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One of the most frequently asked questions in the points and miles world is: “Can you transfer your points and miles between different frequent flyer programs?”
Sadly, you generally can't combine your points and miles between most programs. For example, despite Alaska Airlines and American Airlines being partners in the Oneworld alliance, you can't transfer Alaska Atmos Rewards points to American Airlines AAdvantage miles — or vice versa.
There are some workarounds, but these are generally not worth using as they destroy most of the value of your points and miles due to poor exchange rates. Overall, the general rule is that you shouldn't plan on transferring your miles between different frequent flyer programs.
However, like with most rules, there are some exceptions. And that's what we're here to discuss today.
Page Contents
- Avios Are the Only Freely Transferable Mileage Currency
- Using Airline Miles To Book Partner Awards
- Transferring Hotel Points to Airlines
- Marriott Bonvoy® airline transfer partners
- Accor Live Limitless airline transfer partners
- Best Western airline transfer partners
- Choice Privileges airline transfer partners
- Hilton Honors airline transfer partners
- IHG One Rewards airline transfer partners
- Radisson Rewards airline transfer partners
- Shangri-La Circle airline transfer partners
- World of Hyatt airline transfer partners
- Wyndham Rewards airline transfer partners
- Transferring Airline Miles to Hotel Points
- Earning Credit Card Points Is a Better Option
- Previous Ways To Transfer Points Between Frequent Flyer Programs
- Our Take
Avios Are the Only Freely Transferable Mileage Currency
Avios are the best example of a freely transferable mileage currency. There are now seven airlines that use Avios as their point currency:
- British Airways
- Qatar Airways
- Iberia
- Finnair
- Aer Lingus
- Vueling
- Loganair
The best part is that you can easily transfer Avios between programs at no cost, instantly, at a 1:1 ratio. This ability makes Avios unique in the points and miles world. It's important to note that free, rapid transfers at a 1:1 ratio between programs are practically unheard of elsewhere.
Related: Best Credit Cards for Earning Avios
Using Airline Miles To Book Partner Awards
Even though you generally can't transfer miles between frequent flyer programs, that doesn't mean you can't leverage airline partnerships to make your airline miles more valuable. You have options for booking flights on one airline with miles from another airline's loyalty program.
A few decades ago, airlines realized that they didn't operate every route in the world and therefore couldn't meet their passengers' needs on their own. So, legacy airlines formed alliances and partnerships to give travelers more options when booking their next flight. The three main airline alliances are Star Alliance, Oneworld, and SkyTeam.
- Star Alliance is the largest alliance and features industry heavyweights such as United Airlines, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Avianca, and Singapore Airlines.
- Oneworld is another major alliance and includes American Airlines, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, and Qatar Airways, among others.
- SkyTeam is the final alliance, featuring airlines such as Delta Air Lines, Air France, KLM, Korean Air, and Aeromexico.
Utilizing airline alliances is an excellent way for you to earn and redeem miles in one program when you fly on another airline. For example, you can use Air Canada Aeroplan points to fly on over four dozen airlines. However, it doesn't end there. Most airlines have other partnerships with non-alliance partners.
Take, for instance, one of the major Middle Eastern carriers: Etihad Airways. You can book a paid Etihad flight and credit it to one of several programs, including American Airlines AAdvantage (Oneworld), Air France/KLM Flying Blue (SkyTeam), or Air Canada Aeroplan (Star Alliance). That means you'll earn miles in one of these programs when you take an Etihad flight, as long as you provide the appropriate loyalty program number. Historically, you could also redeem miles for Etihad flights through these partners, but this ability has been severely restricted since late 2024.
With an extensive list of partners, you have many options for using your miles to book a flight. Not being able to transfer miles between frequent flyer programs won't be a roadblock if you understand how to use miles from one program to book flights on partner airlines.
