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This buy miles promotion has ended; see current buy miles promotions.
Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles just launched its latest offer for buying miles. Now through May 9, 2024, you can buy up to 99,999 Miles & Smiles miles and get up to 100% bonus miles through this new promotion. If you maximize this deal, you can grab miles for 1.5¢ apiece.
But with Turkish Airlines devaluing its miles and changing its charts earlier this year, does a deal like this make sense anymore? Let's dig in and see when it makes sense to grab Miles & Smiles miles during this promotion.
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Does It Make Sense To Buy Turkish Airlines Miles?
Although not our preferred way to accrue points and miles, promotions like these can certainly provide value — given the right circumstances. But it goes without saying, that buying miles should always be the last resort. Not only will loyalty programs devalue their miles at the drop of a hat (like Turkish Airlines recently did), but they typically sell them at a higher price than you can get any worthwhile value from. Unless there is a bonus or discount available, you'd be better off holding onto your money and building your balance through other (cheaper) ways.
Having said that, there are two different scenarios when buying points and miles can make sense. Let's say you're right on the cusp of having enough miles for a really good redemption — buying the remaining miles can be easy and cheap if the promotional value is solid. Moreover, if you're dead set on a sweet first or business cabin seat, grabbing the difference in miles for the award redemption will most likely be cheaper than paying the cash rate.
Terms for Buying Miles & Smiles Miles
- This promotional 100% bonus offer is available for mileage purchases until May 9, 2024.
- The minimum purchase amount is 1,000 miles.
- Purchase a minimum of 5,000 miles to receive any bonus (10%).
- Purchase at least 80,000 miles to receive the maximum bonus (100%).
- Maximum purchase is 99,999 miles total in a signal transaction and in a calendar year.
- Bonus miles will not show up on the check-out screen, instead becoming available up to seven days after the purchase date.
- Purchased bonus miles will expire on December 31, 2025.
- The full terms and conditions are available here.
All members eligible for this offer will get a bonus on the base rate, with the cost depending on how many miles you buy. While the cost of each 1,000 mile costs $30, the cost per mile drops the more miles you purchase:
- 1,000–4,999 miles: No bonus (3¢ per mile)
- 5,000–19,999 miles: 10% bonus (2.73¢ per mile)
- 20,000–49,999 miles: 30% bonus (2.31¢ per mile)
- 50,000–79,999 miles: 60% bonus (1.88¢ per mile)
- 80,000–99,999 miles: 100% bonus (1.5¢ per mile)
According to the terms and conditions, it could take up to seven days to receive your purchased miles.
The Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles portal is one of the wonkiest we've come across — with a mixture of hurdles and bugs in the system getting in your way. It's important to note that you won't be able to purchase Turkish Airlines miles unless you are a member of the Miles & Smiles program. Therefore, you'll have to sign up here.
Once signed up and signed in, you will need to navigate to the “Buy Miles” section:
Then, choose whether you're buying miles for yourself or someone else. Here's where things get different: Instead of selecting the amount of miles you want to purchase, you will need to manually input the number into the box on the right side.
Another oddity: The bonus miles will not appear in this checkout area. Instead, they will appear in your account roughly a week after you purchase the base miles. So if you're counting on the bonus miles to grab a sweet redemption, only do so if you give yourself at least a seven-day buffer ahead of time.
Opportunities When You Buy Miles & Smiles Miles
While there are some excellent Turkish Airlines sweet spots available for members, the program interface can be a bit wonky to operate. But if you can get past this part, you'll find many great options when utilizing your Miles & Smiles miles.
Make sure to check out Turkish Airlines' new award charts. Here's a look at a few examples of flights where you could save money if you buy Miles & Smiles miles during this promotion, rather than paying the cash rate.
Dallas — Istanbul in Turkish Airlines business class
- Mileage rate: 65,000 miles
- Typical cash price: $3,591 one-way
- Redemption rate: 5.4¢ per mile
- Cost to purchase 65,000 miles (at 1.5¢ each): $975 one-way
Istanbul — Athens in Turkish Airlines business class
- Mileage rate: 20,000 miles
- Typical cash price: $497 one-way
- Redemption rate: 2.5¢ per mile
- Cost to purchase 20,000 miles (at 1.5¢ each): $300 one-way
U.S Mainland — Honolulu on United Airlines
One of the best uses of Turkish Airlines miles is taking a trip from the U.S. mainland to Hawaii on United Airlines. For example, you can fly for either 10k in economy or 15k in business. Seeing as cash rates to Hawaii are quite expensive, this deal is likely where you'll receive the best redemption rate value.
- Mileage rate: 15,000 miles
- Typical cash price: $800 one-way
- Redemption rate: 5.3¢ per mile
- Cost to purchase 15,000 miles (at 1.5¢ each): $225 one-way
Turkish Buy Miles History
Pretty straightforward stuff here from the Miles & Smiles program — seeing as this is the first and only promo we've seen come out from the flagship carrier of Turkey. Hopefully, we will be filling this table up to the brim soon:
| Promotion Ended | Max Bonus/Discount | Min Cents per Mile | Max Purchase Amount (w/ Bonus) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-05-09 | 100% Bonus | 1.5 | 199,998 |
Related: The Best Points and Miles for Free Flights to Hawaii
Buy Turkish Airlines Miles With the Right Credit Card
Unlike many other loyalty programs, Turkish Airlines does NOT partner with Points.com to sell miles. Seeing as Turkish Airlines is directly a travel company and does not serve as a third party, your purchase should code as travel. As a result, you should try using one of the best cards for travel purchases to squeeze the most juice out of this lemon. This includes cards such as the following:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve®: This card earns 4x Ultimate Rewards points on a wide range of travel purchases.
- The Platinum Card® from American Express: Cardmembers earn 5x Membership Rewards points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel® (on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year) and 5x points on prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com.
- Citi Strata Premier℠ Card: Earn 3x ThankYou® Points on airfare, hotels, dining, gas and EV charging stations, and supermarkets.
Related: Which Credit Card Should You Use To Buy Points and Miles?
Bottom Line
It will take a few promotions from Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles before we can conclude whether or not this 100% bonus deal is a good one. But for now, it's safe to assume that grabbing miles during this promotion is a smart move, considering 1.5¢ per mile can get you some pretty sweet redemptions. But we aren't fortune tellers either, so we can't be sure when (or if) Turkish Airlines might run this offer again.
Even though Turkish Airlines recently devalued its charts and miles earlier this year, taking advantage of this promotion could make sense if you're right on the cusp of redeeming a sweet deal with Miles & Smiles. If that's you, hurry, because this promotion ends on May 9, 2024.
Since the bonus miles won't show up in your original transaction, we encourage our readers to take screenshots of the checkout process. If you don't receive the bonus miles within a week, you'll need some evidence when inquiring about them.
Are you buying Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles miles for as little as 1.5¢ each?
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