The Guide to Alaska Airlines Partners

Although Alaska Airlines can appear to be a small West Coast carrier, that’s a big misconception. Alaska Airlines joined the Oneworld alliance in 2021, greatly expanding its reach through these airline partnerships. In addition, Alaska also has maintained many of its original airline partnerships from before it joined Oneworld.

The benefits of these partnerships allow customers to earn, redeem and get Alaska MVP elite benefits when flying with partners.

Since Alaska flies few international routes, these partnerships greatly expand the geographical value for Mileage Plan members. Alaska doesn't fly to Europe, for example, but several of its partner airlines do.

Here's what you need to know about Alaska Airlines' partners.

Alaska is currently partnered with 23 airlines. Of these, 12 are Oneworld members and 11 are independent partnerships.

» Learn more: Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan: Your complete guide

Alaska operates a handful of international routes, so redeeming miles on its partner airlines is a good way to travel the globe.

Searching for available partner award flights is straightforward. Use the flight search tool on the website or app and select the "Use miles" box.

You’ll see the available partner routes for the destination selected.

Each partner serves different regions and has its own award chart.

Some partners (British Airways, most notoriously) charge massive fuel surcharges that aren't published in the award chart. The best way to find the real cost of a given itinerary is to search and compare.

NerdWallet values Alaska miles at 1.2 cents each. So consider the value you're getting when redeeming your miles for a specific redemption. Generally, you’ll extract the most bang for your buck when using your miles for premium cabin redemptions.

Most Alaska partners allow free stopovers on award itineraries, which means you can stop for several days (or weeks) at an airline's hub on your way to your final destination. This is a great way to extend the value of your miles, especially when booking premium cabin awards.

To book stopovers, use the multi-city search tool.

Make sure the stopover is in an Alaska partner's hub (in this case, Japan Airlines’ hub in Tokyo) or the search will fail.

Note: Some partners, like LATAM, can be booked only by calling Alaska directly.

» Learn more: 5 award sweet spots using Alaska Airlines miles

Alaska MVP elite members receive automatic reciprocal Oneworld status, which confers benefits such as lounge access when flying with Oneworld partners.

Alaska MVP = Oneworld Ruby

• Preferred check-in.

• Preferred seating.

Alaska MVP Gold = Oneworld Sapphire

• Preferred check-in.

• Preferred seating.

• Business class lounge access.

• Baggage allowance.

Alaska MVP Gold 75k and MVP Gold 100k = Oneworld Emerald

• Preferred check-in.

• Preferred seating.

• First class lounge access.

• Baggage allowance.

All of these policies are subject to the specific rules of each Oneworld partner airline. Don’t be surprised if you encounter some hiccups when flying with partners. And if you’d like to earn Alaska miles when flying with a partner, remember to include your Alaska Mileage Plan number on partner itineraries, not your reward account associated with that airline.

In addition to Oneworld benefits, a few of Alaska’s partners extend lounge access to elites who have MVP Gold and higher:

• Emirates (Dubai).

• Icelandair (Keflavik).

• Hainan Airlines (multiple airports in China).

» Learn more: Find the best airline credit card for you

Credit your flight to your Alaska Mileage Plan account

You can earn miles on Alaska’s partners by crediting the flight to your Alaska Mileage Plan account. That is, if you book a flight on British Airways, you must enter your Alaska number in your itinerary to earn miles.

Alaska miles are earned based on the number of miles flown with the partner airline, though not always at a 1:1 ratio. Most partner economy tickets earn 25% of flown miles. For example, if you fly 4,000 miles on British Airways in the cheapest fare class, you’ll earn 1,000 Alaska miles.

» Learn more: Here's how much your points and miles are worth

Take advantage of bonus miles in premium cabins

On the flip side, many partners offer bonus miles for flying in their premium cabins. In British Airways’ highest fare class (F), you’ll earn 100% of flown miles plus a 200% class of service bonus plus a 200% additional bonus. Flying 4,000 miles in this fare class will earn a whopping 20,000 Alaska miles.

Note that the “additional bonus” applies to redeemable miles (which can be used to book award flights) but not elite-qualifying miles (which earn elite status).

Miles earning rates from airline partners

Here is how many miles you’ll earn for each partner in the cheapest economy fare class:

For a full breakdown of earnings based on partner airlines and fare classes, check Alaska’s partner page.

An important caveat: The flight must be sold and operated by the same partner airline to qualify for Alaska miles. What does that mean? If you book a flight through British Airways which is operated by Iberia Airways, you won't earn Alaska miles.

This can get tricky, especially for partners in the Oneworld alliance, so keep an eye out when booking your ticket.

» Learn more: Your guide to the Oneworld alliance

Alaska allows you to earn points in a variety of other ways including hotel stays, car rentals, shopping partners, dining programs and more.

To learn about all the different mileage earning opportunities, check out our guide to earning Alaska Airlines miles.

Alaska has long offered some of the best partnership earning and redemption options out there. Now that it has joined the Oneworld alliance, these partnerships have only expanded and strengthened.

You might think of Alaska as a smallish airline that primarily serves the West Coast. But when you consider Alaska’s membership in Oneworld and its partnership with other independent airlines, its reach is far greater.

Now that you’ve mastered the partnership program, you’re ready to learn more about Alaska’s Mileage Plan program.