I’m primarily a oneworld flyer, given that I live in Miami, and it’s kind of hard not to fly American when living here. I’ve written about how oneworld Emerald is my favorite airline alliance status, but in this post I wanted to take a look at oneworld Sapphire status, which is the tier immediately below that.
While not quite as valuable as oneworld Emerald, it still offers some incredible perks that can enhance your travels on over a dozen airlines. So let’s take a look at oneworld Sapphire status benefits, and how it compares to other alliance tiers.
In this post:
How airline alliance status works
There are three major global airline alliances — oneworld, Star Alliance, and SkyTeam — and combined they have dozens of member airlines. Not all airlines belong to a global alliance, though many major airlines do.
One of the benefits of these alliances for frequent flyers is that there’s a certain level of reciprocity when it comes to elite perks. You don’t earn elite status directly with an alliance, but rather you earn status with a member airline, and that status maps over to an alliance elite tier.
You’ll typically get the best recognition when flying with the airline that you have elite status with, since perks like upgrades are often reserved for those kinds of flyers. However, there are all kinds of other perks, ranging from priority services to lounge access, which you can get through alliance status.
The oneworld alliance has three elite tiers — Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald — and here’s how those status levels map over:
- Emerald is the top-tier status, and is typically earned by having high level status in a oneworld frequent flyer program; you get this with American AAdvantage Executive Platinum and Platinum Pro, and Alaska Mileage Plan MVP Gold 100K and MVP Gold 75K
- Sapphire is the mid-tier stats, and is typically earned by having middle level status in a oneworld frequent flyer program; you get this with American AAdvantage Platinum and Alaska Mileage Plan MVP Gold
- Ruby is the low-tier status, and is typically earned by having low level status in a oneworld frequent flyer program; you get this with American AAdvantage Gold and Alaska Mileage Plan MVP
Benefits & perks of oneworld Sapphire status
What are the perks of oneworld Sapphire status? Let’s go over each of the perks, roughly in the order that I value them (admittedly this is pretty subjective, and depends on your travel patterns).
Business class lounge access
The most valuable perk of oneworld Sapphire status is the lounge access benefit, as members receive access to most oneworld business class lounges when traveling on a oneworld flight the same day in any cabin. They’re allowed to even bring one guest with them (also traveling on a oneworld flight).
Now, there are a few things to be aware of:
- Those earning oneworld Sapphire status through American AAdvantage or Alaska Mileage Plan only get lounge access when traveling outside of North America, while other oneworld Sapphire members get lounge access even when traveling domestically; in other words, non-AAdvantage and Mileage Plan oneworld Sapphire members can even use American Flagship Lounges when traveling within the US
- Certain business class lounges are excluded from this benefit, including the Al Mourjan Lounge Doha and Qatar Airways Premium Lounges outside of Qatar
There are some really great oneworld Sapphire lounges, ranging from the Greenwich Lounge JFK…
Priority check-in & boarding
As a oneworld Sapphire member you can generally check-in and board with business class passengers. If you’re traveling in a lower cabin, this can save you time and help ensure that there’s room for your carry-on bags.
Note that the exact policy of each airline differs. For example, American Airlines only lets Sapphire members board after business class passengers.
Preferred & pre-reserved seating
I wish this weren’t actually a benefit that I valued, but unfortunately some airlines in oneworld charge for seat assignments, even in business class. For example:
- British Airways charges for seat assignments in business class
- Qatar Airways sells unbundled business class fares, which don’t allow seat assignments in advance for non-elite members
While many people would probably otherwise usually book away from airlines with policies like this, oneworld Sapphire status makes this a non-issue, as you can continue to select seats in advance for free.
Do note that each airline has a different policy when it comes to assigning oneworld Sapphire members preferred economy seats. Some will assign extra legroom economy seats for free, while others won’t.
Extra baggage allowance & priority handling
While many frequent flyers prefer to travel hand luggage only, for those times where you do check luggage, the extra oneworld Sapphire baggage allowance comes in handy:
- For tickets that have a weight limit, you get an extra 15kg of luggage
- For tickets that have a piece system, you get one additional bag
In addition to the additional allowance, you also receive priority handling for your bags, so that they hopefully come out early.
Priority on waitlists & for standby
If you find yourself on a standby list or a waitlist for a flight, this is generally prioritized by status. You can expect that oneworld Sapphire status will give you priority on this list. This is useful in situations where you’re trying to stand by for a flight or score an upgrade, but there aren’t many seats left.
