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If you have a credit card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the American Express Gold Card, you're earning versatile bank points that aren't tied to just one airline. Programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Capital One miles can be used for statement credits, gift cards, or to book a wide range of travel adventures through your bank's website.
But did you know those same points can also be transferred to an airline program? In fact, the best way to unlock the power of your bank points is to transfer them into airline miles. But it's not just a matter of clicking a few buttons and selecting a flight. While the actual transfer process is pretty easy, each bank has different airline partners and policies, and there are a number of pitfalls to avoid.
That's why I've put together this guide with all the tips and tricks you'll need to know before you take the leap, so you can steer clear of any bumps along the way and ensure you're squeezing every ounce of value out of your points.
The golden rule of transferring from banks to airlines is to never transfer the points until you're certain there's an available flight to book.
Bank points can transfer to airline miles, but it doesn't work the other way around. Once you've transferred them, you can't transfer them back. So it's important to wait and only transfer them when you're 100% ready to use them.
Just because you see a flight is available with airline miles doesn't mean transferring your bank points is the best option. If Points Path indicates that paying with cash is a smarter move, then transferring points isn't going to give you any extra bang for your buck.
Even if Points Path does give a thumbs up for using miles, you'll want to take a peek at how much the flight costs if you paid with bank points without transferring them at all. All the banks mentioned in this guide have their own travel portals that allow you to book flights directly with your points, and with any airline.
But here's the catch — sometimes you'll get less value for your points when redeeming them through your bank instead of transferring them.
In the near future, Points Path will show whether transferring or booking directly with your bank is a better deal. But in the meantime, it's worth comparing the points cost through your bank with the airline's mileage price to see which offers the best value.
Most of the time, 1 bank point transfers into 1 airline mile. This is known as a transfer ratio of 1-to-1, which means you'll get 1,000 airline miles for every 1,000 bank points.
However, a few airline partners like to mix things up with slightly different ratios. For instance, American Express points transfer to JetBlue points at a ratio of 250-to-200. That means for every 1,000 Amex points, you'll only get 800 JetBlue points.
To make things easier, transfer ratios for each bank are shown for every flight in Points Path. Just click on the “i” icon under the points amount to see how many bank points you'll need for a flight.
Most points transfer instantly from banks to airlines, but there are a few exceptions. If you want to know exactly how long it'll take for your points to land in your airline account, you can check out lists of estimated transfer times at various sites online.
Now, if you've made the transfer and you're anxiously waiting for those points to pop up on the other side, don't panic. Try logging out and then back into your frequent flyer account. That will often get your newly-transferred points to appear.
But transfer times aren't guaranteed, so if there's an issue, you probably won't be able to get your bank to help until at least a few days have gone by. Fortunately, issues like these are few and far between.
Limited-time transfer bonuses are special promotions offered by banks where the bank offers a better transfer ratio for a particular airline partner. As your trusty Google Flights sidekick, Points Path shows you when a transfer bonus is in effect.
For example, Chase sometimes offers a 25% bonus on transfers to Air France and KLM. When that promo is in effect, instead of the usual 1-to-1 transfer ratio, Chase credit card holders score 1,250 Air France/KLM miles for every 1,000 Chase points transferred. So keep your eyes peeled for those bonus opportunities.
Good so far? Here's where it can get a little confusing. Not every credit card has transferrable points, and each bank has its own lineup of airline partners. I'm going to walk you through each bank so you can figure out which airlines your own bank covers, and which credit card you need.
For each bank, I'm going to highlight the most budget-friendly card you can get, as well as a top-of-the-line VIP card with all the perks, a middle-priced option (if there is one), and a card for small businesses.
Log into your credit card account at americanexpress.com.
Click “Rewards & Benefits” from the top menu bar.
Choose “Earn and Redeem” and pick “Transfer Points” from the dropdown menu that appears.
You'll now see the list of Amex's airline and hotel transfer partners. Click “Show Details” next to the partner you want to transfer to, and enter your frequent flyer number for that airline.
