award travel emirates

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How To Book Emirates First Class Award Travel in 2024

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Emirates Airlines' First Class has long been among the most sought-after award redemptions. However, redeeming points and miles for Emirates First Class has always been challenging. And in recent years, this redemption has only become even more difficult to book; that's because additional airlines lost access to coveted partner award space.

So, how do you book Emirates First Class award tickets in 2024? Let's take a look.

Book First Class Through Emirates Skywards

You can use Emirates Skywards to book yourself into First Class luxury in two primary ways. The first comes with a higher price tag, and the second requires a bit of luck.

Book a First Class ticket outright

The most straightforward way to book Emirates First Class is to look for award availability on the Emirates' website or Seats.aero and secure it with your Skywards miles. Emirates is transparent about what it costs to book these awards. Depending on the route you fly, availability is generally good.

Emirates operates an entirely wide-body fleet, and most planes feature First Class cabins. At present, you'll find these luxurious cabins on the following routes, but note that the airline could swap in a plane with a different cabin at any time.

And now for what it costs. Here's what you can expect to pay on various one-way routes operated by First Class-equipped planes:

• New York-Kennedy (JFK) to Milan (MXP): 102,00 Skywards miles
• Newark (EWR) to Athens (ATH): 102,000 Skywards miles
• Toronto (YYZ) to Dubai (DXB): 163,500 Skywards miles
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Dubai (DXB): 163,500 Skywards miles
• Houston (IAH) to Dubai (DXB): 186,000 Skywards Miles
• Los Angeles (LAX) to Dubai (DXB): 186,000 Skywards Miles

Upgrade to Emirates First Class with Skywards miles

Perhaps an even easier (and potentially cheaper) way to First Class is via upgrade. Emirates allows upgrades on tickets booked with cash or miles by one class of service. If you booked a business-class ticket, you could upgrade to First Class, just like you can upgrade to business on an economy or premium economy ticket.

The only caveat is that you'll need to book directly through Emirates to have this option. If you book your Emirates award ticket through Air Canada's Aeroplan program , for example, it's unlikely you'll be able to upgrade your flight.

Business awards booked with Skywards code as “Flex Plus” fares, which means you'll pay the lowest published cost to upgrade shown on Emirates' handy mileage calculator . Even better, there are no cash copays to upgrade with miles.

Here's what it costs to upgrade from business to First Class on the same selection of routes shown above:

• New York-Kennedy (JFK) to Milan (MXP): 39,000 Skywards miles
• Newark (EWR) to Athens (ATH): 39,000 Skywards miles
• Toronto (YYZ) to Dubai (DXB): 70,200 Skywards miles
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Dubai (DXB): 70,200 Skywards miles
• Houston (IAH) to Dubai (DXB): 81,900 Skywards Miles
• Los Angeles (LAX) to Dubai (DXB): 81,900 Skywards Miles

The process to upgrade is simple and easy to accomplish, requiring just a few steps and a bit of luck. For the complete how-to, refer to AwardWallet's step-by-step guide to upgrading to Emirates First Class with miles .

Earning Emirates Skywards miles

Emirates Skywards is a transfer partner of every major transferable point currency , which means the miles are easily attainable. Currently, you can transfer points from the following credit card rewards programs to Emirates:

Related: Do Emirates Skywards Miles Expire?

Book Through Air Canada Aeroplan

Another way to book Emirates First Class is using Air Canada Aeroplan points. Air Canada employs a dedicated award chart for Emirates-operated award flights. But unlike most of Aeroplan's award charts for other carriers, Emirates awards are priced in a range, making it hard to know for sure what you'll pay for an award.

However, you can get a general idea of the number of points necessary for an Emirates award by taking a look at the ranges:

Finding Emirates award availability through Air Canada Aeroplan is a challenge. Air Canada sued Seats.aero , so this popular award search option might not be very helpful when you filter by Air Canada directly.

An option is looking for award availability on Emirates directly (or its Seats.aero page ) and checking if the itinerary is bookable with Aeroplan points. Emirates doesn't make every First Class award to its Canadian partner , so your mileage may vary when booking with Aeroplan points.

Related: Here's How Much You'll Pay When Redeeming Aeroplan Points for Emirates Flights

Earning Air Canada Aeroplan points

If you get lucky and find an Emirates First Class award you can book with Aeroplan points, you can transfer in points from a few different credit card rewards programs, including:

Related: Do Air Canada Aeroplan Points Expire?

Book Through Qantas Frequent Flyer

You also can book Emirates First Class by redeeming Qantas Frequent Flyer points. Qantas publishes a partner award chart, which outlines what you'll pay for awards on Emirates and a dozen other airline partners. At present, Qantas' partner award chart looks like this:

Searching for availability is most easily done on Seats.aero , but you also can scroll through the short weekly calendar on Qantas' website. It's always worth comparing costs when booking awards through Qantas, as some routes are cheaper than those booked with Skywards miles directly.

For a side-by-side comparison, here's the number of Qantas points you'll pay for the selection of routes:

• New York-Kennedy (JFK) to Milan (MXP): 107,700 points
• Newark (EWR) to Athens (ATH): 129,300 points
• Toronto (YYZ) to Dubai (DXB): 149,800 points
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Dubai (DXB): 170,800 points
• Houston (IAH) to Dubai (DXB):  170,800 points
• Los Angeles (LAX) to Dubai (DXB): 170,800 points

Earning Qantas Frequent Flyer points

You can build a balance of Qantas Frequent Flyer points by transferring rewards from a short list of major transferable currencies at 1:1 ratios.

Related: Do Qantas Frequent Flyer Points Expire?

Final Thoughts

Emirates First Class is one of the best ways to fly. And thankfully, these cabins are bookable with points and miles. You can book your way into luxury with Emirates Skywards miles, Qantas Frequent Flyer points, and Air Canada Aeroplan points — assuming you're lucky enough to find availability.

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Emirates Skywards Program: Everything You Need to Know

Updated: January 16, 2024

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The name Emirates has essentially become synonymous with the airline’s legendary first-class product. The carrier advertises its first-class cabins with the phrase “as close as it comes to your own private jet” and it’s not much of an exaggeration.

These seats come with your own private shower spa, a comfortable lie-flat bed, complimentary skin care products and access to a bar lounge. Emirates undoubtedly offers one of the best first-class products in the entire airline industry.

However, Emirates doesn’t offer only premium private cabins. Emirates is known for providing an excellent in-flight experience even when flying in economy. These seats come standard with entertainment systems as well as a ton of accommodations for children, such as stuffed animals, special kids’ meals and travel-themed activity packs.

Historically, there have been much cheaper ways to book Emirates award flights than through the Emirates Skywards program. Specifically, booking Emirates awards through JAL Mileage Bank was (and still is) oftentimes much cheaper than booking Emirates awards through Emirates Skywards. However, in recent years, Emirates miles have become easier to earn, making Emirates Skywards a more noteworthy frequent-flyer program.

Let’s cover Emirates Skywards elite status, how to earn Emirates Skywards miles, how to redeem those miles and more. And, yes, we’ll touch on how you can book a first-class award ticket for cheap.

Emirates Skywards Program Overview

Emirates is one of the largest airlines in the world by several metrics and operates routes to all of the world’s inhabited continents. Their hub city is Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and most of their routes are across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. However, it also operates routes to several major U.S. cities, including Boston, New York City, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Orlando, Washington and Miami.

Members of the Emirates Skywards program can earn miles in several different ways, including flying on Emirates itself or flying with certain partner airlines. Below is a full list of Emirates’s partner airlines:

Out of all the aforementioned partner airlines, the only airline on which you can’t earn Emirates Skywards miles is easyJet. All the others allow you to earn Emirates Skywards miles when you fly with them. And you have the option to spend your miles on any of the previously listed airline partners.

Unfortunately, Emirates doesn’t allow you to earn Tier Miles (the metric used to earn elite status with Emirates Skywards) on partner airlines.

Emirates Skywards Elite Status

The Emirates Skywards program has four elite status tiers: Blue, Silver, Gold and Platinum. The first tier, Blue, is earned as soon as you sign up for the Emirates Skywards program. To earn the higher tiers, you’ll need to either earn a certain number of Tier Miles, take a certain number of flights or make purchases with an Emirates Skywards co-branded credit card.

Tier Miles are calculated using the fare type, the route and the fare class. This can be a bit complicated. So, to make things easier, Emirates has a Miles Calculator tool that can tell you how many Skywards miles and Tier Miles you’ll earn for taking a specific flight.

