Why all travelers should earn transferable credit card points

If you’re looking to improve your travel game in 2025, there’s one important strategy you can pursue: Focus on earning (and then redeeming) transferable credit card rewards.

Transferable rewards are, simply put, the most valuable type of currency to earn in the world of points and miles. This is entirely due to their versatility. American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Wells Fargo offer rewards credit cards that earn points or miles you can transfer to various airline and hotel partners.

This can be especially valuable when you hope to travel in a premium cabin or want to minimize the number of points or miles you redeem for an award. Instead of being limited to a single airline (and its partners) or one hotel program, you can leverage your rewards to book the best available option for the lowest possible price.

And if you’re looking to optimize your redemptions this year, learning how to transfer your credit card rewards can be one of the most important steps.

Here’s why you should focus on transferable rewards in 2025 — and which cards to consider.

In short, transferable points or miles offer flexibility when it’s time to use your rewards to book travel. For example, if you have a large stash of American Airlines AAdvantage miles, you can only redeem your miles on American and its partners. However, you have many more options if you have a big balance of Chase Ultimate Rewards points. Here are just a few:

You could also transfer points to World of Hyatt for luxurious hotel stays.

You’re in the driver’s seat, as you can hold on to your hard-earned rewards until you find a specific trip you want to book.

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From flights and hotel stays to gift cards, merchandise and more, there are seemingly infinite ways to use your points. It can be quite complex. While you shouldn’t consider your loyalty program account balances as long-term investments, you should ensure that you spend your points just like hard-earned money: strategically and efficiently. Determining when to transfer points to partners over other redemptions becomes critical.

When you want to redeem your transferable points for travel, there are several ways to go about it. You can purchase flights and hotel stays through the travel site specific to the bank (like the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal or Amex Travel), or you can transfer your points to a loyalty program and book based on that program’s award rates. While your end goal is the same — booking travel using your rewards — the costs can vary widely.

For example, I’m taking a trip to New Orleans next year and want to stay at Maison Metier (formerly Maison de la Luz and now part of Hyatt’s Unbound Collection). Booking directly with Hyatt would cost $690.18.

Meanwhile, as a Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholder, my points are worth 1.5 cents apiece when used through Chase Travel. Given slight differences in paid rates (this property is part of The Edit by Chase Travel), I’d need to use nearly 50,000 points for the stay.

However, since I can transfer Chase points to my World of Hyatt account at a 1:1 ratio, I can book that same room for just 29,000 points per night.

This means that my Chase points are worth 2.38 cents apiece — well above our most recent valuations.

Now, it’s worth noting that booking a flight directly with an airline or via a credit card portal means you’d earn miles on that flight, and while this typically isn’t true with hotels, we have recently seen Chase add this option for select properties. Additionally, there’s no guarantee that transferring will give you more value than booking directly.

However, in many situations — especially for premium-cabin flights or luxurious hotel stays — you can really maximize your redemptions this way.

Thankfully, transferring your points or miles is relatively straightforward, and the vast majority of transfers post instantly. You can review our full guide on how to transfer credit card rewards to partner programs, but here are a few quick reminders:

• Wait to do so until you have a specific redemption in mind. Otherwise, you risk a program making a negative change that could affect your ability to use those points or miles.
• Transfers are not reversible. If you change your mind, can’t find the redemption you want or later cancel your trip, the rewards will remain in your loyalty program account. They can’t be converted back to a card currency.
• The name on your credit card must match the name on your loyalty account. For example, I can’t be “Nicholas” on one and “Nick” on the other.

So, what kind of points can you earn to eventually transfer to your favorite airline program? Let’s dive into the five most well-known credit card rewards currencies so you know your options.

Read more: Complete guide to airline and hotel transfer partners for the major credit card programs

American Express Membership Rewards points are a favorite transferable rewards currency, with a value of 2 cents per point according to TPG’s December 2024 valuations. These points can get you some incredible awards thanks to Amex’s array of transfer partners, including ANA Mileage Club and Delta SkyMiles — both unique to Amex.

It’s also worth noting that American Express offers frequent transfer bonuses for its airline and hotel partners, though these are sometimes targeted, so keep your eye on your account for these offers to pop up.

With a variety of options to use these points, maximizing Membership Rewards points can feel a bit difficult, so refer to our guide if you need help.

Of course, before you redeem American Express points, you first need to earn them. Here are the most popular cards that earn Membership Rewards points:

While many of these have lucrative welcome offers, you could be targeted for an even higher bonus through the CardMatch tool (offers subject to change at any time). And don’t forget to add Amex Offers to your card(s); you can earn thousands of additional bonus points or save money on select purchases.

Finally, you can also use Rakuten to earn bonus points when you buy items online. This online shopping portal partners with thousands of retailers to award bonus cash back on your purchases. However, you can elect to earn Membership Rewards points instead. You can sign up here and earn a one-time bonus of $30 by spending at least $30 at participating merchants in the first 90 days of joining.

Related: Choosing the best American Express card for you

Bilt Rewards (TPG founder Brian Kelly is a Bilt adviser and investor) allows cardmembers to earn points for paying rent. This is great news since renting can amount to thousands of dollars spent per year. Although Bilt Rewards is a relatively new entrant to this competitive space, the program already offers an impressive list of transfer partners, including Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles and World of Hyatt.

