Lounge Key vs Priority Pass: Side by Side Comparison

Lounge Key¹ and Priority Pass² are two popular options for travellers looking to get access into airport lounges in Australia and around the world. Both have extensive networks of lounge and facility locations, and allow drop in visits regardless of which airline you’re flying with. However, how these two services work in terms of sign up and costs is quite different.

This Lounge Key vs Priority Pass guide covers what you get with each service - plus we’ve got a quick look at Wise - another super helpful travel tool. Use Wise to hold and exchange 40+ currencies, and get a Wise card to spend and withdraw in 150+ countries, with the mid-market rate and low fees from 0.33%³.

What is Lounge Key?

Lounge Key is an airport lounge service which is offered to eligible card holders of select credit cards⁴. Different banks and different cards have their own Lounge Key service agreements - for example, you could get Lounge Key access for 10 visits annually if you have an eligible card from BankWest⁵, or 2 visits a year with eligible cards from HSBC⁶.

Lounge Key has a network of 1,500 lounges, in over 400 airports worldwide, spread across 120+ countries. In the lounges you’ll find complimentary food and drink, entertainment, places to charge your devices, and a quiet place to relax. Lounges are used by business and leisure travellers alike, and make getting through the airport a frictionless experience. If you’re eligible for Lounge Key you can visit a network lounge regardless of where you’re flying to, and which airline you’re using. All you’ll need to do is to swipe your eligible bank card at the entry to the lounge to get access.

The services you can get in a Lounge Key lounge vary depending on the specific location, but can include:

• Access to hundreds of airport lounges globally
• Complimentary food and drinks in the lounge
• Spa and wellness services, including discounts and offers
• Partner discounts and offers
• Duty free shopping through the Lounge Key app
• Airport transfer and car hire services through the Lounge Key app

Learn more in our complete guide to Lounge Key membership 👉.

What is Priority Pass?

Priority Pass works a bit differently to Lounge Key. While you could get some free entry to lounge locations as part of your credit card package, you can also sign up directly for membership which doesn’t require you to have a specific bank card.

If you’re buying Priority Pass membership you can choose from 3 different annual plans, which all have a fee. You may also need to pay a fee to enter the lounge depending on the plan you select. Here’s a quick overview of the plan options, and the costs associated with them:

The Priority Pass network includes 1,600+ locations and experiences. As with Lounge Key the exact services available might vary depending on which lounge you pick, but you could find some of the following features available⁷:

• Spa and wellness services
• Car hire and airport transfer booking services
• Gaming stations
• Preorder airport food for take away before boarding the plane
• Bookable workspaces and meeting rooms
• Meet and assist service to help you navigate large and busy airports

The exact cards which offer Priority Pass as a member benefit can change, but at the time of writing there are some credit cards from major providers like Citibank or Westpac which include some lounge entry annually as part of your card fee.

Learn more in our complete guide to Priority Pass lounge membership 👉.

Lounge Key vs Priority Pass: Side-by-side comparison

Lounge key and Priority Pass provide similar services, but the way you sign up and access the lounges is often different.

You might find your credit card offers either Lounge Key or Priority Pass lounge entry as part of your card package. However, while having an eligible card is the only way to sign up for Lounge Key, Priority Pass does extend services to members who have signed up with them directly. This means that Priority Pass is an option for you even if you don't have the right credit card to get the benefits for free.

Here's a head to head comparison of Lounge Key vs Priority Pass on a few key features you might want to consider:

If your credit card offers membership to either Lounge Key or Priority Pass, you’ll be able to access the benefits without taking any further action. Just follow the bank’s instructions to get signed up - usually through an app - and then you can visit the lounge when you travel, usually for a fixed number of times with no fee.

If you don’t have a credit card that offers Lounge Key as a benefit then you can not sign up for the service. Your only option would be to find a card which has Lounge Key and to apply for it through your bank. If you’re looking for a low hassle lounge membership which doesn’t require you to sign up for a new credit card, Priority Pass might be the better pick. Just sign up online or in the Priority Pass app, and pay your annual fee.

If you have access to both Priority Pass and Lounge Key, choosing the best one for you might come down to practical considerations. The lounge networks are overlapping but not the same, so while you might find both providers have lounges at major airports, some regional locations may not have both. You can get all the details about which lounges are in the providers’ networks through their apps and website, to help figure out your options.

It’s also worth taking a look at online reviews of both providers so you know what to expect. Over on Trustpilot, Priority Pass gets better reviews than Lounge Key, but Lounge Key doesn’t have a very high number of reviews posted, making the data less reliable. Scanning customer comments for recent experiences with the brands is a good way to get a feel for which is performing better, and can help you make your final decision.

Introducing Wise for International Spending

No matter where you’re heading off to, see if you can save on your foreign currency spending with a Wise account.

Wise accounts let you hold and exchange 40+ currencies, with no ongoing fees and no minimum balance. Just sign up online or in the Wise app, and order your Wise card for a one time charge. Add money in AUD and you can then start to spend and withdraw, with automatic currency conversion which uses the mid-market exchange rate with no markup and low fees, from 0.33%.

Sign up for Wise today

Plus, you’ll get 2 withdrawals up to 350 AUD in value every month for free, before paying a small withdrawal fee - giving you easy access to cash whenever you need it in 150+ countries around the world.

Conclusion

Lounge Key and Priority Pass both offer lounge access to hundreds of lounge locations around the world, allowing travellers to relax before getting a flight. Both can be offered by card companies and banks as a member benefit which has no additional fees - or, with the Priority Pass you can also sign up directly for an annual charge.

Use this Lounge Key and Priority Pass review to get a feel of the services available for you, before your next trip. And while you’re thinking about jetting off, why not also sign up for the Wise card, to cut the costs of your travel spending.