Avianca Is Selling LifeMiles With up to a 145% Bonus — But Should You Buy at 1.35¢ Each?

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This buy LifeMiles promotion has ended. However, you can still buy LifeMiles here.

Avianca is back with another LifeMiles sale. This time, it's offering up to a 145% bonus on miles purchased through August 27, 2026. That brings the effective cost down to just 1.35¢ per mile! But with recent devaluations and a history of surprise program changes, is this deal too good to pass up — or too risky to pounce on?

Let’s dive into the details and explore some times when buying LifeMiles during this promotion could make sense.

Buy LifeMiles Key Terms

• This promotion is valid through August 27, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. GMT-6 (August 28 at 1:59 a.m. ET)
• Members can buy LifeMiles in increments of 1,000 LifeMiles.
• Per the terms, you can buy a maximum of 1 million LifeMiles annually — including any bonuses. If you exceed this yearly limit, the transaction will be processed, and no bonus miles will be granted.
• The maximum purchase per transaction is 200,000 LifeMiles.
• Mile purchases are non-reversible and non-refundable.
• Purchased miles count towards elite progress, except for Status Magno. Keep in mind Avianca requires a minimum number of miles flown with Avianca to achieve status.
• This promotion is not available to members in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, or Venezuela.

Screenshot of Avianca LifeMiles

While the terms and conditions state that purchased LifeMiles can take up to 72 hours to post to your account, data from AwardWallet users show that LifeMiles purchases typically post within 12 hours on average.

Cost to buy LifeMiles

This bonus has three different tiers, so your total bonus will depend on how many points you buy:

• 1,000-20,000 miles: 125% bonus (1.53¢ each)
• 21,000-50,000 miles: 135% bonus (1.50¢ each)
• 51,000-200,000 miles: 145% bonus (1.35¢ each)

The maximum number of LifeMiles you can purchase in one transaction is 200,000 miles — which will set you back $6,600. After the 145% bonus, you'll get a total of 490,000 LifeMiles (200,000 base + 290,000 bonus) for $6,600. That nets a purchase rate of 1.35¢ per LifeMile.

However, you don't have to spend nearly this much to get great value out of this promotion. To get the optimal rate, you'd need to buy 51,000 LifeMiles. After the 145% bonus, you'll receive a total of 124,950 LifeMiles for $1,683.

Screenshot of LifeMiles

A Note on Buying Miles

We generally don't recommend buying miles unless there's a discount/bonus and you have a solid plan to use them. For most miles and points currencies, you're better off building your stash through credit card earnings and transfer partners.

There are a couple of exceptions, though. When you can buy miles with a bonus or discount, it can make sense if you can book a lucrative award redemption instead of paying the expensive cash price for a ticket. Moreover, if you only need a few more miles to complete your next great redemption, purchasing miles can be the quickest, simplest way. Just make sure you do the math ahead of time to ensure you get more value than you're spending.

When Does Buying Avianca LifeMiles Make Sense?

Thanks to a reasonable award chart (despite a late 2024 devaluation, another devaluation in February 2025, and yet another in April 2026), minimal booking fees, and no fuel surcharges, LifeMiles has been among our favorite airline currencies for premium-class redemptions across the globe.

As the currency of Avianca — Colombia's flagship carrier — LifeMiles can be used for award bookings on any of the airline's Star Alliance and non-alliance partners. Great partners with fabulous premium products include Lufthansa, All Nippon Airways (ANA), and EVA.

Let's look at some of our favorite Avianca LifeMiles sweet spots to show the kind of value possible when buying LifeMiles for 1.35¢ apiece.

United flights to Canada

Perhaps one of the best uses of LifeMiles for many travelers is simply getting a decent mileage price on United flights to Canada. These routes can get expensive, so this is a wise use of your LifeMiles if you need a trip to our northern neighbor. For example, consider Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Montreal (YUL):

• Mileage rate: 10,000 LifeMiles + $29 taxes each way (or 9,000 LifeMiles with a LifeMiles+ membership)
• Cost to purchase 11,250 LifeMiles (after a 125% bonus): $165
• One-way cost of exactly 10,000 LifeMiles at 1.35¢ each: $135

Screenshot of LifeMiles

New York–Warsaw in LOT Polish Business Class

Fancy heading to Poland? Avianca prices one-way awards between the U.S. and Poland from 59,500 LifeMiles per direction, plus taxes and fees. Better yet, these awards are generally widely available, which makes them a convenient way to get to Europe without having to hunt too hard for award availability. For example, here's a bookable award from New York (JFK) to Warsaw (WAW).

