Do not make a mistake: You possibly can pay 7,500 miles or 50,000 miles for a similar flight

What number of frequent flyer miles does it value to e-book a flight? It is a easy query that may have dozens of solutions.

As soon as upon a time, you knew with some certainty that you would e-book most home financial system flights for 12,500 miles every approach — or maybe 25,000 miles every approach if it have been throughout a peak journey interval like Christmas or Thanksgiving. However these have been predictable mounted costs, because of using printed award charts.

Now, mounted airline award costs and award charts are — at the very least inside the U.S. — principally a part of the frequent flyer historical past books. In actuality, award prices are variable and dramatically totally different from program to program, even if you happen to’re trying on the identical flight. Due to this, having a number of methods to e-book award flights is important to discovering the most effective deal.

For instance, I not too long ago needed to e-book a last-minute flight from Charlotte Douglas Worldwide Airport (CLT) again house to George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH). I confronted numerous selections, starting from painfully dear to an absolute steal.

Once I began my flight search on Google Flights, Factors Path (a free browser extension that runs on prime of Google Flights to point out you the factors worth alongside the money worth and whether or not it is a whole lot) rapidly clued me in to what could be the most effective deal.

The last-minute money fares have been predictably painful, at about $504 one-way for nonstop United Airways- or American Airways-operated flights.

Associated: The very best time to e-book flights for the most affordable airfare

Nonetheless, Factors Path identified that I may e-book the identical flight for simply 7,500 Alaska Airways Mileage Plan miles, plus $18 in taxes and charges.

By comparability, if I used American Airways AAdvantage miles to e-book this American Airways-operated flight, it will have value 11,000 miles for a one-way financial system ticket or 21,000 miles in top notch. These are each fairly stable choices in comparison with the money fare, however utilizing American miles wasn’t the best choice, although American was the airline working the flight.

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As is widespread lately, Alaska received the “finest technique to e-book” contest for this home flight. For the exact same American Airways-operated flight that will value 11,000 American miles, I may spend 7,500 Alaska Mileage Plan miles in financial system — or 15,000 miles in top notch if I wished to say “YOLO” and get house extra comfortably.

Professional tip: By June 30, you may switch your American Specific Membership Rewards factors to Hawaiian Airways, and from there, you may switch from Hawaiian Airways to Alaska.

Spoiler alert: Reserving a first-class seat for 15,000 Amex factors transferred to Hawaiian after which on to Alaska Airways was exactly what I did to get house affordably, comfortably and on the precise flight I wished.

Associated: Find out how to resolve when to make use of money or miles for getting airline tickets

Whereas what I did was the best choice on this case, I additionally need to spotlight a reserving choice that would not have been so nice. This manner, you may keep away from it if you happen to’re in the same state of affairs along with your subsequent award flight search.

If I had used miles which have a set worth for this flight, as is admittedly widespread to do, it will have been a comparatively poor worth given the money charge was so excessive. For instance, the first-class seat I in the end booked for 15,000 Alaska miles would have value 65,384 Capital One miles if I redeemed them at a set charge of 1 cent per mile. Even the financial system seat promoting for $504 would have been over 50,000 Capital One miles, which might make no sense with higher choices out there.

That is why we attempt to shout from the rooftops you can stretch the worth of your transferable bank card factors by redeeming them through switch companions as an alternative of redeeming them at a set charge via bank card journey reserving portals.