Points & miles

How travel reward currencies work

Simple in principle, fiddly in practice. What they are, how you get them, and how to tell a good redemption from a bad one.

The three families

Not all points behave the same way

Most confusion comes from treating these as one thing. They are earned differently, priced differently, and carry different risk.

Airline miles
Tied to one carrier
- Usually earned on what you spend, not how far you fly
- Priced from a published chart or dynamically against the cash fare
- Partner awards can open routes the airline does not fly itself
Hotel points
Tied to a hotel group
- Earned per unit of qualifying spend on stays
- Award nights may be fixed by category or move with demand
- Resort and destination fees can still apply on an award night
Transferable points
Bank currencies with optionality
- Move into several airline and hotel programmes
- You are not committed to one programme until you transfer
- Transfers are generally one-way, so confirm the award first

Lifecycle

Every reward currency moves through the same four stages.

01
Earn
Flights and stays, but for most people mainly card spending, portals and promotions.
02
Hold
Balances can be devalued or expire. Activity rules differ sharply between programmes.
03
Transfer
Optional and usually one-way. Worth doing once you can see the award you want.
04
Redeem
Award flights and hotel nights carry the value. Gift cards and merchandise rarely do.

In practice

One big trip
Saving toward a single premium-cabin redemption, where the gap between cash and points is widest.
Free nights
Using hotel points on expensive dates, when cash rates spike but award pricing lags behind.
Flexibility
Holding transferable points so the decision can wait until plans and award space firm up.

Pitfalls

Most lost value comes from these four, not from picking the wrong programme.

Letting a balance lapse
Expiry rules vary and are easy to miss. A single qualifying activity often resets the clock.
Transferring too early
Moving points before confirming award space can strand them in a programme you cannot use.
Ignoring surcharges
A cheap award in points can carry cash surcharges that erase most of the saving.
Comparing against a fare you would never buy
Value is what you saved on a trip you would genuinely have paid for.

Go deeper

Information feed