For example, if you were to take a round-trip flight from Seattle to Dubai on Emirates in Economy Special class as a Blue member of the Skywards program, you’d earn 2,100 Skywards miles and 2,100 Tier Miles. However, if you were to take the same exact flight in Economy Saver class, you would instead earn 4,200 Skywards miles and 4,200 Tier Miles.

As you can see, the number of Tier Miles that you earn heavily depends on the fare class that you’re booked in. However, the number of Tier Miles that you earn isn’t influenced by the elite status that you have in the Emirates Skywards program. The number of Skywards miles that you earn, on the other hand, is affected by your elite status.

As previously mentioned, you can move up in elite status by completing a certain number of flights. However, only flights operated by Emirates or Flydubai will count towards your total.

You can also earn Emirates Skywards elite status by signing up for one of the Emirates Skywards co-branded credit cards. You’ll automatically earn either Gold or Silver elite status for signing up for one of these cards and then you can earn even more Tier Miles through spending.

So, now that you know how to earn Tier Miles to achieve elite status, let’s talk about why you’d want to earn elite status in the first place. The following table outlines how to earn each elite status tier and the benefits of each status tier.

Once you achieve a status tier, you’ll enjoy that elite status tier for the next 14 months even if you don’t earn enough Tier Miles or take enough flights to retain the status tier in your annual review. For instance, if you achieve Gold elite status in June 2024, you’ll retain that elite status until August 2025 (which is 14 months from June 2024) regardless of how many Tier Miles you earn during that 14-month period.

However, if you want to keep that status for another 14-month period, you’ll need to earn enough Tier Miles or complete enough eligible flights to retain that status within 12 months. For instance, if you first earn Silver elite status in June 2024, you have until June 2025 to earn another 25,000 Tier Miles or complete another 25 flights to retain Silver elite status. If you don’t meet those requirements, you’ll still enjoy silver elite status through August 2025.

Skywards Skysurfers

Unlike most other airline loyalty programs, Emirates has a loyalty program for kids between the ages of 2 and 17 that allows them to earn Skywards miles and even earn elite status. Parents can enroll their children in the program by simply logging into their own Skywards account, creating a Skywards Skysurfers account for their child and then linking the accounts.

Skywards Surfers earn Skywards miles and Tier Miles on flights just like any adult Emirates Skywards member. However, Skywards Skysurfers members are eligible to earn Silver and Gold elite status only. They can’t become Platinum elite members.

Skywards Surfers can’t book award flights on their own. Their parent or guardian must log in to their own account and request to make an award booking in the name of the Skywards Skysurfers member.

How to Earn Emirates Skywards Miles

There are many ways to earn Emirates Skyward miles, some of which are more worth paying attention to than others. Of course, the most straightforward way to earn miles is by taking flights with Emirates (or Flydubai). However, you can also earn miles at varying rates by flying with all of Emirates’s airline partners, except for easyJet.

There are also less obvious ways to earn Skywards miles, such as spending on Emirates co-branded credit cards, shopping online or in-store with retail partners, renting cars, booking hotels and more.

Let’s take a look at all of the different ways to earn Emirates Skywards miles and which ones can really help you earn that next award flight.

Flying with Emirates or Flydubai

Unlike many U.S. airlines that base their miles earnings on the amount you pay for your ticket, the number of miles that you’ll earn while flying with Emirates or Flydubai is based on your fare type, the route and your fare class. Both Emirates and Flydubai offer the same number of miles for every flight (since Flydubai uses Skywards miles as its native rewards currency).

However, neither Emirates nor Flydubai publish an earnings chart. So, the only way to accurately predict how many miles (and Tier Miles) you’ll earn on a flight is by using their online Miles Calculator tool.

You can simply input whether you’re flying with Emirates or Flydubai, your origin and destination, your cabin class and your elite status with Emirates Skywards. Once you hit the “Calculate” button, you’ll see the number of Skywards miles and Tier Miles that you’ll earn with each fare type.

For instance, if you enter your cabin class as “Economy Class,” you’ll see how many miles and Tier Miles you’ll earn for the Economy Special, Economy Saver, Economy Flex and Economy Flex Plus fare types.

Flying with Partner Airlines

You can earn Skywards miles with any of Emirates’s partner airlines, except easyJet. Unfortunately, each of these partner airlines has their own specific set of rules for how many Skywards miles you can earn. Unlike with Emirates and Flydubai, there’s no calculator tool to tell you how many miles you’ll earn for a partner flight.

So, if you want to know how many Emirates Skywards miles you can earn for flying with a partner airline, you’ll need to go to the “ Our Partners ” page on the Emirates website and find the specific partner that you’re flying with. Then, click the “Learn more” button to see how that airline earns Skywards miles.

When earning Skywards miles with partners, the number of miles depends on the specific partner, fare class, fare type and distance flown.

For instance, when flying with Air Canada, you can choose to earn Skywards miles. You’ll earn 1 mile per mile flown in economy class, 1.1 miles per mile flown in economy premium and 1.5 miles per mile flown in business class.

Unfortunately, Emirates isn’t particularly generous when issuing Skywards miles for partner flights (most partners are capped between 1 and 2 miles per mile flown in every fare class). So, you’re probably better off just earning that airline’s native rewards currency (unless you’re a major Emirates loyalist).

Spending with an Emirates Co-Branded Credit Card

Currently, Emirates offers two co-branded personal credit cards to U.S. consumers, both of which are issued by Barlclays.

The Emirates Skywards Rewards World Elite Mastercard® has an annual fee of $99 and is the airline’s entry-level card whereas the Emirates Skywards Premium World Elite Mastercard® is the airline’s top-tier card with an annual fee of $499.

Both cards are currently offering welcome bonuses that you can earn after meeting certain minimum-spending requirements. This is a fantastic way to rack up a bunch of Skywards miles quickly.

Both cards also come with automatic Emirates Skywards elite status and offer the ability to earn Skywards miles for everyday spending.

The following chart breaks down these two Emirates co-branded credit cards and their respective features.

The Skywards miles that you earn with either card won’t expire, and there’s no limit to the number of Skywards miles that you can earn.

As you can see, both cards offer the exact same spending bonuses despite having vastly different annual fees. However, the Emirates Skywards Premium Card makes up for its higher annual fee with automatic Gold elite status, the application fee credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck and unlimited complimentary Priority Pass lounge access.

Having Gold elite status means you’ll earn 75% more miles when flying with Emirates or Flydubai, and you’ll receive other perks like guaranteed seating and priority baggage delivery.

Both of these cards offer a 25% discount when purchasing or gifting miles. However, purchasing and gifting points is a bad deal. Even with a discount, you probably don’t want to purchase or gift points.

The Premium version of the card offers $499 off the price of four tickets (for a total of $1,996 in savings), and the Rewards version of the card offers $99 off the price of four tickets (for a total of $396 in savings). Unfortunately, these deals aren’t as valuable as they might seem. There are so many conditions and exclusions around these offers that it will make your head spin. Still, if you hold either one of these cards, it’s worth reading the terms and trying to take advantage of whatever savings you can.

Overall, if you’re a U.S. traveler, then neither of these cards are attractive. First of all, you’re probably better off going with a co-branded credit card from an airline that you fly with more often. And, second, neither of these cards (and particularly the Premium Card) offer impressive spending bonuses and benefits for their annual fees.

Car Rentals

Emirates Skywards allows you to earn miles by renting cars from their partners. However, the number of points you earn depends on the specific partner that you’re renting from. Here are the Skywards program’s rental car partners and their respective earnings rates.

If you choose not to book your car rental through the links on the Emirates Skywards, make sure that you inform your rental company that you wish to earn Emirates Skywards miles for your rental.

Booking Hotel Stays

Emirates Skywards gives members the opportunity to earn miles for booking hotel stays through their own hotel-booking portal called Emirates Skywards Hotels. By booking through this portal, you can earn up to 10,000 miles per night on every booking. Plus, you’ll earn an additional 2,500 miles if you pay for your booking with an Emirates Skywards co-branded credit card.

To use this portal, you can go to the Emirates Skywards Hotels website and enter your destination, your desired travel dates and the number of guests.

Then, you’ll be displayed a list of hotels that match your search and the number of miles you’d earn for the stay.

You can also earn Skywards miles for booking hotel stays with Emirates’s hotel partners. The following chart includes the different hotel partners that allow you to earn Skywards miles and their respective earnings rates.

It’s also worth noting that you can convert certain hotel rewards currencies to Skywards miles. Here are the currencies that you can convert to Skywards miles and their respective transfer ratios:

• Accor Live Limitless (2:1)
• Hilton Honors (10:1)
• IHG One Rewards (5:1)
• Marriott Bonvoy (3:1)
• World of Hyatt (2.5:1)

As you can see, none of these hotel partners offer a favorable transfer ratio. So, you’re probably better off redeeming these currencies in their native programs rather than transferring them to Emirates Skywards and instantly eroding their value.

