Ultimate Guide to Earning and Using Airline Miles

If you’re thinking about dipping your toe in the airline miles game, don’t delay. While points and miles can often feel overwhelming, it’s easy to handle the basics — and that’s enough to get you free flights and upgrades. Best of all, every frequent flier program is free to join, and you don’t even have to be a frequent flier to sign up. We’re here to help you understand airline miles so that you can start boosting your travel experience ASAP.

What to Know About Airline Miles

Airline miles — sometimes referred to as airline points, frequent flier miles, or award miles — are a form of currency used in frequent flier programs. Generally speaking, you earn miles for flying with an airline, and you redeem those miles for free flights, upgrades, or other purchases. Some credit cards also have similar points and miles rewards programs, but airline miles are specific to an airline (and sometimes its partners). Airline miles are often valued anywhere from just below one cent to two cents per mile.

How to Earn Airline Miles

There are numerous ways to earn airline miles, and they vary based on the specific frequent flier program. In order to earn airline miles, you must be registered with an airline’s frequent flier program — this is free to do, and you can join multiple airlines’ programs.

Flying

Flying with an airline (and sometimes its partners) is the primary way most travelers earn airline miles. For each flight you take, you’ll receive a certain number of miles; the exact number of miles depends on your airline’s policy. Most airlines base the number of miles awarded on either the distance flown or the amount paid for the ticket. Just remember that you must input your frequent flier number on your booking to earn airline miles. However, you can request miles after your trip if you forget to add your number before.

Using Airline Credit Cards

If you have a co-branded airline credit card, you will likely be able to earn one to three airline miles for every dollar you spend on that card. Pay attention to earning bonuses for certain categories, which vary per card. Moreover, you’ll earn higher bonuses for paying for flights with your credit card directly through the airline — for example, five miles per dollar instead of one mile per dollar.

Transferring Points From Other Credit Cards

If you have a credit card that has its own points system — like Chase Ultimate Rewards, AmEx Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Points, and Bank of America Travel Rewards — you may be able to transfer those points into an airline frequent flier program. Airline partnerships vary by credit card issuer.

Shopping and Dining Partnerships

Some airlines have e-shopping portals through which any purchases will earn you miles. Consequently, some airlines also have dining partnerships that reward you for eating at eligible restaurants.

Other Partnerships

Many airlines develop partnerships with rental car companies and hotel groups, so if you rent a car or stay with one of these partners, you can earn airline miles. Typically you cannot “double dip” and earn miles or points for both the airline and the travel partner, so advanced points players will want to be strategic about which account earns the points. Additionally, some airlines allow you to link your account to other businesses, too, like Lyft and Starbucks.

How to Redeem Airline Miles

Many travelers use airline miles to book free flights and pay for upgrades, but there are other ways to spend them.

Flights

Once you accumulate enough miles — at least a few thousand, but more realistically a few tens of thousands — you’ll be able to spend those miles on flights. Since miles are free, you’re essentially getting free flights, but there is a tiny catch. You’ll still have to pay taxes and fees on the flight, which usually nets out to less than $100 per ticket.

To use miles as payment for flights, you’ll need to book your flights with the airline directly, not through a third-party booking site. When you search for the flights, simply click the box that says something to the effect of “pay with miles.”

Upgrades

You can also use miles to upgrade to a higher class of service or preferred seats within your current cabin, such as an exit row seat. After you’ve made your booking, check your reservation on the airline’s website or app to see if upgrades are available. Keep in mind that some airlines price upgrades dynamically, meaning the price will change based on demand. Therefore, if you don’t like the price you see for an upgrade, you can take your chances to see if it will drop. But be cautious — the cabin might fill up before you find the price you like, leaving you in economy.

Other Redemptions

Each airline offers miles redemptions outside of flights and upgrades. You can use miles to pay for other aspects of air travel, from lounge memberships to top-shelf drinks in the lounges to in-flight WiFi, depending on the airline. However, you can also use miles to pay for other parts of your travel experience as well, including hotels, car rentals, and even special events or experiences.

Airline Miles and Elite Status

While airline miles and elite status are both part of a carrier’s frequent flier program, they’re two distinct branches with different purposes. Airline miles are simply an airline-specific currency, whereas elite status represents a rewards program where you earn perks typically based on your spending and flying frequency with an airline. If you’re not flying enough to achieve elite status, there’s no need to worry — you can still earn airline miles without it. However, those with elite status do earn more miles per flight than non-elite members of a frequent flier program.

Tips for Making the Most of Your Airline Miles

Use award calendars to find the best deals.

The more flexible you are with timing, the more likely you are to score a great miles redemption deal. Most airlines allow you to view award flights on a calendar, showing you the best deals across an entire month. Therefore, sometimes adjusting your flight earlier or later by a few days can yield significant savings.

Keep expiration dates in mind.

Each airline has a different policy when it comes to expiration dates. Some airlines have no expiration dates for miles, while others set expiration dates based on your most recent account activity. It is prudent to read the fine print to ensure your hard-earned miles don’t expire before you can use them.

Research change fees.

While you can typically change flights booked with miles, there’s often a fee associated with any amendments, but this depends on the airline. If you intend to cancel your booking made with miles, you can often redeposit those miles back into your account for a fee, with fees varying by airline.

Don’t agonize over the redemption value of your miles.

It’s natural to want the best bang for your buck — or in this case, redemption for your miles. However, there’s no reason to stress over the value of your redemption. The threshold for a “good” redemption is unique to each individual and their circumstances at any given time. At the end of the day, anything you put your miles toward will be (mostly) free, and that’s always a worthwhile deal.