Unlimited Priority Pass for the cardholder and additional cardholders. About 8 UK lounge visits a year covers the £290 a year fee, valued at the £38.86 average walk-in price across the 35 Priority Pass lounges we have verified.
Priority Pass covers 43 of the 55 UK lounges we list, across 19 airports. See every one of them, with prices.
There is also a fee-free HSBC Premier Credit Card, which HSBC describes as giving airport lounge access with a “£24 charge per person per visit” through Priority Pass. No annual fee, 29.9% APR variable. Against the £38.86 average walk-in price at the UK Priority Pass lounges we have verified, that saves roughly £15 a visit from the very first one — which for an occasional flyer is a better-shaped deal than any annual fee on this page.
What HSBC UK actually says
Quoted from the card’s own product page on hsbc.co.uk, checked 8 October 2026. We quote rather than paraphrase because the difference between “access” and “discounted access” is the whole story on this page.
Unlimited access to more than 1,700 airport lounges worldwide with Priority Pass membership.
Unlimited access for the main cardholder and any additional cardholders.
Representative example as published by HSBC UK: 100.2% APR variable, with a purchase rate of 29.9% p.a. variable, on an assumed credit limit of £1,200. Fee: £290 a year, plus £60 per additional cardholder. Figures change — check the issuer’s own page before acting on anything here.
What the benefits list does not tell you
The additional cardholder is the trick worth knowing
Each additional cardholder costs £60 a year and gets their own unlimited Priority Pass membership. For a couple that is £350 between two people with no per-visit cost at all — cheaper than two of almost anything else, and the only structure on this page that handles two adults travelling together without a guest fee at the door.
The account requirement is the real barrier
The card is not open to everyone. HSBC Premier itself requires £100,000 of income paid into the account or £100,000 held with HSBC UK. If you do not already qualify for Premier, the card is not a decision you get to make.
Guests are not addressed
HSBC’s page says nothing about bringing a non-cardholder into a lounge. Priority Pass guest fees normally apply, which at UK lounges is around £24 to £30 a head — but since the issuer does not publish it, we are not going to put a number on it for you.
Before you count on it
Check the lounge, not just the card
Every one of these cards works through a lounge network, and networks drop lounges. The question that actually matters is whether your airport’s lounge is in it on the day you fly — our Priority Pass list and DragonPass list both go lounge by lounge.
Availability is not the same as access
Priority Pass entry is subject to space. At a UK airport at 06:00 the lounge can be full regardless of what your card says, which is why pre-booking entitlements are worth more than they look.
Compare it against just paying
The average walk-in price across the 35 UK Priority Pass lounges we have verified is £38.86, and the cheapest departures lounge is £27. If you fly twice a year, paying at the door is usually cheaper than any annual fee on this site.
Or buy the membership directly
You do not need a credit card to hold Priority Pass — you can buy it outright, and our break-even calculator works out whether that beats paying per visit for the way you actually fly.
Frequently asked
Does the HSBC Premier World Elite card give unlimited lounge access?
HSBC states unlimited access to more than 1,700 airport lounges worldwide through Priority Pass, for the main cardholder and any additional cardholders.
Can anyone get the HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard?
No. It requires an HSBC Premier Account, which needs £100,000 or more of annual income paid into a Premier Bank Account, £100,000 or more in savings or investments with HSBC UK, or existing HSBC Premier status in another country.
How many visits before the £290 fee pays for itself?
About 8 UK lounge visits a year, using the £38.86 average walk-in price across the Priority Pass lounges we have verified. For a couple adding a second cardholder at £60, the shared fee is £350 and the break-even falls to about 9 visits between them.
Is there a cheaper HSBC card with lounge access?
The fee-free HSBC Premier Credit Card includes Priority Pass with a £24 charge per person per visit. There is no annual fee, so the saving against a typical UK walk-in price starts from the first visit.