Is Club Jetstar worth it for business travellers?

Travel budgets are getting tighter in these uncertain times, with an increasing number of companies and cost-conscious solo flyers switching to 'best fare of the day' flights.

For companies that include Jetstar in those considerations and indeed book with Jetstar on a regular basis, Club Jetstar can help drive those costs even lower, with its core benefit being a discount on flights.

However, there's a catch – the discount offered varies from flight to flight, and can often be as low as $1 – putting the membership price well above the potential savings for many members.

Here's what you need to know about Club Jetstar, including whether Club Jetstar is worth the cost, and how to get the most from your membership.

What is Club Jetstar?

Club Jetstar is a paid yearly membership that unlocks discounts on selected Jetstar flights, as well as other savings.

As of July 2020, Club Jetstar costs $55 a year.

What are the benefits of Club Jetstar?

The key benefit of Club Jetstar membership is an instant discount on selected Jetstar flight bookings – and for those who travel with Jetstar regularly, those discounts could surpass the yearly cost of the membership.

Here are Club Jetstar's other notable perks:

• 20% discount on baggage and seat selection fees
• Early access to airfare sales
• As above, cash savings on eligible Jetstar flight bookings
• Extend those savings to four other travellers, joining the Club Jetstar member on the same booking
• Access to special offers from Club Jetstar advertising partners

As such, businesses looking to use Club Jetstar to cut their business travel costs wouldn't necessarily need to purchase a Club Jetstar membership for every traveller, where employees routinely travel together.

Provided at least one member of the group has a Club Jetstar membership, the benefits it provided are extended to up to four others, at no extra cost.

Club Jetstar's advertised perks.

However, if the Club Jetstar member isn't travelling on the same booking, none of the Club Jetstar benefits are available. This means businesses may still need to purchase several memberships, to always have access to the savings offered by the program.

It's also worth pointing out that not all Jetstar flights will be offering Club Jetstar special pricing – and on those that do, the saving could be as low as $1 off the public fare.

As well, Club Jetstar membership doesn't reduce the price of Jetstar's add-on bundles, as can allow travellers to earn Qantas Points and status credits on their flights, and which often include baggage and seat selection anyway, meaning this wouldn't be purchased separately, so also wouldn't attract a Club Jetstar discount.

Early access to Jetstar's popular flight sales can be a useful benefit, but those promotions are generally targeted to leisure routes and travellers.

Discounted seats (including extra legroom) come with Club Jetstar membership.

Additional Club Jetstar benefits on the ground

Beyond benefits on Jetstar flights, Club Jetstar membership also provides access to a range of deals from other companies.

At the time of writing, this includes discounted membership at Goodlife Health Clubs, savings on Endota Spa gift cards and products, 10-15% off car hire, and 10% off AIG Travel Insurance.

How do I sign up for Club Jetstar?

Even if you don't have any Jetstar flights booked, you can sign up for Club Jetstar via the airline's website. Benefits will be available immediately, including early access to sales.

But a smarter idea might be to join when you're booking a flight, as you'll be able to take advantage of the discounted price straight away and only start your membership when you actually need it.

Join Club Jetstar at the time of booking and you can get the discounted rates straight away to offset your membership fee.

To do this, simply browse your desired flights as usual on the Jetstar website, and keep an eye out for purple pricing, which is a Club Jetstar fare.

A membership pop-up will appear and allow you to add the $55 membership to your booking, which will instantly trigger the flight discounts.

When it comes to adding luggage and seat selection, your 20% Club Jetstar discount will be automatically shown too.

Club Jetstar comes with 20% off luggage and seats, but often buying a Plus or Max bundle will cover those anyway.

Is Club Jetstar worth the cost?

The value of Club Jetstar really boils down to how often you will fly Jetstar, and the routes you will usually travel on.

For example, the Melbourne-Cairns route often has a $14 discount for Club Jetstar members, which means one traveller could recoup their membership cost after two return solo trips, or just one return trip with another person.

But a Sydney-Melbourne flight might only be $2 cheaper than the published fare, which makes it much harder to recoup the membership price.

Club Jetstar discounts can be very hit-and-miss....

Overall, $55 isn't a major hit to the pockets of most business travellers, but even so, do check that you'll get value from your membership – otherwise, you'll be paying $55/year for the privilege of saving just $1 off your next flight.

Learn more: How to earn Qantas status credits on Jetstar flights

Brandon Loo

Based in Perth, Brandon enjoys tucking into local delicacies, discovering new cocktails, and making aeroplane food look good on camera.