What Your Airline Miles Are Really Worth, and the Worst Ways to Spend Them
Summary
Airline miles can vary widely in value, but flights—especially long-haul premium-cabin seats and partner-airline awards—often provide better value than gift cards, merchandise, hotels or car rentals. Compare a ticket’s cash price with its mileage cost, check taxes and fees, and consider using miles rather than letting them lose value over time.Key Facts
- A common way to estimate mile value is to divide a ticket’s cash price by the number of miles required.
- The article gives a $300 flight costing 20,000 miles as an example worth 1.5 cents per mile.
- Clint Henderson of The Points Guy recommends aiming for at least 1 cent per mile.
- Most major U.S. airline programs do not allow members to cash out miles directly.
- The article says 30,000 American Airlines AAdvantage miles could cover a one-way New York-to-London flight, while an Amazon gift card for the same miles would be worth $150.
- Flexible credit card points may offer more value when transferred to airline or hotel partners.
- Award tickets can include substantial taxes and fees; the article cites a 75,000-point award that could add $1,000 in charges.
- The article identifies gift cards, merchandise, high-mileage economy fares and awards with large surcharges as generally poor ways to use miles.
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