How to Upgrade to Business Class Without Breaking the Bank

As much as I love flying in business, I'd never pay the full cash price for the privilege. Luckily, I don't have to. As many times as I've flown business class, I've never once paid full price for the tickets. 

I prefer to find bargains on my business class tickets from the get-go to ensure I get my seat. But if you have a higher risk tolerance than me, you could try to purchase a lower cabin fare and hope for a great deal on an upgrade. Here are a few ways to make it happen.

Use rewards points and airline miles

My go-to method for flying business class without draining my savings account is to use rewards. Every major airline has a frequent flyer program that lets you use miles to pay for flights, but most will let you upgrade using miles, as well. 

You can earn those miles by flying, but you can also earn them through travel rewards credit cards. Cobranded airline credit cards directly earn frequent flyer miles. Transferable rewards cards earn flexible rewards that you can transfer to participating airline partners. Both have pros and cons, and I like to use a combination of the two to maximize my perks and rewards.

The best way to accrue miles quickly is to earn a welcome bonus (or three). These are lump-sum bonuses of points/miles that you get for spending a certain amount on your new credit card within the first few months. Most rewards cards have some kind of welcome bonus for new cardholders.

Earn elite status (and some luck)

This isn't an easy one, but it's an effective way to get free upgrades. Unfortunately, it's much more difficult to get elite airline status than it is to get hotel status. You can actually get top-tier hotel elite status automatically just by opening some hotel credit cards. 

Not so with airline status. Sure, you can spend your way to status with a few airline cards -- American Airlines makes this especially easy. But if you want airline elite status, you'll need to either spend a lot or fly a lot -- or both. 

However, if you're a regular flyer, elite status can be well worth it. For one thing, elite status bumps you up the list for free upgrades on the day of departure. Depending on your status, you could also be eligible for automatic upgrades on some flights. And I've seen airlines offer free upgrade certificates as annual perks for higher elite tiers.

Track prices to spot last-minute deals

The cost to upgrade to business class from a lower cabin can decrease a good amount the closer you get to takeoff. Airlines don't like to move planes that aren't full, so they may offer a good deal on an upgrade to a harder-to-sell business class seat so they can sell your main cabin itinerary.

I've found that simply popping into my airline's mobile app once a day is an easy way to check changing prices and look for any pop-up deals. (Either way, get the airline's app! It's the most reliable way to get updates about your flight.)

Wait until the day of departure

If all else fails, you can always ask about an upgrade at the check-in desk. Flights that aren't full a few hours before departure aren't likely to sell many more seats, so the airline could be happy to get something for the business class seats before it starts giving them to elite members for free.

Business class can be a great experience, but it's an even better experience when you haven't paid through the nose for it. If you can't get a great deal on a business class itinerary from the start, finding a bargain on an upgrade could be the next best thing.