Atmos Rewards Adds New Earning Option This Week

Three ways to earn

Atmos Rewards is preparing to give Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines travelers control over the formula used to calculate rewards from flying. Members may base their earnings on the distance of a trip, the amount paid for a ticket, or the number of individual flight segments completed. The selected formula governs both redeemable points and the status points used to qualify for elite recognition.

Each approach favors a different travel pattern. Distance can suit members whose journeys cover many miles, including long-haul international trips. A spending-based calculation may work better for travelers purchasing costly last-minute fares or business-class seats. Segment-based earning can favor itineraries built around numerous short flights or connections, particularly inexpensive inter-island Hawaii travel.

The segment formula provides 500 points for every flight. Under that method, a member completing 40 segments would reach silver status without counting status points from a cobranded credit card or another qualifying source. That makes the option concrete and predictable for frequent short-haul flyers, although it may appeal to a relatively narrow group compared with the distance and spending choices.

Selection starts October 1

Members may record their preferred method beginning October 1, 2026. The new calculation system takes effect for travel from January 1, 2027 onward, so a selection made this fall determines how eligible flights will earn once the new year begins. Travelers can make the election after signing in to their loyalty accounts.

The program permits one change during each calendar year. A member could begin 2027 using ticket spending, then move to segments before a period filled with short flights. After making that switch, however, the member could not select another formula until the next calendar year. Anyone considering a change will therefore need to weigh more than a single itinerary against the rest of the year's expected travel.

Defaults depend on when a person joined. Existing members who make no election remain with distance-based earning, the method Alaska has traditionally used. New members default to the ticket-price calculation beginning January 1, 2027. Those starting defaults do not remove the ability to choose a different method under the program's annual-change rule.

Some earnings stay separate

The choice applies specifically to rewards generated by flying. Status points produced through credit card purchases continue to depend on card spending and are not recalculated under the distance, price, or segment formula. A member can therefore combine flight-based status points earned through the chosen method with qualifying points generated through a card.

Elite bonuses also continue across all three options. Depending on the member's level, those bonuses range from 25% to 150% of the points earned. The qualification requirements for Atmos Rewards status remain in place as well; the added flexibility changes the calculation applied to flights, rather than the thresholds members are trying to reach.

Partner flights need attention

The spending formula has limits tied to the airline and booking channel. It covers Alaska, Hawaiian, and American flights. It also covers partner travel purchased directly from Alaska or Hawaiian. When a ticket for another partner is bought from that partner's own site, the relevant partner earning chart governs instead because Atmos Rewards may not receive the fare information for every such booking.

Premium-cabin travel on partner airlines introduces another consideration from January 1, 2027. Improved earning rates for those tickets are tied to choosing the price-based formula. A member who instead retains distance earning receives one point for every mile flown on those trips. Travelers who regularly purchase premium partner fares will consequently have a different calculation to make from members focused on lower-cost, long-distance tickets.

Distance earning is also changing at the edges. Once the new system begins, it will not preserve a guaranteed floor of points for each segment, and bonuses linked to class of service will be removed. Those adjustments mean continuing with the familiar distance formula does not necessarily reproduce every feature of the previous setup.

A broader loyalty shift

Atmos Rewards debuted in August 2025 when Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines combined their loyalty programs. The ability to select an earning formula was announced with that launch and now moves from a planned feature to an account-level decision. Its unusual structure lets travelers align flight rewards with the way they actually travel instead of placing every member under a single calculation.

Other additions are planned around the program. Members will eventually be able to select among six communities offering combinations of free bags, flight offers, point challenges, partner benefits, award discounts for children, international-travel status points, and resident benefits connected with Club 49 and Huakaʻi by Hawaiian. In 2027, eligible Bank of America cardholders are also expected to gain a route for moving their points into Atmos Rewards, with selected global financial institutions intended to follow over time.

For now, the immediate decision is the flight-earning formula. Members comparing the options should consider their usual trip length, ticket spending, number of connections, partner booking channels, and likelihood of buying premium cabins. Because only one midyear revision is available, the strongest choice is the one that best matches the member's broader travel pattern across the calendar year.