KrisFlyer Miles Value Index 2026

We compared live Singapore Airlines cash fares against published KrisFlyer Saver award costs across 48 destinations and four cabin classes to rank cents per mile value for redemptions from Singapore.

Data as of 16 May 2026 — Research by SGfi

Where miles stretch farthest

Each country is shaded on a CPM scale. A brighter, paler colour returns more cash value per mile. Countries with multiple destinations show the average CPM across all of their destinations. Hover or tap a country for the underlying numbers.

Key findings

The average KrisFlyer mile

What a Saver mile is worth, on average

2.06cpm

Economy

2.06 cpm

Premium Eco

2.72 cpm

Business

3.82 cpm

First

6.70 cpm

Mean cents per mile across 48 destinations. Cash fares sampled across five forward departure months from the snapshot date.

Premium cabin lift

Business stretches a mile further than Economy

1.9×

Average Business CPM (3.82 cpm) vs Average Economy CPM (2.06 cpm) across every route tracked in the report.

100k miles, in cash

What an average mile bank buys

S$2,061

The cash a 100,000-mile balance projects to at the report's average economy CPM (2.06 cpm). On individual routes the same balance ranges from S$954 (Phuket) to S$5,405 (Istanbul).

Europe vs Southeast Asia

Europe returns more than Southeast Asia

62%more

Regional averages: Europe 2.57 cpm vs Southeast Asia 1.58 cpm at Saver economy.

Best vs worst

Same chart, very different math

5.7×

Istanbul returns 5.7× the cash value per mile of Phuket on the same Saver award chart at economy.

Top 20 destinations by CPM (Economy)

Asia & Oceania
Europe
Africa
North America
5.40
3.88
3.56
3.32
3.06
3.06
2.81
2.81
2.74
2.70
2.61
2.60
2.52
2.48
2.48
2.44
2.38
2.32
2.29
2.16
#1 Istanbul
#2 Amsterdam
#3 Male
#4 Copenhagen
#5 Athens
#6 Johannesburg
#7 Los Angeles
#8 San Francisco
#9 Auckland
#10 Rome
#11 New York
#12 Barcelona
#13 Bandar Seri Begawan
#14 Bali
#15 Riyadh
#16 Vientiane
#17 London
#18 Munich
#19 Tokyo
#20 Zurich

Average CPM by region and cabin

RegionCitiesEconomyPremium EcoBusinessFirst
Middle East
33.24 cpm2.79 cpm6.19 cpm6.41 cpm
Africa
13.06 cpm2.90 cpm5.59 cpm—
North America
32.74 cpm2.21 cpm4.10 cpm7.35 cpm
Europe
112.57 cpm3.16 cpm4.48 cpm7.09 cpm
Oceania
32.02 cpm3.04 cpm4.23 cpm6.13 cpm
South Asia
51.97 cpm1.73 cpm3.09 cpm5.70 cpm
Southeast Asia
131.58 cpm—3.05 cpm5.28 cpm
North Asia
91.46 cpm2.16 cpm3.57 cpm7.25 cpm

Rows ordered by economy CPM descending. Bold navy values mark the highest-CPM cabin within each region. The city count reflects economy coverage; premium cabins may average fewer routes per region.

How the cents per mile values are computed

Formula

CPM = (median round-trip cash fare in SGD × 100) ÷ round-trip Saver miles

  1. One-way Saver miles from the KrisFlyer chart, doubled for the round trip.
  2. Median round-trip cash fare for the same route and cabin from the Singapore Airlines booking engine.
  3. Multiply the SGD fare by 100, divide by the round-trip miles.

Worked example — Tokyo (HND)

CPM = (S$1,170 × 100) ÷ 51,000 miles = 2.29 cpm

For a round-trip Tokyo Saver seat, 51,000 miles substitutes for a S$1,170 cash ticket.

Cash fare baseline

  • Source: live singaporeair.com fares across five forward departure months.
  • Sample basis: 7-day round-trips departing the 2nd Tuesday of each month.
  • Aggregation: median per route × cabin; min/max shown in the full table.
  • Single carrier: Singapore Airlines mainline only; partner-operated segments excluded.
  • Snapshot date: 16 May 2026.

How to use this index

CPM is a benchmark, not a buy signal. Four ways to turn the table into a decision:

Use case 1 — Cash vs miles

Should I pay cash or burn miles for this booking?

Look up the route's CPM. Routes above the economy dataset average of 2.06 cpm return more cash value per mile spent. Routes below it (Phuket, KL, Penang) — cash typically costs less than the implied miles value at these rates.

Use case 2 — Target balance

How many miles should I bank for the trip I want?

Pick a destination + cabin in the full table; the round-trip Saver column is your target. Round up 5–10% for partial availability. Pair with Miles Cards to estimate accumulation time at your monthly spend.