How do oneworld Emerald & Sapphire compare?
So, what are the differences between oneworld’s top-tier Emerald status and mid-tier Sapphire status? Here are the incremental perks of Emerald over Sapphire:
- Emerald gets you access to most oneworld first class lounges, ranging from the Qantas First Lounge LAX, to the Japan Airlines First Lounge HND, to the Cathay Pacific First Lounge HKG
- Emerald gets you higher priority check-in and boarding, often with first class
- Emerald gets you a slightly bigger baggage allowance, as you get an extra 20kg of baggage
- Emerald gets you fast track security
So the differences are definitely noticeable, though it also depends on which airports you frequently travel to, which airlines you fly with, and what you value most.
How does oneworld status compare to others?
The oneworld alliance is the only one of the big three global alliances to have three tiers. So I think oneworld Emerald is a competitive advantage, since other alliances don’t have a comparable top-tier status level. How does mid-tier oneworld Sapphire compare to Star Alliance Gold and SkyTeam Elite Plus?
- I’d say Star Alliance Gold is a little more valuable, since it’s the top-tier status for the alliance; while perks can’t compare to oneworld Emerald, you do sometimes get check-in with first class, and sometimes get access to better-than-business-class lounges
- I find SkyTeam Elite Plus is just not competitive with other tiers; for example, SkyTeam Elite Plus members with non-US airlines don’t even get lounge access when traveling domestically within the US, while elite members with oneworld and Star Alliance do
Bottom line
Status with an alliance can be extremely valuable, especially if you don’t always fly with the same airline. While it can’t compete with top-tier Emerald status, I find that mid-tier Sapphire status with oneworld is still valuable. It offers business class check-in, lounge access, and boarding, plus an extra baggage allowance, priority baggage delivery, and priority on waitlists.
If you live in the US, the ideal situation is to have oneworld Sapphire with a foreign frequent flyer program, so that you can use Flagship Lounges even when traveling domestically.
If you’re a oneworld Sapphire member, what has your experience been with the status?
The extra baggage allowance part is clear as mud. If I am AA Platinum/OW Sapphire and:
- flying domestic, Economy, on AA, how many bags can I check and what is the weight limit of each bag? I think I get 2 bags at 50# each. Does "an extra 15kg" mean I can check a 3rd bag at up to 33# (i.e. 15kg)? Or does it mean I can still only have 2 bags, but...
The extra baggage allowance part is clear as mud. If I am AA Platinum/OW Sapphire and:
- flying domestic, Economy, on AA, how many bags can I check and what is the weight limit of each bag? I think I get 2 bags at 50# each. Does "an extra 15kg" mean I can check a 3rd bag at up to 33# (i.e. 15kg)? Or does it mean I can still only have 2 bags, but instead of a combined weight of 100#, they can have a combined weight of 133#? Is there a limit to the weight of either individual bag? Could I have one bag at 110# and the other at 23#?
- flying international, from the US, in Economy, on AA, how many bags and what is the weight limit? AA says 2 bags and 50# per bag. So, is that a "weight limit" policy, or a "number of pieces" policy? Same questions as before.
Probably the only worthwhile perk for flying 2 million miles on AA...
So as a Qatar Gold from the new credit card do I get access to Admiral’s Club on domestic AA flight?
Last year I had SQ Gold (from transferring 300K+ which no longer works) bank points and got access to United Club on Domestic flights.
How about an analysis of which of the One World alliance members gets you Sapphire or Emerald status the most readily?
Most of my travel is international, and I mostly fly Qatar. But my membership is with AAdvatage where I have Platinum status. Should I change to Qatar Membership? Can I maintain One Wold Sapphire status, if I shift? Thanks.
1) One of the frustrating things being oneworld Sapphire [OWS] is that it is (generally) NOT recognized throughout the system universally. I am OWS through Alaska as an MVP Gold elite. For example, if I log into my AA acct., I am without status. If I don't log in, and enter my Alaska MP number, I am. (I do this when buying a ticket on AA.) But this does me no good whatsoever if I...
1) One of the frustrating things being oneworld Sapphire [OWS] is that it is (generally) NOT recognized throughout the system universally. I am OWS through Alaska as an MVP Gold elite. For example, if I log into my AA acct., I am without status. If I don't log in, and enter my Alaska MP number, I am. (I do this when buying a ticket on AA.) But this does me no good whatsoever if I am booking an award ticket using AAdvantage miles. Either I skip the seat assignment(s), then call AA -- eventually getting through to an agent who then has to manually enter my AS number so I can select an upgraded seat at no charge, OR I buy the upgraded seat(s), then calls have them enter my AS number and have them reverse the charges. Either way, dealing with AA on the phone is a nightmare. (The same holds for boarding passes, recognition in-flight, and every other specific benefit of being OWS.)
