{"id":252834,"date":"2026-03-26T16:00:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T16:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/?p=252834\/"},"modified":"2026-05-02T13:26:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-02T13:26:21","slug":"cathay-award-chart-changes-may-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/news\/airlines\/cathay-award-chart-changes-may-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Cathay Pacific Is Devaluing Some Business and Premium Economy Awards in May 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"custom-blue\"><em>The changes below have taken effect, and this post is no longer being updated. Here is our <a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/tag\/major-updates\/\" target=\"new\">archive of major updates<\/a> from card issuers and loyalty programs.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Fresh on the heels of a <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/news\/airlines\/cathay-award-chart-changes-april-2025\/\" rel=\"noopener\">devaluation in April 2025<\/a>, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles announced another change to its award program, effective <strong>May 1, 2026<\/strong>. If you're a fan of booking premium cabin flights with Asia Miles from U.S. gateways, you'll want to pay attention.<\/p>\n<p>Thankfully, compared to the last devaluation, the impact looks relatively contained for most Asia Miles members. In some cases, you might even pay less for your next award flight.<\/p>\n<p>Let's review the details of this announcement before it goes live in May.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Cathay_Pacific_Asia_Miles_Devaluing_Again_on_May_1_2026\">Cathay Pacific Asia Miles Devaluing (Again) on May 1, 2026<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>We\u2019ve already seen changes to Asia Miles in 2026, including a downward adjustment to American Express Membership Rewards transfers. What was once a 1:1 transfer ratio <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/news\/amex-membership-rewards\/cathay-pacific-transfer-devaluation\/\" rel=\"noopener\">now sits at 5 Membership Rewards points to 4 Asia Miles<\/a> &#8212; a 20% drop.<\/p>\n<p>Now, the airline is adjusting award pricing for premium economy and business class across several distance bands.<\/p>\n<p>As a refresher, Asia Miles uses a distance-based award chart (with some destination-based nuances). Depending on your routing, you may pay more miles to fly in business class. That said, one distance band will see a small decrease in pricing for premium economy and business class awards.<\/p>\n<p>Here are the impacted distance bands:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>751\u20132,750 miles (type 1):<\/strong> Premium economy decreases by 2,000 miles (-10%); business class decreases by 1,000 miles (-3.57%)<\/li>\n<li><strong>2,751\u20135,000 miles:<\/strong> Business class increases by 2,000 miles (+3.44%)<\/li>\n<li><strong>5,001\u20137,500 miles:<\/strong> Business class increases by 2,000 miles (+3.40%)<\/li>\n<li><strong>7,501+ miles:<\/strong> Business class increases by 4,000 miles (+3.48%)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For those departing from U.S. gateways, business class rates are going up from these gateways:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Los Angeles International Airport (LAX):<\/strong> 88,000 \u2192 91,000 Asia Miles (+3.40%)<\/li>\n<li><strong>San Francisco International Airport (SFO):<\/strong> 88,000 \u2192 91,000 Asia Miles (+3.40%)<\/li>\n<li><strong>John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK):<\/strong> 115,000 \u2192 119,000 Asia Miles (+3.47%)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_206288\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img data-aspectratio=\"600\/480\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-206288 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Featured-Cathay-Pacific-widebody-jet-at-the-gate-richard-liu-unsplash.jpg\" alt=\"Cathay Pacific widebody jet at the gate\" width=\"600\" height=\"480\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Featured-Cathay-Pacific-widebody-jet-at-the-gate-richard-liu-unsplash.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Featured-Cathay-Pacific-widebody-jet-at-the-gate-richard-liu-unsplash-300x240.jpg 300w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Featured-Cathay-Pacific-widebody-jet-at-the-gate-richard-liu-unsplash-1024x819.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Featured-Cathay-Pacific-widebody-jet-at-the-gate-richard-liu-unsplash-768x614.jpg 768w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Featured-Cathay-Pacific-widebody-jet-at-the-gate-richard-liu-unsplash-325x260.jpg 325w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><center><em>Credit: Richard Liu\/Unsplash<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n<p>All told, this isn\u2019t the worst devaluation we\u2019ve seen. And with more than a month\u2019s notice before the changes take effect, there\u2019s still time to book at the current rates if you act quickly.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Related: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/airlines\/cathay-pacific-award-flights\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Maximizing Cathay Pacific Asia Miles: Updated Award Charts and Best Uses<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"How_to_Earn_Asia_Miles_Quickly\">How to Earn Asia Miles Quickly<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>If you're looking to lock in a booking before the changes take effect, here are Cathay Pacific\u2019s transfer partners and typical transfer times. After the recent devaluation, the only remaining 1:1 transfer partners are Bilt Rewards, Capital One Miles, and Citi ThankYou<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Rewards.<\/p>\n<div class=\"transfer-times\"><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-head tt-from\">From<\/div><div class=\"tt-head tt-to\">To<\/div><div class=\"tt-head tt-ratio\">Transfer Ratio<\/div><div class=\"tt-head tt-mintransfer\">Min.Transfer<\/div><div class=\"tt-head tt-avg\">Average Time<\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/amex-membership-rewards\/amex-transfer-partners\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amex (Membership Rewards)<\/a><div class=\"tt-from-region\">United States<\/div><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow tt-arrow--region\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">1,000:800<div class=\"tt-bonus\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/news\/amex-membership-rewards\/cathay-pacific-transfer-devaluation\/\">Amex-Cathay Pacific transfer rate dropped to 5:4 on March 1, 2026<\/a>.