Travel Points and Miles Valuations: How Much Are They Actually Worth? [May 2026]

By / Travel

Key Takeaways

  • Points and miles valuations vary by program, with flexible points, such as Chase Ultimate Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards, often valued higher.
  • Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards offers great redemption rates and many transfer partners.
  • World of Hyatt points offer reasonable redemption rates, with the majority of its hotels utilizing a standard award chart.

Credit cards, airlines, and hotels don’t publish points and miles valuations, so there are no official answers on what points and miles are worth. It’s up to you to draw your own conclusions about that value.

But we’re here to help.

Several factors contribute to determining this metric. Below are questions you should ask yourself when evaluating the value of points, and we’ve taken them all into account to create our point and mile valuations:

  • How valuable are these points?
  • How flexible are these points, and how many transfer partners are there?
  • What are your redemption options?
  • How much would you buy points and miles for?
  • What’s the average redemption value from 3 different bookings?
  • How abundant is award availability?

Upgraded Points’ May 2026 Points and Miles Valuations

Flexible Points Programs

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Flexible Point Program

May 2026 Value (cents/point)

Value of 50K Points

Value of 100K Points

American Express Membership Rewards Points

2.2

$1,100

$2,200

Bank of America Preferred Rewards Points

1.0

$500

$1,000

Barclaycard Arrival Miles

1.0

$500

$1,000

Bilt Rewards Points

2.0

$1,000

$2,000

Brex Rewards Points

1.0

$500

$1,000

Capital One Miles

1.8

$900

$1,800

Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

2.0

$1,000

$2,000

Citi ThankYou Rewards Points

1.6

$800

$1,600

Diners Club Rewards Points

2.0

$1,000

$2,000

Rove Miles

1.5

$750

$1,500

Wells Fargo Rewards Points

1.5

$750

$1,500

Airline Loyalty Programs

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Airline Loyalty Program

May 2026 Value (cents/point)

Value of 50K Points

Value of 100K Points

Aer Lingus AerClub Avios

1.25

$625

$1,250

Air Canada Aeroplan Points

1.5

$750

$1,500

Air France-KLM Flying Blue Miles

1.3

$650

$1,300

Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards

1.6

$800

$1,600

American Airlines AAdvantage Miles

1.4

$700

$1,400

All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club Miles

1.4

$700

$1,400

Asiana Airlines Asiana Club Miles

1.6

$800

$1,600

Avianca Airlines Lifemiles

1.4

$700

$1,400

Breeze Airways Breezy Rewards

1.0

$500

$1,000

British Airways Club Avios

1.25

$625

$1,250

Cathay Pacific Cathay Asia Miles

1.3

$650

$1,300

Delta Air Lines SkyMiles

1.2

$600

$1,200

Emirates Skywards Miles

1.1

$550

$1,100

Etihad Airways Etihad Guest Miles

1.4

$700

$1,400

Frontier Airlines FRONTIER Miles

1.1

$550

$1,100

Club Iberia Plus Avios

1.25

$625

$1,250

JetBlue TrueBlue Points

1.3

$650

$1,300

Korean Air SKYPASS Miles

1.6

$800

$1,600

Lufthansa Miles & More Miles

1.3

$650

$1,300

Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios

1.25

$625

$1,250

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Miles

1.35

$675

$1,350

Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Points

1.3

$650

$1,300

Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles Miles

1.3

$650

$1,300

United Airlines MileagePlus Miles

1.2

$600

$1,200

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Virgin Points

1.4

$700

$1,400

Hotel Loyalty Programs

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Hotel Loyalty Program

May 2026 Value (cents/point)

Value of 50K Points

Value of 100K Points

ALL – Accor Live Limitless Reward Points

2.2

$1,100

$2,200

Best Western Rewards Points

0.6

$300

$600

Choice Privileges Points

0.6

$300

$600

Hilton Honors Points

0.5

$250

$500

IHG One Rewards Points

0.5

$250

$500

Leading Hotels of the World Points

8.0

$4,000

$8,000

Marriott Bonvoy Points

0.7

$350

$700

Preferred Hotels & Resorts Points

0.5

$250

$500

Radisson Rewards Points

0.25

$125

$250

World of Hyatt Points

1.5

$750

$1,500

Wyndham Rewards Points

0.9

$450

$900

Upgraded Points’ Highest-Valued Points

Not all miles and points are created equal, so naturally, each category has its own winner with the most valued points. Here’s what we ranked as the highest-valued points and why:

Transferable Points: American Express Membership Rewards Points

American Express Membership Rewards remains the king of transferable points. Amex partners with all 3 major alliances (SkyTeam, Star Alliance, and Oneworld) and many nonalliance partners, so finding award space with them is easier than with other transferable points. Amex transfer partners include Qantas, Air Canada, and Emirates.

Airline Miles: Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards Points

Alaska Airlines offers the best of both worlds: a diverse range of partners and competitive redemption rates. Some of Alaska’s Oneworld partners include American and Japan Airlines, and the airline’s non-alliance partners include Korean Air and Aer Lingus.

Hotel Points: World of Hyatt Points

World of Hyatt offers the most reasonable redemption rates among the major hotel chains. Further, we’ve found that there are virtually no blackout dates, and since Category 1 to 8 hotels are on a standard award chart, you always pay the same price for a room at any hotel. This allows you to explore fantastic Hyatt redemption opportunities, ensuring maximum value.

New Opportunities To Purchase Points

If you need to boost your mileage balances but aren’t in the market for a new credit card, check out the latest point purchase promotions and discounts on our dedicated page, which we update regularly as new promotions launch. 

New Loyalty Program Transfer Bonuses

Help stretch your points and miles even further by taking advantage of limited-time transfer bonuses. You can stay up to date with all of the latest bonuses on our monthly credit card and loyalty program transfer bonuses guide.

Final Thoughts

The value of points and miles can vary, but you should always ensure you get great value when redeeming those hard-earned points.

When it comes to flexible points, Amex Membership Rewards points are valued the highest on a cent-per-point basis. With many Amex airline and hotel partners, these points are highly flexible. Membership Rewards also offers competitive transfer rates with numerous redemption options, helping you maximize the value of your points.

Featured Image Credit: Upgraded Points

Frequently Asked Questions

What are points and miles worth?

There is no single set value for most points and miles programs. The valuation is entirely subjective and depends on what points are worth to you and how you plan to redeem them.

Why do Upgraded Points valuations change month to month?

Loyalty programs and the points or miles associated with them are constantly changing. Programs gain or lose transfer partners, change the miles required for a given route, or sometimes ditch their award charts altogether. When these things happen, certain programs’ miles or points can increase or decrease in usefulness.

Are points and miles the same thing?

The terms points and miles are used interchangeably, and it just depends on which term a given program calls its loyalty currency. Some loyalty programs refer to their currency as miles and others as points, but they have the same function.

How many points do you need for a free flight?

That depends entirely on the type of points you have and where you’re hoping to fly. Each airline loyalty program has its method for pricing redemptions. Some use an award chart where the number of miles needed for a certain flight route is predetermined. Others use revenue-based redemptions where the number of points needed for a free flight depends on how expensive the cash price of the ticket is.