Transfer Partners

One great way to boost your Skywards miles balance is to transfer points from one of the major transferable credit card points programs. Emirates Skywards partners with all of the major transferable point programs, all of which convert to Skywards miles at a 1:1 ratio.

Here are the major transfer partners of the Emirates Skywards programs:

• American Express Membership Rewards
• Bilt Rewards
• Capital One Rewards
• Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Citi ThankYou Rewards
• HSBC Rewards

It’s worth noting that American Express Membership Rewards points convert to Emirates Skywards miles at a 1:1 ratio only for consumers living in the U.S., the U.K. and Greece. A different transfer ratio will apply to American Express Membership Rewards members in other countries.

Transferring points from one of these credit card programs is an excellent way to top off your Skywards miles balance for a specific redemption or even pay for an entire award flight through the Emirates Skywards program.

Shopping for Miles

Emirates Skywards allows you to earn miles for making shopping purchases both online and in-store. Like many other airline loyalty programs, Emirates Skywards has its own online shopping portal called Skywards Miles @mall. You can use your Emirates Skywards credentials to log in to this shopping portal and then earn Skywards miles for making online purchases from more than 1,500 of your favorite brands.

The number of miles you’ll earn per dollar spent depends on the specific merchant, so make sure to check each merchant’s earnings rate before making your purchases.

If you often make online purchases anyway, you may as well pick up some extra Skywards miles (if that’s your frequent-flyer program of choice) by making your purchases through the Skywards Miles Mall.

Emirates Skywards also gives you the ability to earn miles while shopping in-store with the Skywards Everyday program. To use this program, simply download the Skywards Everyday app and link up to five Visa debit or credit cards to your account. You’ll automatically earn Skywards miles when you make eligible purchases with your linked credit cards.

Any Skywards miles you earn through the Skywards Everyday program will be in addition to any rewards that you already earn with your credit card. So, you can essentially earn double rewards when shopping with one of hundreds of Skywards Everyday partners across shopping, dining, beauty and wellness, leisure and entertainment, pharmacy and grocery.

You’ll earn 1 mile for every 3 United Arab Emirates dirham spent with all partners, except for partners that code as grocery or pharmacy (which earn 1 mile for every 5 dirham). At the current conversion rate, $1 is equal to about 3.70 dirham. So, the earnings rate for most partners would be slightly about 1 mile per dollar spent, except for grocery and pharmacy partners.

Unfortunately, many of these partners are based in the United Arab Emirates and have little or no presence in the United States. So, this program probably won’t earn you many miles if you live in the United States. Still, there’s really no downside to just linking your credit cards, forgetting about it and then being presently surprised when you earn some miles whenever you happen to shop with a Emirates Everyday partner.

On top of the two aforementioned programs, Emirates Skywards also has several other shopping partners that allow you to earn Skywards miles for eligible spending. The following chart includes all of these shopping partners and their respective earnings rates.

Buying Emirates Skywards Miles

As with most frequent-flyer programs, Emirates Skywards gives you the option to purchase miles with cash. However, doing so is typically not a good idea. You can purchase miles starting at $30 for 1,000 miles, which means you’d be paying 3 cents per mile.

You have the option to purchase up to 100,000 miles or 200,000 miles per year, depending on your membership tier. Once again, we don’t recommend it.

Emirates Business Rewards

Emirates has its own corporate loyalty program called Business Rewards that allows you to earn “Business Rewards Points” for your business travel. You can enroll in the program no matter how many people you have in your business organization and earn 1 point per dollar spent on business travel with Emirates. Just like Skywards miles, Business Rewards points can be spent on flights and upgrades.

Any Business Rewards Points that you earn will be in addition to any Skywards miles that you earn. Unfortunately, Business Rewards Points and Skywards miles can’t be combined. So, you’ll have to spend your Business Rewards Points and Skywards miles separately.

If you have an eligible business organization and you often book travel with Emirates for business, then you should definitely sign up for Emirates Business Rewards and start earning points for your spending.

How to Redeem Emirates Skywards Miles

There are many ways to redeem Emirates Skywards miles. However, if you want to get good value out of your hard-earned miles, you’ll probably want to stick to redeeming them for award flights with either Emirates or one of their airline partners. Nevertheless, we’ll still cover all of the different ways to redeem Skywards miles.

We’ll also cover some of the best ways to maximize the value of your Skywards miles by identifying some sweet spots within the Emirates Skywards program.

Booking Hotels

Emirates allows you to redeem Skywards miles for hotel stays through the Emirates Skywards Hotels portal. To do so, you can go to the Emirates Skywards Hotels website and select the “Redeem Skywards Miles” tab. Enter your destination, travel dates and number of guests.

Once you hit the “Search hotels” button, you’ll see a list of all of the hotels that match your search and the cost of the stay in miles. You’ll also have the option to pay with a combination of miles and cash.

As you can see above, a two-night stay at The Manhattan Hotel at Times Square would cost you 101,087 Skywards miles. Alternatively, you could pay 69,058 miles and $144 in cash, 37,029 miles and $288 in cash, or 5,000 miles and $432 in cash.

Unfortunately, redeeming your Skywards miles for hotel stays usually provides low value. For instance, if you were to book the same two-night stay at The Manhattan Hotel at Times Square with cash, you would pay $199 per night, which comes out to $398 for the entire stay. So, if you were to book this stay with miles, you’d be getting about 0.4 cent per mile in value ($398 x 100 cents / 101,087 miles = 0.4 cent per mile).

In almost every case, you’re better off booking your hotel stays with cash and earning Skywards miles and then saving those miles for award flight redemptions.

Shopping with Miles

Not only can you earn miles for shopping online, you also can redeem your Skywards miles for merchandise and experiences through certain partners.

First of all, you can make online purchases with miles through the Emirates Official Store when you log in with your account information. This online store sells electronics, luggage, toys, tons of Emirates-branded gear and more.

There are also several other shopping partners that you can redeem your Skywards miles with, including:

• Arabian Adventures
• Emirates Vacations
• Heathrow Rewards

To book Emirates Vacations packages with miles, you have to call the Emirates Vacations call center or visit one of the Emirates Vacations retail outlets.

Unfortunately, none of these redemption methods offer good value per mile. In general, you’ll want to stick to redeeming your miles for award flights and stay away from shopping partners.

Award Flights with Emirates

Seeing as Emirates isn’t part of any airline alliance, most redemptions that you make with Skywards miles will probably be on Emirates-operated flights. Luckily, Emirates has a massive fleet and route network. In fact, Emirates has the world’s largest fleet of Boeing 777 aircraft as well as the world’s largest fleet of Airbus A380. So, Emirates has a whole lot of jumbo jets, each with a ton of seats.

The location of Emirates’ hub in Dubai also makes this a great airline to connect passengers flying between Europe, Asia, Australia and North America.

Unfortunately, Emirates no longer publishes an award chart and switched to a dynamic pricing model several years ago, making it more difficult to identify sweet spots within the program. To find the price of a specific award flight, you’ll need to search for that specific flight on your desired date.

One of the best uses of Emirates Skywards miles for U.S. travelers is booking award flights from the U.S. to Europe in one of the airline’s famous premium cabins. Unfortunately, finding award availability in premium Emirates cabins can be difficult. However, if you’re able to find award seats, you should get excellent value per point as well as an experience that you can’t get on any other airline.

For instance, a one-way Emirates-operated flight in first class from New York (JFK) to Milan (MXP) would cost you 142,500 miles plus $1,580 in taxes and fees.

However, while those taxes and fees are extremely high, when you consider that this same flight would cost you $11,140.20 in cash, then you realize that it’s a pretty amazing deal.

Even with the taxes and fees, this redemption still gives you a value of about 6.7 cents per mile, which is outstanding. Plus, this is one of the most affordable ways to experience Emirates’ first-class product, one of the most luxurious and technologically advanced in the industry.

However, as previously mentioned, you may be able to book Emirates first class for even less through JAL Mileage Bank, the loyalty program of Japan Airlines. Although rates are usually lower through this program, it’s going to be much more difficult to find availability as Emirates is known to restrict availability through its partners. And no major bank program transfers to JAL Mileage Bank at the moment.

If you have your heart set on flying in Emirates first class, then the most reliable way to find an award ticket is by booking directly through Emirates Skywards.

