As you begin the points and miles game, transferable credit cards such as American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards can become invaluable partners for earning travel points or miles through airline and hotel loyalty programs.
Smart collectors of points and miles can exploit this flexibility to maximize the value of their redemptions.
American Express
American Express cards are known for offering luxurious benefits, such as airport lounge access and hotel privileges. These perks can add up to hundreds of dollars each year and may even cover their annual fee altogether.
The company generates revenue by charging merchants and cardholders fees and earning interest on outstanding balances, in addition to offering various financial products such as credit cards, travel insurance and more.
American Express Membership Rewards points are one of TPG’s favorite credit card travel currencies, boasting an extensive roster of airline and hotel partners that allow them to be transferred 1:1 for use against airline and hotel partners. Virgin Atlantic stands out as an especially strong partner offering business class redemptions at reasonable point levels across its wide network of destinations while remaining independent from major airline alliances for optimal value between Asia, Europe and Africa.
Capital One
Capital One offers several credit cards with attractive sign-up bonuses, ongoing rewards and travel partnerships – ideal for small business owners looking to maximize rewards and avoid foreign transaction fees.
Capital One miles can be redeemed for travel on its travel portal or transferred to airline and hotel loyalty programs, with redemption values depending on airline policies and travel dates. NerdWallet values Capital One miles at between 1 and 1.7 cents each when booked through either of these methods.
Capital One currently offers three hotel transfer partners for its points redemption: Choice Privileges, Accor Live Limitless and Wyndham Rewards. While these programs may provide good value when it comes to hotel stays, before transferring points it is wise to carefully evaluate these programs as each program may offer unique perks or fees when making booking decisions. Airline transfer partners may also prove valuable; when considering award bookings be sure to account for ticket cost as well as any associated fees when weighing their value.
Chase
The top travel credit cards offer cardholders flexible points or miles that can be transferred to various airlines, hotels and partner programs – providing more redemption options and increasing the value of rewards earned over time.
American Express Membership Rewards has one of the broadest ranges of travel partners available today, making award availability easy to capture at last-minute. In addition, Membership Rewards often offers transfer bonuses which can increase their value further.
Chase Ultimate Rewards are an introductory travel rewards currency designed for beginners. Boasting an expansive network of airline and hotel partners, Ultimate Rewards can earn up to 1.5 cents per point when redeemed through Chase’s booking portal for travel bookings. Chase expanded this transfer partner network further in 2022 with Aeromexico Club Premier (1:1.6) and Asia Miles (Loyalty program for Cathay Pacific), making their cards amongst the most valuable on the market.
Citi
Citibank boasts an impressive roster of airline and hotel partners to which their points can be transferred, including 16 airline transfer partners offering international business-class tickets or domestic award flights; 20 hotel transfer partners like Choice Hotels and Wyndham Rewards provide accommodation options; while Citi also enables cardholders to combine and share points; however, this flexibility must adhere to each loyalty program in which transferred or combined points may be shared or combined according to its rules.
Transferring Citi ThankYou Points to airline or hotel partner programs is often the best value solution. Citi currently has 14 airline transfer partners at 1:1 ratio with bonuses often up to 40% more for certain promotions; additionally they include several hotel partners and even vacasa vacation rentals as a unique offering for travelers. Note: Transfers cannot be undone once complete so make sure award availability has been checked prior to transferring points.
