Maximize rewards with these transfer bonuses

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Transfer bonuses are hands down one of the best ways to stretch your points further. These bonuses are periodically offered by banks when you transfer points to one of their loyalty partners. Examples of programs that offer transfer bonuses include American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou points.  A typical bonus ranges from 10 to 100 percent, which means you can book award flights and hotels for significantly less.

But staying on top of the latest transfer promotions is easier said than done. Luckily we’ve done the work for you. Here are all the current points transfer bonuses you should know about and everything you need to know to take advantage of them:

Before you transfer points

Used strategically, point transfers can help you travel the world at a deep discount. With that said, you should have a redemption in mind before transferring points. Since point transfers are irreversible and loyalty points can devalue without notice, you don’t want to be left with thousands of devalued rewards before you have a chance to use them.

Transferring points speculatively is a bad idea, even during a great bonus points promotion. If you’re going to transfer points, it’s best practice to redeem them within a week to minimize the odds of a devaluation.

American Express transfer bonuses

There are no transfer bonuses currently available through American Express Membership Rewards; however, they are still some of the most valuable rewards points available. Amex points currently transfer to over 20 different airline and hotel partners at varying ratios. For example, point transfers to partners like Delta and Air France/KLM can be made at a 1:1 ratio while Hilton Honors transfers are a little more favorable at 1:2. Another exception is AeroMexico, which provides 1,600 miles for every 1,000 points transferred.

Despite the favorable transfer ratios, you should consider how much points are worth before transferring them to another program. For example, Bankrate values Amex Membership Rewards at up to 2.0 cents each, depending on where you transfer your points.

Meanwhile, Hilton Honors points are worth just 0.6 points, while Marriott Bonvoy points are worth 0.7. It’s also worth noting that you can redeem Amex points for 0.7 cents each when you book prepaid hotels through the Amex travel portal. So you will break even by transferring them directly to Marriott, but you’ll actually lose some potential value by transferring them directly to a lower-value transfer partner like Hilton.

However, in certain situations, a transfer to Hilton can still make sense. If you need points for a specific award in either small quantities or for a high-end redemption, then you should take advantage of this transfer. At least the transfer ratio will be slightly better, and you’ll save on your hotel stay.

• Restrictions

  There are a few limitations worth noting. In most cases, the minimum transfer amount is 1,000 points, and points must be transferred in 1,000 point increments. Additionally, American Express sometimes charges taxes on point transfers. You can pay these outright with your Amex card or redeem points to offset them. Typically, this tax is about 0.06 cents per point.

  You should also know that transferring your Amex points to partner programs could negate certain benefits that your Amex cards may offer. For example, by transferring points directly to an airline and using frequent flyer miles to pay for a flight, you won’t earn rewards or elite status on your flight.

• How to transfer Amex points

  You can transfer Amex points to one of their hotel or airline partners by logging in to your Amex account. The rest of the process is pretty simple. Here’s a step-by-step tutorial:

  1. Go to the “Explore Rewards” tab.
  2. Under “Ready to redeem,” click “Transfer points.”
  3. Click “View all” to see the full list of transfer partners.
  4. Click on the transfer partner you want to move points to (for example, Delta, Hilton or Marriott).
  5. Link your frequent flyer accounts if you haven’t already.
  6. Enter the number of points you want to transfer, then click “Review transfer.”
  7. If everything looks good, click “Submit transfer.”

• Ways to earn Amex points

  You can earn Amex points by shopping online with Rakuten or when shopping in-store with personal and business cards. You can earn substantial welcome bonuses from these cards and continue earning points through purchases every month. Just be aware of Amex’s application rules before applying for a card:

  • The Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 80,000 points after spending $8,000 on eligible purchases within the first 6 months of card membership.
  • The Business Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 120,000 points after $15,000 spent on eligible purchases within the first 3 months of card membership.
  • American Express® Gold Card: Earn 60,000 points after spending $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of card membership.
  • American Express® Business Gold Card: Earn 70,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $10,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Gold Card within the first 3 months of card membership.
  • American Express® Green Card*: Earn 60,000 points after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first 6 months of card membership.
  • Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card*: Earn 15,000 points after spending $2,000 on purchases within the first 6 months of card membership.
  • Amex EveryDay® Credit Card*: Earn 10,000 points after spending $2,000 on purchases within the first 6 months of card membership.