Related: How to Find Airline Partner Award Flight Availability
Transferring Hotel Points to Airlines
While you can't transfer frequent flyer miles between airline programs (such as moving American Airlines AAdvantage miles to Delta Air Lines SkyMiles), it is sometimes possible to transfer hotel points to airline miles, and sometimes from airline miles to hotel points.
At best, some transfer rates are decent, and others are downright awful. But these options exist if you need just a few miles for a redemption.
Marriott Bonvoy® airline transfer partners
Marriott Bonvoy® points transfer to 37 airlines. Almost all transfers are at a reasonable 3:1 transfer ratio, and you'll get a 5,000-mile bonus when transferring at least 60,000 points to most partners. These features make Marriott the most well-known and best option for transferring points from a hotel program to airline miles.
One thing to keep in mind is that the following programs do not qualify for the 5,000-point bonus when you transfer 60,000 points.
- American Airlines AAdvantage
- Avianca LifeMiles
- Delta SkyMiles
You can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to all of the following airlines:
Accor Live Limitless airline transfer partners
You can also transfer points from Accor Live Limitless to certain airlines:
Best Western airline transfer partners
Best Western Rewards has these airline transfer partners:
Choice Privileges airline transfer partners
You can transfer Choice Privileges points to these airline partners:
Hilton Honors airline transfer partners
These are the transfer partners for Hilton Honors:
IHG One Rewards airline transfer partners
IHG One Rewards points transfer to the following airlines:
Radisson Rewards airline transfer partners
Radisson Rewards points can be transferred to these airline miles:
Shangri-La Circle airline transfer partners
You can transfer from Shangri-La Circle to the following:
World of Hyatt airline transfer partners
These are the World of Hyatt transfer partners:
Wyndham Rewards airline transfer partners
And Wyndham Rewards offers these:
Transferring Airline Miles to Hotel Points
The list of airlines that offer transfers to hotel loyalty programs is much smaller than the list of hotels that offer transfers to airline loyalty programs. Plus, airline miles are generally more valuable than hotel points. Combine that with bad transfer ratios, and this is an option you'll typically want to avoid.
Airlines that transfer to Accor
Interestingly, quite a few airlines offer transfers to Accor Live Limitless — more airlines than any other hotel loyalty program. Here are the current options:
Other airline-to-hotel transfer options
When you exclude Accor, only a few hotel programs allow miles transfers from airlines:
Earning Credit Card Points Is a Better Option
So far, we've covered transferring points between airlines (rarely possible), transferring hotel points to airline miles (generally not worth it), and transferring airline miles to hotel points (usually even worse value). However, there's one more type of points transfer we need to discuss—and it's our favorite: transferring bank points to airlines/hotels.
We generally recommend earning flexible credit card points in addition to individual airline miles or hotel points. Choosing flexible credit card points is ideal for these reasons:
- Flexibility: You can transfer your points to various airlines and hotel programs and redeem them for a flight. You can even opt to redeem them directly through your card issuer's travel portal, but you aren't locked into a single program the way you are with an airline's frequent flyer miles. You can redeem them in the way that's best for your current vacation planning.
- Mimics elite perks: With premium travel rewards credit cards, you can score some of the benefits of airline elite status, like airport lounge access.
Let's take a look at the main flexible points currencies.
American Express Membership Rewards
American Express Membership Rewards can be transferred to 20 airline and hotel partners, redeemed in the American Express Travel® portal or as a statement credit to your account, and much more. However, not every redemption method will offer the same value.
You can earn Membership Rewards with numerous cards, including:
- American Express Platinum Card®
- American Express® Gold Card
- American Express® Green Card
- The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
- The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
$325Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
- 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)
- 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
- 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels and other eligible travel booked on amextravel.com
- 1X on other eligible purchases
$895Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
- Earn 5X points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel® (up to $500,000 in purchases per calendar year).
- Earn 5X points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel®.
- Earn 5X points on Fine Hotels + Resorts® and The Hotel Collection bookings.
$895Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
- Earn 5X points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X points on each eligible purchase of $5,000 or more.