Award Flights with Partners

You can redeem your Emirates Skywards miles for award flights with any one of its partners. Each of these partners has its own distance-based award chart within the Emirates Skywards program, meaning that you’ll need to visit the Our Partners page on the Emirates website, then click the “Learn more” button to see the redemption rates for each partner.

For example, here’s the award chart for Air Canada-operated flights booked through Emirates Skywards.

The rates that you see in this chart are for one-way flights. If you want to know the price of a round-trip flight on the same route, you can simply double the rate you see above. As you can see, flights are organized into zones by distance. Of course, prices vary by fare class as well.

In general, booking partner award flights through Emirates Skywards doesn’t provide a ton of value (because Emirates isn’t part of an airline alliance). However, there are a few partner redemptions that are worth noting.

For instance, you can usually find decent value on Japan Airlines-operated flights between Japan and Australia. We found a one-way flight from Tokyo to Sydney (SYD) in economy class for 38,000 miles and 12,090 Japanese yen in taxes and fees (which is about $85 at the current conversion rate).

This is a pretty good price for a route of almost 8,000 miles. The same flight costs $738.

At that cash rate, this redemption would give you a value of about 1.9 cents per mile, which is fairly good. It’s not as much value as you’d get as an Emirates redemption in first class, but it’s considerably more affordable.

Another partner that you may want to pay attention to if you’re looking for more affordable award flights is TAP Air Portugal. You may be able to book some affordable routes through Emirates Skywards on this airline between Portugal and the United States or between Portugal and other European countries.

You can also book well-priced flights between Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and London on Malaysia Airlines. Or you may want to consider taking domestic GOL-operated flights around Brazil.

However, for the most part, if you’re looking to get the most value out of your Skywards miles, then your best bet is to stick to booking award flights on Emirates metal.

The Bottom Line

In general, if you live in the United States, then the Emirates Skywards program probably isn’t the first frequent-flyer program on your mind. Emirates is based in Dubai and operates a large portion of its route network to the Middle East, Asia and Europe. Plus, Emirates isn’t part of an airline alliance, so it doesn’t offer much in the way of partner award redemptions (particularly for U.S. travelers).

However, if you’re interested in trying out Emirates’s world-famous first class product, then booking with Emirates Skywards miles is probably the most accessible way to do so. You can often book Emirates first-class awards for fewer miles through JAL Mileage Bank. However, finding award availability through this program is going to be far more difficult than through the Emirates Skywards program.

Although it’s possible to find some decent value on partner awards through the Emirates Skywards program, for the most part, you’ll want to stick to redeeming your miles for Emirates-operated flights. Since Emirates’s route network in the United States is fairly limited, you’ll probably want to prioritize earning other airline miles over Emirates Skywards miles.

Still, there are some things to like about the Emirates Skywards program. It’s one of the few programs that allows kids under the age of 18 to earn miles and even earn elite status. Emirates Skywards is also a transfer partner of every major transferable credit card rewards program including American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Brex, Capital One Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou Rewards.

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Editors Note: Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.

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The Complete Guide to Emirates Skywards

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Table of Contents

About Emirates

Emirates skywards frequent flyer sign-up, how much emirates miles are worth, emirates skywards elite status tiers, how to earn emirates miles, how to redeem emirates miles, how to contact emirates, how long do emirates skywards points last, emirates skywards, recapped.

Have you seen those photos of ridiculously blinged-out airline seats? You know the ones: They often include flashy big-screen TVs, pop-up minibars, digital windows and seats so big you could melt right into them.

These luxurious cabins belong to Emirates, an international airline based in the United Arab Emirates. While the airline will happily sell you a ticket to fly in these seats, we’ve got another way.

(Photo by Brad Walters)

In this guide to the airline’s loyalty program, Emirates Skywards, we'll show you how to gain elite status, earn miles and redeem them for those super-fancy seats — without even traveling to the Middle East.

Emirates isn’t all gold-hued seats and private cabins. It has all the regular cabins you’d expect from an airline, including economy class seating. Yet even Emirates economy class sets the bar high in terms of quality. Emirates was the first airline to introduce individual television screens in economy class (that was way back in 1992), and it continues to innovate with above-average ergonomic features and high-quality food and entertainment.

What the airline is really known for, however, is its ultra-exclusive first class products, which offer perks such as onboard showers, standing bars for business and first class travelers, and state-of-the-art, faux digital windows (in case you get a middle suite). The first class bathroom on the Emirates A380 aircraft even has heated floors.

Emirates operates four different cabins of service: economy , premium economy , business class and first class . Though, you won’t find each class of service on every flight since planes are configured differently. That's especially true of Emirates premium economy, which was only just announced in 2021 on a small set of routes, but has been rapidly expanding.

» Learn more: The best perks of Emirates Airlines first class

Emirates Premium Economy. (Photo by Sally French)

Main U.S. routes on Emirates

Emirates operates flights between its Dubai hub and the following U.S. cities:

Chicago-O’Hare.

Houston-Intercontinental.

Los Angeles.

New York-John F. Kennedy.

San Francisco.

Washington-Dulles. 

The airline also flies between Newark and Athens, Greece, and between New York-John F. Kennedy and Milan. Historically these so-called “ fifth freedom ” routes have been an easy way to fly the airline for a relatively low number of miles compared with flying all the way to Dubai.

To sign up for the Skywards program, go to this page and complete the form. You’ll be given the option to receive promotional emails, which can be helpful to keep up with fare sales, new routes and the like.

NerdWallet values Emirates miles at 0.6 cent per point, as of our most recent analysis . In January 2023 the program increased its award pricing across the board for premium cabins, so you’ll want to make sure these miles still represent a good value to you.

To help you understand how much your Emirates Skywards miles are worth , we compared cash prices and reward redemptions for economy round-trip routes across several destinations and dates. We divided the cost of the cash ticket by the cost of the reward ticket to determine a “cent per mile” value for each flight, then averaged this value across several flights and dates.

Emirates has four elite tiers: Blue, Silver, Gold and Platinum. Here’s what’s required to earn each status at a glance, along with some notable perks:

Let’s dive deeper into each tier’s benefits:

Emirates Blue status benefits

Special member-only offers and travel packages by tier.

Ability to nominate a personal “travel coordinator” for your account.

Priority waitlist for fully-booked flights.

Buy upgrades using your miles at the airport.

Paid Business Class lounge access in Dubai and other select airports.

Free Wi-Fi when traveling in first class.

Emirates Silver status benefits

Complimentary access to any Emirates Business Class lounge in Dubai.

Additional lounge access for a fee.

Free Wi-Fi when traveling in business or first class.

Complimentary seat selection when flying economy (regular seats only).

Extra baggage allowance up to 26 pounds (12 kilograms).

A 30% bonus on earned miles when flying Emirates.

Priority check-in and boarding.

Emirates Gold status benefits

Complimentary lounge access for yourself and one adult guest at any Emirates Business Class lounge in Dubai and at lounges throughout the Emirates network.

Access to preferred seats in economy.

Extra baggage allowance up to 35 pounds (16 kilograms).

A 50% bonus on earned miles when flying Emirates.

Gold-level priority service when calling the call center.

Priority baggage tagging upon arrival, where available.

Emirates Platinum status benefits

Complimentary lounge access for yourself, one adult guest and two guests under 17 at any Emirates Business Class lounge in Dubai and at lounges throughout the Emirates network.

Additional guest lounge access for a fee.

Free Wi-Fi when traveling in any cabin.

Access to preferred seats in economy, including Extra Legroom seats.

Extra baggage allowance up to 44 pounds (20 kilograms).

A 100% bonus on earned miles when flying Emirates.

Platinum-level priority service when calling the call center.

Priority first-class baggage tagging, when available.

Access to Last Seat Classic Flex Plus reward tickets.

Ability to gift Gold status to one other person.

No expiration of Skywards miles.

» Learn more: The best airline and hotel rewards loyalty programs this year

The Emirates lounge at San Francisco International Airport. (Photo by Sally French)

There are multiple ways to earn Emirates Skyward miles, from flying on Emirates and its partner airlines to using a transferable currency or holding an Emirates co-branded credit card. Here are all the ways you can increase your balance of Skyward miles.

Earning when you fly Emirates

Unlike most U.S. airlines, Emirates calculates earned miles based on distance flown and fare class, rather than the ticket cost. On top of that, as noted above, Silver members earn 30% bonus miles per flight, Gold members earn 75% and Platinum members earn 100%.

As a Blue member, here’s what you’d earn on a one-way flight between Miami and Dubai, for example:

Economy (saver level): 3,600 miles.

Business (saver level): 15,000 miles.

First: 30,000 miles.