Bilt Rewards transfer bonuses

Bilt is relatively new to the rewards space but is still a significant player, thanks to an exceptional rewards program. Bilt has a small but mighty selection of 16 transfer programs, including American Airlines AAdvantage, United Mileage Plus and World of Hyatt. On the first day of every month, dubbed “Rent Day,” Bilt offers special promotions including transfer bonuses. These promotions are valid day-of only, so you may want to set a reminder to check on these offers.

In February 2024, Bilt offered an unprecedented 150 percent transfer bonus for Bilt Platinum members to Air Canada Aeroplan. Gold members received a lower 125 percent bonus, while Silver members qualified for 100 percent and Blue members got 75 percent. These bonuses offered exceptional value, creating a rare case where transferring points speculatively made sense.

How to transfer Bilt points

Transferring Bilt points to airline and hotel loyalty programs is simple. Open up the Bilt app and follow these steps:

1. Click on the “Book travel with Bilt” tile.
2. Click on the “transfer” tab near the top of the page.
3. Select the program you want to transfer Bilt points to.
4. You’ll be directed to a page listing the transfer ratio and prompting you to link your accounts, if you haven’t done so already. Click “transfer points” at the bottom of the screen.
5. Enter the number of points you want to transfer to the specific program, then hit “next.”
6. Review your transfer information, check off the “terms and conditions” box and hit “confirm transfer.”

Ways to earn Bilt points

Bilt currently offers a single credit card issued through Wells Fargo that you can use to earn Bilt points. The Bilt Mastercard® doesn’t offer a welcome bonus, but it does allow cardholders to earn 1 point per dollar spent on rent payments, without incurring fees. The card also has no annual fee and earns 3X points on dining, 2X on travel and 1X on everything else. These rewards are double on Rent Day, with the exception of rent payments.

You don’t need a Bilt card to earn points. You can simply join Bilt Rewards and earn 250 points every month you pay rent with a checking account. Bilt also offers bonus points on Lyft purchases and when you link your loyalty accounts to Bilt Rewards. Through Bilt Dining, members can earn 5 points per dollar spent at select restaurants.

The Bilt Travel portal offers members 1 point per dollar spent for booking hotels, flights, rental cars and other travel expenses. Additionally, members can earn up to 10 Bilt points per dollar by booking Soul Cycle classes through the Bilt app.

Capital One miles transfer bonuses

Capital One has 17 airline and hotel partners, however, they are not offering any transfer bonuses at this time. Transfer partner programs include:

• Air France/KLM Flying Blue
• British Airways Executive Club
• Choice Privileges
• Virgin Atlantic Virgin Red

How to transfer Capital One miles

To transfer Capital One miles to their transfer partners, log into your Capital One account and follow these steps:

1. Scroll down and select “Convert Rewards.”
2. Scroll to the program you want to transfer miles to (for example, British Airways Executive Club) and select “Transfer Miles” on the right side.
3. Enter your loyalty number and agree to the terms and conditions.
4. Submit your request.

Ways to earn Capital One miles

You can earn additional Capital One miles with a co-branded business or personal card. Currently, you can earn miles with the following cards:

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within 3 months of account opening.
• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within 3 months of account opening.
• Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card: Earn 20,000 miles after spending $500 on purchases within 3 months of account opening.
• Capital One Venture X Business Card*: Earn up to 300,000 bonus miles: 150,000 miles once you spend $20,000 in the first 3 months, and an additional 150,000 miles once you spend $100,000 in the first 6 months.
• Capital One Spark Miles for Business: Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $4,500 on purchases within 3 months of account opening.
• Capital One Spark 1.5X Miles Select for Business*: Earn 50,000 miles after spending $4,500 on purchases within 3 months of account opening.

Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer bonuses

Chase doesn’t run transfer bonuses as often as American Express does. However, the issuer recently ran one that ended in March. Through March 1, 2024, cardholders were able to receive 60 percent bonus points when transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards to IHG One Rewards.

• Restrictions

  Chase doesn’t charge a tax on point transfers. However, the minimum transfer amount to Virgin Atlantic and Aeroplan is 1,000 Ultimate Rewards points.