Use case 3 — Pick the cabin

Where do premium-cabin redemptions actually pay off?

Business CPM averages 1.9× Economy in this dataset, and beats Economy in every region tracked. The gap is widest on thin, long-haul markets (Middle East, Africa, Oceania).

Use case 4 — Fixed balance, best destination

My balance is fixed. Where does it stretch furthest?

Filter the full table to routes within your balance, sort by CPM descending — the top is where each mile buys the most cash value. The Destination Map does this live, with months-remaining for out-of-reach routes.

Cash and Saver miles for all 48 destinations (Economy)

Show the full rankingexpand_more

CPM across cabins

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DestinationEconomyPremium EcoBusinessFirst
Istanbul
Turkey · IST
5.40 cpm4.88 cpm9.35 cpm—
Shanghai
China · PVG
1.28 cpm1.94 cpm3.67 cpm7.75 cpm
Beijing
China · PEK
1.13 cpm1.90 cpm3.57 cpm7.75 cpm
London
United Kingdom · LHR
2.38 cpm3.53 cpm4.94 cpm7.59 cpm
Los Angeles
United States · LAX
2.81 cpm2.61 cpm3.87 cpm7.58 cpm
New York
United States · JFK
2.61 cpm1.59 cpm4.22 cpm7.13 cpm
Hong Kong
Hong Kong · HKG
1.32 cpm1.97 cpm2.55 cpm6.98 cpm
Paris
France · CDG
1.66 cpm3.02 cpm5.47 cpm6.60 cpm
Tokyo
Japan · HND
2.29 cpm2.85 cpm4.10 cpm6.51 cpm
Dubai
UAE · DXB
1.82 cpm1.44 cpm3.03 cpm6.41 cpm
Sydney
Australia · SYD
1.66 cpm2.50 cpm3.39 cpm6.13 cpm
Rome
Italy · FCO
2.70 cpm5.91 cpm5.66 cpm—
Amsterdam
Netherlands · AMS
3.88 cpm3.34 cpm5.80 cpm—
Delhi
India · DEL
1.63 cpm1.77 cpm3.22 cpm5.70 cpm
Mumbai
India · BOM
1.26 cpm1.69 cpm3.55 cpm5.70 cpm
Johannesburg
South Africa · JNB
3.06 cpm2.90 cpm5.59 cpm—
Bandar Seri Begawan
Brunei · BWN
2.52 cpm—5.40 cpm—
Auckland
New Zealand · AKL
2.74 cpm3.58 cpm5.30 cpm—
Jakarta
Indonesia · CGK
1.68 cpm—2.94 cpm5.28 cpm
Yangon
Myanmar · RGN
1.64 cpm—4.66 cpm—
Barcelona
Spain · BCN
2.60 cpm3.05 cpm4.64 cpm—
Zurich
Switzerland · ZRH
2.16 cpm2.60 cpm4.60 cpm—
Munich
Germany · MUC
2.32 cpm2.61 cpm4.44 cpm—
Copenhagen
Denmark · CPH
3.32 cpm2.43 cpm4.31 cpm—
San Francisco
United States · SFO
2.81 cpm2.42 cpm4.19 cpm—
Taipei
Taiwan · TPE
1.26 cpm—4.12 cpm—
Milan
Italy · MXP
2.15 cpm2.57 cpm4.01 cpm—
Melbourne
Australia · MEL
1.67 cpm3.05 cpm3.99 cpm—
Chongqing
China · CKG
1.39 cpm—3.83 cpm—
Vientiane
Laos · VTE
2.44 cpm—3.67 cpm—
Osaka
Japan · KIX
1.87 cpm—3.65 cpm—
Male
Maldives · MLE
3.56 cpm—3.28 cpm—
Shenzhen
China · SZX
1.34 cpm—3.51 cpm—
Phnom Penh
Cambodia · PNH
1.23 cpm—3.49 cpm—
Frankfurt
Germany · FRA
2.05 cpm2.50 cpm3.48 cpm—
Seoul
South Korea · ICN
1.26 cpm—3.15 cpm—
Athens
Greece · ATH
3.06 cpm—1.98 cpm—
Colombo
Sri Lanka · CMB
1.91 cpm—2.93 cpm—
Manila
Philippines · MNL
1.23 cpm—2.78 cpm—
Penang
Malaysia · PEN
1.34 cpm—2.70 cpm—
Bangkok
Thailand · BKK
1.42 cpm—2.64 cpm—
Bali
Indonesia · DPS
2.48 cpm—2.30 cpm—
Riyadh
Saudi Arabia · RUH
2.48 cpm2.06 cpm——
Dhaka
Bangladesh · DAC
1.49 cpm—2.45 cpm—
Phuket
Thailand · HKT
0.95 cpm—2.42 cpm—
Hanoi
Vietnam · HAN
1.24 cpm—2.42 cpm—
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia · KUL
1.31 cpm—2.32 cpm—
Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam · SGN
1.12 cpm—1.97 cpm—

Row order: highest CPM across all cabins, descending. Bold navy values mark the highest-CPM cabin on each route.

