Chase Ultimate Rewards Sweet Spots in North America

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Chase Ultimate Rewards points are some of the most valuable points in the rewards ecosystem thanks to the many sweet spots in its transfer partner program. You can transfer Ultimate Rewards points at a 1:1 transfer ratio to 14 transfer partners (11 airline and three hotel programs). These include well-known programs like United, Southwest, JetBlue, and Hyatt.

But don't overlook Chase's international airline partners — like British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. These international programs can be valuable for booking award flights within North America. Let's review all of the best ways to use Chase points for domestic U.S. and short-haul international flights.

If you want to build your balance of Chase Ultimate Rewards points, now's a great time to do so. The Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card is currently offering a bonus of 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

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Welcome Bonus Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards^®.

Why We Like It Highlights Earning Rates

Our #1 recommended beginners rewards card featuring a 60,000-point signup bonus after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. This card comes with great benefits and earns valuable Ultimate Rewards points.

Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards^®.
Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards^®, 3x on dining, and 2x on all other travel purchases, and $50 annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit, plus more.
Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards^®. For example, 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel.
Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024.
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5X points on Lyft rides through March 2025
5X points on travel purchased through Chase
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

Page Contents

Chase Ultimate Rewards Airline Transfer Partners
The Best Chase Ultimate Rewards Sweet Spots
Bottom Line

Before we dive into the sweet spots, here's an overview of all 11 of Chase's airline transfer partners, their transfer times, and which U.S. airlines each partners with. Note that points transfer to all Chase Ultimate Rewards partners at a 1:1 transfer ratio.

Chase Ultimate Rewards Airline Transfer Partners

Chase Airline Transfer Partner	...which you can use to book award flights on:	Time for Points to Transfer
Aer Lingus AerClub (Avios)	n/a (for Avios redemptions)	Instantly
Air Canada Aeroplan	United	Instantly
Air France/KLM Flying Blue	Delta	Instantly
British Airways Executive Club (Avios)	American, Alaska	Instantly
Emirates Skywards	United	Instantly
Iberia Plus (Avios)	American, Alaska	Instantly
JetBlue TrueBlue	JetBlue	Instantly
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer	United, Alaska	1 Day
Southwest Rapid Rewards	Southwest	Instantly
United MileagePlus	United	Instantly
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club	Delta	Instantly

Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer to all partners at a ratio of 1:1 in 1,000-point increments

The Best Chase Ultimate Rewards Sweet Spots

Flights From 1,600 Points Through the Chase Ultimate Rewards Portal

The rest of this post focuses on how you can redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards for award sweet spots within North America. However, it's important to remember that transferring points to airlines isn't the only way to book flights with Chase points. Sometimes the best deal is to buy paid flights through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal.

The value that you get from your Ultimate Rewards points depends on which card you carry:

Chase Sapphire Reserve^®: 1.5 cents per point.
Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card: 1.25 cents per point.
Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card: 1.25 cents per point.

When a flight is cheap, you can book it for an incredibly low number of points. For example, Sapphire Reserve cardholders can fly between Las Vegas (LAS) and San Francisco (SFO) for just 1,598 points. Sapphire Preferred and Ink Preferred cardholders still pay under 2,000 Ultimate Rewards points:

Southwest Award Flights From 1,642 Points

Southwest utilizes a fixed-value redemption system for its award flights. You'll need to pay between 81 and 83 points per dollar of the flight's base fare (before taxes and fees). That means you can pay a surprisingly low number of Rapid Rewards points for Southwest flights when fares are cheap.

For example, flights within Hawaii currently cost $39 or just 2,163 points plus $5.60 in taxes and fees:

You can get an even better deal when Southwest offers a promotion code on award flights. During a recent promotion, you could book flights between Los Angeles (LAX) and Las Vegas (LAS) for just 1,642 points each way:

JetBlue Award Flights Under 5,000 Points

Like Southwest, JetBlue utilizes a revenue-based redemption system. However, award prices aren't as formulaic. That means some redemptions are better than others.

For example, you can fly from Los Angeles (LAX) to San Francisco (SFO) for 4,500 TrueBlue points each way. But, you might be able to find an even-cheaper award on a different route.

United Award Flights From 6,000 Points

Chase cardholders can use Ultimate Rewards to book United award flights through a few programs. When deciding where to transfer your Chase points, the first place to check is United itself.

