Getting the most from the ANZ Rewards credit card program

ANZ partners with a variety of frequent flyer programs to let its cardholders earn points on every credit card transaction they make, from Air New Zealand Airpoints through to Cathay Pacific Asia Miles and even Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer.

Members of the program simply swipe their ANZ Rewards credit card (or use Apple Pay) whenever they can to notch up reward points, which can then be converted to the airline frequent flyer schemes above.

(Qantas Frequent Flyer isn’t a transfer partner in the ANZ Rewards program, so if your loyalty lies with the Roo, take a look at ANZ’s Frequent Flyer Black, Platinum or Classic cards instead.)

Executive Traveller looks at how ANZ Rewards works, how you can earn credit card points and turn them into frequent flyer points, and even ways to earn bonus reward points.

ANZ Rewards 101

ANZ reward points can be earned via the bank’s personal Rewards Black, Rewards Platinum and Rewards Classic cards:

ANZ Rewards Black is the pick of the bunch for frequent flyers with two reward points given per dollar spent up to $5,000 per month and then one reward point per dollar thereafter.

Next in line is the ANZ Rewards Platinum card, providing 1.5 reward points per dollar spent up to $2,000 per monthly statement period and then 0.5 reward points per dollar thereafter.

ANZ’s entry-level Rewards Classic card instead piles up one reward point per dollar spent on the first $1,000 of monthly charges and then 0.5 reward points per dollar thereafter.

Hot tip: Cardholders charging purchases to a Rewards Black Card could be earning up to four times as many points per dollar than when using the entry-level Rewards Classic card (up to 2/$1 on Rewards Black versus as little as 0.5/$1 on Rewards Classic): so if you’ll be making good use of your card, the Black-level card could be the best fit.

ANZ Rewards: earning frequent flyer points

While you may be earning up to two ‘reward points’ per dollar spent, you’re not actually earning two frequent flyer points, which can be a little confusing for newcomers to the program.

Instead, those reward points can be converted into airline frequent flyer points when you’re ready to fly at the following rates:

• 3 ANZ reward points = 1 Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer mile
• 3 ANZ reward points = 1 Cathay Pacific Asia Mile
• 200 ANZ reward points = 1 Air New Zealand Airpoints Dollar ($1)

Here’s how that looks on a per-dollar-spent basis across ANZ’s range of rewards credit cards.

Rewards Black (up to $5,000 per month): 0.66 KrisFlyer miles, 0.66 Asia Miles, $0.01 in Airpoints Dollars

Rewards Black (monthly spend >$5,000): 0.33 KrisFlyer miles, 0.33 Asia Miles, $0.005 Airpoints Dollars

Rewards Platinum (<$2,000/month): 0.5 KrisFlyer miles, 0.5 Asia Miles, $0.0075 Airpoints Dollars

Rewards Platinum (monthly spends of >$2,000): 0.167 KrisFlyer miles, 0.167 Asia Miles, $0.0025 Airpoints Dollars

Rewards Classic (<$1,000 per month): 0.33 KrisFlyer miles, 0.33 Asia Miles, $0.005 Airpoints Dollars

Rewards Classic (monthly spend >$1,000): 0.167 KrisFlyer miles, 0.167 Asia Miles, $0.0025 Airpoints Dollars

Again, you’ll need to convert your ANZ reward points into frequent flyer points, with the figures above taking into account the bank’s current earning rates, points tiering and conversion rates.

Converting ANZ reward points to frequent flyer points

Swapping ANZ reward points for airline frequent flyer points requires the cardholder to call the ANZ Rewards Centre on 1300 367 763 during business hours, although information about the various transfer rates can be found on the ANZ Rewards website:

The only catch: you’ll need at least a minimum number of reward points in your account before you can initiate a transfer with some airlines, being 3,000 reward points for Asia Miles and Airpoints; and a much higher 6,000 reward points for KrisFlyer.

Given these varying minimums, here’s the smallest number of airline frequent flyer points you can convert in one transaction: useful if you already have some points in your frequent flyer account and just need a few more to book your desired reward flight.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer: 2,000 KrisFlyer miles (converted from 6,000 ANZ reward points)

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles: 1,500 Asia Miles (converted from 3,000 ANZ reward points)

Air New Zealand Airpoints: $15 Airpoints Dollars (converted from 3,000 ANZ reward points)

ANZ Rewards: earning bonus points

ANZ partners with many businesses to offer bonus points over and above those you’d normally earn on any given transaction, and which can be converted into frequent flyer points in exactly same way.

Those bonus points are earned via the ANZ Bonus Points Mall, and much like the Qantas Points Online Mall or the Velocity eStore, clicking through the ANZ website when shopping online can deliver bonuses of up to 10 ANZ reward points per dollar spent, atop your usual points haul.

You’ll earn the most points when shopping with brands like Adidas, ASOS, Charles Tyrwhitt and David Jones, with a lower number of points on offer at websites such as Apple, Dell, eBay and Microsoft, and when booking Etihad Airways flights.

Many more stores take part in the program too, so be sure to visit the Bonus Points Mall whenever making an online purchase to see if extra points can be had on your next purchase.

Bank disclaimer: To apply for any of these ANZ credit cards, you must:
-Be 18 years of age or over, and;
-Be a permanent Australian resident or a non-permanent resident with more than 9 months remaining on your visa.

Chris C.

Chris is a a former contributor to Executive Traveller.