Pros and Cons of Booking Multiple Airlines in the Same Trip
If you’ve ever tried to save money or get creative with your flight itinerary, chances are you’ve found yourself booking multiple airlines on the same trip. Whether you’re combining low-cost carriers with full-service airlines or mixing alliance partners like Qantas and Cathay Pacific, this strategy can offer flexibility—but it can also create unexpected hassles, especially when it comes to seat selection, loyalty points, and missed connections.
Here’s what you need to know before you book that multi-airline journey.
The Pros of Booking Multiple Airlines
1. Cheaper fares
Booking separate tickets or mixing airline carriers on the same journey can often result in serious cost savings. This method is frequently referred to as a “hacker face” by platforms like Kayak, which automatically identify cheaper combinations across different airlines. These deals are often hundreds of dollars less than traditional return fares.
You might also save by using budget carriers on short-haul legs and reserving full-service airlines for long-haul segments.
2. Customised routing
If your goal is to arrive at a destination with minimal backtracking or long layovers, booking separate legs gives you more control. You’re not locked into the standard route networks of one carrier or alliance. This approach is ideal when trying to fit in specific stopovers, avoid undesirable airports, or plan the trip around events.
Qantas’ multi-city tool can be useful for building some of these itineraries while retaining some of the benefits of a full Qantas booking.
3. Greater flexibility and choice
Mixing and matching different airlines opens up more flight time options, pricing tiers, and classes of service. For instance, you might choose to fly economy outbound and premium economy inbound, or book one leg with points and the other with cash. While this flexibility comes at the cost of simplicity, it allows you to design a trip that better suits your needs.
The Cons of Booking Multiple Airlines
1. Reduced status credits with Qantas
Frequent flyers aiming to build or maintain their Qantas status tiers may be disappointed by how few status credits are earned when mixing carriers. Qantas only awards status credits on flights that are either operated or marketed under a QF (Qantas) or JQ (Jetstar) flight number. This means that even if you’re flying a oneworld partner airline like Finnair, you might miss out on credits unless it carries a QF code.
You can check how many credits your flights will earn using the Qantas Status Credit Calculator. And for real-world advice from frequent flyers, the Qantas Frequent Flyer subreddit has detailed breakdowns of which bookings actually contribute to tier progression.
2. Connection risks and trip disruptions
One of the biggest downsides of booking separate flights is that when flights inevitably get delayed or rescheduled, you’re on your own. Because these flights are ticketed separately or fall under different reservation systems, airlines won’t always help if you miss a connection even if it’s their partner.
Changes to one leg can ripple through your entire journey, often reducing your connection window or making the trip logistically unfeasible. Travel insurance becomes essential in these cases, especially if there’s a risk of overnight delays or rebooked segments.
3. Booking seats and upgrades is more complicated
If you value seat selection or plan to upgrade your flight using points or cash, this is where the pain sets in. Booking across multiple airlines means each leg may follow different seat maps, upgrade policies, and fare classes.
Even with codeshare flights, you’re often stuck using the website of the operating carrier, which may not show your booking accurately or allow early seat selection. The user experience can be inconsistent, and in some cases, upgrades may be blocked altogether. I experienced this recently when I booked a return flight to Colombo, Sri Lanka through Qantas but purposely chose a mix of Qantas, Cathay Pacific, Sri Lankan Airlines and Finnair (wet leased by Qantas) to experience different airlines. The trouble started when I had to check-in for the Sri Lankan and Cathay Pacific flights, I had to use each airline’s website which could be a bit glitchy when it came to managing the booking and checking-in.
Also some benefits or hacks that you’re used to like the T80 or T24 rules may not be followed by some airlines.
4. Ticketing and change policies can be confusing
Each airline has its own terms when it comes to cancellation, baggage allowance, and change fees. Booking multiple airlines means you’re managing multiple sets of policies. If you need to change plans mid-trip, the process can quickly become expensive or time-consuming.
There is one benefit of sticking to an airline program like OneWorld though, for the most part any additional baggage allowances will carry across each airline.
When to Book Multiple Airlines (and When Not To)
If your goal is to maximise value or craft a customised journey, booking multiple airlines can work in your favour—especially on international trips with stopovers. But if you’re chasing elite status, aiming for upgrades, or want peace of mind during disruptions, you’re better off sticking with a single airline or alliance.
If your priority is:
Maximising Qantas status credits then book QF-coded flights only, even if operated by partners.
Saving money then mix low-cost and full-service airlines across legs.
Visiting stopover cities that might not be on the regular route then use Qantas’ multi-city tool or book segments separately.
Avoiding risk from delays and disruptions stick to one ticket and one airline/alliance.
Upgrading or having more control over picking your seat use one airline for a seamless experience.
Final Thoughts
Booking multiple airlines on one trip can be a brilliant strategy for budget-conscious or flexible travellers. However, it’s not without its pitfalls. If you value simplicity, status points, or airline support during disruptions, consider whether the savings are worth the potential stress.
For frequent flyers on Qantas, always double-check how many status credits you’ll earn—and aim for flights that carry a QF number whenever possible. Otherwise, prepare to lose out on perks and plan extra buffer time into your itinerary.