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Credit cards, airlines, and hotels don’t give out their own point and mile valuations, so, unfortunately, there are no official answers on what points and miles are actually worth. Therefore, it’s up to you to make your own conclusions on that value. However, we’re here to help.
Many factors come into play when determining this metric. Below are questions you should ask yourself when evaluating the value of points, and what we’ve taken into account to create our point and mile valuations:
| Flexible Point Program | September 2023 Value (cents/point) | October 2023 Value (cents/point) | Value of 50k / 100k Points |
| Amex Membership Rewards Points | 2.2 | 2.2 | $1,100 / $2,200 |
| Bank of America Preferred Rewards | 1.0 | 1.0 | $500 / $1,000 |
| Barclaycard Arrival Miles | 1.0 | 1.0 | $500 / $1,000 |
| Bilt Rewards | 1.8 | 1.8 | $900 / $1,800 |
| Brex Rewards | 1.5 | 1.0 | $500 / $1,000 |
| Capital One Miles | 1.8 | 1.8 | $900 / $1,800 |
| Chase Ultimate Rewards Points | 2.0 | 2.0 | $1,000 / $2,000 |
| Citi ThankYou Rewards Points | 1.6 | 1.6 | $800 / $1,600 |
| Diners Club Rewards Points | 2.0 | 2.0 | $1,000 / $2,000 |
Hot Tip: Use our dedicated transfer partner tool calculator to review transfer ratios, times, and bonuses for all major flexible point programs.
| Hotel Loyalty Program | September 2023 Value (cents/point) | October 2023 Value (cents/point) | Value of 50k / 100k Points |
| ALL – Accor Live Limitless Rewards Points | 2.3 | 2.3 | $1,150 / $2,300 |
| Best Western Rewards Points | 0.6 | 0.6 | $300 / $600 |
| Choice Hotels Choice Privileges Points | 0.6 | 0.6 | $300 / $600 |
| Hilton Hotels Hilton Honors Points | 0.5 | 0.5 | $250 / $500 |
| Hyatt Hotels World of Hyatt Points | 1.5 | 1.5 | $750 / $1,500 |
| IHG Hotels & Resorts IHG One Rewards Points | 0.5 | 0.5 | $250 / $500 |
| Marriott Hotels Marriott Bonvoy Points | 0.7 | 0.7 | $350 / $700 |
| Radisson Rewards Points | 0.25 | 0.25 | $125 / $250 |
| Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Wyndham Rewards Points | 0.9 | 0.9 | $450 / $900 |
Not all miles and points are created equal, so naturally, each category has its own winner with the highest valued points. Here’s why we ranked the highest valued points as such:
American Express Membership Rewards continues to be the king of transferable points. Amex partners with all 3 major alliances (SkyTeam, Star Alliance, and Oneworld), along with many non-alliance partners, so it’s easier to find award space compared to other transferable points. Some of the Amex transfer partners include Qantas, Air Canada, and Emirates.
Hot Tip: It is no secret that transferable points are our favorite rewards to earn, thanks to their flexibility and the powerful redemptions they offer. If you’d like more information on the major transferable point currencies, we’ve put together complete guides on how we value Amex Membership Rewards points, Chase Ultimate Rewards points, Capital One miles, and Citi ThankYou Points.
Alaska Airlines has the best of both worlds: a variety of partners and solid redemption rates. Some of Alaska’s Oneworld partners include American and Japan Airlines, and the airline’s non-alliance partners include Emirates, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, and more. Redemption rates are lower than other partners across the board.
World of Hyatt has the most reasonable redemption rates of all the major hotel chains. Further, we’ve found that there are virtually no blackout dates and that all hotels are on a standard award chart, so you’ll always pay the same price for a room at any hotel. This allows you to explore fantastic Hyatt redemption opportunities, ensuring maximum value.
It was a busy month in the world of points and miles. Here is what made waves last month:
Last month, Delta made major waves after announcing upcoming changes to its SkyMiles program and Delta Sky Club access.
As of January 1, 2024, the only criterion flyers will need to be concerned about when it comes to elite qualification is Medallion Qualifying Dollars (MQDs). Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQMs) and Medallion Qualifying Segments (MQSs) will soon become a thing of the past, and elite status qualification will become simply about how much you spend with the airline — and on its co-branded credit cards.