Earning when you fly other airlines

Emirates lists more than a dozen airline partners through which you can earn miles through flying, including Air Canada (but no U.S. airlines at this time). You’ll earn up to 2 Skywards miles per mile flown on these partner airlines, as long as you choose to credit your flights to Emirates.

Earning Emirates miles with a credit card

Emirates launched two credit cards for U.S. travelers a few years ago, both issued through Barclays. The bonuses on these cards alone are enough to get you well on your way to an award flight.

The Emirates Skywards Premium World Elite Mastercard® charges a $499 annual fee and comes with the following:

Bonus offer: Earn 40,000 bonus Skywards Miles after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 90 days.

Earnings rate: 3 miles per dollar spent with Emirates, 2 miles per dollar spent on qualifying travel purchases and 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases.

Perks: Instant Gold status for a year, no foreign transaction fees, Priority Pass Select lounge access, fee waiver for Global Entry or TSA Precheck application and 10,000 anniversary miles.

Meanwhile, for a $99 annual fee, the Emirates Skywards Rewards World Elite Mastercard® includes:

Bonus offer: Earn 30,000 bonus Skywards Miles after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 90 days.

Perks: Instant Silver status for a year and no foreign transaction fees.

» Learn more: Are the new Emirates Mastercards worth their fee?

Transferable currencies to Emirates

Even if you don’t fly Emirates often or use its credit cards, their miles are relatively easy to rack up via transfer from major reward programs. Miles can be transferred on a 1:1 basis to Emirates from American Express Membership Rewards , Capital One Miles , Chase Ultimate Rewards ®, and Citi ThankYou rewards. You can also transfer on a 3:1 basis from Marriott Bonvoy , and at varying other rates from hotel partners, car rentals or Brex rewards .

Earning Emirates miles through partners

Rental cars: Earn 1 mile per dollar spent when booking a rental car through Emirates’ website via their partner CarTrawler.

Hotel stays: Earn up to 10,000 Skywards miles per night booking hotels through Emirates, and tack on 2,500 miles if you use a co-branded Emirates credit card to do so. There can be additional bonus offers available too. You can also earn miles staying at a variety of hotel chains.

Shopping portals: Earn miles with every dollar spent at over 1,000 stores through the Emirates Skywards mall.

Other partners: Emirates has a number of other partnerships with which you can earn miles, including cabs, a rideshare service and the Dubai Mall.

Pooling Emirates miles

Emirates allows you to create a family account of up to eight members, including yourself. You can credit 100% of reward miles earned by family members to this account.

Buying, gifting or transferring Emirates miles

Emirates lets you buy or gift miles, to the tune of $30 per 1,000 miles up to a maximum of 100,000 to 200,000 miles per year, based on your elite tier level. You can also transfer miles for $15 per 1,000 miles, up to 50,000 miles per year.

» Learn more: 5 sweet spots for Emirates miles

Emirates doesn’t publish an award chart for its own flights, but the airline makes it pretty easy to figure out how many miles a flight will cost. Use the airline’s mileage calculator to select your city pairs, then click “calculate.” On the results page, select the “spend” tab to see how many miles the itinerary costs.

Beware that Emirates will also levy surcharges on its own flights — sometimes hundreds of dollars.

When booking flights, you’ll have the option to pay with a combination of cash and miles. This can significantly knock down the cash price of a flight, so it’s worth checking out if you have a specific itinerary in mind and don’t have enough miles for a reward ticket.

Good Emirates redemption options

Award flights to Europe: The most competitive use of Emirates miles for most American travelers is on the airline’s flights between the U.S. and Europe. Here’s what you’ll pay to fly between New York-John F. Kennedy and Milan in one direction in the airline’s premium cabins:

Similar rates typically apply to the airline’s other U.S.-to-Europe route, between Newark and Athens.

These are solid rates compared with other rewards programs, especially considering you’re paying for an experience you won’t get on most other airlines flying between the U.S. and Europe. Flights on the A380 like the one above, for example, feature an on-board lounge for first class and business class passengers and private showers for those in first class.

Just make sure to factor in the added costs of any connecting flight you’d have to take.

» Learn more: How to book Emirates first class with points

If you’re flying between Europe and Dubai and want to do so in the highest possible style, try to snag one of Emirates’ newer 777s with a first class cabin featuring just six seats that are enclosed from floor to ceiling. The two middle seats include digital windows that project images from cameras outside of the plane in real time. As of this writing, the planes generally fly between Dubai and the following European cities: Brussels, Frankfurt, Geneva, London-Stansted, Nice and Zurich.

Partner redemptions: You can sometimes find good value in redeeming Skywards miles on partner airlines. Emirates isn’t a part of any of the major airline alliances, but you can see the airlines they partner with here , along with distance-based award charts for flying on each airline.

Award upgrades: Once you’ve booked a flight in cash, you can use your miles to upgrade to the next available class of service, assuming seats are available. Depending on how good a deal your cash ticket was, this can sometimes be a cheap way to upgrade your experience.

Free stopovers: Depending on the award fare booked, getting an extended stopover (more than 24 hours) in Dubai may be possible without using extra miles. These aren’t always bookable online so if it’s something you’re interested in, you’ll want to call in and ask.

» Learn more: The best airline credit cards right now

Bad Emirates redemption options

Award flights to Dubai and beyond: Unfortunately, pretty much any Emirates flight between the U.S. and the carrier’s hub in Dubai, and onward, will cost you. Flying one way from Los Angeles to the Emirati capital in business class, you’ll owe a whopping 157,500 miles plus over $800 in surcharges:

But note that flying economy knocks off most of the surcharges, as in this example between Washington-Dulles and Dubai:

Use the airline’s mileage calculator to plug in other examples of your choosing. Just remember to click “calculate,” then “spend” to see how much the itinerary costs.

Non-flight redemptions: You can use your Emirates miles to book hotels or special events directly, but these generally represent a poor value. If you have limited miles to burn, the Emirates store allows you to purchase airline merchandise with miles.

Other ways to redeem miles for Emirates flights

If Emirates miles are difficult to come by, you can book their flights through a variety of other airline programs, including Air Canada’s Aeroplan , Japan Airlines’ Mileage Bank and Qantas Frequent Flyer. Availability generally isn’t as good as when booking directly through Emirates. Be sure to watch out for potentially hefty surcharges.

» Learn more: Your guide to airline bonus point promotions

Emirates’ U.S. phone number is 1-800-777-3999. In addition, you can access the airline via live chat, or contact them through Facebook or Twitter.

Miles expire three years after they are earned or transferred, unless you have Platinum status, in which case they never expire. Additionally, Emirates lets you pay to extend any miles that are set to expire in the next three months. You can extend them for 12 months beyond their original expiration date.

It can be surprisingly easy to rack up miles with the Emirates Skywards program, especially given their many transfer partners. Whether you’re looking to redeem those miles for an economy-class experience or one of their famous premium cabins, you have plenty of solid options to do so.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are some of the best travel credit cards of 2024 :

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Wells Fargo Autograph℠ Card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

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Points Programs

Hotel programs, best credit cards.

The Essential Guide to

Emirates skywards.

Updated on: July 4, 2023

Best Ways to Earn

Barclays co-branded credit cards. Transfer from US credit card programs.

Best Ways to Redeem

Emirates First Class. Emirates fifth-freedom flights.

Emirates Skywards is the loyalty program of Emirates and its associated low-cost carrier Flydubai. Emirates flies the world’s biggest fleets of Airbus A380s and Boeing 777s to 158 destinations in 85 countries. In Canada, the airline flies to Toronto and Montreal, while in the US, it flies to 11 gateway cities, including New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Emirates is well-known for its stellar business class and First Class products, and the Skywards program unlocks opportunities for you to enjoy those experiences without paying full price. In this guide, we’ll cover everything there is to know about Emirates Skywards, including how to optimize your earning and redeeming within the program.

Earning Emirates Skywards Miles

Barclays co-branded credit cards (us).

Transferring from Other Programs

• American Express US Membership Rewards
• Capital One Miles
• Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Citi ThankYou Rewards
• Accor Live Limitless: 2 points = 1 Skywards mile
• Hilton Honors : 10 points = 1 Skywards mile
• IHG One Rewards: 5 points = 1 Skywards mile
• World of Hyatt : 2.5 points = 1 Skywards mile

Flying with Emirates and Flydubai

Flying with Partner Airlines

• Air Mauritius
• Bangkok Airways
• Copa Airlines
• Japan Airlines
• Malaysia Airlines
• South African Airways
• TAP Portugal
• United Airlines

Buy Skywards Miles

Multiply skywards miles.