Enter the number of points you want to transfer, along with any security info requested by Amex.
Submit the transfer to get a confirmation.
Log into your credit card account at ultimaterewards.com instead of the usual Chase website.
Click “Rewards details” from the top menu bar and choose “Ways to use points” from the dropdown menu that appears.
Scroll down the page to the section titled “Transfer to travel partners” and click “Transfer points.”
You'll now see the list of Chase's airline and hotel transfer partners. Click on the partner you want to transfer to, and enter your frequent flyer number for that airline.
Enter the number of points you want to transfer, and submit the transfer to get a confirmation.
Log into your credit card account at capitalone.com.
Click “View Rewards” from the “Explore Rewards & Benefits” box.
Scroll down the page to the section titled “Convert Rewards” and click on it.
Provide any security info requested by Capital One.
You'll now see the list of Capital One's airline and hotel transfer partners. Click “Transfer Miles” next to the partner you want to transfer to, and enter your frequent flyer number for that airline.
Finally, enter the number of miles you want to transfer, and click “Complete Transfer” to get a confirmation.
The Citi Premier® Card is the only credit card currently available that can transfer points to all of Citi's airline partners. However, the Citi Double Cash® Card and a few others can transfer to JetBlue at a ratio of 250-to-200.
Log into your credit card account at citi.com.
Click “Rewards & Offers” from the top menu bar and choose “ThankYou Rewards” from the dropdown menu that appears.
On this second page, choose “More Ways to Redeem” from the menu bar, and pick “Points Transfer” from the dropdown menu that appears.
You'll now see the list of Citi's airline and hotel transfer partners. Click “Continue” next to the partner you want to transfer to, and enter your frequent flyer number for that airline.
Scroll down and enter the number of points you want to transfer, then click “Continue.”
Review your information, then click “Transfer Now” to get a confirmation.
The Bilt Mastercard® is the only credit card currently available that can transfer points to Bilt's airline partners.
Log into your credit card account using the Bilt mobile app. (Unlike the other banks in this guide, you can only transfer Bilt points using the app, not the website).
Tap the “Travel” icon at the bottom of the screen, then scroll down to the bottom.
You'll now see the list of Bilt's airline and hotel transfer partners. Tap the partner you want to transfer to, then tap “Enroll or link accounts.”
Choose “Enroll” or “Link” depending on whether you have a frequent flyer account with that airline already. If you do have an account, enter your login credentials for that airline to link it.
Once your account is enrolled or linked, tap “Transfer points” and enter the number of points you want to transfer, then tap “Next”.
Review your information, then click “Confirm transfer” to get a confirmation.
Log into your credit card account at wellsfargo.com/rewards instead of the usual Wells Fargo website.
Click “Use Rewards” from the top menu bar in the upper right corner and pick “Rewards Points Transfer” from the dropdown menu that appears.
You'll now see the list of Wells Fargo's airline and hotel transfer partners (click on the “+” sign to open the separate sections). Click on the partner you want to transfer to.
Choose “Join” or “Link accounts” depending on whether you have a frequent flyer account with that airline already. If you do have an account, enter your login credentials for that airline to link it.
Once your account is enrolled or linked, enter the number of points you want to transfer.
Click “Submit” to send the transfer and get a confirmation.
When it comes to deciding whether to transfer your bank points into airline miles for booking a flight, you'll have to do a little homework to figure out whether it's worth it. Eventually Points Path will do that heavy lifting for you. For now, though, it'll help you get started by figuring out if booking with cash or airline miles is your best bet.
But it's worth the time and effort to consider whether a transfer makes sense, especially if you're looking to snag a luxury seat on an international flight in first or business class. You'll almost always get better value in those cases by transferring your points instead of paying directly with them through your bank.
Even when you're booking in economy on domestic flights, transferring points instead of going through your bank can still be a savvy move. So the next time you're plotting your travel adventures with Points Path and Google Flights, don't forget to keep the option to transfer points in your back pocket.