On 15 December 2025 British Airways made reward flights cost more — around 10% more Avios on average, plus a steeper rise in cash fees. Here is what changed, who felt it most, and where good value still survives.
Devaluations are the quiet tax on any points currency: the same trip simply costs more points than it did yesterday. BA’s December 2025 change was a broad one, touching both the Avios price and the cash fees on reward tickets. This analysis puts numbers to it and, more usefully, shows where your Avios still work hard.
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On 15 December 2025, British Airways implemented a system-wide devaluation of Avios reward flights. It applied to both BA-operated flights and most oneworld partner redemptions, and it came in two parts: more Avios needed for the same seat, and higher cash fees on many tickets. Crucially, anything already ticketed before that date kept its original price.
Existing bookings were protected. After the change, altering only the date or time of an existing award kept the old pricing. Changing the destination, cabin or seasonality (off-peak to peak) re-priced the booking at the new, higher rates.
Reward-flight Avios
Average increase (range roughly 8–14% by route and partner).
Cash fees & surcharges
Taxes, fees and carrier charges on many bookings rose on top of the Avios.
Steepest partner hikes
JAL and Cathay Pacific saw some of the largest increases on certain awards.
US domestic (distance-based)
Short American and Alaska hops, e.g. up to 650 miles rose from 12,000 to 13,500 Avios.
The pain was not evenly spread. Economy redemptions bore the brunt of the cash-fee increases, which eroded the old “fewer Avios, more cash” sweet spot — after the change it is often better to spend more Avios and less cash, not the reverse. Certain partner awards on JAL and Cathay Pacific rose most in Avios terms, and distance-based US domestic economy went up around 13%.
If you used to default to the “more cash” slider to save Avios, re-run the trade-off. Since the cash side rose faster than the Avios side on many routes, the balance has shifted — our value calculator makes the comparison quick.
A devaluation rarely hits everything equally, and several redemptions held up better than the average. These are worth prioritising now.
The bigger picture: with each Avios worth slightly less, disciplined valuation matters more than ever. Book off-peak where you can — see the 2026 peak & off-peak calendar — and keep an eye on the programme changes tracker for what is next. This is general information, not financial advice.
If Avios buy a little less, earning more of them helps. These are the cards we would consider — always check the current terms on the provider’s site before applying.
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The AviosArcana Editorial Team
We decode UK air-miles programmes in plain English, cross-checking every figure against the programmes’ published terms. We are independent and this is general information, not financial advice.