2) In re: earning status with a foreign carrier. TTBOMK, virtually every carrier within the oneworld system requires that x number of segments or miles be flown on *their* metal, though you can earn on every carrier and those miles actually (in most cases) count towards status. (Oddly, AS did away with that.) That's fine if you are @Lucky, Ford, another travel blogger, or road warrior who travels internationally for work. At most, I travel 6x a year on business within the US. My wife and I generally manage one trip a year to either Canada or Mexico, and one trans-Atlantic trip. No way I can meet the minimum segment/miles flown requirements of foreign carriers. I solved the lounge access issues with an Alaska Lounge+ membership until AS raised the price. Now I save money by having a Citi AAdvantage card that includes Admirals Lounge access (and Alaska) domestically and abroad, plus having OWS status helps overseas.
Instead of calling to change the FF number, you can include the AS (or any other One World number) from the time of booking- you just need to treat it as though you're booking for someone else. That's what I do when I book using my AA miles but want to list my AY number
This article can be boiled down to one word: none
These posts are generally informative but aren’t particularly helpful when you just say “some airlines do and some don’t, or it’s varies” without calling out the specifics.
Someone with status who may want to know if it’s worth spending a little more to stay within their alliance (particularly) in economy, is still going to have to dig through that airline’s webpage to find additional info
It’s not usually even that clear, like the fact that you can book STARLUX tickets on Alaska’s site but the process of understanding what seat you get and how you can get it feels like trying to solve a crime from 100 hundred years ago.
The comparison between the alliances here is always based on lounge access. However on other perks SkyTeam is better than other alliances.
Free baggage on all fares (including basic economy which many people book when they want a cheap ticket)
Premium seats.
MH does not allow sapphire members to select even the cheapest normal seat for free.
What is the situation with Finnair?
Another big thing is priority security which one world doesn’t give even to emerald.
One would argue that this is more important then boarding where many don’t like to board early and spend unnecessary time on the plane, and security lines are many times a bigger issue then check in lines when showing up last minute.
Again this is from the perspective of a frequent traveler who doesn’t want to spend unnecessary time at airport or on the plane.
OW Emerald **does** get fast track security (eg First Wing in LHR terminal 5, and sapphire gets regular fast track security), numerous Australian airports, in MAD... pretty much wherever available and in all the hubs as far as I know (can't speak for North America).
MH doesn’t even allow it for OWE
Which lounge has that fire-pit in the header picture?
I think it's the oneworld lounge in LAX, primarily run by QF in collaboration with CX and BA. It is not actually managed by oneworld, though.
It’s the OW lounge at TBIT @ LAX
OW Sapphire is useful for sure but the numbers have swelled, the reciprocal agreements dilute the individual airlines top tier membership offerings. There needs to be top down review of what the alliance grants to fellow members and a re-focus on how individual airlines can recognise brand loyalty.
To newbies, I normally say that tier status provides no benefit that is not otherwise available via a premium cabin ticket. But, for North American residents, lounge access is the one exception if one has One World or Star Alliance tier status in a program outside of North America. In this respect, SkyTeam fails.
Foreign Status is useful for lounge access only if flying a purely domestic flight in USA, on United, American or Alaska. You don't need foreign status to access lounges on American or United itineraries in Business, if the trip crosses the US-Canada border and/or the US/Mexico border. And you don't need any status to access lounges when flying Air Canada Business Class, on any itinerary. Any American, United, or Air Canada Business Class ticket crossing...
Foreign Status is useful for lounge access only if flying a purely domestic flight in USA, on United, American or Alaska. You don't need foreign status to access lounges on American or United itineraries in Business, if the trip crosses the US-Canada border and/or the US/Mexico border. And you don't need any status to access lounges when flying Air Canada Business Class, on any itinerary. Any American, United, or Air Canada Business Class ticket crossing one of those borders gets you into lounges at origin and connecting points (not at final destination) including Admirals Clubs, United Clubs, StarAlliance Lounge LAX and Maple Leaf Lounges in Canada and USA. On LCCs and Skyteam carriers like Delta, you're out of luck.
What about if you're flying economy? In that case you will NOT get access to lounges crossing borders. However, with foreign status you will get access even if flying economy.