Although I’ve never flown Spirit Airlines, I’ll gladly take their elite status. Airline elite status offers premium benefits and ways to save money, no matter which airline you’re flying. Yes, even Spirit Airlines. Spirit Airlines is partnering a limited-time offer with StatusMatch.com where frequent travelers can earn Free Spirit Silver or Gold elite status. Here’s how to take advantage of the Spirit Airlines status match offer and parlay it to elite status with other airlines.
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Spirit Airlines… are you serious?!?!?
Most travel bloggers like to give Spirit Airlines a hard time because of how bad its loyalty program is. Points expire after 12 months (without Spirit or partner activity). There are no partner airlines to earn or redeem with. And there are extra fees for booking a short-notice award flight (28 days or less) or to redeposit points when canceling a flight.
Plus, Spirit Airlines doesn’t have interline agreements with other airlines, so you’re stuck if a flight is canceled or delayed. To counter that, always book your Spirit flight with a credit card that offers trip delay, cancelation, or interruption benefits.
But, plenty of travelers choose Spirit Airlines because of its low fares. It also flies to many of the popular tourist destinations, like Orlando, Las Vegas, the Caribbean, and Central America. Plus, you can book “the Big Front Seat,” which offers more space, extra legroom, and no middle seat, for not a lot of money.
Spirit Airlines elite status levels and benefits
The Free Spirit loyalty program actually has several benefits that are the envy of other airlines. For example, you can pool points with up to eight family or friends, and points can be redeemed for any flight without blackout dates. The airline even offers Points + Cash payment options.
How to earn Free Spirit elite status
Spirit passengers earn one Status Qualifying Point (SQP) for every dollar they spend on Spirit airfare. Upgrades and A La Smarte options also earn one SQP per dollar. Additionally, they’ll get one SQP for every ten dollars spent on the Spirit Airlines credit card. Learn more about the best airline credit card offers.
Normally, when you earn Spirit Airlines elite status, you’ll enjoy its benefits for the remainder of the current year and all of the following year. For example, if you earn elite status in August 2023, your benefits continue through December 2024.
Rana Ghosh, Vice President of Omnichannel Sales at Spirit Airlines, says that “We’re incredibly proud of our Free Spirit program, which offers Gold and Silver members a long list of perks on every flight.”
Free Spirit Silver elite status
To earn Free Spirit Silver elite status, normally, you have to earn 2,000 SQPs in a calendar year. Silver elite status includes:
- 8x points on fares
- 16x points on ancillary purchases
- Redemption fee waiver
- Exit Row seat assignment
- Shortcut Boarding & Security
- Same-day standby
- Overweight baggage fee waiver
Free Spirit Gold elite status
Spirit passengers earn Free Spirit Gold elite status by earning 5,000 SQPs in a calendar year. This level of elite status includes:
- All the benefits of Silver
- Free checked bag and carry-on bag
- One free drink and a snack while onboard
- Zone 1 boarding
- Free Flight Flex
- Pet fee waiver
- Group 2/3/44/5 seat selection at purchase
Spirit Airlines status match offer
With the Spirit Airlines status match offer, you’ll receive either Free Spirit Gold or Silver based on your current elite status from more than 30 airlines and hotels. You’ll receive elite status benefits for 12 months after paying an application fee.
“With many airlines and hotels downgrading elite members, this is a great opportunity for members of the eligible airline and hotel programs to switch to Spirit Airlines,” said Mark Ross-Smith, CEO of StatusMatch.com.
The application fee varies depending on which elite status level they want to match to. Travelers must pay a $49 fee to receive Free Spirit Silver elite status or $99 to match to Free Spirit Gold elite status.
Which airlines and hotels qualify for the Spirit Airlines status match?
Most airline status match offers are based on your airline elite status. However, the Spirit Airlines status match offer is open to both airline and hotel elite members.
The eligible airlines are:
- Aerolineas Plus
- Aeromexico Club Premier
- Air Canada Aeroplan
- Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- American Airlines AAdvantage
- Avianca Lifemiles
- Caribbean Airlines Caribbean Miles
- Copa Airlines ConnectMiles
- Delta SkyMiles
- Frontier Miles
- Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles
- JetBlue TrueBlue
- LATAM Pass
- Southwest Rapid Rewards
- United Airlines MileagePlus
- WestJet Rewards
Eligible hotel elite status programs are:
- Accor ALL
- Best Western Rewards
- Choice Privileges
- GHA Discovery
- Hilton Honors
- IHG One Rewards
- Marriott Bonvoy
- Omni Hotels & Resorts Select Guest
- Radisson Rewards
- Shangri-La Golden Circle
- Sonesta Travel Pass
- Taj Hotels InnerCircle
- The Leading Hotels of the World Leaders Club
- World Hotels Rewards
- World of Hyatt
- Wyndham Rewards
How do I sign up for the Spirit Airlines status match offer?
To sign up for the Spirit Airlines status match offer, go to Spirit.StatusMatch.com. Provide your airline or hotel elite status credentials. Then, pay your application fee — $49 (Silver) or $99 (Gold).
You’ll receive your new Free Spirit elite status within five business days. Keep in mind that elite status benefits are only available for flights AFTER you’ve received your status match. Existing flights may not receive those benefits.
Additionally, if you participate in this status match offer, you cannot apply again for the next two years.
What happens when Spirit Airlines merges with JetBlue?
As I mentioned earlier, I have never flown Spirit Airlines. And I don’t have any current plans to start. However, I’m intrigued by this offer because of the pending acquisition by JetBlue.
The JetBlue acquisition is on a bit of shaky ground right now. There are pending lawsuits by the Department of Justice and attorney generals from several states. This uncertainty makes people concerned that it may not actually happen. It’s hard to tell if these lawsuits will stop the acquisition, change the terms of the deal, or cause JetBlue to divest some aspects of its business.
My assumption is that JetBlue will honor the elite status of Free Spirit members once the acquisition finalizes. However, nobody knows when exactly that will happen, given the lawsuits mentioned above.
For less than $100, I think status matching for elite status is a worthy investment. And once you have Spirit Airlines elite status, you may even be tempted to fly the airline. With elite status perks, like the ability to waive fees and upgrade to a better seat, it shouldn’t be as bad as you might fear.
How to get airline status from this offer
Not only will you receive benefits from this Spirit Airlines status match offer when flying Spirit Airlines, but you may also be able to status match to other airlines as well.
Airlines and hotels are willing to offer elite status to existing elites in order to attract frequent travelers. They assume that you’ll spend large amounts of money with them in the future to retain your status or earn higher levels. However, your results will vary depending on which program you want to status match to.
I like to use StatusMatcher.com to see the latest results from others who are requesting status matches. While these results aren’t always accurate and won’t guarantee you’ll receive the same result, they do serve as guidance on what is possible.
The Bald Thoughts on the Spirit Airlines status match offer
Anytime I can get airline elite status for a small investment, I think it is worthwhile. I previously did the Frontier Airlines status match offer and saved enough on future flights that it paid for itself. Although I don’t have current plans to fly Spirit, I may be tempted to after status matching. Additionally, I think $100 is worth it in case the JetBlue acquisition goes through and JetBlue matches Spirit elite status into its TrueBlue program.
What are your thoughts… do you think it’s worth $49 or $99 to get a status match into Spirit Airlines Free Spirit Silver or Gold elite status?
