FREQUENT FLYER GLOSSARY
Booking class (fare class) earning
The booking class is the single letter on a ticket that marks its fare level (such as Y, B or M); frequent flyer programmes use that letter to decide what percentage of the distance you earn.
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Key takeaways
- One cabin (such as economy) contains many booking classes, and their earning rates can differ widely.
- What counts is the booking class letter, not the seat.
- The same letter can earn differently in different programmes.
- Classes not listed are explicitly ineligible in some programmes and simply unstated in others; we label them separately.
How to look it up
Your booking confirmation or e-ticket shows the booking class letter. Look it up in the earning chart of the programme you are crediting to, not the operating airline's own chart: the same flight earns differently in different programmes.
Worked example
Verified Golden Panda Club rule for flights operated by 3U, rate by booking class:
| Class | Earning rate |
|---|---|
| B | Earning rate 0% |
| C | Earning rate 300% |
| E | Earning rate 50% |
| G | Earning rate 100% |
| H | Earning rate 100% |
| I | Earning rate 225% |
| K | Earning rate 25% |
| L | Earning rate 75% |
| N | Earning rate 25% |
| R | Earning rate 50% |
| S | Earning rate 0% |
| T | Earning rate 125% |
| U | Earning rate 0% |
| Y | Earning rate 150% |
Rate = percentage of the flight distance.
Sources and review
Every number comes from verified, published rules on this site, with originals archived in our knowledge base; anything unverified or unstated shows as unknown.
Reviewed by: Content review.