Got a stash of transferable points but find yourself still shy of that dream getaway? Don't write it off just yet.
We often see banks like American Express and Chase roll out transfer bonuses when transferring points to an airline or hotel partner, meaning you won't have to transfer as many points as you normally need to book an award flight. Just how good of a bonus you'll get will vary from bank to bank and program to program, but you can generally expect to see bonuses in the range of 10% to 40%.
In rare instances, some transferable currencies will go rogue and even offer 100% transfer bonuses, netting you double the points or miles!
These bonuses are all offered for a limited time, and it can be tough to keep track of them all, especially if you have transferrable points with multiple banks. But taking advantage of a transfer bonus is a great way to stretch your points even further.
Read more: Save Points When Booking Flights by Transferring Them to an Airline Partner
As tempting as these bonuses may be, though, there are some things to keep in mind before you send your hard-earned points to an airline or hotel partner. Here's the most important one: These transfers are a one-way street. Once you send the points to an airline partner, you cannot get them back to your Capital One, Chase, or other credit card program account. Time and time again we've seen loyalty programs make moves to devalue their points, with little to no warning. The best way to safeguard against these sudden devaluations is to keep your points flexible until you're ready to use them.
These bonuses are all offered for a limited time, and it can be tough to keep track of them all, especially if you have transferrable points with multiple banks. But taking advantage of a transfer bonus is a great way to stretch your points even further.
Also, keep in mind that you'll still have to pay taxes and fees on these flights. For some airlines, those fees are negligible, but others charge much more when booking award flights with points and miles – especially if you're flying business or first class with your miles.
Transferring points to airline partners can get you outsized value for them, but it doesn't make sense in every case. You need to do the math to decide whether it's best to pay directly with points or utilize a transfer partner.
These are all the transfer bonuses available as of publication:
| Transfer from | Transfer to | Bonus | Expires | More info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Express | British Airways/Iberia Avios | 30% | August 31, 2023 | Click to read |
| American Express | Avianca LifeMiles | 15% | August 31, 2023 | Click to read |
| American Express | Hilton Honors | 25% | August 31, 2023 | |
| Chase | Marriott | 50% | September 30, 2023 |
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30% Bonus on American Express Transfers to Avios
American Express is offering a 30% bonus when moving points to either British Airways of Iberia's Avios awards program. This transfer bonus is available through Aug. 31, so you'll have the rest of the month to take advantage of it.
With this transfer bonus, you can take one of the cheapest ways to fly business class to Europe and make it even cheaper. By flying Spanish flag carrier, Iberia, you can get from one of several U.S. gateways to Madrid (MAD) for just 34,000 Avios plus $130 in taxes and fees one-way – or less than 27,000 American Express Membership Rewards when combined with this transfer bonus.
Why not fly like this rather than back in economy when you can do it using fewer points?
Read our full review of Iberia business class!
The key to booking these awards is focusing on off-peak travel dates, from cities like Boston, Washington D.C., New York City, and Chicago to Madrid. Since Iberia has a generous definition of what's considered off-peak, you can find these ultra-low rates for a good majority of the year. Only late June through mid-September and the winter holidays (plus a few more random dates throughout the calendar) will trigger higher peak pricing.
Flying lie-flat to Europe for 27,000 points and $130 in fees is tough, if not impossible, to beat.
15% Bonus on Amex Transfers to Avianca LifeMiles
Amex is out this month with a new 15% bonus when moving American Express Membership Rewards to Avianca LifeMiles – giving cardholders a way to save even more on Star Alliance award flights. This transfer bonus runs through Aug. 31.
If you're unfamiliar, LifeMiles is the quirky yet underrated mileage program of South American carrier Avianca. While customer service can be spotty at best and even its website is hit or miss, you put up with it because few airline programs offer cheaper ways to book flights using miles around the globe – with low cash taxes and fees, too.
Thanks to an inexplicable sweet spot, you can book TAP Air Portugal business class flights from New York City (JFK) to Lisbon (LIS) for just 35,000 miles one way. By taking advantage of this 15% transfer bonus, the price drops to under 31,000 miles for that same one-way award flight.
