Travel Points & Miles Valuations — How Much Are They Actually Worth? [August 2024]

Credit cards, airlines, and hotels don’t publish their own points and miles valuations, so 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.

But 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 we’ve taken them all into account to create our point and mile valuations:

• How valuable are these points?
• How flexible are these points, and how many transfer partners are there?
• What are your redemption options?
• How much would you buy points and miles for?
• What’s the average redemption value from 3 different bookings?
• How abundant is award availability?

Upgraded Points’ August 2024 Points and Miles Valuations

Flexible Points Programs

Hot Tip:

Use our dedicated transfer partner tool calculator to review transfer ratios, times, and bonuses for all major flexible point programs.

Airline Loyalty Programs

Hotel Loyalty Programs

Upgraded Points’ Highest-Valued Points

Not all miles and points are created equal, so naturally, each category has its own winner with the most valued points. Here’s what we ranked as the highest-valued points and why:

Transferable Points: American Express Membership Rewards Points

American Express Membership Rewards continues to be the king of transferable points. Amex partners with all 3 major alliances (SkyTeam, Star Alliance, and Oneworld) and many non-alliance partners, so it’s easier to find award space with them than with other transferable points. Amex transfer partners include Qantas, Air Canada, and Emirates, among others.

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.

Airline Miles: Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Miles

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.

Hotel Points: World of Hyatt Points

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 always pay the same price for a room at any hotel. This allows you to explore fantastic Hyatt redemption opportunities, ensuring maximum value.

Movers and News

It was a busy month in the world of points and miles. Here is what made waves last month:

American Express^® Gold Card Gets Major Refresh — New Statement Credits and Increased Annual Fee

The Amex Gold card has been refreshed, with some perks tweaked, others added, an annual fee increase, and a new white gold color variant.

First, the card’s annual fee has increased from $250 to $325 per year (rates & fees). This increase is effective immediately for new card members and will begin rolling out to existing card members later in October 2024.

Here is a look at what else is changing:

• Up to $100 Resy Credit — You’ll receive up to $100 in statement credits annually (up to $50 semi-annually) on eligible Resy purchases. 
• Up to $84 Dunkin’ Credit — When you enroll your card, you can receive up to $84 in statement credits annually (up to $7 in credits monthly) for purchases made at Dunkin’ locations with your card.
• Up to $120 annual Dining Credit (up to $10 in statement credit each month on eligible purchases at participating partners) remains, though the list of eligible partners has changed slightly. Shake Shack and Milk Bar will exit the roster, while Five Guys will join. This change will occur on September 25, 2024, at which point the list of eligible partners will include Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys.
• You’ll still earn 4x Membership Rewards points per dollar spent at restaurants (including takeout and delivery) around the world and at U.S. supermarkets, but there will be a new $50,000 cap to 4x earnings at restaurants.

Lastly, new applicants who are approved for the Amex Gold card can receive a LIMITED TIME OFFER: Earn 60,000 points after spending $6,000 in the first 6 months. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months, up to $100 back. Offer ends 11/6/24.

Bilt To Start Capping Double Points on Rent Day

If you hold the Bilt World Elite Mastercard^® Credit Card, an important change is coming that will impact the number of points you can earn. Starting October 1, 2024, you’ll only be able to earn 1,000 Bilt bonus points on Rent Day as part of the monthly double points promotion, a decrease from the previous limit of up to 10,000 Bilt bonus points on Rent Day.

British Airways Devalues Avios in Both Halves of 2024

British Airways enacted another devaluation of its Avios rewards. This devaluation appears to only impact short-haul awards on American Airlines and Alaska Airlines. 

Let’s look at the difference in cost:

New Centurion Lounge at Washington Reagan National Airport Now Open

American Express has finally opened the doors to its new Centurion Lounge at Washington Reagan National Airport (DCA)! 

The lounge is located in Terminal 2, and is home to most airlines at Reagan National, including American, United, Alaska, Delta, and JetBlue.

The lounge is open Sunday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m.

This lounge is approximately 12,000 square feet and supposedly has approximately 250 seats. Amenities include a menu curated by Chef Michelle Bernstein, Chef Ravi Kapur, and Chef Michael Solomonov, cocktails by Mixologist Jim Meehan, a conference room, a phone room, premium restrooms, and a shower suite.