Additionally, Delta is increasing the number of MQDs required for each status level by a rather large margin:
Further, Delta announced plans to gut Delta Sky Club access via credit cards. Starting February 1, 2025, cardholders will be limited to a certain number of visits to a Sky Club per year, depending on which card(s) they hold:
Cardholders can spend $75,000 annually on any of the cards mentioned above to earn unlimited Sky Club access for the year in which the spending threshold is met, plus the following Medallion year.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, these changes were met with a good deal of outrage from Delta’s frequent flyer community. Since this announcement, Delta CEO Ed Bastion made a statement that Delta plans to walk back some of these changes but has not specified further.
In the wake of the negative Delta press, many airlines took advantage of the fortuitous timing to woo Delta flyers to consider jumping ship.
In fact, we quickly saw elite status match challenges offered from Alaska, JetBlue, LATAM, and American (though this also requires Hyatt elite status).
If you’re considering becoming a “free agent” when it comes to your airline loyalty, this is a great time to do so. Now you can get a taste of what the experience is like flying with other airlines and the elite status perks they provide before committing further.
Upgraded Points is offering a unique opportunity. We’re looking to sponsor 1 adventurous traveler with $1,500 to make that upgrade to first class and share their candid experience.
We’re seeking applicants who have never flown first class before, ensuring we obtain a fresh and unbiased review of the experience. The winner should plan to take a round-trip U.S. domestic flight, completing both the departure and return before December 31, 2023. Upon completion, the winner will be requested to complete a scorecard detailing their experience. Prior flying history is not a prerequisite.
To apply, you MUST FILL OUT THE FORM ON THE APPLICATION PAGE, where you’ll be asked to answer a few questions about your flying experience, what trip you’d put this towards, and why we should select you. You must also fill out the required fields, such as your name and email, so that we can notify the winner once one has been selected.
Any applicants who do not complete the entry form will not have an official entry into the candidate pool.
The deadline for contest entries is Friday, October 6, 2023, at 11:59 p.m. ET. Applicants will need to submit their applications by that date to be considered.
Two of the best business credit cards around have new and improved 90,000-point welcome bonus offers.
These welcome offers are worth $900 in cash-back or travel purchased through the Chase travel portal, but they’ll be deposited as 90,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points into your account once you meet the minimum spending requirements.
But if you also hold a premium Chase card, such as the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, or Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you can pool your points together to access the Chase transfer partners — allowing you to book luxury travel experiences for a fraction of the normal cash price.
If you need to boost your mileage balances, but you aren’t in the market for a new credit card, here are the latest opportunities to purchase points with a bonus:
Hot Tip: Keep track of the latest point purchase promotions and discounts on our dedicated page, which we update each time a new promotion launches.
Here are the airlines that announced last month that they were adding, removing, or relaunching routes:
While the value of points and miles can vary, you want to ensure you’re getting great value when redeeming those hard-earned points.
When it comes to flexible points, Amex Membership Rewards points are valued the highest on a cent-per-point basis. These points are extremely flexible given the number of Amex airline and hotel partners. Membership Rewards also offers good transfer rates with a ton of redemption options, ensuring you can get the most out of your points.
For rates and fees of Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees for the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
Unfortunately, there is no single set value for most points and miles programs. So the valuation is entirely subjective and depends on what the points are worth to you, and how you plan to redeem them.
Loyalty programs, and the points or miles associated with them, are constantly changing. Programs often gain or lose transfer partners, change the number of miles required for a given route, or sometimes even ditch their award charts altogether. When these things happen, certain programs’ miles or points can increase or decrease in usefulness based on the changes that were made.
The terms points and miles are used interchangeably, and it really just depends on which term a given program calls its loyalty currency. Some loyalty programs refer to their currency as miles, and others points, but they ultimately have the same function.
That will depend entirely on the type of points you have, and where you’re hoping to fly. Each airline loyalty program has its own method for pricing redemptions. Some use an award chart where the number of miles needed for a certain flight route is predetermined. Others use revenue-based redemptions where the number of points needed for a free flight will depend on how expensive the cash price of the ticket is.
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Boasting a portfolio of over 20 cards, Jarrod has been an expert in the points and miles space for over 6 years. He earns and redeems over 1 million points per year and his work has been featured in outlets like The New York Times.
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