How Ryanair Prime membership works: Is it worth it?

If you’re clocking up the air miles, it might be time to make flying a little more comfortable. Frequent flyer and airline membership programs offer extra benefits for regular travellers.

If you opt for Ryanair Prime membership, you can access exclusive sales, free seats, and travel insurance. Here, we take a closer look at the membership, so you can decide whether it’s the right fit for you.

And before you jet off, set up a Wise account, so you can spend like a local wherever you land. If you don't have the currency in your account, Wise converts automatically for a low fee*. You’ll get the mid-market rate, and be able to handle multiple currencies in one place.

➡️ Learn more about the Wise account

What is a Ryanair Prime membership?

The Ryanair Prime membership is a paid frequent flyer program that gives members access to exclusive sales, free seats, and travel insurance. It’s an annual membership, so you’ll have access to the benefits throughout the year, similar to the EasyJet Plus membership.

Members can also add a companion to their account, who’ll also have access to benefits.

Benefits of a Ryanair Prime membership

Ryanair Prime members get access to:

• Monthly notifications for exclusive member sales
• A free seat on up to 12 flights, in designated rows and on specific flights
• Travel insurance included with Ryanair flights

If you add a companion, they can also access these benefits. But, as the main account holder, you’ll need to handle bookings, and sale email notifications will only be sent to you.

Who is eligible?

If you’re over the age of 18 and have a myRyanair account, you can join Ryanair Prime. There are eligibility limitations depending on your country of residence – if you’re based in the UK, you should be able to join RyanAir Prime. You can find a full list of eligible countries in Ryanair’s Prime terms and conditions.²

Can you add a companion or family members?

You can add a companion to the Ryanair Prime membership, so you’re able to manage all bookings under one account. Your companion will have access to the same benefits as you, but you’ll need to handle the bookings and admin.

How much is Ryanair Prime membership?

Ryanair Prime membership costs £79 per year. If you want to add a companion, their membership will cost another £79.

There’s no family membership option. You can include an infant on a Ryanair Prime booking, but they do not receive the benefits. And you’ll need to create a separate linked booking for children between 2-15.¹

This means families may not get the same value from a membership, and will have the additional admin of creating a separate booking for children.

Is Ryanair Prime membership worth it?

The more frequently you fly with Ryanair, the more you save with Prime membership. To work out whether Ryanair Prime membership is worth it for you, consider if you’ll use all of the 12 seats available to you, and if you plan to travel with Ryanair every month.

Some other things to consider might be your proximity to an airport where Ryanair flies from, and whether the level of travel insurance coverage is suitable for you.

There are caveats to the membership that should be noted, too. For instance, the free seats you’ll have access to are in a dedicated space, and if they get booked up, you’ll have to pick another paid seat (minus the cost of a Prime seat). Also, travel insurance isn’t available for passengers over 70.²

Alternatives to Ryanair Prime

Other airlines offer frequent flyer programs and membership options. For example, the easyJet Plus membership also offers free seat options. It’s worth scanning through the benefits and costs, to see which one is the best fit for you:

• easyJet Plus (read our review of easyJet Plus)
• The British Airways Club
• KLM Flying Blue
• Wizz Air Discount Club

Jetting off abroad? Pack a Wise card

Whether a membership is right for you or not, there are plenty of travel benefits to be had when you take a Wise card with you.

You can spend in 150+ countries, and you’ll always get the mid-market rate for currency exchanges. There’s just a small conversion fee* which is always transparent, or there’s no charge if you already have the currency in your Wise account.

You can withdraw twice, up to £200 a month for free as Wise will not charge you for these withdrawals, but some additional charges may occur from independent ATM networks.. After this you pay only a super-low fee* on withdrawals.

For a one-off fee of £7 you can order your physical Wise card or you can use a virtual card for free. You can also have up to three virtual cards, so you can manage your spending by using different cards for different expense types.

For spending and withdrawals abroad, Wise helps your travel money go further.

💳 Learn more about the Wise debit card

Sources used in this article:

1. Ryanair - cost and eligibility
2. Ryanair Prime - terms and conditions

Sources last checked: 03-Sep-2025