Most people think: the more I pay for a ticket, the more miles I get. That's wrong.
Turkish Airlines (and every other major carrier) doesn't count miles by ticket price. They count by fare class — that invisible letter in your ticket that shows which "bucket" your booking fell into.
Two scenarios on the IST → JFK route (4,724 miles distance):
Option 1: ticket in class M. Standard economy. You earn 100% of the distance — about 4,700 status miles.
Option 2: ticket in class K. Deep economy, same price at checkout. You earn 75% of the distance — about 3,525 status miles.
Same route, same price, same airplane, same seat. Different fare class = 1,200 fewer miles per leg, 2,400 per round-trip.
And if you land in class V or T (50% of distance), miles will be 2× lower than M-class.
How to find out the class before booking
When booking on Turkish Airlines' site you can see it at the seat-selection step: "Booking class: M" or similar. If you book via third-party services (Aviasales, Booking, agencies) — look in the booking confirmation or the e-ticket.
What classes exist and which ones to look for
- Y, B, M — standard economy, 100% earning
- H, S, E, Q, O — promo economy, also 100%
- K, L — deep economy, 75%
- V, T — discount, 50%
- W, U, P — bottom, 25%
- F, A — bottom 25% (TK F is NOT first class!)
- C, D, Z — business, 175%
- J — premium business, 200%
Other airlines have different rules
The interesting bit: the same K class on Turkish gives 75% earning; on Singapore Airlines — 25%. On Lufthansa K — 50%. Every airline has its own table.
If you book a Star Alliance partner via Turkish Airlines (e.g. Lufthansa under a Turkish Airlines booking), earning follows Turkish Airlines' table for that partner. Tables for all partners are on the Miles & Smiles site under "How miles are earned" → "Star Alliance Partners".
Practical advice
Next time you're choosing between two options of similar price — find the fare class in each one. If it's a long-haul flight, the difference between M and V can be 2-3 thousand miles.
The foxs calculator shows earning for each of the 23 fare classes. Try it on your next flight.