<\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-days\">8 hours<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/capital-one-rewards\/capital-one-transfer-partners\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Capital One<\/a><div class=\"tt-from-region\">United States<\/div><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow tt-arrow--region\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">100:100<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">1,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-days\">2 days<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/citi-transfer-partners\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Citibank (ThankYou Rewards)<\/a><div class=\"tt-from-region\">United States<\/div><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow tt-arrow--region\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">1,000:1,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-immediate\">Immediate<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/hotels\/marriott-bonvoy\/marriott-transfer-partners\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Marriott (Bonvoy)<\/a><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">3:1<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">3,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-days\">1 day<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div>Accor Group (ALL - Accor Live Limitless)<\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">4,000:2,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div>Best Western (Rewards)<\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">5,000:1,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/bilt-rewards\/bilt-transfer-partners\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bilt Rewards<\/a><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">1,000:1,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">2,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/brex-rewards-guide\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Brex Cash<\/a><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">3:2<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">500<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-immediate\">Immediate<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/hotels\/hilton-honors\/transfer-hilton-points\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hilton (Honors)<\/a><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">10,000:1,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div>Hyatt (World of Hyatt)<\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">1,250:500<div class=\"tt-bonus\">Bonus for transferring 50,000+ points<\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">5,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div>IHG Hotels & Resorts (One Rewards)<\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">10,000:2,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div>Mesa Homeowners<\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\"><div class=\"tt-bonus\"><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/news\/mesa-homeowners-card-shuts-down\/\">Mesa ended all point transfers effective December 12, 2025<\/a>.<\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div>Shangri-La (Circle)<\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">500:500<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">1,000<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-row\"><div class=\"tt-body tt-from\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><div><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/wells-fargo-rewards\/transfer-partners\/?cid=transfer-times-transfer&mid=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Wells Fargo (Go Far Rewards)<\/a><\/div><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-to\"><div class=\"tt-body-wrap\"><span class=\"tt-arrow\">\u2794<\/span><div>Cathay Pacific (Cathay)<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-ratio\">1:1<div class=\"tt-bonus\"><a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/news\/wells-fargo-rewards\/cathay-transfer-partner\/\">Transfer partner added April 27, 2026<\/a>.<\/div><\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-mintransfer\">-<\/div><div class=\"tt-body tt-avg\"><div class=\"tt-avg-unknown\">Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<p>Keep in mind that if you're still interested in flying Cathay Pacific business class, you could consider booking through a partner program instead.<\/p>\n<p>British Airways Avios, for example, often comes with higher award pricing than Asia Miles but lower taxes and fees. Depending on your points balance and priorities, that trade-off could make sense.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Related: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/airlines\/do-cathay-pacific-asia-miles-expire\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Asia Miles Expiration Explained \u2014 And How to Reset Your Expiry Clock<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Bottom_Line\">Bottom Line<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Overall, this isn\u2019t a major devaluation that should affect too many flyers. Still, if you were planning to use your Asia Miles to fly to Hong Kong or beyond, you\u2019ll want to note the increased award rates taking effect on <strong>May 1, 2026<\/strong>. And if your trip is up to 2,750 miles, you\u2019ll actually pay less for your awards after the change.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>H\/T: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flyasia.co\/2026\/asiamiles-cathay-chart\/\" rel=\"noopener\">FlyAsia<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div id=\"ftoc\"><div id=\"toc_container\" class=\"toc_light_blue no_bullets\"><p class=\"toc_title\">Page Contents<\/p><ul class=\"toc_list\"><li><a href=\"#Cathay_Pacific_Asia_Miles_Devaluing_Again_on_May_1_2026\">Cathay Pacific Asia Miles Devaluing (Again) on May 1, 2026<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#How_to_Earn_Asia_Miles_Quickly\">How to Earn Asia Miles Quickly<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Bottom_Line\">Bottom Line<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fresh on the heels of a devaluation in April 2025, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles announced another change to its award program, effective May 1, 2026. If you&#8217;re a fan of booking premium cabin flights with Asia Miles from U.S. gateways, you&#8217;ll want to pay attention. Here&#8217;s what&#8217;s new.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":97,"featured_media":129223,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":null,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"default","_threads_share_type":"default","_google_business_share_type":"default","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[12069],"tags":[12769,12629],"coauthors":[36469],"class_list":["post-252834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-cathay-pacific-asia-miles","tag-using-points"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252834","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/97"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=252834"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252834\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":261094,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252834\/revisions\/261094"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/129223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=252834"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=252834"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=252834"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=252834"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}