Do you ever see influencers share amazing deals they get on flights or hotels based on their credit card points?
It’ll be something like – “I got this $5,000 business class flight for just $200” or something similarly crazy?
It’s usually two things:
- They got a huge sign up bonus for a credit card
- They took advantage of a transfer bonus (more on this) and/or sale
The key part of the deal is the transfer bonus – that’s when you transfer points from a general rewards program (American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, etc.) and transfer them to a specific airline or hotel but get a percentage bonus added on because of a promotion.
Here’s how it works:
Table of Contents
How Does This Work?
Every credit card that lets you earn reward points will let you transfer those points to an airline or hotel partner on a 1 to 1 basis.
1,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be transferred to an airline partner on a 1 to 1 basis, meaning it can become 1,000 Southwest Rapid Reward points.
Sometimes, the program will allow you to transfer them with a bonus. This can be a limited time offer or it can be a longer term standing offer based on the amount of points and/the type of card you have.
For example, with Chase Ultimate Rewards, if you have a Chase Aeroplan credit card, you can get a 10% transfer bonus after transferring 50,000 or more Ultimate Rewards points in a single transaction to their Aeroplan account. (Maximum of 25,000 bonus points per calendar year)
The key to all this is knowing when the promotions are active and ensuring you transfer during a promotional window (so you get extra points or miles).
Here are the promotions currently available:
American Express Membership Rewards
There are two transfer bonuses active right now:
- 30% bonus when transferring to British Airways Executive Club – British Airways uses Avios, so this means you can use these points anywhere you can use Avios (oneworld® partners).
- 20% bonus when transferring to Hawaiian Airlines
| Loyalty Program | Bonus Percentage | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| British Airways Executive Club | +30% | September 30, 2024 |
| Hawaiian Airlines | +20% | August 31, 2024 |
Capital One Rewards
Capital One has one active bonus offer, you can get a 20% bonus when you transfer your Capital One miles to Qantas. For every 1,000 Capital One miles, you get $1,200 Qantas Frequent Flyer points. This offer expires on September 1st, 2024.
| Loyalty Program | Bonus Percentage | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| Qantas Frequent Flyer | +20% | September 1, 2024 |
Chase Ultimate Rewards
There are currently no bonuses available. 🙁
One bonus just expired, a 70% bonus when you transferred points to Marriott Bonvoy. For every 1,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points you transferred, you would receive 1,700 Marriott Bonvoy points. Sadly, it expired on August 14th.
| Loyalty Program | Bonus Percentage | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| Marriott Bonvoy | +70% | August 14, 2024 |
Citi ThankYou Rewards
Citi ThankYou Rewards has no active transfer bonuses. 🙁
Citi ThankYou Rewards just expired two bonuses on the 17th of August:
- Flying Blue transfer bonus of 25% – this the name of the loyalty program for Air France and KLM.
- Wyndham Rewards – offering a 20% bonus
| Loyalty Program | Bonus Percentage | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| Flying Blue | +25% | August 17, 2024 |
| Wyndham | +20% | August 17, 2024 |
When Should You Transfer Points?
There are a lot of factors to consider before you transfer points. It’s not always the best way.
First, it’s rarely a good idea to transfer points without a specific use in mind. It’s hard to know whether a percentage bonus is good because the value of each of those points varies so much.
The Points Guy maintains a valuation list for points. That’s a good start but even that is not enough to blindly transfer points.
Sometimes you are better off booking travel through the travel portal. For example, you may get a better rate going through Chase Ultimate Rewards if you have a card that gets you a bonus on your spend there. If you have a Chase Sapphire Preferred card, you get a 25% discount when you redeem points in the Chase Travel portal. With a Chase Sapphire Reserve card, you get a 50% discount.
These could trump any bonuses you otherwise get.
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About Jim Wang
Jim Wang is a forty-something father of four who is a frequent contributor to Forbes and Vanguard’s Blog. He has also been fortunate to have appeared in the New York Times, Baltimore Sun, Entrepreneur, and Marketplace Money.
Jim has a B.S. in Computer Science and Economics from Carnegie Mellon University, an M.S. in Information Technology – Software Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, as well as a Masters in Business Administration from Johns Hopkins University. His approach to personal finance is that of an engineer, breaking down complex subjects into bite-sized easily understood concepts that you can use in your daily life.
One of his favorite tools (here’s my treasure chest of tools, everything I use) is Empower Personal Dashboard, which enables him to manage his finances in just 15-minutes each month. They also offer financial planning, such as a Retirement Planning Tool that can tell you if you’re on track to retire when you want. It’s free.
Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank or financial institution. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