• Mileage rate: 59,500 LifeMiles + $29 taxes each way (or just 53,550 LifeMiles with a LifeMiles+ membership)
• Cost to purchase 61,100 LifeMiles (after a 135% bonus): $858
• One-way cost of exactly 59,500 LifeMiles at 1.35¢ each: $803.25

Screenshot of LifeMiles

Boston–Frankfurt in Lufthansa business class

Lufthansa is known for above par service in its business class cabins (and first class, too, but that's a lot harder to book with miles nowadays), and you can try it out for yourself on routes between the U.S. and Germany from 69,000 LifeMiles per way. There are lots of routes you can scout award availability on, but one that's frequently available is Boston (BOS) to Frankfurt (FRA).

• Mileage rate: 69,000 LifeMiles + $29 taxes each way (or 62,100 LifeMiles with a LifeMiles+ membership)
• Cost to purchase 70,500 LifeMiles (after a 135% bonus): $990
• One-way cost of exactly 69,000 LifeMiles at 1.35¢ each: $931.50

Screenshot of LifeMiles

Tokyo–Honolulu in ANA first class

One of our favorite sweet spots is Tokyo to Honolulu in ANA first class. While it's not the longest flight you can book in ANA first class using Avianca LifeMiles, it is one of the most consistently available premium cabin ANA award flights you can book with LifeMiles — and that counts for something.

For example, consider the route from Tokyo (NRT) to Honolulu (HNL):

• Mileage rate: 66,000 LifeMiles + $80.23 taxes each way (or 59,400 LifeMiles with a LifeMiles+ membership)
• Cost to purchase 68,150 LifeMiles (after a 135% bonus): $957
• One-way cost of exactly 66,000 LifeMiles at 1.35¢ each: $891

Screenshot of LifeMiles

Avianca Buy LifeMiles History

We have compiled a list of former promotions for buying LifeMiles. As you can see, the cost-per-LifeMile rate of 1.35¢ apiece isn't the best we've seen from Avianca:

Maximize Your LifeMiles Purchase

Avianca has gone back and forth between selling LifeMiles directly — meaning it coded as airfare on most credit cards — and selling miles through Points.com. This makes it challenging to know which credit card to use to buy miles.

Should you use a card with bonus earnings on travel purchases like the American Express Platinum Card^®, or should you use your best credit card for everyday spending, such as the Citi Double Cash^® Card or Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card?

Unfortunately, there isn't a super clear answer. You might want to do a test transaction to see how the purchase appears on your card.

Regardless, if you choose to buy LifeMiles, prioritize these cards first:

• A credit card for which you're working on a sign-up bonus. These are the best welcome offers available right now.
• A credit card with perks you can unlock from spending, such as hotel free night awards, hotel elite status, or airline elite status.

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

How to Apply

Limited-Time Offer Earn more than $1,000 in Travel Bonuses with a limited-time $300 Capital One Travel stays credit, plus earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening—that's more than $1,000 in travel value.

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Limited-Time Offer Earn more than $1,000 in Travel Bonuses with a limited-time $300 Capital One Travel stays credit, plus earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening—that's more than $1,000 in travel value.

Annual Fee:$95

Show moreWhy We Like ItHighlightsEarning Rates

Following the revamp of Capital One's rewards program and the addition of airline transfer partners, the Capital One Venture has catapulted into our list of top travel rewards cards. The ability to earn at least 2X miles on every purchase provides a decent return on spending. Plus the card offers some great perks.

• Earn 75,000 Miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening, plus a limited-time $300 Capital One Travel stays credit
• 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
• 2X miles on all other purchase
• Fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✔^® (up to $120)
• No foreign transaction fees
• $95 annual fee

• 5X miles per dollar on purchases through Capital One Entertainment
• 5X miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
• 2X miles per dollar on all other purchases

Related: Which Credit Card Should You Use to Buy Points and Miles?

