# Upgrading a British Airways flight with Avios: how many Avios, which fares, and the business spend that earns them Rules and prices checked 2026-09-29. By the RewardsPilot team. British Airways lets you upgrade a cash ticket by one cabin with Avios, if a reward seat is free in the cabin above. Its formula is the difference between the two cabins' reward prices: 33,000 Avios one way to upgrade New York premium economy to business at peak. A business earns that on £8,250 of net spend. ## Which flights can be upgraded - An upgrade is one cabin at a time: economy to premium economy, premium economy to business, business to first. - There must be an Avios reward seat available in the cabin you are upgrading to. - Any premium economy or business class ticket can be upgraded, however cheap the fare. - Economy tickets on the cheapest fare types (booking classes O, G and Q) cannot be upgraded. - Upgrades are made on ba.com with "Book with money, upgrade with Avios" or afterwards in Manage My Booking. They cannot be made at check-in or on board. - Tickets bought through BA Holidays or a travel agent can usually be upgraded by calling British Airways. ## How many Avios an upgrade costs British Airways' published formula: Avios for the cabin you want, minus Avios for the cabin you booked, equals the Avios needed to upgrade one way. BA's own example: London to New York on a peak date, premium economy to business: 99,000 − 66,000 = 33,000 Avios one way. In practice ba.com has been pricing many upgrades below the formula and adding a cash payment for the difference in surcharges between the two cabins. Head for Points found an off-peak New York return from premium economy to business priced at 52,800 Avios, where the formula gives 82,500, with a cash top-up on top. Always check the exact price on ba.com before relying on either figure. The full one-way reward prices for each cabin: https://www.rewardspilot.co.uk/miles/how-many-avios-for-a-flight Sources: Head for Points, "How does Upgrade Using Avios work?" (7 Jan 2026) (https://www.headforpoints.com/2026/01/07/how-does-upgrade-using-avios-work-3/); British Airways, "Upgrading with Avios" (https://www.britishairways.com/content/the-british-airways-club/avios/spending-avios/upgrading-with-avios). Checked 2026-09-29. ## The business spend that earns the Avios A VAT-registered UK business earns 4 RewardsPilot points for every £1 of eligible spend it puts through the programme, on the net amount excluding VAT. Each point transfers to 1 airline mile, Avios included, with the airline programmes RewardsPilot works with. | Upgrade | Avios | Business spend that earns them | |---|---|---| | New York, premium economy to business, one way, peak (BA's formula) | 33,000 | £8,250 | | New York, premium economy to business, return, off-peak (as priced on ba.com) | 52,800 | £13,200 | | New York, premium economy to business, return, off-peak (BA's formula) | 82,500 | £20,625 | ## Questions ### How many Avios do I need to upgrade to business class? British Airways' formula is the business-class reward price minus the reward price of the cabin you booked. London to New York at peak, premium economy to business: 99,000 − 66,000 = 33,000 Avios one way. ba.com has recently priced many upgrades lower in Avios with a cash top-up, so check the price there. ### Can I upgrade a cheap economy ticket with Avios? Not on the cheapest economy fare types, booking classes O, G and Q. Any premium economy or business class ticket can be upgraded, however cheap. ### Can I upgrade with Avios at the airport? No. British Airways does not allow Avios upgrades at check-in or on board. They are made on ba.com when booking or later in Manage My Booking, subject to a reward seat being available in the higher cabin. ### Is there a cash charge on top of the Avios? Usually yes. British Airways asks for a cash payment covering the difference in surcharges between the two cabins as well as the Avios. ### How much business spend earns an upgrade? At 4 RewardsPilot points per £1 of net spend, 33,000 Avios takes £8,250 and 52,800 takes £13,200. The spend is the VAT, PAYE, supplier and payroll bills the business pays anyway. Apply: https://www.rewardspilot.co.uk/apply · Request a call: https://www.rewardspilot.co.uk/request-a-call --- Canonical URL: https://www.rewardspilot.co.uk/miles/upgrade-with-avios Markdown version: https://www.rewardspilot.co.uk/miles/upgrade-with-avios.md Last reviewed: 2026-09-29 Contact: info@rewardspilot.co.uk · 0161 850 2526 YTY LTD trading as RewardsPilot, company number 11880920. Payroll services provided under company number SC576748.