United has transitioned to a dynamic award pricing system where the price of an award is loosely based on demand. And you can book some routes for as few as 6,000 United MileagePlus miles — such as Newark (EWR) to Boston (BOS):

For short-distance United award flights, consider booking through Air Canada Aeroplan. Routings of up to 500 miles in distance cost just 6,000 Aeroplan points.

While that may not sound very far, it can come in handy on some routes. For example, Chicago (ORD) to Memphis (MEM) is an 8-hour drive or just a sub-2-hour flight for just 6,000 Aeroplan points:

Longer routes can also be reasonably priced:

501 to 1,500 miles in distance: 10,000 Aeroplan points
1,501 to 2,750 miles in distance: 12,500 Aeroplan points

American Award Flights From 7,500 Points

The best way to use Chase Ultimate Rewards points for flights on American Airlines is by booking through British Airways Executive Club. Nonstop American Airlines flights up to 650 miles in distance cost just 7,500 Avios each way. For example, you can fly from Charlotte (CLT) to Fort Myers, Florida (RSW) for just 7,500 Avios:

This sweet spot isn't just limited to domestic U.S. flights either. You can also fly between Miami (MIA) and Cancun (CUN) for 7,500 Avios each way in economy or 15,000 Avios each way in first class:

Nonstop award flights between 651 and 1,151 miles in distance only cost a bit more at 9,000 Avios each way. And it's just 11,000 Avios to fly nonstop award flights between 1,152 and 2,000 miles in distance — such as Chicago (ORD) to Los Angeles (LAX):

Alaska Award Flights From 7,500 Points

Like on American, you can use the British Airways award chart to book nonstop Alaska award flights up to 651 miles in distance for 7,500 Avios. This can be handy for flights such as Portland (PDX) to Salt Lake City (SLC):

For longer and connecting flights, consider booking Alaska award flights through Singapore KrisFlyer. Rather than using a distance-based award chart, Singapore splits the U.S. into five regions for Alaska award flights.

Awards between certain regions start at just 8,500 KrisFlyer miles each way — such as flights between Arizona or New Mexico and Canada. The downside with this sweet spot is that you'll need to call Singapore KrisFlyer to book these awards. You can see which destinations fall into each of the five regions here.

Delta Award Flights Under 7,500 Points

The best way to book Delta award flights using Chase Ultimate Rewards points is through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. Virgin uses a distance-based award chart for Delta awards (except those to/from mainland Europe):

0-500 miles: 7,500 points
501-1,000 miles: 8,500 points
1,001-1,500 miles: 11,500 points
1,501-2,000 miles: 12,500 points

In addition to short-haul flights within the U.S., you can also use this award chart to fly to the Bahamas, the Caribbean, or Mexico for cheap. For example, you can fly from Atlanta (ATL) to Cancun (CUN) for just 8,500 Virgin points:

However, Virgin Atlantic charges for each segment you fly. For instance, flights from Huntsville, AL (HSV) to New York City cover less than 1,000 miles in distance. But Virgin prices HSV-ATL and ATL-LGA/EWR as two separate awards. That means you'll have to pay 16,000 Virgin points each way:

For these types of connecting flights, you may be better off booking a paid flight through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal.

Award Flights to Hawaii From 7,717 Points

If you're looking to visit Hawaii, Chase Ultimate Rewards points offer plenty of options. Southwest is potentially the best option. If you're able to find a cheap enough cash flight, you can book Southwest award flights to Hawaii with just 7,717 Rapid Rewards points:

Another option is to book through United MileagePlus. During a flash sale, we've found options from Los Angeles (LAX) to Honolulu (HNL) as low as 9,400 United miles each way:

If United isn't pricing that cheaply, consider booking through Air Canada Aeroplan instead. Award flights on United up to 2,750 miles in distance cost 12,500 Aeroplan points — even if you need to make a connection. That's great for awards like San Diego (SAN) to Honolulu (HNL) through Los Angeles (LAX):

Consider booking American and Alaska award flights to Hawaii through British Airways. Nonstop award flights up to 3,000 miles in distance cost 13,000 Avios each way. That covers Alaska and American award flights to Hawaii from the U.S. West Coast and as far inland as Phoenix (PHX):

Bottom Line

When considering how to redeem your Chase Ultimate Rewards points, it's natural to default to the obvious airline programs: United, Southwest, and JetBlue. However, don't overlook Chase's other airline partners. Otherwise, you may miss out on an even cheaper way to book the same award.

Hopefully, this list of Chase Ultimate Rewards sweet spots helps inspire you on how to maximize your points. And, if you need to build up your balance of Ultimate Rewards points, don't forget that the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card is offering 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.