Page Contents<\/p>
- Beware of Hidden Fees on Low-Cost Carriers<\/a><\/li>
- Can You Transfer Flexible Rewards Points to Low-Cost Carriers?<\/a><\/li>
- Book Low-Cost Carriers Through the Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, or Citi Travel Portals<\/a>
- American Express Travel\u00ae<\/sup><\/a><\/li>
- Bilt Rewards Travel Portal<\/a><\/li>
- Capital One Travel<\/a><\/li>
- Chase Travel\u2120 Portal<\/a><\/li>
- Citi Travel Portal<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Redeem Points as a Statement Credit for Tickets on Any Low-Cost Carrier<\/a><\/li>
- Erase the Cost of Low-Cost Carrier Tickets Using Fixed-Value Points & Cash Back<\/a><\/li>
- Final Thoughts<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n
Beware of Hidden Fees on Low-Cost Carriers<\/span><\/h2>\n
Before purchasing a ticket or redeeming points for an award flight on an LCC, remember the base ticket price isn\u2019t likely to include any “extras” like checked baggage, entertainment, or a meal \u2014 services many of us take for granted on award flights. You generally need to pay for additional options if you want even the most basic creature comforts when flying low-cost airlines.<\/p>\n
![\"a](\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\")
Credit: Frontier Airlines<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n Can You Transfer Flexible Rewards Points to Low-Cost Carriers?<\/span><\/h2>\n
Not unless you consider JetBlue and Southwest discount airlines. Southwest is a 1:1 transfer partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards<\/a>, and you can transfer points from Amex, Chase, and Citi to JetBlue TrueBlue<\/a>. You can\u2019t move points from Capital One, Chase, Citi, or Amex to ultra-low-cost carriers like Allegiant or Spirit.<\/p>\n
Outside of a few second-degree partners (which can be booked as a partner award using the transfer partner\u2019s miles), the options to transfer flexible points to low-cost carriers are slim to none.<\/p>\n
But that's not necessarily a bad thing. Transferring points to airline and hotel partners is an excellent way of maximizing the value of rewards but only if you redeem those miles for premium cabin awards, high-cost economy flights, or free nights<\/strong>. Even for economy fares, you can find award availability on mainline carriers for as little as a few thousand miles<\/a>.<\/p>\n
By calculating the cash value of the points you would spend on an airline ticket versus paying for the ticket outright, you can determine whether or not redeeming rewards is the best way to travel.<\/p>\n
Related:<\/strong> How Much Do AwardWallet Members Actually Save When Redeeming Points?<\/a><\/p>\n
Book Low-Cost Carriers Through the Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, or Citi Travel Portals<\/span><\/h2>\n
Fortunately, several banks and card issuers allow you to book one or more low-cost carriers by redeeming points for a fixed value<\/a> through their respective travel portals. Just note that not all airlines can be booked online; some require you to call in and book over the phone.<\/p>\n
American Express Travel\u00ae<\/sup><\/span><\/h3>\n
While all Amex card members get access to the American Express Travel portal<\/a>, the American Express Platinum Card\u00ae<\/sup><\/a> is the best card to use. That's because you'll earn 5X points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel\u00ae<\/sup> (on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year) and 5X points on prepaid hotels (including Fine Hotels + Resorts\u00ae<\/sup> and The Hotel Collection) booked through American Express Travel\u00ae<\/sup>.<\/p>\n
The American Express travel portal offers very few low-cost carriers. Credit: American Express<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n Low-cost carriers you can book with Amex Membership Rewards<\/a> include:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Book online:<\/strong> Air Transat, GOL, JetBlue, Porter Airlines, and WestJet<\/li>\n
- Book via phone:<\/strong> Southwest<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
To book over the phone, contact American Express Travel at 800-297-3276<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
Bilt Rewards Travel Portal<\/span><\/h3>\n
Bilt Rewards<\/a> has gained popularity in the points and miles space since it launched in 2021. Nowadays, you can earn Bilt Points when you pay your rent with Bilt, leverage its Neighborhood partners, and spend on one of the three Bilt credit cards.<\/p>\n
<\/div><\/div>Bilt Blue Card<\/div>Welcome Bonus<\/strong> $100 of Bilt Cash when you apply and get approved.<\/div><\/div>How to Apply<\/a><\/div>Annual Fee<\/strong>$0<\/p><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>- \r\n
- Up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments<\/li>\r\n
- 1X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases<\/li>\r\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Bilt Obsidian Card<\/div>Welcome Bonus<\/strong> $200 of Bilt Cash when you apply and get approved<\/div><\/div>How to Apply<\/a><\/div>Annual Fee<\/strong>
