10 Promotions For Buying Airline & Hotel Points

by onemileatatime.com onemileatatime.com February 10, 2023, 4:17 pm 1.5k Views

In the interest of full disclosure, OMAAT earns a referral bonus for anyone that’s approved through some of the below links. These are the best publicly available offers (terms apply) that we have found for each product or service. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of the bank, credit card issuer, airline, hotel chain, or product manufacturer/service provider, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Please check out our advertiser policy for further details about our partners, and thanks for your support!

Strategically buying airline & hotel points can be a great value, especially for aspirational redemptions. This can save you a huge amount off the retail cost of a first & business class flight, or a five star hotel stay.

We frequently see loyalty programs offer promotions on purchased points, so in this post I wanted to recap the best offers that are currently available. I buy points all the time, so I think it’s always worth being aware of what’s available.

Here are 10 deals on buying points right now from major airline & hotel programs, ranked by promotion expiration date:

Through February 10, 2023, Wyndham Rewards is offering up to a 25% discount on purchased points / buy points for as little as 0.98 cents each / more info here
Through February 20, 2023, Alaska Mileage Plan is offering up to a 60% bonus on purchased miles / buy miles for as little as 1.97 cents each / more info here
Through February 20, 2023, Southwest Rapid Rewards is offering up to a 45% discount on purchased points / buy points for as little as 1.65 cents each / more info here
Through February 22, 2023, Avianca LifeMiles is offering up to a 165% bonus on purchased miles / buy miles for as little as 1.25 cents each / more info here
Through February 24, 2023, JetBlue TrueBlue is offering up to a 40% discount on purchased points / buy points for as little as 1.77 cents each / more info here
Through February 27, 2023, Air France-KLM Flying Club is offering up to a 100% bonus on purchased miles / buy miles for as little as 1.53 cents each / more info here
Through February 28, 2023, United MileagePlus is offering up to a 100% bonus on purchased miles / buy miles for as little as 1.88 cents each / more info here
Through March 7, 2023, Hilton Honors is offering up to a 100% bonus on purchased points / buy points for as little as 0.5 cents each / more info here
Through March 21, 2023, IHG One Rewards is offering up to a 100% bonus on purchased points / buy points for as little as 0.5 cents each / more info here
Through March 25, 2023, World of Hyatt is offering up to a 25% bonus on purchased points / buy points for as little as 1.92 cents each / more info here

In each of the above cases, I linked to a post that talks about when it does and doesn’t make sense to buy points from those programs, so check that out. Don’t necessarily assume that a 100% bonus in one program is a better deal than a 50% bonus in another program, since different programs have different value propositions to begin with.

Of the above offers, I tend to think the best offers are those from Alaska Mileage Plan, Avianca LifeMiles, Hilton Honors, and IHG One Rewards.

Redeem Hilton Honors points at the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos

Which credit card should you buy points with?

The best credit card for buying points depends on the program you’re making a purchase from.

Some loyalty programs process points purchases directly. In those cases, points purchases qualify as airfare spending, in which case you’d want to use one of the following cards:

5x Membership Rewards points
per dollar spent directly with airlines or through Amex Travel, on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and then 1x

The Platinum Card® from American Express

3x Membership Rewards points
per dollar spent directly with airlines

American Express® Gold Card

3x Membership Rewards points
per dollar spent directly with airlines

American Express® Green Card

3x Ultimate Rewards points
per dollar spent on airfare

Chase Sapphire Reserve®

3x ThankYou points
per dollar spent on airfare

Citi Premier® Card

2x Ultimate Rewards points
per dollar spent on airfare

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

Points purchases from other programs are facilitated by points.com. For points.com purchases I’d recommend using a card on which you’re trying to reach minimum spending, or otherwise a credit card that maximizes your return on everyday spending, like the Chase Freedom Unlimited® (review), Citi® Double Cash Card (review), or Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (review).

If you are purchasing from a foreign program, I’d recommend using the Capital One Venture X, since the other two cards have foreign transaction fees.

Redeem Alaska Mileage Plan miles for Qatar Airways business class

Bottom line

Buying airline & hotel points can represent a great deal, especially when there’s a lucrative promotion. We’re seeing several programs offer promotions, so if you’d benefit from one of these, it’s at least worth being aware of what’s available. I buy points several times per year, though usually only if I have a short-term use in mind for a travel experience, and know the math checks out.

Are you taking advantage of any of the opportunities to buy points at the moment?

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