How to spend your Westpac Altitude Points

Westpac Altitude Rewards gives you a way to earn points per $1 on your everyday credit card spending. If you get a new Westpac Altitude Rewards credit card, you could also get 1000s of bonus points through an introductory offer.

But how much are Altitude Points worth? Let’s look at some of the different ways you can earn and use Altitude Points – and the value you'll get from them.

How to earn Westpac Altitude Rewards

Westpac Altitude Rewards credit cards earn points for every $1 you spend on eligible purchases. The number of points you earn is also different for each card.

What is an eligible purchase?

Eligible purchases cover most payments for goods and services, which means you'll usually earn points on your everyday spending with an Altitude Rewards card. However, both Westpac-issued and Amex-issued Altitude Rewards credit cards list a number of transactions that are not considered eligible purchases, which we have outlined in the table below.

Transactions not eligible to earn reward points

How to redeem your Westpac Altitude Points

You can use your Altitude Points to redeem everything from gift cards and cashback to retail items from the Altitude Rewards Store.

The table below shows some of the different reward options available, the retail or dollar value for them and how much value you get per point (shown in cents). These rewards and values were sourced from the Westpac Altitude Rewards website on 6 January 2021 and are rounded to 2 decimal places.

Based on these reward options, you would get the most value from making a $50 donation to Cancer Council Australia, with each point worth around 0.60 cents (rounded to 2 decimal places). Another way to look at this is that every 1,000 points redeemed for this reward is worth $5.99 when rounded to the nearest whole cent.

On the other end of the scale, you would get the least value from redeeming points for the Apple AirPods in the table. This reward offers around 0.32 cents for each point used, or $3.23 per 1,000 points used.

Interested in the value of other rewards? Learn more about calculating the value of rewards points so you can check the value of anything you want through the Westpac Altitude Rewards website.

Transferring your Altitude Points to frequent flyer rewards

As well as redeeming them for cashback or retail items, you can transfer your Altitude Points for frequent flyer points with the following partners:

• Velocity Frequent Flyer
• Air New Zealand Airpoints
• Asia Miles
• Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer

You need a minimum of 3,000 Altitude Points to make a transfer to one of these frequent flyer programs. The transfer rates aren't publicly listed, but you'll see them when you log in to make a redemption.

How to redeem Altitude Rewards points

1. Log in to your account on the Westpac Altitude Rewards website.
2. Browse the range of rewards available or select your chosen reward.
3. Click the "Add to cart" or "Redeem now" button and follow the prompts to complete your redemption.

Note that if you want to redeem your points for travel directly through Altitude Rewards, you will have to enter your desired details, such as the travel dates, number of passengers and fare class for flights. You can then browse the travel options provided and select the reward option that suits your plans.

What to think about before getting a Westpac Altitude Rewards card

Weigh up these pros and cons to help you decide if a Westpac Altitude Rewards credit card is right for you.

Benefits

• Earn points for your spending. If you regularly use a credit card and usually pay your account balance in full each month, reward points are an easy way to get something back for your spending.
• Bonus points. Westpac Altitude Rewards credit cards may offer introductory bonus points that can boost your balance when you first get a card. Just remember you'll need to meet the offer's spending requirements.
• American Express option. If you choose an American Express Westpac Altitude Rewards bundle, you'll get both an Amex card issued by American Express and a Mastercard issued by Westpac. This gives you more options for earning points (which will be pooled into one rewards account).
• Frequent flyer partners. Westpac Altitude Rewards lets you transfer your points to five different frequent flyer programs. There's also an option to earn Qantas Points by opting in to the Westpac Altitude Qantas Rewards program (for a fee of $50 p.a.). Just make sure you're a member of the airline loyalty program you want to transfer your points to and add your membership number to your Altitude Rewards account.
• Flexibility of rewards. From travel options to paying for purchases or getting a gift card for your favourite store, the Westpac Altitude Rewards program offers a variety of options that can help you make the most of your points.

Potential issues

• Frequent flyer transfer rates. If your goal is to earn more frequent flyer points, you might find you get a higher earn rate from a frequent flyer card.
• Interest rates. If you struggle to repay your balance in full each month, the interest costs you collect could potentially outweigh the value of your rewards.
• Annual fee. Westpac Altitude Rewards credit cards have annual fees ranging from $150 for the Westpac Altitude Platinum Card up to $300 for the Westpac Altitude Black - Qantas Card. If the value of the rewards and benefits is less than the annual fee, this type of card may not be worth it.
• Different accounts. If you choose one of the American Express Westpac Altitude Rewards bundles, you'll get two accounts: a Mastercard account issued by Westpac and an Amex account issued by American Express. This also means you'll have two statements and two lots of payments to make each month.

Although earning Altitude Rewards can be a great way to reward your spending, not all rewards offer the same value. Generally, travel and flight upgrades offer more bang for your buck than items from the Altitude Rewards Store or paying for purchases with your points. So before you cash in your Altitude Rewards Points bounty, compare a few options to find the most rewarding deal for you.

