Frontier Cut Basic Fare Earning to 1x. Diamond Status Got 25% Easier.
Frontier Miles members without a Frontier credit card now earn 1 mile per dollar on basic fare bookings. The new earning rates took effect for bookings made on or after September 1, 2026. Elite Diamond status dropped from 100,000 to 75,000 status points on the same day, while Silver and Gold both get harder on January 1, 2027.
The short version
Basic fare earning without a card: 1x for regular members, 3x Silver, 5x Gold, 7x Platinum, 11x Diamond.
Buy an Economy, Premium or Business bundle and those rates become 6x, 8x, 10x, 12x and 16x.
Elite Silver rises from 10,000 to 15,000 points and Gold from 20,000 to 25,000 on January 1, 2027.
Elite Diamond fell from 100,000 to 75,000 points, effective September 1, 2026.
From January 1, 2027, elites on basic fares lose free seat selection and lose change and cancel fee waivers.
Frontier is calling this an improvement. Some of it is. Most of it moves value out of status and into a product you have to buy, and the earning half already happened while the sweeteners are still sixteen months away.
What exactly did Frontier change?
Frontier Airlines rewrote how Frontier Miles members earn miles and status points, and rebuilt the elite benefit chart underneath it. Two dates matter. New earning rates apply to Frontier bookings made on or after September 1, 2026. New status thresholds and updated elite benefits apply from January 1, 2027, with one exception: the Elite Diamond threshold moved on September 1, 2026. Frontier says the new rates "will take effect for Frontier Airlines bookings made on or after Sept. 1, 2026."
Quick translation for anyone new to this. "Miles" are what you spend on flights. "Status points" are what you accumulate to reach an elite tier like Silver or Diamond. Frontier awards both at the same rate, so one table covers both.
How much did earning drop?
Frontier Miles now pays different rates depending on whether you bought a bare basic fare or a bundle. On basic fares with no Frontier credit card, a regular member earns 1x, Elite Silver earns 3x, Gold earns 5x, Platinum earns 7x and Diamond earns 11x. On bookings that include an Economy, Premium or Business bundle, those same tiers earn 6x, 8x, 10x, 12x and 16x. Frontier Airlines World Mastercard holders earn 4x to 14x on basic fares and 12x to 22x on bundles.
Sit with the middle of that table for a second. A Diamond member on a basic fare earns 11x. A brand new member with no status at all, who bought a bundle, earns 6x. The distance between the top and bottom of the entire status ladder is smaller than the distance between a basic fare and a bundle.
For a member with no status and no card, a $200 basic fare now earns 200 miles. That is the practical end of casual mile-building on Frontier.
Did elite status get easier or harder?
Both, depending on which tier you were chasing. Frontier's own change page states that as of January 1, 2027, members "can achieve Silver Status with 15,000 points, Gold Status with 25,000 points." Silver previously took 10,000 points and Gold took 20,000. Platinum stays at 50,000. Elite Diamond fell from 100,000 to 75,000 points, and that one already applies, so earning 75,000 status points during 2026 gets you Diamond for all of 2027.
Silver got 50% harder. Gold got 25% harder. Diamond got 25% easier.
The Diamond cut is genuine, and if you were finishing the year around 80,000 points it is a real win. It also affects the smallest group of people in the program, which is what makes it such a comfortable headline. The tiers most Frontier flyers reach both moved the other way.
Why do the new upgrades require buying a bundle?
Frontier is adding complimentary upgrades to UpFront Plus or First Class at every elite tier from January 1, 2027, with the upgrade window opening 4 hours before departure for Silver, 8 hours for Gold, 18 hours for Platinum and 24 hours for Diamond. Every one of those upgrades carries the same condition: you have to have purchased an Economy, Premium or Business bundle on that booking.
Meanwhile, elites flying bare basic fares lose complimentary seat selection and lose their change and cancel fee waivers on bookings made from January 1, 2027. Every bundle already includes no change or cancel fees, for everyone, status or not.
Follow the pieces. Two things status used to hand you now come from buying a bundle. The new benefit status hands you is a better seat, but only if you bought that same bundle. Status has become a discount code for a product rather than a set of benefits you earned by flying.
Is Frontier status worth chasing in 2027?
For most people who fly Frontier a few times a year, no. At 1x on basic fares, Frontier Miles are not a currency you are meaningfully building, and the benefits that made Silver or Gold pleasant now arrive with a bundle purchase you could make without any status at all.
The honest exception is high-volume Frontier flyers who were already buying bundles. If you buy an Economy Bundle on most flights anyway, the earn rates went up, not down, and the upgrade windows are a real add. Frontier built this for you.
One useful detail if you have a stranded balance: Frontier lets members redeem miles for bundles starting at 2,000 miles for an Economy Bundle. That is a reasonable way to spend down an account you no longer plan to feed.
If you are weighing an airline card against a flexible points card before deciding where your spending goes, our best travel credit cards guide lays out the tradeoff in plain terms.
What this means for you
If you fly Frontier occasionally on basic fares, stop treating Frontier Miles as savings and start treating every Frontier flight as a pure cash comparison. Book whatever is cheapest and put your rewards effort on a transferable currency instead.
If you fly Frontier often, price the bundle honestly against the seat fee and bag fee you were already paying separately. The bundle wins on most typical itineraries now, which is exactly what Frontier designed.
And if you were sitting at 80,000 status points wondering whether Diamond was reachable, it is. Go get it. Just know that the version of Diamond arriving in 2027 asks you to buy a bundle before it does much for you.
This is the same move we watched at Avianca LifeMiles and at Flying Blue. The headline number holds steady and the thing behind it gets smaller.
FAQ
When do the Frontier Miles earning changes take effect?
The new Frontier Miles earning rates apply to Frontier Airlines bookings made on or after September 1, 2026. Bookings made before that date earn at the old rates. Updated elite benefits and the new Silver and Gold thresholds apply to bookings made on or after January 1, 2027.
How many points do I need for Frontier elite status now?
From January 1, 2027, Frontier Miles requires 15,000 status points for Elite Silver, 25,000 for Elite Gold, 50,000 for Elite Platinum and 75,000 for Elite Diamond. The Elite Diamond threshold of 75,000 already applies, so 75,000 status points earned during 2026 gives you Diamond for the 2027 calendar year.
Do Frontier elites still get free seat selection?
Not on bare basic fares. From bookings made January 1, 2027, Frontier elite members flying basic fares lose complimentary seat selection along with their change and cancel fee waivers. Standard seat selection comes with the Economy, Premium and Business bundles instead.
Does the Frontier credit card change the math?
Yes, and it is the only thing that meaningfully softens the cut. Frontier Airlines World Mastercard holders earn 4x to 14x on basic fare bookings and 12x to 22x on bundles, depending on elite tier, against 1x to 11x and 6x to 16x for members without the card.
Can I use Frontier miles for a bundle?
Yes. Frontier lets members redeem miles for bundles starting at 2,000 miles for an Economy Bundle. For anyone holding a small Frontier balance with no flight plans, that is a practical way to use it.
Comments