Velocity Points or Cash Calculator
The cheapest fare you can buy for the same flight and cabin, in Australian dollars.
The points shown on the reward booking, with or without commas.
The cash still payable with the points. Enter 0 if there is none.
Use points: 1.63c per point beats the benchmark.
Above our 1.5c benchmark for Velocity Points and below the 1.7c strong-redemption mark. A sound use of points unless the balance is being kept for a premium-cabin redemption.
The points replace $384 of cash on this booking. At our October 2026 benchmark, 23,500 Velocity Points are worth about $353, and a strong redemption would return about $400.
How the calculator works
A point is worth whatever cash it replaces. The calculator takes the cheapest cash fare for the same flight and cabin, subtracts the taxes and carrier charges that are still payable on the reward, divides the result by the points and multiplies by 100 to give cents per point. That figure is compared with the RTF Benchmark, our published valuation of Velocity Points, which is derived from a fixed basket of reward scenarios captured live with same-flight cash fares and re-verified on 16 October 2026.
| Verdict | Cents per point | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Use points (strong) | 1.7c and above | The redemptions points are held for. |
| Use points | 1.5c to 1.7c | Above the benchmark: a sound use of points. |
| Line-ball | 1.20c to 1.5c | Just under the benchmark: reasonable if cash is the constraint. |
| Pay cash | under 1.20c | Poor value: pay the fare, keep the points. |
Velocity prices fixed Reward Seats in points plus taxes and charges, with the points price moving by season: our October 2026 capture found Sydney to Melbourne Economy at 5,900 points in early December against 7,900 in the September school holidays. Points + Pay and the dynamically priced partner options converted at about 0.6c per point in our checks, below the 0.5c gift-card floor, so the calculator will usually say pay cash for those and use points for a released Reward Seat on the same flight.
The maths leaves out the points and status credits a cash fare would earn, and the different change and cancellation terms of a reward booking. Both are usually small against the fare, and both favour cash slightly, so a line-ball result is a little weaker for points than it looks.
Worked examples from our October 2026 Velocity Points basket
Real rewards and the cash fares for the same flights, captured on 16 October 2026 for travel in the week of 7 December 2026. The same rows feed the benchmark itself. Each one can be loaded into the calculator above.
| Route and cabin | Reward Seat | Cash fare | Cents per point | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney to Gold Coast EconomyVirgin Australia VA505, captured 16 October 2026 | 5,900 points + $45.01 | $85.01 Lite | 0.68c | Pay cash |
| Sydney to Brisbane EconomyVirgin Australia VA901, captured 16 October 2026 | 5,900 points + $46.48 | $127.01 Lite | 1.36c | Line-ball |
| Brisbane to Melbourne BusinessVirgin Australia VA306, captured 16 October 2026 | 23,500 points + $47.28 | $431.00 Business | 1.63c | Use points |
| Sydney to Melbourne EconomyVirgin Australia VA800, captured 16 October 2026 | 5,900 points + $43.33 | $144.00 Lite | 1.71c | Use points (strong) |
| Sydney to Perth BusinessVirgin Australia VA551, captured 16 October 2026 | 35,500 points + $52.02 | $1438.00 Business | 3.90c | Use points (strong) |
The spread is the point. 5,900 Velocity Points return 0.68c against an $85 Sydney to Gold Coast Economy fare, while 35,500 Velocity Points return 3.90c against $1,438 for Sydney to Perth Business. Cheap cash fares make points look poor; expensive ones make them look good, which is why the same points can be the right or the wrong instrument on different days.
What are your Velocity Points worth in dollars?
For a balance rather than a booking: the floor, benchmark and strong-redemption value of any number of points. The full value scale by redemption type is on the Points Valuations page.
Valuing 100,000 Velocity Points.
The low end of what you can readily get from your points through gift cards and similar redemptions.
Our central estimate of what a point is realistically worth, based on the median of our October 2026 redemption basket.
A strong use of your points, based on the upper end of the redemptions we measured.
Questions people ask
Is it better to use Velocity Points or pay cash?
It depends on the cents per point the redemption returns. Take the cash fare for the same flight, subtract the taxes and charges payable on the reward, divide by the points and multiply by 100. Above our October 2026 benchmark of 1.5c per point, points are the better use; well below it, paying cash and keeping the points is usually the stronger position. The calculator on this page does that arithmetic and reports the verdict.
How do I calculate the value of Velocity Points on a flight?
Cents per point equals the cash fare minus the taxes and charges on the Reward Seat, divided by the points, multiplied by 100. A Sydney to Perth Business Reward Seat captured on 16 October 2026 cost 35,500 points plus $52.02 against a $1,438 Business fare: (1438 minus 52.02) divided by 35,500, times 100, is 3.90c per point.
What is a good cents-per-point value for Velocity Points?
Our October 2026 benchmark is 1.5c per point and the strong-redemption mark is 1.7c, both derived from a basket of reward scenarios captured live with same-flight cash fares and re-verified on 16 October 2026. Gift cards set the floor at about 0.5c. Anything at or above 1.7c is a strong redemption, 1.5c to 1.7c is sound, and under about 1.20c is poor value.
What does the calculator say about Points + Pay?
Points + Pay and the other dynamically priced Velocity options converted at about 0.6c per point in our checks, which is below the 0.5c gift-card floor. Enter a Points + Pay quote and the calculator will say so; the fixed-price Reward Seat on the same flight, where one is released, is almost always the better instrument.
Why do partner redemptions often come out at about 0.6c?
Because where no fixed-price Reward Seat has been released, partner flights price dynamically at the same constant. Our 9 August 2026 check of Sydney to Doha in Business found no Business reward released and a dynamic price of 1,117,400 points plus $661.77 against $7,365.77 cash, which is 0.6c per point. The same flight had an Economy Reward Seat at 56,000 points plus $258.87, which is 1.66c. The calculator shows the difference as soon as the figures go in.
Why does the calculator subtract taxes and charges?
Because they are paid in cash on top of the points, so the points only replace the rest of the fare. A Sydney to Gold Coast Economy Reward Seat captured on 16 October 2026 cost 5,900 points plus $45.01 against an $85.01 Lite fare: the charges are more than half the fare, and the points replace only $40.00, which is 0.68c per point.
What does the calculator leave out?
Three things, all usually small against the fare. A cash fare earns points and status credits that a reward does not; a reward booking carries different change and cancellation terms; and dynamically priced redemptions move with the cash fare, so the comparison for those products is the sampled rate shown in the result rather than a fixed table. The calculator compares published prices and does not recommend any product.
Does the calculator work for Qantas Points?
Yes. The program toggle above the form switches the benchmarks, and the Qantas Points Calculator page opens on Qantas Points with that program's worked examples and material: /qantas-points-calculator.
What to do next
If the verdict is to use points, our Velocity Frequent Flyer guide covers Reward Seats, partner airlines and the Points + Pay trap, and the Qsuites with Velocity Points guide shows what a partner reward looks like when one is released. If it is to pay cash, the deals board shows the sale fares our collector is recording today, and the transfer bonuses guide covers the cheapest ways to add to a balance. Qantas members have the Qantas Points Calculator.
General information only. The calculator compares published prices against our own benchmarks and does not recommend any product. Benchmark changes are recorded in the Program Change Log.