, that is big, as Spirit can cost as much as $200 per flight for this “luxurious,” 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 allows you to skip the common Transportation Safety Administration line and enter an expedited safety screening. Not all airports take part on this, however it may possibly 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. |
| Devoted visitor care | A precedence cellphone line generally is a lifesaver throughout large-scale climate occasions, but it surely’s not probably the most useful perk. | $25. |
| Similar-day standby | Free Spirit Silver members can standby without cost on an earlier flight, which prices common members $99 per flight. Let’s assume you utilize this as soon as per 12 months. | $100. |
| Obese checked bag price waived | In case your checked bag weighs greater than 40 kilos, you’ll be charged $69-plus on the check-in desk. This price is waived for elite members, although observe that Spirit gained’t settle for luggage weighing greater than 100 kilos. Let’s assume you utilize this profit as soon as per 12 months. | $70. |
| Redemption price waived | Normal Free Spirit members pay a $50 redemption price for award flights booked inside 28 days of departure. That is waived for elite members and cobranded bank card members. Let’s assume you utilize this twice per 12 months. | $100. |
| Complete worth | $805. |
Free Spirit Gold: $4,485
Prime-tier Spirit Gold standing requires 5,000 SQPs to attain. Once more, we’ll assume you earned 6,000 SQPs for this valuation. This implies you’d spend $6,000 in a given 12 months to earn and keep your standing degree cut up as follows:
- 80% on flights. That’s 48 flights based mostly on our assumption of 100 SQPs per flight (for 4,800 SQPs).
- 20% on extras, equaling $1,200 in spending.
| Profit particulars | Worth | |
|---|---|---|
| Mileage incomes on Spirit flights | You’ll earn 10 factors per greenback to your precise Spirit Airways fare. That is 4 factors greater than you’ll earn as an everyday member, for a complete of 19,200 bonus factors earned. | $210. |
| Factors earned for extras | You’ll earn 20 factors per greenback for extras reminiscent of checked or carry-on luggage, seat choice, shortcut boarding, and so forth. That 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 | Similar profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $35. |
| Exit-row seat task | You’ll be able to 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 charge with a mean worth of $20 per seat task. | $290. |
| Seat choice | You’ll be able to choose a free seat at reserving. Sadly, you possibly can’t choose Massive Entrance Seats. | $305. |
| Shortcut boarding | Similar profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $80. |
| Shortcut safety | Similar profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $120. |
| Devoted visitor care | Similar profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $40. |
| Similar-day standby | Similar profit however assuming you utilize the profit twice per 12 months. | $200. |
| Obese checked bag price waived | Similar profit, with extra frequent utilization. | $140. |
| Redemption price waiver | Similar profit however assuming you utilize the profit thrice per 12 months. | $150. |
| Flight flex | This profit means that you can modify your itinerary as soon as on-line, as much as 24 hours earlier than departure, with no charges. This generally is a useful 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 utilize this 10% of the time. | $170. |
| Free nonalcoholic drink and snack on board | You may get a free drink and snack on board. Typically, this may prevent $8 per flight, relying on what you select to snack on. Observe that this isn’t essentially “financial savings” in the event you wouldn’t usually volunteer to pay for meals in your flight. | $385. |
| First checked bag | You’ll obtain your first checked bag without cost on all flights. Baggage charges differ, 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. |
| Complete worth | $4,485. |
What if I’m ranging from scratch?
For those who’re ranging from scratch, these calculations grow to be a bit extra sophisticated because you gained’t take pleasure in 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, in the event you’re capable of obtain 6,500 SQPs, you’d get no advantages from the primary 2,000 SQPs, then take pleasure in Silver elite advantages for the subsequent 3,000 SQPs (at a charge of 33 cents per SQP) after which take pleasure in Gold elite advantages whereas incomes the ultimate 1,500 factors (at a charge of 75 cents per SQP).
In different phrases, in the event 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 all the time, be at liberty to regulate the numbers above for every tier based mostly by yourself private valuation.
Associated: The very best bank cards to succeed in elite standing
Is it value pursuing elite standing with Spirit Airways?
Like every evaluation we undertake right here at TPG, there isn’t a simple reply to this — it relies upon fully in your particular person state of affairs. Nevertheless, given the truth that Spirit costs for all the things from carry-on luggage to seat choice, top-tier Gold elite standing could be fairly useful, as you’ll be proof against many of those charges.
Listed here are a number of overarching questions that may assist you to arrive at a choice that’s best for you.
What’s the incremental worth of 1 tier over one other?
Lots of chances are you’ll wind up inside placing distance of the subsequent tier, so take into account 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 properly does Spirit’s route map match your typical journey patterns?
There’s actually no level in pursuing elite standing with an airline in the event you can’t feasibly fly it often. Contemplate Spirit’s service from your property airport(s) and the way straightforward it’s to get to your required vacation spot(s).
How delicate are you to cost and comfort?
There are a lot of trade-offs on this pastime, and one of the widespread is deciding whether or not to make use of your most popular airline or lodge chain when it’s not probably the most handy or most cost-effective. Would you ebook a one-stop Spirit flight if one other airline had a less expensive nonstop choice? If the reply isn’t any, it is probably not value going out of your approach to earn Spirit elite standing.
Associated: Hear us out: Why Spirit provides Delta a run for its cash in our head-to-head comparability
Backside line
The Spirit Airways enterprise mannequin (and that of low-cost carriers usually) isn’t for everybody. The fares are low-cost, however it’s essential to 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 individuals who love Spirit, Free Spirit elite standing generally is a approach to make Spirit flights cheaper and extra comfy. So, in the event you’re already planning on flying Spirit sufficient to earn elite standing, you’ll undoubtedly take pleasure in all of the perks it contains.
That mentioned, it’s virtually actually not value it to exit of your approach to earn it with bank card spending in the event you’re not flying sufficient to earn it organically. The perks don’t outweigh the price of transferring all of your flights to 1 airline (or flying greater than you need to).
