How to Get a Business Class Upgrade on Turkish Airlines
Use Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles to book a business class award directly rather than paying for the upgrade.
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Updated · 6 min read
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Assistant Assigning Editor Turkish Airlines offers one of the best business class experiences in the world. That gives travelers even more reason to try to escape the airline's economy class experience for the comforts of business class.
But how can you upgrade your Turkish Airlines flight to business class, and is it worth the cost? We’ll walk you through the options, costs and when an upgrade makes sense.
On this page
Turkish Airlines upgrade overview
All Turkish Airlines passengers can upgrade their economy class ticket using Miles&Smiles miles. In addition, top-tier Turkish Airlines elites get two business class upgrade vouchers over the two-year status period.
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How to get a free Turkish Airlines upgrade
The only way to score a free business class upgrade on Turkish Airlines is by earning Miles&Smiles Elite Plus elite status.
Upon reaching this top-tier Elite Plus status, travelers receive two cabin upgrade vouchers — one valid for each year of the two-year elite status period.
Elite Plus members can redeem these vouchers to upgrade from economy to business class, regardless of whether the member paid cash or redeemed miles.
» Learn more: The beginner's guide to flying first or business class
Turkish Airlines upgrade cost using miles
Turkish Airlines charges the same price to upgrade into business class regardless of whether you paid miles or cash for your original ticket and regardless of your original booking fare class.
For flights between North America and Turkey, it will cost 90,000 miles (between zero and 72 hours before departure) or 65,000 miles (greater than 72 hours before departure) to upgrade from Turkish Airlines economy to business class.
» Learn more: The best airline credit cards right now
Turkish Airlines last-minute upgrades
Turkish Airlines makes it easy to upgrade a Turkish Airlines flight within 24 hours of departure. These upgrades don't require Turkish Airlines award availability. Instead, if there's a business class seat available on your flight, you can pay Miles&Smiles miles to upgrade to it.
Last-minute upgrade requests can be made online, by calling Turkish Airlines or at the airport check-in counters.
All Miles&Smiles members are eligible to take advantage of these upgrades as long as there is a seat on the flight. Like other Turkish Airlines mileage upgrades, these are valid even on award tickets.
Restrictions on Turkish Airlines upgrades
Travelers can't upgrade codeshare flights operated by other airlines. You must be traveling on a Turkish Airlines flight to use this upgrade option. If you're flying on another airline, contact Miles&Smiles to see whether you can apply a Star Alliance Upgrade Award (SAUA).
Benefits of upgrading to Turkish Airlines business class
The biggest benefit of a Turkish Airlines business class upgrade is — unsurprisingly — flying in a business class seat. Turkish Airlines is known for offering a strong business class product that frequently ranks well in industry comparisons.
Lie-flat seats and onboard amenities
Turkish Airlines business class seats recline into fully flat beds, measuring nearly 76 inches long and 26 inches wide. Many seats include a massage function, helping make long-haul flights more comfortable. All seats offer direct aisle access, and some configurations include privacy screens, which can be a nice touch, especially if you’re traveling alone.
Passengers receive a sleep set with a mattress pad, quilt and pillow, along with slippers and a Lanvin amenity kit. Additional seat features include adjustable armrests, a rotating tray table, a personal reading lamp, enclosed storage and a suit hanger.
For entertainment and productivity, each seat is equipped with an 18-inch in-flight TV screen with a handheld remote, plus universal power outlets and USB charging ports. All business class passengers receive 1 GB of free in-flight Wi-Fi and unlimited messaging, while Elite or Elite Plus members get unlimited Wi-Fi throughout the flight.
Onboard dining
Dining is one area where Turkish Airlines stands out. Business class meals typically include a mix of hot and cold dishes made with fresh ingredients, and on select flights, onboard “flying chefs” prepare and present meals during the flight.
This focus on dining earned Turkish Airlines the award for the world's best business class onboard catering at the 2025 Skytrax World Airline Awards.
Special meal options, including diabetic, vegan, gluten-free and various religious meals, are also available.
Travelers who upgrade to Turkish Airlines business class receive nearly all the same perks as passengers who originally booked business class, including increased luggage allowance, lounge access and priority check-in.
