Lazy Airline Elite Status in 2026
This is the January 11, 2026 edition of the LazyPoints Weekly newsletter. It goes out by email every Sunday at 8:00 a.m. Pacific–unless I oversleep–and is archived here on the blog. Want it straight to your inbox each week? Sign up here.
A few months ago, I wrote that airline elite status is still worth it — at least with reasonable expectations. After my first trip of 2026, I still believe that.
On that trip, my Atmos Gold status got me 50% bonus miles and an upgrade to premium economy. First class upgrades are rare these days, but even when flying economy, I still find the overall airport experience meaningfully better with status: priority lines, earlier boarding, better seat selection, and fewer small annoyances.
That said, elite status is not something I want to chase or pay extra for.
Most airlines still require several thousand dollars in airfare to qualify. Most airlines also let you earn status via spending on co-branded credit cards — usually requiring tens of thousands of dollars in spend on cards that earn mediocre rewards. That’s usually a bad trade-off, especially if you’re not flying every other week.
The good news? In 2026, there are still a few lazy ways to get elite status without changing how you travel or sacrificing rewards.
Here are the ones that actually make sense:
Delta headstarts via Amex. The Platinum and Reserve Delta cards each give you a headstart toward Silver Medallion status. Holding both effectively unlocks entry-level status before you even take your first flight.
Atmos Rewards (my personal favorite). Atmos elite status starts at just 20,000 Status Points, which are earned on award flights based on distance flown. A single round-trip to Japan earns over 10,000 Status Points from most of the U.S., halfway to status. With points from Atmos or Bilt credit cards, it’s possible to earn status entirely from award travel. That’s exactly what we did last year. And an Atmos Summit can make that even easier with 10,000 Status Points on each card anniversary.
Bilt Platinum → Flying Blue Gold. Bilt Platinum status (earned through heavy point earning or spending) unlocks Flying Blue Gold, which includes meaningful SkyTeam benefits — including on Delta. This is niche, but powerful if you’re already deep in the Bilt ecosystem.
Hotel-driven airline status. Marriott Titanium status includes United Silver, which now carries benefits on JetBlue as well. If you already stay a lot in hotels, this can be a nice incidental perk — even if it’s not worth chasing on its own.
For me, 2026 will once again be an Atmos-first year. Thanks to my Summit anniversary bonus, I’ll earn Silver status just from our annual Japan trip. With normal spending on the Summit card and a few Oneworld flights, I may land back at Gold — without chasing status or changing how I travel.
This week on the blog 📝
Want extra rewards without extra effort? We compiled our favorite lazy points hacks.
Quick Points of the Week ⚡
New products 🆕
Capital One Lounge network expanding again. The network is up to six lounges, with one in the works at LaGuardia airport in New York—and another coming to Charlotte (CLT). (View from the Wing)
Free Wi-Fi rolling out on American Airlines. Most planes will have free in-flight internet for AAdvantage members starting this week, with more of the fleet joining over time. (TPG)
Elite Status 👑
Easy status match to Wyndham. Competing status (even from a credit card like the IHG Premier) can get you 90 days of elite status at Wyndham, with a chance to retain it with qualifying stays. (AwardWallet)
Rumors 👀
Bilt 2.0 rumors. I’ll write about the new Bilt lineup once the details are released this week. Until then, you can see the rumors about card lineups and how points on mortgages and rent will work here, here, here, here, and many other places on the internet.
Saks Fifth Avenue facing bankruptcy. If you have an Amex Platinum, you might want to use your credits while you can. (Frequent Miler)
Sign-up bonuses of the Week 🎯
It’s a great time to replenish your American Airlines miles, because Citi has elevated offers on two of their co-branded credit cards: the $99-fee Platinum Select, and the $595-fee Executive.
The Platinum Select is offering 80,000 miles after spending $3,500 in the first four months after opening the account, plus waiving the first-year fee. The card itself doesn’t offer great earning rates, and only offers Turo credits to offset the annual fee, although it could pay for itself if it saves you money via the free checked bags benefit. But the main draw here is the miles. I did a quick check on Roame, and from my home airport, 80,000 would be enough for a first-class one-way to Tokyo, a business-class one-way to Europe, a round-trip to Japan, or two round-trips to Europe. 🔥🔥
The Executive is offering 100,000 miles after spending $10,000 within the first three months. That’s a ton of miles, but also a lot of required spending. The card offers an elevated experience (Admiral’s Club membership and priority services) and some AAdvantage elite status accelerators, but earns 1x on most purchases and only offers a few credits to partially offset the annual fee. 🔥
If hotels are more your speed, Chase’s Marriott Boundless card is offering five free nights (worth up to 50k each) plus two $50 credits toward airline purchases after spending $3,000 in the first three months. Although the earning rates on this card are underwhelming, the annual free night benefit may make it a keeper, and the airline credit makes this one of the best ever offers on this card. 🔥🔥
Other great current bonuses
100k points on the Citi Strata Elite (our take: 🔥🔥🔥)
125k (175k?) points on the Chase Sapphire Reserve (our take: 🔥🔥🔥)
175k points on the Hilton Aspire (our take: 🔥🔥) ends 1/14
75k points on the Chase Sapphire Preferred (our take: 🔥)
$300 on the Chase Freedom Unlimited, plus cash back (our take: 🔥)
Up to 100/175k on the Amex Gold/Platinum (our take)
Enjoy the weekend! 🦥
See you in the upgrade queue.