- Earn 2X points on each eligible purchase with U.S. construction material and hardware suppliers.
- Earn 2X points on each eligible purchase with U.S. electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers.
- Earn 2X points on each eligible purchase with U.S. shipping providers.
- 2X earning rates are subject to a cap of $2 million in purchases per calendar year.
Capital One Miles
You can transfer miles from Capital One to 22 airline and hotel programs. Other options for using your miles include statement credits, offsetting recent travel purchases, and booking travel through the portal. Some of the cards that earn Capital One miles include:
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
- Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
- Capital One Spark Miles for Business
- Capital One Venture X Business
If you have a miles-earning card and a card that earns cash back, you can combine those earnings, meaning these cards can also help you earn Capital One miles:
- Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card
- Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card
- Capital One Spark Cash Plus
$95
- 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
$395
- 10X miles per $1 on hotels and rental cars booked via Capital One Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on purchases through Capital One Entertainment
- 5X miles per $1 on flights when booking via Capital One Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on vacation rentals booked via Capital One Travel
- 2X miles per $1 on all other eligible purchases
$395
- 10X miles per $1 on hotels and rental cars booked via Capital One Business Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on purchases through Capital One Entertainment
- 5X miles per $1 on flights booked via Capital One Business Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on vacation rentals booked via Capital One Business Travel
- 2X miles per $1 on other eligible purchases
Chase Ultimate Rewards
Chase's points program is called Ultimate Rewards, and you can transfer these points to 14 airline and hotel partners. You can also redeem points with Pay Yourself Back, as a statement credit, or in the Chase Travel portal. Some of the cards earning Ultimate Rewards points include:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees)
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees)
- Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ (Rates & Fees)
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
It's also possible to combine cash-back earnings with points if you have both types of cards, so you could earn Ultimate Rewards with these cards as well:
- Chase Freedom Flex℠
- Chase Freedom Unlimited® (Rates & Fees)
- Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
- Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
$95Rates & Fees
- 5X points on Lyft rides through September 2027
- 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3X points on dining at restaurants worldwide
- 3X points on eligible streaming services
- 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
- 2X points on all other travel
- 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases
$795Rates & Fees
- 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on dining worldwide
- 1x points on all other purchases
$95Rates & Fees
- 3X points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on travel, shipping purchases, Internet, cable and phone services, advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines each account anniversary year
- 1X point per $1 on all other purchases
Citi ThankYou® Points
You can transfer Citi ThankYou® Points to 15 airline and five hotel partners. You can also redeem points in the Citi travel portal, for statement credits, or to pay with points when shopping at various merchants. The following cards earn ThankYou Points:
- Citi Strata Elite℠ Card
- Citi Strata Premier® Card
- Citi Strata℠ Card
- AT&T Access Card from Citi
- Citi ThankYou® Preferred Card (not available to new applicants)
- Citi Prestige® Card (not available to new applicants)
Several Citi credit cards that are marketed as cash-back cards actually earn ThankYou® Points. You'll have access to the same transfer partners, but your transfer ratio will be lower than if you also hold a points-earning card with an annual fee. These include:
$595Rates & Fees
- 12X – Earn 12 Points per $1 spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com.
- 6X – Earn 6 Points per $1 spent on Air Travel booked on cititravel.com.
- 6X – Earn 6 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants including Restaurant Delivery Services on CitiNights℠ purchases, every Friday and Saturday from 6 PM to 6 AM ET. Earn 3 Points per $1 spent any other time.
- 1.5X – Earn 1.5 Points per $1 spent on All Other Purchases.
$95Rates & Fees
- 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
$0
- Earn 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent
- 1% cash back thereafter, plus, you'll earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases
- No rotating bonus categories to sign up for – as your spending changes each billing cycle, your earn adjusts automatically when you spend in any of the eligible categories.
- Eligible spending categories are: Restaurants, Gas Stations, Grocery Stores, Select Travel, Select Transit, Select Streaming Services, Drugstores, Home Improvement Stores, Fitness Clubs and Live Entertainment.
