If you read What Credit Card Points and Miles Are Worth, you know that not all rewards currencies are created equal. Points can offer different things at different values.
See our list of the best credit card bonuses here.
Transferable points are the most valuable currency you can earn in the rewards world. That’s because they offer incredible flexibility compared to regular points and miles, letting you fly in premium cabins and stay in luxury hotels that you normally wouldn’t be able to afford.
This guide covers five major credit card programs with transferable points and their airline and hotel transfer partners.
THE PLATINUM CARD® FROM AMERICAN EXPRESS
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Platinum Card® from American Express has a special offer for 100,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 in purchases within your first 6 months.
Membership Rewards® points are some of the most valuable in the market. Redeeming these points by booking travel through American Express or by redeeming for gift cards will give you a standard 1 cent per point value. The 100k bonus points are worth $1,000 going this route.
You can potentially get more value by transferring your points to Membership Rewards travel partners. Using this strategy can get you up to an average value of 2 cents per point. Get around $2,000 in value with 100,000 points this way. Read more on this here.
With this card, earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year.
The biggest drawback to this card is the $695 annual fee (see Rates & Fees, Terms Apply), which puts it in the premium class of credit cards. The card has a market because it offers premium travel benefits, such as 5X points for flights (up to $500,000 on these purchases) and eligible hotels, access to 40+ Centurion Loung and Studio locations worldwide, up to $200 airline fee credit annually, and an annual Walmart+ membership. These benefits are given as statement credits.
For frequent travelers, the added benefits make sense in terms of value and added luxury.
Credit Card Rewards Programs
American Express Membership Rewards
American Express Membership Rewards® has the most transfer partners out of any rewards card program. Transfer ratios vary from partner to partner, and most transfers are almost instant. Keep in mind, there’s a small fee for transfers to U.S. airlines ($0.006 per point, up to a maximum of $99) and all transfers are final.
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| Delta Air Lines SkyMiles | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| JetBlue TrueBlue | 1:0.8 | Almost Instant |
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| Aer Lingus Aerclub | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Aeromexico Club Premier | 1:1.6 | 2 days |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Air France/KLM Flying Blue | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Alitalia MilleMiglia | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| ANA Mileage Club | 1:1 | 2-3 days |
| Avianca LifeMiles | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| British Airways Executive Club | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 1:1 | 1-3 days |
| EL AL Matmid Frequent Flyer Club | 1:0.02 | Almost Instant |
| Emirates Skyward | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Etihad Guest | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Iberia Plus | 1:1 | 1-3 days |
| Qantas Frequent Flyer | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| HOTEL PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| Choice Privileges | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Hilton Honors | 1:2 | Almost Instant |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date and will be updated from time-to-time; however, some of the information may have change since the last update. Click here to find our source and get the latest information.
Capital One Rewards
The Capital One® Rewards transfer ratio is 2:1.5 for most partners, and the minimum to transfer is 1,000 miles. You can transfer in increments of 100. Keep in mind, transfers are final.
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| JetBlue TrueBlue | 2:1 | Almost Instant |
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| Aeromexico Club Premier | 2:1.5 | Almost Instant |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | 2:1.5 | Almost Instant |
| Air France/KLM Flying Blue | 2:1.5 | Almost Instant |
| Alitalia MilleMiglia | 2:1.5 | Almost Instant |
| Avianca LifeMiles | 2:1.5 | Almost Instant |
| Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 2:1.5 | 1-5 days |
| Emirates Skyward | 2:1 | Almost Instant |
| Etihad Guest | 2:1.5 | Up to 36 hours |
| EVA Air Infinity MileageLands | 2:1.5 | Up to 36 hours |
| Finnair Plus | 2:1.5 | Almost Instant |
| Qantas Frequent Flyer | 2:1.5 | Up to 36 hours |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 2:1 | Up to 36 hours |
No hotel transfer partners.
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date and will be updated from time-to-time; however, some of the information may have change since the last update. Click here to find our source and get the latest information.
Chase Ultimate Rewards
All Chase Ultimate Rewards® partners have a 1:1 transfer ratio, and most transfers are almost instant. Keep in mind, transfers are always in 1,000-point increments and are final.
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| JetBlue TrueBlue | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| United Airlines MileagePlus | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| Aer Lingus Aerclub | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Air France/KLM Flying Blue | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| British Airways Executive Club | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Iberia Plus | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| HOTEL PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| IHG Rewards Club | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
| World of Hyatt | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date and will be updated from time-to-time; however, some of the information may have change since the last update. Click here to find our source and get the latest information (you must log into your Chase account to access transfer partner’s list).
Citi ThankYou Rewards
All Citi ThankYou® Rewards partners have a 1:1 transfer ratio, except JetBlue. Many transfers happen between one to three days, with some transferring almost instantly.
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| JetBlue TrueBlue | 10:8 | Almost Instant |
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO | TRANSFER TIME |
| Aeromexico Club Premier | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Air France/KLM Flying Blue | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Avianca LifeMiles | 1:1 | 2 days |
| Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 1:1 | 24 hours |
| Etihad Guest | 1:1 | 6 days |
| EVA Air Infinity Mileagelands | 1:1 | 2 days |
| Garuda Indonesia GarudaMiles | 1:1 | 2 days |
| Jet Airways InterMiles | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Malaysia Airlines Enrich | 1:1 | 2 days |
| Qantas Airways Frequent Flyer | 1:1 | 2 days |
| Qatar Airways Privilege Club | 1:1 | 2 days |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
| Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus | 1:1 | 4 days |
| Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
No hotel transfer partners.
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date and will be updated from time-to-time; however, some of the information may have change since the last update. Click here to find our source and get the latest information.
Diners Club International
Keep an eye out on those transfer ratios. Diners Club® International points sometimes don’t transfer at a clean 1:1 ratio.
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO |
| Alaska Airlines MileagePlan | 5.4:5.5 |
| Delta Air Lines SkyMiles | 5.4:5.5 |
| Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles | 5.375:5 |
| Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards | 6.8:5.5 |
| FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | 1:1 |
| British Airways Executive Club | 1:1 |
| EL AL Matmid Frequent Flyer Club | 50:1 |
| Icelandair Saga Club | 1:1 |
| SAS EuroBonus | 1:1 |
| South African Airways Voyager | 1:1 |
| Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus | 1:1 |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1:1 |
| LOYALTY PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO |
| Best Western Rewards | 7.576:20 |
| Choice Privileges | 10:5.208 |
| Hilton Honors | 5:8 |
| IHG Rewards Club | 5:6 |
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date and will be updated from time-to-time; however, some of the information may have change since the last update. Click here to find our source and get the latest information.
Frequent Flyer Programs
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date and will be updated from time-to-time; however, some of the information may have change since the last update.
Hotel Loyalty Programs
The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date and will be updated from time-to-time; however, some of the information may have change since the last update.
Bottom Line
Nothing comes easy with points or miles, and transferable ones are even more complicated when you’re looking to redeem. But if you want to maximize the value of your rewards, then you’ll definitely want to transfer them to an airline or hotel partner.
READ MORE: SEE THE BEST BANK BONUSES HERE AND THE BEST INVESTING BONUSES HERE.
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