Other Star Alliance business class flights to Europe typically cost 63,000 miles each way, which works out to about 55,000 Amex Membership Rewards points with this transfer bonus.
25% Bonus on Amex Transfers to Hilton Honors
Amex just can't help itself this month – they're out with not one, but two new transfer bonuses on top of the still active bonuses to British Airways and Iberia Avios. This new transfer bonus gives Amex cardholders 25% more points when moving Membership Rewards to the Hilton Honors loyalty program.
Membership Rewards typically transfer 1:2 to Hilton Honors so this means that for every 1,000 points you move over, you'd be getting 2,500 Hilton Honors points in return with the bonus.
On the surface that might seem like a steal, but keep in mind that it typically takes a whole lot of Hilton points to book a free night. So, even with this new transfer bonus, it might not be the slam dunk you think it is.
Having said that, if you need to top off your account in order to redeem for a free night or if you have a high-value redemption in mind, taking advantage of this bonus can still make sense.
For example, if you're able to find standard room award availability at a place like the Conrad Bora Bora Nui, this 25% transfer bonus would mean you could book a free night for only 48,000 Amex Membership Rewards. Considering cash prices are typically north of $1,000 per night, this could make for an excellent use of your Amex points.
And if you've got a free night award from one of the Hilton Honors American Express credit cards, you could even tack that on for an additional night in paradise. Historically, the Hilton free night awards earned with their co-branded credit cards were only available for use on weekend nights. But that all changed during the pandemic, when travel demand was in the dumps, and Hilton decided to make the customer-friendly change permanent last fall.
Read more: The Best Ways to Maximize Your Hilton Free Night Certificates
50% Bonus on Chase Transfers to Marriott Bonvoy
Chase is currently offering a 50% transfer bonus when moving Ultimate Rewards points to the Marriott Bonvoy Rewards program. This transfer bonus is live until Aug. 31, so you'll have the whole month to take advantage of it.
It's easy to see a 50% bonus and get excited but be warned that not all points are created equal – and this is especially true with hotel points like Marriott's. Still, if you have a particular hotel in mind and need to top off your account with a few extra points in order to make it a reality, transferring Ultimate Rewards to Marriott with a 50% bonus is certainly better than the usual 1:1 ratio.
The key to ending up on the right side of this transfer bonus is to always do the math before booking. Since you can redeem points through the Chase Travel portal at a rate of 1.25 cents per point with the *csp* or 1.5 cents per point with the *csr*, that should be your baseline for determining the value that you're getting with this transfer bonus.
Looking at a one-night stay in downtown Minneapolis, I see that I can book the Minneapolis Marriott City Center for 23,000 Bonvoy points per night. If I didn't already have any Bonvoy points in my account, I'd need to transfer 16,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards with the current transfer bonus in order to have enough points to book this stay.
Since I have the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, I could also book this hotel through the Chase Travel Portal and get 1.25 cents per point towards the cost of my stay. In this situation, that would end up costing me a little over 17,000 Ultimate Rewards for the one-night stay. By instead using the current 50% transfer bonus to Marriott, I'm going to be out of pocket fewer points than I would by booking through the travel portal.
But the math changes if I had the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and got 1.5 cents per point for booking through the Chase Travel portal instead. In that case, I'd be able to book this room for under 15,000 Ultimate Rewards per night – making it the cheapest option.
Another thing to consider when deciding how to book is your elite status level – or lack thereof. If you book through the Chase Travel Portal you won't receive any elite benefits, earn points, or get elite-night credits for your stay. To some travelers, this won't matter at all, but to others, it could be a total dealbreaker.
Bottom Line
Transfer bonuses can be a great way to get more value out of your points and help you realize your dream vacation even sooner. These bonuses are constantly coming and going, so it's important to stay up-to-date on the current promotions before moving your points to ensure you're not leaving any free points on the table.
But it's always best to keep your points flexible until you're ready to book. Due to constant loyalty program devaluations, transferring points without an immediate plan to use them will rarely be a good option.