🤓 Nerdy Tip
However, one benefit that upgraded travelers won't get is additional miles. If you originally booked an economy cash ticket, you'll still earn miles based on your original economy booking fare class — not based on your upgraded business class ticket. How to earn Turkish Miles&Smiles
Turkish Airlines allows travelers to use Miles&Smiles miles for upgrades whether the original ticket was purchased with cash or miles. Miles&Smiles miles are relatively easy to earn because Turkish Airlines is a transfer partner of several major U.S. transferable point programs.
You can transfer points to Miles&Smiles at a 1:1 transfer ratio from the following three programs:
In addition, you can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles at a 3:1 ratio. Plus, you'll get a 5,000-mile bonus for transferring at least 60,000 Bonvoy points. That means a transfer of 60,000 Bonvoy points would net 25,000 Turkish miles.
Credit cards for earning Turkish Airlines miles
If you’re looking to earn a lot of Turkish Airlines miles, consider applying for one of these cards and earning the sign-up bonus.
Top Turkish Airlines cards
Annual fee
$95.
$0.
$95.
$595.
Welcome offer
LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Enjoy $250 to use on Capital One Travel in your first cardholder year, plus earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening - that’s equal to $1,000 in travel.
Earn a bonus of 40,000 miles once you spend $1,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $400 in travel.
Earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com.
Earn 75,000 bonus Points after spending $6,000 in the first 3 months of account opening.
Earn rates
• 5 miles per $1 on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.
• 2 miles per $1 on all other purchases.
• 5 miles per $1 on hotels, vacation rentals and car rentals booked through Capital One Travel.
• 1.25 miles per $1 on all purchases.
• 10 ThankYou® points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked through Citi's travel portal.
• 3 points per $1 on air travel and other hotel purchases.
• 3 points per $1 on supermarkets.
• 3 points per $1 on gas stations and EV charging stations.
• 3 points per $1 on restaurants.
• 1 point per $1 on all other purchases.
Still not sure?
Best ways to book Turkish Airlines business class with points
Turkish Airlines uses a region-based award chart for flights booked with Miles&Smiles miles. While the program offers both standard and promotional award pricing, promotional awards offer the most value.
For flights between North America and Turkey, a promotional business class award costs 65,000 miles one way, while economy class costs 40,000 miles. Those prices are competitive for transatlantic flights, particularly in business class.
Here’s an example award search from Chicago to Istanbul, showing promotional and standard pricing in business class.
While the standard business class award costing 135,000 miles is a poor value, the promotional award can be compelling. Paying 65,000 miles for a nonstop flight that is longer than 10 hours in Turkish Airlines business class is a solid redemption, particularly when compared with other transatlantic business class award tickets.
However, it's important to keep in mind that Turkish Airlines prices awards by segment. Since all flights route through Istanbul, trips to destinations beyond Turkey are priced as two separate award tickets.
For example, if you’re looking to fly from North America to Europe, you’ll need to add the cost of the flight from North America to Turkey and the onward flight from Turkey to Europe. A flight from Chicago to Paris would cost 90,000 miles in business class at the promotional award rate:
- Segment 1: Chicago to Istanbul - 65,000 miles, plus
- Segment 2: Istanbul to Paris (Europe 2) - 25,000 miles.
In some cases, those higher prices may still make sense, particularly if low-level awards aren’t available on other airlines or your origin point in the U.S. is farther west or elsewhere in North America, since Turkish Airlines treats North America as one region for award purposes.
Is upgrading to Turkish Airlines business class worth it?
In many cases, upgrading to Turkish Airlines business class using miles is not the best value, especially on long-haul routes.
As shown in the upgrade award chart above, upgrading from economy to business class on flights between North America and Turkey costs 65,000 miles if requested more than 72 hours before departure, or 90,000 miles within 72 hours of departure. These upgrade rates apply regardless of whether the original economy ticket was purchased with cash or miles.
Comparatively, a promotional business class award between North America and Turkey costs 65,000 miles total when booked directly. That means travelers who book an economy award for 40,000 miles and then upgrade would spend 105,000 miles or more for the same business class seat, which is significantly more than booking business class from the start.
Unless you purchased an economy class for a very low price, it would be difficult to justify paying 65,000 miles for an upgrade, especially since those same miles could be used to cover an entire business class award. In limited situations, upgrades can make sense, such as when business class award space isn’t initially available. However, for most travelers, booking Turkish Airlines business class outright with miles offers better value than upgrading an economy ticket.
Finally, remember that "last-minute upgrades" aren't capacity controlled. That means you can upgrade to business class if there's any business class seat available and you have the miles.
How to maximize your rewards
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