  Not all Chase credit cards allow points transfers, so be sure that your Chase card earns transferable Ultimate Rewards points if you want to be eligible for any bonuses.

• How to maximize this offer

  A standard IHG free hotel stay ranges from 5,000 to 100,000 points, depending on the hotel. You can get fantastic value out of the 60% transfer bonus, regardless of where you use your points. You can opt for a budget hotel for just 6,250 points. Alternatively, you can splurge on a luxury hotel stay and save nearly 40,000 points per night.

  If you have an IHG credit card, you’re even eligible for free hotel stays, where you can get the fourth night free when you book at least four consecutive days. Eligible cards include the IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit Card, IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card and IHG One Rewards Business Credit Card.

• How to transfer Ultimate Rewards points

  While multiple Chase cards allow you to earn Chase Ultimate Reward points, the only cards that allow you to transfer your points to travel partners are the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card.

  To transfer Ultimate Rewards points to airline miles, log in to your Chase account and follow these steps:

  1. Select the card that has Chase points.
  2. Under “Travel” in the navigation menu, select  “Transfer to travel partners.”
  3. Select the travel partner you want to use (for example, Aeroplan or Virgin Atlantic).
  4. Click “Transfer Points” to submit your request.

• Ways to earn Ultimate Rewards

  You can earn Ultimate Rewards points through certain Chase credit cards. If you have both a Chase Ultimate Rewards-earning card and a cash back card, you can convert your cash back rewards to points. This works out great for high-end redemptions and during lucrative transfer promotions.

Citi ThankYou point transfer bonuses

The Citi ThankYou points program currently offers  a 30 percent points bonus when you transfer points to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. This offer ends on March 16, 2024.

• How to maximize this offer

  Citi ThankYou points transfer to Virgin Atlantic at a 1:1 ratio. With the 30 percent bonus, transferring 10,000 points to Virgin Atlantic would net you 13,000 Flying Club miles.

  Virgin Atlantic Flying Club has several sweet spots that are even sweeter with this transfer promotion. For example, you can book a one-way economy class ticket between the East coast and London for just 10,000 miles. With the transfer promotion, you need just 7,700 Ultimate Rewards points. However, you need to transfer at 8,000 points since transfers have to be done in 1,000-point increments.

  Flying Club points are also useful for business class seats on Air France or Delta One flights to Europe. For example, business class flights on Air France from JFK to Rome cost about 48,500 miles one way. With the 30 percent transfer bonus, you need just 38,000 points. You can use the extra 10,500 points to cover award taxes or even book a free hotel night or two.

• How to transfer Citi ThankYou points

  The only card that allows you to transfer your Citi ThankYou points to travel partners is the Citi Premier® Card or Citi Prestige® Card, which is no longer accepting new applicants.

  To transfer ThankYou points to an airline or hotel, go to the Citi ThankYou website and log in. Follow these steps:

  1. Click on the “More Ways to Redeem” tab.
  2. Select “Points transfer” under “Transfer and Share.”
  3. Scroll down and select the program you want to transfer points to and select “Continue.”
  4. Enter the number of points you want to transfer.
  5. Enter your frequent flyer number.
  6. Review the transfer and submit.

• Ways to earn ThankYou points

  You can earn ThankYou points by applying for a Citi credit card that earns points. At the moment, four credit cards earn these rewards:

  • Citi Premier® Card: Earn 60,000 points after spending $4,000 on purchases within 3 months of account opening.
  • Citi Rewards+® Card: Earn 20,000 points after spending $1,500 on purchases within 3 months of account opening.
  • Citi Custom Cash® Card: Earn $200 in cash back after spending $1,500 on purchases within 6 months of account opening.
  • Citi Double Cash® Card: Earn $200 in cash back after spending $1,500 on purchases within 6 months of account opening.

The bottom line

You’ve worked hard for your points and should get as much out of them as possible. Transfer bonuses are one of the easiest ways to do that. If you can take advantage of these promotions from a top travel credit card when they come around, your points will go much further. You can check this guide periodically for the latest bonuses.

Issuer-required disclosure statement

*The information about the American Express® Green Card, Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card, Amex EveryDay® Credit Card, Capital One Venture X Business Card, Capital One Spark Miles 1.5X Select for Business and the Chase Freedom Flex℠ has been collected independently by Bankrate. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.