Compare Westpac Rewards Credit Cards

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Name	Product	Purchase rate	Balance transfer rate	Annual fee
Westpac Altitude Platinum Qantas		20.49% p.a.	0% p.a. for 18 months with 1% balance transfer fee	$149 annual fee for the first year ($200 p.a. thereafter)	Get 60,000 bonus Qantas Points when you spend $3,000 within 90 days. Plus, a first-year annual fee discount and a 0% balance transfer offer.	Go to site More Info	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
Westpac Altitude Black		20.49% p.a.	0% p.a. for 18 months with 1% balance transfer fee	$250	Earn 150,000 bonus Altitude Points when you spend $4,000 within the first 90 days. Plus, save with 0% interest on balance transfers.	Go to site More Info	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
Westpac Altitude Platinum Card		20.49% p.a.	0% p.a. for 22 months with 1% balance transfer fee	$49 annual fee for the first year ($150 p.a. thereafter)	Get 130,000 bonus Altitude Points (worth $450 cashback) when you spend $3,000 in the first 90 days, a 0% balance transfer offer and a $49 discounted annual fee.	Go to site More Info	Compare	loading Fetching your data...

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FAQs about Westpac Altitude Rewards

If you want to learn more about this credit card rewards program, check out our answers to common questions. You can also use the comment box below to ask your own question.

• What is the Westpac credit card contact number?

  Westpac has different phone numbers depending on the reason for your call, which we've listed below:

  Westpac Altitude Rewards Centre and Altitude Travel bookings numbers:

  • Altitude cardholders: 1300 887 820
  • Altitude Platinum and Platinum Plus cardholders: 1300 859 100
  • Altitude Black cardholders: 1300 651 999

  General account enquiries, lost or stolen cards issued by Westpac:

  • All cardholders: 1300 651 089
  • Overseas: +61 2 9155 7700

  Cards issued by American Express:

  • American Express Westpac Altitude Black Card Members: 1300 012 705
  • American Express Westpac Altitude Platinum Card Members: 1300 012 702
  • Lost or stolen American Express cards: 1300 132 639 in Australia, when overseas call +612 9271 8664

• How can I earn more Westpac Altitude Rewards Points?

  If you're after more Altitude Points and rewards, here are 6 tips you can use to earn more:

  1. Compare cards. Before applying, it's important to compare Westpac Altitude Rewards credit cards to find the card that is most suited to your budget and spending habits. This will also ensure that you don't end up overpaying for a card that has features you may not use.
  2. Take advantage of bonus points offers. Depending on when you apply, a Westpac Altitude Rewards credit card may include an introductory bonus points offer for new customers. With a substantial bonus points giveaway, you can sometimes earn as much as a free flight simply for signing up and meeting spending requirements.
  3. Request additional cardholders. Additional cardholders can double or triple your points-earning potential by increasing spending on your card account. But account expenditure would still be capped by your credit limit and you would still be responsible for managing all repayments.
  4. Use your card for big-ticket items. Charging major purchases to your credit card allows you to earn more rewards points for your spending. But be careful to make punctual repayments in order to avoid paying high interest costs.
  5. Pay for everyday expenses with your credit card. Where possible, pay for regular purchases using your credit card instead of a debit card or cash.
  6. Check your earn rate for different spending categories. The Westpac Altitude Platinum Card and Westpac Altitude Black offer different earn rates based on the types of purchases you make. For example, the Westpac Altitude Black offers 6 points per $1 spent (up to $10,000 per month) on flights purchased in Australia directly with Qantas, Jetstar, Virgin Australia, Emirates and Singapore Airlines, then 1.25 points per $1 spent thereafter. Checking out the different spend categories means you can choose when you pay with your card to get the most value from it.

• What's the difference between transferring my Westpac Altitude Points to Velocity or choosing to earn Velocity Points?

  If you choose to earn Westpac Altitude Points, you'll need to manually transfer them to your Velocity Frequent Flyer account when you want to get Velocity Points. With this option, you can also use your Altitude Points for other rewards offered through the Altitude Rewards program.

  If you enrol in Westpac Altitude Velocity, you'll earn Velocity Points per $1 on eligible spending with your Westpac Altitude credit card. Note that there is a $50 Velocity Rewards fee for this option, which is charged annually.

• Can I use my Westpac Altitude Rewards points to upgrade a flight?

  You can't directly use Altitude points for a flight upgrade. But you could transfer your points to one of the participating frequent flyer programs and then request the upgrade through that frequent flyer program.

• Can I use Altitude Rewards points to book a flight for myself and my partner?

  Yes. As long as you have enough Altitude points, or a combination of points and cash, you can select a number of passengers for your travel redemptions on the Altitude Rewards website.

• Do signup bonus points count towards the points cap for a Westpac Altitude Rewards credit card?

  No. Bonus points offered to new customers are excluded from the points cap. Note that you will have to meet the eligibility requirements for bonus points to be credited to your account (ie spending a certain amount of points in the first few months you have the card). Check the offer terms and conditions for specific information.