Bilt offers one credit card: the Bilt Mastercard® (see rates and fees). Cardmembers earn 1 point per dollar spent on rent (up to $100,000) without the transaction fee, 2 points per dollar spent on travel (airfare, hotels, cruises and rental cars) and 3 points per dollar spent on dining. You need to make at least five transactions each month to earn points. Best of all, the Bilt Mastercard has no annual fee. (See the Bilt Mastercard rewards and benefits.)

Consistent with the other major programs that have transferable currencies, Bilt Rewards occasionally offers transfer bonuses, often during its monthly Rent Day promotion.

Related: Should you use the Bilt Mastercard? Why it could be a game changer for renters

Capital One entered the market of transferable points and miles in 2018. While Capital One cards had long been known for their simple, fixed-value award options, the issuer upped its game by adding over a dozen transfer partners to some of its most popular cards — and the value proposition has only grown over the years.

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card launched in November 2021, around the same time as the first Capital One Lounge began welcoming travelers at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). Two more locations have since opened — at Dulles International Airport (IAD) outside Washington, D.C., and at Denver International Airport (DEN). Also open is the first Capital One Landing, a new dining-centered lounge space at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).

Finally, the Capital One Venture X Business card hit the market in September 2023, offering an incredible welcome bonus for small businesses.

Popular Capital One transfer partners include Air Canada Aeroplan, Avianca LifeMiles and British Airways Executive Club. There are also occasional transfer bonuses. I used one in 2022 to book an American flight using British Airways Avios that would’ve set me back over $1,000; another staffer used a bonus to get a value of more than 5 cents per mile on a redemption through Flying Blue.

Related: Tips and tricks to get maximum value from your Capital One miles

Here are the cards that currently earn transferable Capital One miles:

The information for the Capital One Spark Miles Select has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

If you’re sitting on a stash of Capital One miles, transferring them to airline partners can unlock some great awards. For full details on these options, check out our guides on how to transfer Capital One miles and when it makes sense to transfer instead of redeeming at a fixed value.

Read more: Best Capital One credit cards

Chase doesn’t have as many cards or transfer partners as American Express, but Ultimate Rewards points are still quite valuable. While many travelers can’t open too many new Chase cards due to the issuer’s 5/24 rule, many argue that Ultimate Rewards is the best transferable points program out there. You can transfer these points to 11 airlines and three partners, all at a 1:1 ratio — including Air Canada Aeroplan, United MileagePlus, and World of Hyatt. Chase is also the only program to partner with Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, though you may get better value for your Ultimate Rewards points by booking Southwest flights through Chase Travel.

Here are the cards that earn fully transferable Ultimate Rewards points:

It’s worth noting that two additional personal cards (the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® ) and two small-business cards (the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card and Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card) participate in the Ultimate Rewards program. However, to transfer points earned from those cards to partners, you must have one of the three “premium” cards with an annual fee linked above and then combine your Ultimate Rewards points in that account.

Related: The best Chase credit cards

Citi also has a transferable currency with its ThankYou Rewards program. While most of Citi’s transfer partners are international carriers, you can still get tremendous value from your points by leveraging alliances and partnerships. That means you can use a program like Avianca LifeMiles to fly on United or a program like Virgin Atlantic Flying Club to fly on Delta. Citi has even offered transfer bonuses for a handful of its partners in the past, including Avianca and Virgin Atlantic.

One TPG writer even believes it’s the most underappreciated program with a flexible currency.

Related: Redeeming Citi ThankYou points for maximum value

Currently, only a single card is available that offers transfers to partner programs: the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card (see rates and fees). (Note that if you’re still holding on to the Citi Prestige® Card — which is no longer open to new applicants — you also have the full transfer benefits.)

That said, as with Chase Ultimate Rewards, you can combine your Citi ThankYou Rewards points in a single account for select products, allowing you to effectively “convert” your fixed-value earnings from cards like the Citi Rewards+® Card (see rates and fees), Citi Rewards+℠ Student Card or Citi Double Cash® Card (see rates and fees) into fully transferable ThankYou points.

The information for the Citi Prestige Card and Citi Rewards+ Student Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Read more: The best Citi credit cards

This year saw a new entrant in the realm of transferable credit card currencies: Wells Fargo Rewards. The issuer’s initial slate of partners was small — featuring three Avios programs along with Flying Blue, LifeMiles and Choice Privileges. However, it added Virgin Atlantic in the fall, and the two cards that earn transferable points can be quite lucrative. Since it’s been less than a year since Wells Fargo implemented transfers to partner programs, we expect this is just the beginning for cardholders.

Here are the two cards that earn transferable Wells Fargo Rewards points:

I was thrilled to add the Autograph Journey card to my wallet earlier this year, and I’m still deciding how to use the lucrative welcome bonus.

Read more: The best Wells Fargo credit cards

It may take some time to do so, but when you can take trips on Singapore Airlines’ A380 Suite, ANA’s The Room business class or British Airways’ 777 first class, it makes all of the effort worth it.

Check out our best travel credit cards for more of our top choices for cards that offer transferable rewards.

See Bilt Mastercard rates and fees here.
See Bilt Mastercard rewards and benefits here.