Other Ways to Earn Skywards Miles

• Hertz: 5 miles per dollar (USD) spent
• Avis and Budget: up to 8 Skywards miles per dollar (USD) spent
• CarTrawler: 1 mile per dollar (USD) spent
• Europcar: up to 1,200 Skywards miles per rental
• SIXT: up to 1,200 Skywards miles per rental

• Hyatt: 500 miles per eligible stay
• IHG: 2 miles per dollar (USD) spent
• Jumeirah Hotels: 1 mile per dollar (USD) spent
• Marriott International: 1 mile per dollar (USD) spent
• One and Only Resorts: 1 mile per dollar (USD) spent
• Rotana Hotels: 500 miles per eligible stay

Redeeming Emirates Skywards Miles

Emirates flights.

• You can’t stop over on a one-way Saver award.
• You can stop over once in either direction on a round-trip Saver award.
• You can stop over on a one-way Flex award.
• You can stop over in both directions on a round-trip Flex award.

Flydubai Flights

Partner Flights

Flight Upgrades

Other Ways to Redeem Skywards Miles

Emirates Skywards Sweet Spots

• Accra (ACC) and Abidjan (ABJ)
• Conakry (CKY) and Dakar (DSS)
• Harare (HRE) and Lusaka (LUN)
• Hong Kong (HKG) and Bangkok (BKK)
• Larnaca (LCA) and Malta (MLA)
• Male (MLE) and Colombo (CMB)
• Mexico City (MEX) and Barcelona (BCN)
• New York City (JFK) and Milan (MXP)
• Newark (EWR) and Athens (ATH)
• Rio de Janeiro (GIG) and Buenos Aires (EZE)
• Sydney (SYD) and Christchurch (CHC)
• Singapore (SIN) and Melbourne (MEL)

Emirates Skywards Tips & Tricks

Emirates Skywards Status

• Silver: earn 25,000 Tier Miles or take 25 flights
• Gold: earn 50,000 Tier Miles or take 50 flights
• Platinum: earn 150,000 Tier Miles and at least one flight in business class or First Class
• Bonus Skywards miles when flying Emirates
• Complimentary seat selection
• Priority contact center service
• Priority check-in, boarding, and baggage delivery
• Excess baggage allowance
• Complimentary lounge access

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• Best Ways to Earn Emirates Skywards Points
• Guide to Emirates U.S. Routes
• How to Book Emirates Business Class Using Points
• How to Book Emirates First Class Using Points
• How to Redeem Emirates Skywards Points

Emirates Review – Seats, Amenities and More

Emirates Baggage Fees

Emirates Skywards Program Overview

Skywards is Emirates’ loyalty program. It is popular with frequent Emirates flyers for travel benefits and upgrade options.

Instead of joining an airline alliance, Emirates has several partner airlines around the world where you can earn and redeem Skywards miles.

Joining Emirates Skywards

Joining Skywards is free and easy — just register here .

How to Sign in to Your Emirates Skywards Account

Log in to your Skywards account here .

You’ll need your email address or Skywards account number and your password.

Viewing Your Account Activity

The Skywards My Account page is a hub for all your Skywards activity.

My Statement shows your activity.

You can also manage your account profile and settings and learn about earning and redeeming miles.

Mileage Expiration

Skywards miles expire after 3 years, even if you have continuing account activity.

You can get a few more months in some cases as miles don’t expire exactly 3 years from the date earned. Instead, they expire at the end of your birthday month in the calendar year 3 years from when they were earned. Every mile is good for at least 3 calendar years.

Emirates Skywards Program Benefits

New Skywards members start at Blue Tier. They can then earn Silver, Gold, or Platinum elite status through qualifying activity.

Skywards Elite Status Requirements:

• Silver: earn 25,000 Tier Miles or take 25 flights
• Gold: earn 50,000 Tier Miles or take 50 flights
• Platinum: earn 150,000 Tier Miles (no way to earn solely by flights)

Tier Miles are only earned on Emirates-operated flights or codeshares on other airlines that are marketed by Emirates (meaning the flight number on your tickets is an Emirates EK). Other flights operated by partners can earn redeemable miles only.

The Miles Calculator shows how many Tier Miles you will earn for each trip.

Rolling Tier means that instead of a calendar year, you have 12 to 13 months from the date you start earning Skywards miles through flights in which to meet the requirements for elite status.

When you reach an elite status tier, you then get a new 12 to 13-month clock to take enough flights that you requalify for another year (or advance to the next status tier).

Skywards Tier Benefits:

Emirates Skywards Blue:

• Member-only offers and travel packages
• Instant upgrades with miles at check-in
• Waitlist priority
• Paid lounge access

Emirates Skywards Silver:

All Blue benefits, plus:

• Priority service with the contact center
• Free seat selection
• Excess baggage allowance
• Access to any Emirates Business Class Lounge in Dubai
• Priority boarding
• 25% bonus miles on Emirates flights

Emirates Skywards Gold:

All Silver benefits, plus:

• Worldwide Emirates lounge access + 1 guest
• Priority baggage
• Free onboard Wi-Fi traveling in any cabin
• 50% bonus miles on Emirates flights

Emirates Skywards Platinum:

All Gold benefits, plus:

• First class check-in and baggage
• Worldwide Emirates first class lounge access + 1 adult guest and 2 guests under 17 years old
• Gold status for spouse or partner
• 75% bonus miles on Emirates flights
• No expiry of Skywards Miles

See the full chart of tier benefits for details and terms.

Value of Emirates Skywards Elite Status

Emirates Skywards status is almost entirely focused on frequent Emirates flyers. Since only Emirates-marketed codeshares on partners can earn Tier Points, to earn Skywards status you need to be primarily flying Emirates.

Naturally, then, status benefits are usually only applicable to Emirates flights. If you travel to many parts of the world on various airlines, Skywards status is probably not the right target for you.

On Emirates, Silver Tier status stands out compared to Blue — it’s required just to get free advance seat assignments.

Gold Tier status provides valuable business class lounge access through the Emirates network (not just in Dubai as with Silver Tier). This alone can be worth chasing Gold Tier status.

Few travelers will amass the Tier Points necessary for Platinum Tier. Those who do will receive coveted first class lounge access and priority travel benefits.

Emirates Business Rewards:

In addition to your personal Skywards account, you can register your small business in  Emirates Business Rewards .

You’ll earn 1 Business Rewards point per $1 spent when your employees travel on Emirates. There is no limit to the number of employees permitted on 1 account and no minimum spend.

Employees still earn their own Skywards miles in addition to the Business Rewards points you earn.

How to Earn Skywards Miles

Skywards has many partners that expand your mileage-earning opportunities far beyond flying.

Earn Skywards Miles Through Flying Emirates

The Miles Calculator is the easiest way to determine how many miles you’ll earn on an Emirates flight.

Earning is calculated using 4 factors:

• Fare type: Special, Saver, Flex, Flex Plus
• Class bonus: up to 175% bonus for flying first or business class
• Tier level: bonus by status Silver (25%), Gold (50%), Platinum (75%)

Earn Skywards Miles When Your Family Flies Emirates

Emirates Skywards My Family allows you to pool miles that your family members earn from flying Emirates. This excludes partner flights and other ways to earn Emirates miles.

Up to 7 travelers related to the designated family head may pool their miles: husband, wife, partner, father, mother, step-father, step-mother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son, step-son, daughter or step-daughter.

Each member can designate what percent of future earned miles will go to the pool: 100%, 75%, 50%, 25%, 10%, or 0%. You can adjust this rate at any time for future mile earnings. Prior earned miles do not go to the pool (you can still pay for miles transfer).

Like individual miles, My Family miles expire 3 years after they are earned (the end of the month of the Family Head’s birthday).

Earn Skywards Miles Through Flying Partner Airlines

Each Emirates Skywards partner airline is subject to its own mileage earning and award prices.

You’ll need to know the fare class of your ticket, which is not always easy to obtain. Try calling the airline.

Here’s an example for Air Mauritius:

Earn Miles With Credit Cards

You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Points, Capital One Miles, and Marriott Bonvoy points to Emirates Skywards.

Branded and Partnered Credit Cards

Instead of a U.S.-issued Emirates credit card, you can transfer points from American Express Membership Rewards , Chase Ultimate Rewards , Citi ThankYou Points , Capital One Miles , and Marriott Bonvoy to build up your Emirates Skywards Miles balance.

American Express Membership Rewards Credit Cards

American Express Membership Rewards points convert to Skywards miles at a rate of 1,000 points to 1,000 Skywards miles.

Recommended Amex Cards (Personal)

The Amex Platinum reigns supreme for luxury travel, offering the best airport lounge access plus generous statement credits, and complimentary elite status.