$95<\/p><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>- \r\n
- Up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments<\/li>\r\n
- 1X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases<\/li>\r\n
- 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.<\/li>\r\n
- 2X points on travel<\/li>\r\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Bilt Palladium Card<\/div>Welcome Bonus<\/strong> 50,000 Bilt Points + Gold Status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 3 months + $300 of Bilt Cash.<\/div><\/div>How to Apply<\/a><\/div>Annual Fee<\/strong>
$495 <\/p><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>- \r\n
- Up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments<\/li>\r\n
- 2X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases<\/li>\r\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
The program has an array of great Bilt transfer partners<\/a>, but members can also redeem through the Bilt Rewards Travel Portal. Those without a Bilt card can redeem at 1 cent per point, while those with a card can redeem at 1.25 cents per point.<\/p>\n
That said, the portal doesn't support many low-cost airlines.<\/p>\n
The Bilt Rewards Travel Portal can only access a handful of low-cost carriers. Credit: Bilt Rewards<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n - \n
- Book online:\u00a0<\/strong>Air Transat, GOL, JetBlue, Pegasus Airlines, Porter Airlines, and WestJet<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The Bilt Rewards Travel Portal does not have a published phone number.<\/p>\n
Capital One Travel<\/span><\/h3>\n
As Capital One continues to expand into the travel market, its cards and transfer rates have become significantly more competitive. The feature-packed Capital One Travel portal<\/a> reinforces the issuer's commitment to the travel rewards market.<\/p>\n
Both the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card<\/a> and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card<\/a> offer the same redemption rates (1\u00a2 per point) in the travel portal, although the Capital One Venture X<\/a> includes a $300 annual travel credit for use in the portal<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Additionally, Capital One Travel offers significantly more low-cost airlines to book online than its competitors. Low-cost carriers you can book with Capital One Travel include:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Book online:<\/strong> Air Asia, Air Transat, Allegiant, Avelo, Azul, Breeze, EasyJet, Frontier, JetBlue, Lion Air, Pegasus, Play, Porter Airlines, Spirit, Sun Country, Volaris, and WestJet<\/li>\n
- Book via phone: <\/strong>Southwest<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
You won't find many low-cost carrier tickets on other credit card travel portals. Capital One's travel portal is the exception. Credit: Capital One<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n You can call Capital One Travel at 844-422-6922<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
Chase Travel\u2120 Portal<\/span><\/h3>\n
Chase Ultimate Rewards<\/a> has offered the most flexibility for award travel for several years, as both transferring to airlines and redeeming through Chase's travel portal provide good redemptions. When you redeem Ultimate Rewards points through the Chase travel portal<\/a>, the redemption rate is determined by which card's points you're redeeming:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Chase Freedom Flex\u2120<\/a>, Chase Freedom Unlimited\u00ae<\/sup><\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>), Ink Business Unlimited\u00ae<\/sup> Credit Card<\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>), and Ink Business Cash\u00ae<\/sup> Credit Card<\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>):<\/strong> Points are worth 1\u00a2 each in the Chase Travel Portal.<\/li>\n
- Chase Sapphire Preferred\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>): <\/strong>Points are worth up to 1.5\u00a2 each in the Chase Travel Portal, depending on the specific redemption.<\/li>\n
- Ink Business Preferred\u00ae<\/sup> Credit Card<\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>):<\/strong> Points are worth up to 1.75\u00a2 each in the Chase Travel Portal, depending on the specific redemption.<\/li>\n
- Chase Sapphire Reserve\u00ae<\/sup><\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>) and Sapphire Reserve for Business\u2120<\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>):<\/strong> Points are worth up to 2\u00a2 each in the Chase Travel Portal, depending on the specific redemption.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The Chase Travel Portal offers more low-cost carriers than Amex, but significantly fewer than Capital One. Credit: Chase<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n Low-cost carriers you can book with Chase Ultimate Rewards:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Book online:<\/strong> Air Transat, Azul, Batik Air, JetBlue, Lion Air, Pegasus, Porter Airlines, Southwest, Sun Country, and WestJet<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Call the Chase Travel reservation center at\u00a0866-951-6592<\/strong> to book over the phone.<\/p>\n
