Overview

Every business class seat has five prices. Check all five.

29 chapters, 8 tools and 18 program field guides. You do not need to read it all: start with the trip you actually want to take, and the guide narrows itself to the parts that apply.

Plan my trip The guide
Four steps

Start here

  1. 2 min

    Step 1: Plan your trip

    Your route and seven questions give the fare to aim for, the methods ranked and a short reading path.

    Plan my trip
  2. 45 to 75 min

    Step 2: Read only your path

    Usually five to eight chapters. The rest waits for the trip where it matters.

    See your path
  3. 20 min a search

    Step 3: Search and book

    Run the checklist. The program field guides have the booking steps for the program you picked.

    Trip checklist
  4. 1 min

    Step 4: Count what you kept

    Log the booking against the cheapest fare you could have bought instead. That is the honest number.

    My savings

What to expect

This guide is
  • Five methods side by side, and a way to pick the right one for each trip.
  • Written for travelers anywhere. Four of the five methods need no credit card at all.
  • Counted against the cheapest fare you could actually buy, never the published fare.
  • Kept current: every chapter shows when its facts were checked, and What changed logs every program change.
This guide is not
  • A promise of 80 percent off every trip. Some trips have no better answer than a well-timed cash fare, and the guide will say so.
  • A buy-points course. Buying points is one method, and for most round trips it loses to a sale fare.
  • A booking service. If you decide you would rather pay someone, this chapter says who, for how much, and what to watch for.

One trip, five prices: the cash fare won

Bangkok to Zurich, November 2026, one traveler. The same seat category, five ways to pay.

Swiss nonstop, published fare
4,900 USD
Etihad via Abu Dhabi, cash
2,050 USD
Cheapest
Aeroplan round trip, points bought in a sale
2,500 USD + taxes
Loses
Aeroplan one-way, points bought in a saleOne-way: the right answer for a one-way trip
1,250 USD + taxes
Etihad economy plus an upgrade bidOnly if the bid wins
1,400 to 1,700 USD
Numbers
OptionKindAll-in (USD)
Swiss nonstop, published farePublished fare4,900
Etihad via Abu Dhabi, cashSale or cheap cash fare2,050
Aeroplan round trip, points bought in a saleAward with points2,500 + taxes
Aeroplan one-way, points bought in a sale. One-way: the right answer for a one-way tripAward with points1,250 + taxes
Etihad economy plus an upgrade bid. Only if the bid winsUpgrade1,400 to 1,700

DataGoogle Flights, swiss.com, aeroplan.com

As ofOct 8, 2026

A realistic first result: in your first hour you will know whether the fare in front of you is good, which method to try, and what it should cost. Many first trips end with a sale fare booked with confidence rather than a points trick, and that is the guide working.

7 parts

The guide

About 4.8 hours in total. Ticks show chapters you have opened.

Toolkit

Tools and reference

Plan my trip

Start here. Your route and seven questions give you the fare to aim for, the methods ranked, and the few chapters to read for this trip.

Points vs cash

Enter the cash fare, the points price and the taxes. See the real value per point and the cheaper option.

Buy-points evaluator

Is this points sale worth it for your redemption? Cost per point, all-in price and the break-even cash fare.

Upgrade bid

How much to bid and whether economy plus a bid beats booking business outright.

Sweet spot finder

Filter the redemption database by route, cabin and program.

What's a good price?

Typical business fares by route pair so you know when to book and when to wait.

Trip checklist

The whole method as a tick list, saved per trip in your browser.

My savings

Log each booking against the cheapest fare you could have bought instead. See what the guide has saved you, honestly counted.

Program field guides

18 programs: where to search, the booking steps, fees, surcharges and the 2026 changes.