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When it comes to cards that offer top-notch benefits, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better card out there than The Platinum Card ® from American Express.

Make no mistake — the Amex Platinum card  is a premium card with a premium price tag. With amazing benefits like best-in-class airport lounge access , hotel elite status, and tremendous value in annual statement credits, it can easily prove to be one of the most lucrative cards in your wallet year after year.

• The best airport lounge access out of any card (by far) — enjoy access to over 1,400 worldwide lounges, including the luxurious Amex Centurion Lounges, Priority Pass lounges, Plaza Premium Lounges, and many more!
• 5x points per dollar spent on flights purchased directly with the airline or with AmexTravel.com (up to $500,000 per year)
• 5x points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels booked with AmexTravel.com
• $695 annual fee ( rates and fees )
• Airline credit does not cover airfare (only incidentals like checked bags)
• Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards ® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu.
• Earn 5X Membership Rewards ® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards ® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
• $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts ® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel using your Platinum Card ® . The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month on eligible purchases made with your Platinum Card ® on one or more of the following: Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required.
• The American Express Global Lounge Collection ® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market. As of 03/2023.
• $155 Walmart+ Credit: Save on eligible delivery fees, shipping, and more with a Walmart+ membership. Use your Platinum Card ® to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership and get up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes back on one membership (excluding Plus Ups) each month.
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card ® .
• $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. Uber Cash and Uber VIP status is available to Basic Card Member only. Terms Apply.
• $199 CLEAR ® Plus Credit: CLEAR ® Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $199 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues.
• Receive either a $100 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck ® (through a TSA official enrollment provider) application fee, when charged to your Platinum Card ® . Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost.
• Shop Saks with Platinum: Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases in Saks Fifth Avenue stores or at saks.com on your Platinum Card ® . That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
• Unlock access to exclusive reservations and special dining experiences with Global Dining Access by Resy when you add your Platinum Card ® to your Resy profile.
• $695 annual fee.¤
• Terms Apply.
• APR: See Pay Over Time APR
• Foreign Transaction Fees:  None

American Express Membership Rewards

This is the best card for food lovers who dine out at restaurants (worldwide), order take-out and want big rewards at U.S. supermarkets!

The American Express ® Gold Card  is a game-changer.

With this card, you can earn 4x Membership Rewards points at restaurants, up to $50,000 per calendar year, and you’ll also earn 4x Membership Rewards points at U.S. supermarkets on up to $25,000 per calendar year, then 1x.

There isn’t another card on the market that offers a 1-2 punch like this. Of course, there are several other benefits of the Gold Card as well, including extra monthly dining rewards and more.

• 4x points per dollar at restaurants worldwide, up to $50,000 per calendar year; then 1x thereafter
• 4x points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets, up to $25,000 per calendar year; then 1x thereafter
• 3x points per dollar on flights purchased directly from airlines or at AmexTravel.com
• $325 annual fee ( rates and fees )
• No lounge access
• Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards ® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.
• Get the American Express ® Gold Card in either the Gold, Rose Gold or Limited-Edition White Gold metal design. White Gold design is only available while supplies last.
• Earn 4X Membership Rewards ® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
• Earn 4X Membership Rewards ® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
• Earn 3X Membership Rewards ® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
• Earn 2X Membership Rewards ® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
• Earn 1X Membership Rewards ® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and each month automatically get $10 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S., totaling up to $120 per year.
• $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express ® Gold Card at Dunkin' locations.
• $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express ® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
• $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express ® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
• Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. Eligible charges vary by property.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees.
• Annual Fee is $325.

Recommended Amex Cards (Business)

This card is ideal for business travelers who enjoy luxury travel and are looking for a card loaded with benefits!

The Business Platinum Card ® from American Express is a premium travel rewards card tailored toward business owners who are frequent travelers with a high number of annual expenses.

When you factor in the large number of perks that the card offers like the best airport lounge access at over 1,400 lounges , along with tons of annual credits, it’s easy to see why this card can is a top option for frequent traveling business owners.

• 5x Membership Rewards points per $1 on flights and prepaid hotels at Amex Travel
• Access to over 1,400 worldwide airport lounges as part of the American Express Global Lounge Collection
• Get 50% more Membership Rewards points (1.5 points per $1) on eligible purchases in key business categories, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more (cap applies)
• High annual fee of $695 ( rates & fees )
• Airline fee credit does not cover airfare, only incidentals like checked bags
• Welcome Offer: Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards ® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
• 5X Membership Rewards ® points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com, and 1X points for each dollar you spend on eligible purchases.
• Earn 1.5X points (that’s an extra half point per dollar) on each eligible purchase at US construction material, hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more, on up to $2 million per Card Account per calendar year. Purchases eligible for multiple additional point bonuses will only receive the highest eligible bonus.
• Unlock over $1,000 in statement credits on select purchases, including tech, recruiting and wireless in the first year of membership with the Business Platinum Card ® . Enrollment required. See how you can unlock over $1,000 annually in credits on select purchases with the Business Platinum Card ® , here.
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to the Card.
• $199 CLEAR ® Plus Credit: Use your card and get up to $199 in statement credits per calendar year on your CLEAR ® Plus Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use the Business Platinum Card ® .
• The American Express Global Lounge Collection ® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market as of 03/2023.
• $695 Annual Fee.
• APR: 18.99% - 27.99% Variable

Get 4x points in 2 select categories where your business spends the most each month (on your first $150,000 spent each year).

The American Express ® Business Gold Card is excellent at racking up rewards for your business spend.

The card earns a whopping 4x points per $1 in the 2 categories (from a list of 6) that your business spends the most money on each month. With no need to opt-in or preselect your categories, so you can focus on what matters most — running your business.

• Transit purchases including trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, ferries, tolls, parking, buses, and subways
• U.S. purchases made from electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers
• Monthly wireless telephone service charges made directly from a wireless telephone service provider in the U.S.
• U.S. purchases at gas stations
• U.S. purchases at restaurants, including takeout and delivery
• Purchases at U.S. media providers for advertising in select media (online such as Google Ads, Facebook Ads, plus TV and radio)
• 3x points per dollar on flights and prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com using your Business Gold Card
• Access to Amex’s The Hotel Collection
• $375 annual fee ( rates and fees )
• No elite travel benefits like airport lounge access or elite status
• Welcome Offer: Earn 100,000 Membership Rewards ® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Gold Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.*
• 0% Intro APR ¤ for 6 months from the date of account opening on purchases eligible for Pay Over Time, then a 18.99% to 27.99% variable APR.*
• Earn 4X Membership Rewards ® points on the top two eligible categories where your business spends the most each month from 6 eligible categories. While your top 2 categories may change, you will earn 4X points on the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these categories each calendar year (then 1X thereafter). Only the top 2 categories each billing cycle will count towards the $150,000 cap.*
• Earn 3X Membership Rewards ® points on flights and prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com using your Business Gold Card.*
• Earn up to $20 in statement credits monthly after you use the Business Gold Card for eligible U.S. purchases at FedEx, Grubhub, and Office Supply Stores. This can be an annual savings of up to $240. Enrollment required.
• Get up to a $12.95** statement credit back each month after you pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) with your Business Gold Card. **Up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes on one membership fee.*
• The Business Gold Card now comes in three metal designs: Gold, Rose Gold and Limited Edition White Gold. White Gold design is only available while supplies last. Make your selection when you apply on Americanexpress.com.
• *Terms Apply
• APR: 18.99% - 27.99% Variable,0% on purchases for 6 months from date of account opening

Earn Membership Rewards for your business spending the easy way: get 2x points for the first $50,000 in purchases per year.

As a business owner, getting a credit card that maximizes each dollar you spend does not have to be complicated or expensive. Especially when you opt for The Blue Business ® Plus Credit Card from American Express .

With the Amex Blue Business Plus card, you’ll earn 2x Membership Rewards points on everyday business purchases throughout the year (up to $50,000; 1x thereafter) and receive purchase protections and no-additional-charge employee cards all for no annual fee (see rates and fees ).

The simple and straightforward earning structure makes it a great fit for those looking to earn flexible rewards, without having to fixate on which purchases earn the most points.

Let’s take look at all that the Amex Blue Business Plus card has to offer.