Citi Travel Portal<\/span><\/h3>\n
Citi recently overhauled its portal, which is now called Citi Travel with Booking.com. Again, not all airlines can be booked online. Redemptions with the Citi Strata Premier\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>), Citi Prestige\u00ae<\/sup> Card (no longer open to new applicants), and Citi ThankYou\u00ae<\/sup> Preferred Card (no longer open to new applicants) will net you 1\u00a2 per point.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, Citi Travel supports just a handful of low-cost carriers.<\/p>\n
Citi Travel only supports a handful of low-cost carriers. Credit: Citi<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n You can book these low-cost carriers with Citi Travel:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Book online: <\/strong>Azul, GOL, JetBlue, Pegasus, Porter Airlines, and WestJet<\/li>\n
- Book via phone:<\/strong> Air Asia and Southwest<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
To book over the phone, contact the ThankYou\u00ae<\/sup> Service Center at 833-737-1288<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
Redeem Points as a Statement Credit for Tickets on Any Low-Cost Carrier<\/span><\/h2>\n
Redeeming points as a statement credit may not give you the best value for your hard-earned rewards. But if you cannot redeem points directly for tickets on a low-cost carrier, purchasing tickets directly with the carrier and redeeming points as a statement credit works as a last resort.<\/p>\n
- \n
- Capital One miles<\/a>:<\/strong> 1\u00a2 per mile (towards travel booked in the last 90 days)<\/li>\n
- Chase Ultimate Rewards<\/a>:<\/strong> 1\u00a2 per point<\/li>\n
- Citi ThankYou\u00ae<\/sup> Rewards<\/a>:<\/strong> 0.5\u00a2-1\u00a2 per point<\/li>\n
- Amex Membership Rewards<\/a>:<\/strong> 0.6\u00a2 per point toward purchases<\/li>\n
- Bilt Rewards<\/a>: <\/strong>0.5\u00a2 per point (if you have a Bilt card)<\/a><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Erase the Cost of Low-Cost Carrier Tickets Using Fixed-Value Points & Cash Back<\/span><\/h2>\n
Tickets on low-cost carriers are the ideal redemption for fixed-value points<\/a> and cash back, as you can wipe out the travel charge at a fixed rate. You can take advantage of the terrific sign-up bonuses on cards like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card<\/a>, and \u2014 provided the merchant codes as travel \u2014 you can redeem your miles at a value of 1\u00a2 apiece toward the purchase.<\/p>\n
\n\n\nCapital One Venture Rewards Credit Card<\/div>\n<\/div>\n How to Apply<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nWelcome Offer<\/strong>\r\nEarn 75,000 Miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening. <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card<\/strong>\nWelcome Offer<\/strong>\r\nEarn 75,000 Miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening. <\/div>\nAnnual Fee:<\/strong>$95<\/b><\/div>\nShow more<\/a>Why We Like It<\/a>Highlights<\/a>Earning Rates<\/a>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.<\/div>- Earn 75,000 Miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening<\/li>\r\n
- 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel<\/li>\r\n
- 2X miles on all other purchase<\/li>\r\n
- Fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre\u2714\u00ae<\/sup> (up to $120)<\/li>\r\n \t
- No foreign transaction fees<\/li>\r\n \t
- $95 annual fee<\/li><\/ul><\/div>
- Chase Ultimate Rewards<\/a>:<\/strong> 1\u00a2 per point<\/li>\n
- Book via phone:<\/strong> Air Asia and Southwest<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Book online: <\/strong>Azul, GOL, JetBlue, Pegasus, Porter Airlines, and WestJet<\/li>\n
- Chase Sapphire Preferred\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/a> (Rates & Fees<\/a>): <\/strong>Points are worth up to 1.5\u00a2 each in the Chase Travel Portal, depending on the specific redemption.<\/li>\n
- Book via phone: <\/strong>Southwest<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Book online:<\/strong> Air Asia, Air Transat, Allegiant, Avelo, Azul, Breeze, EasyJet, Frontier, JetBlue, Lion Air, Pegasus, Play, Porter Airlines, Spirit, Sun Country, Volaris, and WestJet<\/li>\n
- Book online:\u00a0<\/strong>Air Transat, GOL, JetBlue, Pegasus Airlines, Porter Airlines, and WestJet<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Book via phone:<\/strong> Southwest<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Bilt Rewards Travel Portal<\/a><\/li>
- Can You Transfer Flexible Rewards Points to Low-Cost Carriers?<\/a><\/li>
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