- Special Travel Offer: Earn an additional 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel℠ portal.
Bilt Rewards
You can also transfer Bilt Rewards Points to 18 airline partners and six hotel partners. You can earn Bilt Points through a range of activities, from paying your rent to making purchases with a Bilt credit card. Bilt refreshed its credit card lineup in early 2026 and now offers three Bilt Rewards-earning credit cards:
$0
- Up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments
- 1X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases
$95
- Up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments
- 1X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases
- 3X points on your choice of grocery (up to $25K/year) or dining. Your 3X category choice remains in effect for the entire calendar year.
- 2X points on travel
$495
- Up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments
- 2X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases
Wells Fargo Rewards
Wells Fargo is a newcomer in the transferable points space. You can currently transfer your Wells Fargo Rewards to nine transfer partners, or redeem your rewards as a statement credit to your account or to purchase gift cards. Wells Fargo offers two credit cards that earn Wells Fargo Rewards:
- 3x on travel – including airfare, hotels, car rentals, timeshares, cruises, and more
- 3x on transit – including parking, tolls, subways, ride shares, railways, ferries, and more
- 3x on dining – including dining in, take-out, catering, delivery and more
- 3x at gas stations – including gas stations and electric vehicle charging stations
- 3x on phone plans – including landline providers and cell phones
- 3x on streaming services
- 1x on other purchases
$95Rates & Fees
- 5X points per $1 spent with hotels
- 4X points per $1 spent with airlines
- 3X points per $1 spent on other travel and restaurants
- 1X points per $1 spent on other purchases
Rove Miles
Rove Miles is a newcomer on the points and miles scene, but it's already got an impressive list of transfer partners. With Rove, you can earn miles in three ways: Booking hotels or flights through its travel portal, often at huge multipliers, or shopping online through its browser extension or desktop site.
You redeem Rove Miles for paid travel through Rove. But you can also transfer Rove Miles to airline and hotel transfer partners.
Brex Rewards
Last (and certainly least) is Brex Rewards. Brex previously offered checking and spending accounts for small businesses before tightening its requirements and closing most small business accounts. Then, in March 2023, Brex significantly devalued its points with no notice. Remaining Brex Rewards account holders can transfer points to seven airlines at the following rates:
Previous Ways To Transfer Points Between Frequent Flyer Programs
In the past, travelers could use Points.com to transfer miles between mileage programs. This wasn't a particularly good option, as most transfers occurred at atrociously high rates, thereby removing most of the value. It was only worth gritting your teeth and performing these transfers in rare circumstances.
For example, say you needed just a dozen more miles for an award redemption, needed them now, and were willing to sacrifice value to gain it back from a high-value redemption that you couldn't accomplish in any other way. That's where this transfer method was helpful.
Unfortunately, Points.com killed off its point transfer program in September 2022, and we aren't aware of any other legitimate way to transfer points directly between airline programs.
Related: How to Pool Points and Miles Across Major Loyalty Programs
Our Take
Being unable to transfer your points and miles between frequent flyer and loyalty programs is an unfortunate frustration in the points and miles world. Unfortunately, we don't see this changing any time soon. Being able to transfer your points freely between programs would put the programs in direct competition with each other and drive down the price of awards. That is the last thing airlines want since it directly hits their bottom line.
However, this inflexibility should not be a deal-breaker when it comes to getting involved with travel rewards. With a little planning and strategy, you can select the right mix of airline, hotel, and credit card programs to give you all the flexibility you need.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: American Express® Gold Card (Rates & Fees), American Express Platinum Card® (Rates & Fees), The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (Rates & Fees), Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees), Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees), Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ (Rates & Fees), Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Chase Freedom Unlimited® (Rates & Fees), Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Citi Strata Elite℠ Card (Rates & Fees), and Citi Strata Premier® Card (Rates & Fees)