• 2x Membership Rewards points per $1 on everyday business purchases (up to $50,000; 1x thereafter)
• Purchase protection and extended warranty protection
• No annual fee and employee cards at no additional cost
• No unique bonus categories and 2x earnings are capped at $50,000 in annual spend
• No elite travel benefits like lounge access or elite status
• Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards ® points after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within your first 3 months of Card Membership.
• 0.0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months from the date of account opening, then a variable rate, 17.99% - 25.99%, based on your creditworthiness and other factors at account opening. APR will not exceed 29.99%
• Earn 2X Membership Rewards ® points on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners. 2X applies to the first $50,000 in purchases per year, 1 point per dollar thereafter.
• You’ve got the power to use your Card beyond its credit limit* with Expanded Buying Power.
• *The amount you can spend above your credit limit is not unlimited. It adjusts with your use of the Card, your payment history, credit record, financial resources known to us, and other factors.
• No Annual Fee
• APR: 17.99% - 25.99% Variable,0% on purchases for 12 months from date of account opening
• Foreign Transaction Fees:  2.7% of each transaction after conversion to US dollars.

Marriott Bonvoy Credit Cards

Emirates partners with Marriott Bonvoy as well and Marriott Bonvoy points convert to Skywards Miles at a 3:1 ratio. For converting 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points in a single transaction, you get a 5,000-mile bonus!

Earn Miles With Travel and Shopping Partners

Skywards has many travel and shopping partners where you can earn miles.

See our best ways to earn lots of Emirates Skywards miles for ideas!

How to Redeem Skywards Miles

Hot Tip: For a full list of ideas, read our article on how you can redeem Emirates Skywards miles for maximum value .

How Much Do Emirates Skywards Awards on Emirates Cost?

Emirates does not publish an award chart for its flights. Instead, use the Miles Calculator on the Emirates website to price specific routes.

For travel from the U.S., Emirates divides the country into North America East and North America West. Depending on the total distance of the trip, award prices from North America West may be significantly higher than North America East.

Look out for huge cash fuel surcharges and fees on awards. Unfortunately, you must call in with specific flight details to find out how much they will cost.

Emirates Skywards Classic Awards

Classic Awards on Emirates flights start at 15,000 miles for a round trip.

Classic Awards come in lower-price Saver and higher-priced Flex Plus levels. Only Flex Plus fares can be booked as a one-way ticket.

Cash+Miles allows members to pay for a ticket using cash and Skywards Miles. You must use a minimum of 2,000 miles on a Cash+Miles ticket, and every 5,000 miles translates to a $40 discount. In most cases, this is a low-value use of miles, so tread carefully!

Flight Upgrades

You can use Emirates Skywards miles to upgrade paid tickets. Prices start at 9,000 miles and are determined by route and ticket type.

Most tickets can be upgraded in advance, and you may also have the opportunity at check-in or even upon boarding.

Exceptions are:

• Business Class Saver Fare  tickets: must upgrade at least 6 hours prior to departure.
• Economy Class Saver Fare tickets: can only be upgraded at online check-in (between 48 and 6 hours before departure)

Emirates has some incredibly long flights…once you board and see your seat for the next 15 hours, you may be in the mood to splurge on an upgrade!

Changes and Cancellations

Emirates Skywards has reasonable award fees:

• No close-in award booking fee
• Date change: $0 for Flex Plus/Flex tickets and $25 elsewhere
• Destination change: $0 for Flex Plus/Flex tickets, and up to $25 + any fare changes for Saver tickets
• Refund: $0 for unused Flex Plus tickets, $50 for Flex tickets in first class, and $75 for Saver tickets

How Much Do Emirates Skywards Awards on Partner Airlines Cost?

Each Emirates Skywards partner airline is subject to its own award prices and permitted routes. Look for partners you can book one-way awards with, such as JetBlue .

It’s only possible to book easyJet partner awards via the Emirates website. For other partners, you can call Emirates Skywards or submit the online partner award form and be contacted by Emirates.

HOT TIP: Save time searching for partner awards by checking websites of Emirates partner airlines. Checking an airline for its own award flights may be misleading, though, because more flights may be available to its own program members than to partner airlines. Instead, use Air Canada Aeroplan to check South African Airways and TAP Portugal; or British Airways to check Japan Airlines, Malaysian Airlines, Qantas, and S7 Airlines.

The information regarding the IHG ® Rewards Club Select Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless ® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information for The Amex EveryDay ® Credit Card has been independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card ® from American Express, click here . For rates and fees of the American Express ® Gold Card, click  here . For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card ® from American Express, click here . For rates and fees of the American Express ® Business Gold Card, click here . For rates and fees of The Blue Business ® Plus Credit Card from American Express, click here .

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• Newsroom Emirates

Emirates wins record 8th consecutive Best Airline Worldwide award, racking up three honours at the Business Traveller Middle East Awards 2021

DUBAI, UAE 26 May 2021: Emirates has been voted ‘Best Airline Worldwide’ for the eighth consecutive time by the Business Traveller Middle East Awards 2021. The airline also took home accolades for ‘Airline with the Best First Class ’, and ‘Airline with Best Economy Class’.

The wins demonstrate Emirates’ strategic approach to continuously improving the onboard and on ground experience, offering a safe customer journey across all touchpoints, leaving no detail behind, while ensuring it meets evolving customer expectations during the most challenging period the air travel industry has experienced.

To maintain its industry leadership, the airline has also doubled down on its digital approach to modernise the air travel experience by fully launching and scaling up its biometric path and touchless check-in, providing further assurance and meeting the evolving expectations of customers for a safer, contactless travel experience. Today, from check-in to gate, customers have the choice to experience the future of travel at over 33 Emirates biometric checkpoints and close to 50 touchless kiosks across Dubai International Airport.

Emirates continues to work hard to make travel easier and minimise restrictions by closely collaborating with industry bodies and government authorities to standardise Covid-19 related medical documentation like vaccine records and PCR test results. Emirates began trialling the IATA Travel Pass in April, and will be fully rolling it out to all flights by the end of May. Emirates has also tied up with the Dubai Health Authority for digital verification of Covid-19 related medical records, further supporting a seamless, paperless experience for customers at check-in.

When to comes to protecting customer travel plans, the airline has also expanded initiatives to offer greater assurance and flexibility for a stress-free experience. Customers now have more protection when they plan and rebook their trips with a seamless rebooking experience should their circumstances change for up to 36 months. On the Skywards front, Emirates has extended its members’ tier status until 2022, and continues to roll out more ways to earn miles, including online and retail shopping, as well as co-branded credit cards and other brand tie-ups.

The airline was a first mover in the industry when it introduced free Covid-19 cover to help customers travel with more confidence. The initiative generated positive feedback from customers and the wider industry, with many airlines following suit. Emirates expanded this to offer the airline’s industry first, multi-risk travel insurance and COVID-19 cover. This generous cover is offered by Emirates on all tickets at no cost to customers. In addition to COVID-19 medical cover, the cover also accounts for personal accidents during travel, winter sports cover, loss of personal belongings, and trip disruptions due to unexpected air space closure, travel recommendations or advisories, and other circumstances.

When customers are ready to get back into the skies, an elevated onboard experience awaits them across every cabin class. True to its ‘Fly Better’ promise, Emirates continued to invest in the onboard experience in spite of pandemic challenges. The Emirates’ First Class experience leads the industry as one of the most luxurious in the skies. In addition to the much talked about Boeing 777-300ER Gamechanger fully enclosed suites, the latest A380 private suites have been recently refreshed with additional enhancements including  wider and taller doors for even more privacy and comfort. Customers travelling on the airline’s flagship A380 can also look forward to the in-flight Shower Spa, the Onboard Lounge and many other touches that take flying to a whole new level.

As customers return to travel, Emirates is bringing them a generous and comfortable experience in Economy Class. On its latest A380, Emirates has replaced its Economy seats onboard with more ergonomically designed seats that come with full leather headrests and flexible side panels which can be adjusted vertically for optimum support, a step up from the version currently installed on Emirates’ Boeing 777 Gamechanger aircraft. Each seat features an elegant wood grain finish on tray tables, as well as a 13.3” personal screen to enjoy Emirates’ award-winning ice offering more than 4,500 channels on demand.

The Business Traveller Middle East awards are dedicated to business travel, covering all aspects of the industry from airlines, airports, hotels and loyalty programmes. The awards were presented virtually, and attended by hundreds of industry professionals from across the region. Shortlisted companies are judged by a panel of travel experts, alongside the magazine’s editorial team, in addition to feedback from readers.

More Information

About emirates.

The Emirates story started in 1985 when we launched operations with just two aircraft. Today, we fly the world’s biggest fleets of Airbus A380s and Boeing 777s, offering our customers the comforts of the latest and most efficient wide-body aircraft in the skies.

We inspire travelers around the world with our growing network of worldwide destinations, industry leading inflight entertainment, regionally inspired cuisine, and world-class service.

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