Published: 30 May 2026
Updated: 6 August 2026
How a typical family can earn over 20,000 Avios a year from grocery shopping
Avios of course is the loyalty currency for airlines such as British Airways, Aer Lingus, Qatar and others. There are many options for using your points but the goal for many people is to acquire enough points from multiple Avios partners to redeem them for reward fights, and ideally on long-haul business class.
Whilst frequent business travellers can earn Avios quickly, most people need to rely on everyday spending to grow their Avios balance.
How to earn Avios without flying
One of the questions I’m asked most often is how people can earn meaningful amounts of Avios without flying. The answer is often much simpler than people think.
Sainsbury’s, Nectar and Avios
Sainsbury’s has long been my family’s preferred supermarket. We typically do one weekly “big shop” delivery on which we collect Nectar points. These can be transferred to Avios at a rate of 400 Nectar points = 250 Avios.
I wanted to share some analysis that I have done on my recent spend at Sainsbury’s to show how a typical family can potentially earn over 22,000 Avios a year, just on their grocery shopping.
- Over the last 16 weeks, we have averaged £149 a week on shopping at Sainsbury’s, at 1 Nectar point per £ spent, that is 149 base Nectar points
- By opting in to the Nectar Offers each Friday on the Nectar app, we have averaged 348 additional bonus Nectar points on our supermarket spend. When shopping, we do not specifically choose the items with bonus points, although Sainsbury’s do tend to incentivise the products bought most regularly
- Total 497 Nectar points earned on average a week (or 3.34 points per £ spent)
Avios conversion
- Converting these 497 Nectar points earned each week into Avios (conversion of 400 Nectar = 250 Avios) would earn 310 Avios
- Spend on my BA Premium Plus American Express Card awards 1.25 Avios per £ spent (from 7 Oct 2026). So £149 x 1.5 = 186 Avios
- Total 496 Avios earned per week from a £149 spend – that is 3.33 Avios per £
What does this mean for a typical household?
Research by confused.com says the average UK household spends £119 per week on grocery shopping, That is £6,188 a year
If all that was spent at Sainsbury’s: £6,188 x 3.33 Avios earned per £ = a potential 20,606 Avios a year
That alone is enough Avios for a return economy flight to a European city on BA or will be a big help towards a long haul redemption.
How to Replicate This Strategy
- Download the Nectar App to your phone
- Connect your Nectar and BA accounts, this enables you to transfer points between the two systems
- Each Friday morning, go to the Nectar app and opt in to all the Nectar Offers. This takes less than 30 seconds and if you have alerts activated on your phone, you will get a prompt. These only work by manually opting in each week, however at the same time you can also add in the special offer prices on grocery items that are specific to each household.
- Pay on a credit card that earns Avios. There are a few options here, either BA or Avios branded cards from American Express and Barclaycard that earn directly or others from American Express and HSBC where you can convert points into Avios. Earning rates vary 1 to 1.5 Avios per £ spent.
Overall
Of course, every household is different. Some spend a lot more or a lot less on groceries whilst for various reasons some people would not consider using Sainsbury’s for their regular supermarket shop. On the other hand, Sainsbury’s (and Argos which also issues Nectar) offers a wide variety of other product categories apart from groceries that would earn additional points.
Equally, your results may be different depending on your spending habits, the Nectar offers you receive and which credit card you use.
However if Sainsbury’s works for you, hopefully this article will help you maximise your Nectar and Avios earning and get you closer to that dream destination.
Further reading
- For more information on the 90+ ways you can earn Avios, see our article.
- How to Maximise Your Avios When Hiring a Car
- How to Earn Avios on Hotel Stays
Please share your experiences or any tips you have in the comments below.