Other Ways To Earn Avianca LifeMiles

While cheap miles are great, an even cheaper way to grow your LifeMiles balance is converting bank points. Avianca partners with multiple transferable currencies:

Note that Marriott Bonvoy ended its longstanding 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Bonvoy points transferred to LifeMiles in October 2022.

American Express^® Gold Card

Welcome Offer Find Out Your Offer. You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards^® Points after spending $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.

How to Apply

Annual Fee

$325Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)

Credit Score

Excellent, Good

• 4X Membership Rewards^® points at restaurants worldwide, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S. (on up to $50,000 per year in purchases, then 1X)
• 4X Membership Rewards^® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X)
• 5X Membership Rewards^® points on prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com
• 3X Membership Rewards^® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
• 2X Membership Rewards^® points on prepaid car rentals booked through amextravel.com
• 2X Membership Rewards^® points on cruises booked and paid through amextravel.com
• 1X on other eligible purchases

Citi Strata Premier^® Card

Welcome Offer Earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou^® Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com.

Apply Now

Annual Fee

$95Rates & Fees

Credit Score

Excellent, Good

• 10X on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked through CitiTravel.com
• 3X – Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Air Travel and Other Hotel Purchases
• 3X – Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Restaurants
• 3X – Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Supermarkets
• 3X – Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Gas and EV Charging Stations
• 1X – Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on All Other Purchases

Bilt Palladium Card

Welcome Bonus 50,000 Bilt Points + Gold Status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 3 months + $300 of Bilt Cash.

Apply Now

Annual Fee

$495Rates & Fees

• Choose to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spend. Use Bilt Cash to unlock point earnings on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee, up to 1X.
• 2X points on everyday spend

Another way of accumulating LifeMiles is through LifeMiles+. This subscription service lets LifeMiles members effectively buy LifeMiles monthly at a rate of as little as 2¢ per LifeMile — or even better if you have a LifeMiles credit card. Plus, you'll get benefits like up to 25% off Avianca award flights and 10% discounts on Star Alliance redemptions, which can amount to big savings.

avianca lifemiles American Express^® Elite Card

How to Apply

Welcome Bonus Get up to 100,000 Welcome bonus miles* — 60,000 miles after spending $4,500 in the first 90 days plus an additional 40,000 miles after spending $25,000 in the first 365 days.

avianca lifemiles American Express^® Elite Card

Welcome Bonus Get up to 100,000 Welcome bonus miles* — 60,000 miles after spending $4,500 in the first 90 days plus an additional 40,000 miles after spending $25,000 in the first 365 days.

Annual Fee:$249

Show moreWhy We Like ItEarning Rates

The avianca lifemiles American Express^® Elite Card delivers 3x miles on Avianca purchases and 2x on both dining and other travel purchases. The dual bonus structure can yield up to 100,000 lifemiles points in the first year, plus included lifemiles+ Lite membership and Silver Elite status make it ideal for travelers seeking stronger rewards and premium perks.

• Earn 3x miles on avianca or lifemiles purchases
• Earn 2x miles on restaurant and other travel purchases
• Earn 1x on all other eligible purchases

Related: Do LifeMiles Expire? Avianca's Policy Explained

Final Thoughts

This LifeMiles sale offers a reasonable price of 1.35¢ per mile, but it's not the best rate we've ever seen from the airline. However, if you have a high-value redemption in mind, you could come out well ahead by locking in this sale, especially for premium cabin Star Alliance awards.

LifeMiles has shown time and again that it's willing to make unannounced changes to its award chart, and sitting miles are vulnerable to sudden shifts. Ultimately, this promotion can unlock great value, but it’s not for casual collectors. Run the numbers, check award space, and make sure you’re comfortable with the risks before you buy with a bonus before August 27, 2026.

For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: American Express^® Gold Card (Rates & Fees), Citi Strata Premier^® Card (Rates & Fees), and Bilt Palladium Card (Rates & Fees)