Southwest Will Finally Have Assigned Seats and Introduce Red-Eye Flights

Big news for Southwest Airlines passengers: you will soon be able to select your seat assignment in advance!

This is not a popular process amongst passengers, and Southwest has taken notice, stating that 80% of Southwest customers and 86% of potential customers prefer an assigned seat.

In addition to assigning seats, Southwest will also introduce premium, extended-legroom seats that will account for roughly 33% of seats across its fleet.

Virgin Atlantic Massively Increases Award Costs and Fees for Delta One Flights to Europe

If you’re booking Delta One business class awards to Europe, the price you’ll pay just went up significantly in terms of points and cash. 

Previously, you could book Delta One via Virgin Atlantic Flying Club and get yourself to Europe in style for just 50,000 points per passenger. That pricing didn’t include the U.K., sadly, but it was a fantastic offer and included just $5.60 in taxes and fees.

Nearly all Delta One pricing to Europe has gone up, requiring more Virgin Points and adding hefty cash fees at the time of booking. Rather than the $5.60 in taxes and fees, you’ll now pay over $1,000 on top of the points required for the award ticket.

Depending on the pricing in effect for your travel dates, these are the new award rates per person for Delta One between the U.S. and Europe (not including the U.K.):

New Opportunities To Purchase Points

If you need to boost your mileage balances but aren’t in the market for a new credit card, here are the latest opportunities to purchase points with a bonus:

• Air France-KLM Flying Blue — Up to 40% Discount
• Avianca LifeMiles — Up to 160% Bonus
• Choice Privileges — Up to 30% Discount
• Iberia Plus — Up to 25% Bonus
• IHG One Rewards — Up to 100% Bonus
• JetBlue TrueBlue — Up to 125% Bonus
• Southwest Rapid Rewards — Up to 45% Discount
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club — Up to 60% Bonus
• Wyndham Rewards — Up to 35% 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. 

New Airline Route Changes

Here are the airlines that announced last month that they were adding, removing, or relaunching routes:

U.S. Airlines

• Alaska Airlines Adds 18 New Routes to Winter Schedule
• Alaska Airlines Connects LA With 2 New Mexican Destinations
• Allegiant Air Closing Austin Base and Eliminating Multiple Flights in Early January 2025
• Allegiant Launches 8 New Routes to Florida and Georgia
• Avelo’s Big Expansion: New Florida Routes, First International Flights
• Breeze Airways To Open Its 10th Base in Vero Beach, Florida
• Frontier Cuts Dozens of Routes in Latest Network Shakeup
• JetBlue Boosts New England Service, Adds Several New Routes
• United Airlines Adds Seasonal Service to Belize From San Francisco

International Airlines

• Aeromexico Launching Newark-Mexico City Flights This Fall
• Air India Will Fly Airbus A350 to Newark and New York
• Etihad Network Update: Boston Gets Daily Flights and Toronto Gets the A350
• Qantas’ Third Nonstop European Service Takes Off to Paris

New Hotel Openings

Here’s the latest on hotel openings:

Hilton

• Faro Blanco Resort & Yacht Club in Florida Keys Joins Curio Collection
• Nearly 400 More Small Luxury Hotels (SLH) Properties Join Hilton Honors

Hyatt

• Le Méridien Delfina Santa Monica To Rebrand as a Hyatt Centric
• Park Hyatt Johannesburg Now Accepting Reservations [Category 5]
• Park Hyatt London River Thames Accepting Reservations — How To Book With Points
• The Placencia Resort in Belize To Join World of Hyatt in 2025

IHG

• Boutique Kimpton Virgilio Opens in Mexico City [With 15% Off Promotion!]
• InterContinental Bellevue Marks Brand Debut in the Pacific Northwest
• InterContinental Crete Opens on Greece’s Largest Island
• Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants Opens Property in Budapest

Marriott

• Courtyard Sapporo Opens in Japan [15k Points Per Night]
• JW Marriott at Reston Station Coming in 2025 [Near IAD Airport]
• Marriott Cancun, An All-Inclusive Resort Debuts With a Limited-Time Offer
• New Protea Hotels by Marriott Open in South Africa and Angola

Boutique and Luxury Properties

• N/A

Final Thoughts

The value of points and miles can vary, but you always want to ensure you get 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, thanks to the large 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.