Outliers and anomalies

CPM compresses two markets, the KrisFlyer chart and the live cash market, into one number. When the markets disagree, the route shows up as an outlier.

Why Phuket ranks lowest despite the short hop

Short-haul, fiercely competed routes

Phuket posts the dataset's lowest CPM at 0.95 cpm. LCCs (Scoot, AirAsia, Jetstar) drag Singapore Airlines' cash fare down to S$248 round-trip, while the Saver chart still charges 26,000 miles. Cash numerator collapses, miles denominator stays put — CPM falls.

Takeaway: on short-haul, LCC-saturated routes, the cash market typically offers lower cost than miles redemption. Long-haul and premium-cabin redemptions show the widest CPM advantage on routes where the cash market has no budget alternative.

Why Istanbul tops the list

Mirror image of the lowest-CPM case

Istanbul clears 5.40 cpm. Thin cash market and inelastic demand put the round-trip fare at S$3,459, while the chart only asks 64,000 miles. Numerator high, denominator flat — CPM jumps.

Takeaway: high-CPM routes have the widest miles-vs-cash value differential. Saver inventory on these routes is limited and time-sensitive; singaporeair.com offers fare alert subscriptions.

Why Business and First show higher CPM

Cash fares scale faster than the chart

The Saver chart prices Business at roughly 2–3× Economy on the same route. The cash market typically charges 3–5× more for the same Business seat — and up to ~8× on the priciest long-haul routes. On most routes that cash gap outpaces the miles gap, so premium-cabin CPM comes out higher — which is why "use miles for premium cabins" is visible directly in the data.

Why same-region destinations diverge

Cash market structure, not distance

Phuket and Vientiane share a Saver band but post very different CPMs. The chart treats them similarly; the cash market doesn't. Vientiane has few LCC competitors, so Singapore Airlines' cash fare is much higher. CPM tracks cash-market competitiveness more than flight distance.

Sources, limitations, and reuse terms

Variables not modelled

  • •Live Saver availability — chart miles are the published baseline; live seats aren't guaranteed.
  • •Taxes & surcharges — excluded from CPM; typically SGD 50–300+ round-trip on top.
  • •Cash fare drift — live searches can land outside the snapshot's min–max range.
  • •Day-of-week pricing — fares are sampled on a fixed 2nd-Tuesday departure; routes with systematic day-of-week premia (common on thin long-haul markets) can sit above their true weekly average.
  • •Award chart changes — KrisFlyer can revise Saver rates; cabin downgauges unmodelled.
  • •FX — SGD throughout; foreign-currency tickets convert at Singapore Airlines' rate at ticketing.
  • •Partner segments — Star Alliance and codeshare awards are out of scope.
  • •Promotions — status earn multipliers and time-limited mileage sales are excluded.

Cash snapshot: 16 May 2026. Saver miles per the KrisFlyer Award Chart effective 1 November 2025. Output is an estimate, not a projection of future redemption value.

Official data sources

SGfi is independent — not affiliated with or endorsed by Singapore Airlines or the KrisFlyer programme.

Past performance

The information presented is historical information. Past performance of any redemption value is not indicative of its future value.

Data snapshot: 16 May 2026.

Usage & attribution

This report and its findings may be reused, reproduced, and adapted in any context, including commercial publications, editorial coverage, presentations, and internal research. Attribution to SGfi is required on every reproduction, with a link to the source page where the medium permits.

For high-resolution chart exports, the underlying data files, or additional research assets, please contact [email protected].

About SGfi

Calculator-first, Singapore-first

SGfi is a personal finance research outlet for Singapore residents. We build free, interactive tools and calculators that translate the country's particular financial machinery — CPF allocations, KrisFlyer redemptions, local credit card programmes, into tools you can act on in a few clicks.

This Miles Value Index is a factual snapshot. It ranks Singapore Airlines' published Saver award costs against the median cash fare we observe in the live booking engine, and lists every assumption and unmodelled variable in full above. The same underlying dataset powers our live Destination Map and the cards comparison engine — so the moment you finish reading, you can move from the ranked benchmark to a personalised plan.

SGfi has no commercial relationship with Singapore Airlines. Affiliate links, where they exist, are disclosed in the destination of the link rather than embedded in the rankings or methodology. You can read the full methodology, funding model, and team in the About SGfi page, and reach the team at [email protected].

Pair the index with a live tool

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