Beginner’s Guide to Earning Miles & Travel Points

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Earning airline miles and travel points can help you save hundreds on flights and hotels — and make dream vacations a whole lot more affordable.

You don’t even need to travel a lot to earn points and miles. You just need to be intentional with your spending and choose the right credit cards.

The Difference Between Miles, Points, and Cashback

Miles, points, and cashback can all be earned through rewards credit cards and loyalty programs — but are very different in how they are treated.

Make sure you know how they all work before choosing a travel rewards card!

Airline miles

These are rewards for specific airline loyalty programs. You can earn miles through credit card spending, flying with the airlines, or other loyalty activities. 

For example, if you earn Delta miles with a co-branded credit card like the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express, those miles can be redeemed for booking Delta flights.

COMPARE: Best Airline Credit Cards

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Credit card points

Points can refer to general credit card rewards or hotel points for booking free nights. 

Flexible credit card points can be used in many different ways, including flights or statement credits, while hotel loyalty points are for specific hotel loyalty programs. 

For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns general rewards that can be used for cashback, gift cards, bookings through Chase Travel℠, or transfers to partner airlines and hotels.

Meanwhile, the hotel-branded World of Hyatt Credit Card earns Hyatt loyalty points that are stored in your Hyatt account and can be used to book reward stays at Hyatt hotels.

RELATED: How Do Hotel Credit Cards Work?

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Cashback

Cashback refers to points that are credited as cashback on your credit card statement. 

When a credit card like the Chase Freedom Unlimited® offers “2% cashback” on drugstores and dining, what they mean is that for every dollar you spend on those purchases, you earn $0.02 in rewards. 

You can use the accumulated cashback as a statement credit to pay off a portion of your credit card bill.

COMPARE: Best Cashback Credit Cards

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Flexible Points vs. Airline- and Hotel-Specific Rewards

While you can earn loyalty points for specific airlines and hotel programs, there are some credit cards that offer flexible points that can be used in several different ways. 

Here’s how flexible points programs compare to brand-specific loyalty programs:

	Airline Miles or Hotel Points	Flexible Points
How points are earned	Flights or hotel stays, sign-up bonuses, credit card spending	Credit card spending, sign-up bonuses
How points are redeemed	Directly through airline or hotel loyalty program	Cashback or gift cards through credit card portal Travel purchases through credit card travel portal Transfer to partner airlines or hotel loyalty programs
Points valuation	Depends on flight or hotel redemptions	From $0.005 per point to over $0.05 per point Redemption value based on how you redeem
Potential card benefits	Elite status, free hotel nights, free checked bags, statement credits, lounge access, travel insurance	Travel credits, purchase protections, travel insurance, lounge access, flexible redemption

If you’re choosing a loyalty program (airline or hotel), stick with one brand that you enjoy. 

Maybe you frequently fly a certain airline or always stay at a specific hotel chain. In that case, you can earn points on every trip. Over time, you may earn elite status with these programs for even more perks.

Loyalty programs reward you with discounts, travel perks (like room or flight upgrades), and points. The more you earn, the more you can redeem for discounted travel.

And if you choose a credit card that earns points or miles for your chosen loyalty program, you can earn rewards even faster.

RELATED: How To Travel for Free with Credit Cards

The Fastest Ways to Earn Travel Rewards

You don’t have to be a frequent flier or traveler to earn travel rewards, as you can still earn points or miles just with your usual spending on a travel rewards credit card. 

Here’s how it works:

1. Choose the best card for your spending habits

First, you’ll want to know where you spend most of your money. This could include restaurants, groceries, gas stations, flights, hotel stays, or online subscriptions. Where you spend can help determine the best credit card for you.

That’s because many travel rewards credit cards offer boosted rewards for spending in certain categories. For example, some cards offer up to 4x points on groceries or dining out, while others offer bonus points for online purchases or gas stations.

Calculate how much you’ll spend and in what categories, so you can maximize your rewards-earning potential.

2. Earn points through sign-up bonuses

Many cards entice you to sign up by offering a welcome bonus worth hundreds of dollars in travel rewards. The bonus is earned by spending a specific amount on the credit card within a few months.

If you have a large expense upcoming, it may be worth holding off until you sign up for a travel rewards card. You can then use the large purchase to help you earn the welcome bonus much faster.

COMPARE: Best Travel Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses

3. Stack rewards with shopping and dining portals

You can earn additional rewards by using online shopping portals and restaurant programs that are built into your credit card portal. 

For example, if you book a restaurant through the Delta SkyMiles Dining program, you could earn additional Delta SkyMiles for paying with a linked card. 

Also, online shopping app Rakuten links with American Express Membership Rewards®, earning you additional points.

4. Use multiple cards strategically

If you’re up for a bit of rewards tracking, you can use multiple credit cards that reward you for different categories. Depending on your purchase, you can choose the card that earns the most rewards. 

For example, the American Express® Gold Card pays 4x on groceries and dining purchases (up to an annual limit), while the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns 3x on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries.

You could plan to use your Amex when you’re grocery shopping up until you reach the annual limit, and then switch to your Sapphire Preferred. And you could make sure your Netflix subscription is through your Sapphire, not the Amex. 

However, keep in mind that many travel credit cards have annual fees. You’ll want to make sure you’re getting enough value out of each one to justify the cost of keeping them all open. 

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5. Take advantage of travel credits

Many premium travel credit cards offer travel credits to help reduce the cost of airfare or hotel stays. 

For example, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card offers $300 in annual travel credits to help pay for purchases made through Capital One Travel. The Platinum Card® from American Express includes a $200 statement credit to cover things like checked bags and in-flight meals with an airline of your choosing. 

Take advantage of these credits. Otherwise, you’re leaving free money on the table!

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Transferring and Redeeming Points for Maximum Value

Getting the most from your points involves understanding the different ways to redeem your points and miles. Here’s how to boost their value.

When to transfer points vs. book through a travel portal

If you have flexible travel points (like Chase Ultimate Rewards®, Amex Membership Rewards®, or Capital One Miles), you can use the built-in travel portal from your credit card issuer. These can offer better value than booking with the airline or hotel directly. 

For example, points with the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card are worth 25% more when redeemed through Chase Travel^SM, and points with the more premium Chase Sapphire Reserve® are worth 50% more.  

But your miles could stretch even further if you transfer them to travel partners.

To determine whether to transfer points and book directly with an airline or hotel, or to use the travel portal, you’ll want to check the points cost between the two. 

For example, you could look up a four-night stay with Hyatt using Chase Travel^SM and see how many points it would cost. Then, log into your Hyatt loyalty program and price out the same hotel stay using Hyatt points directly.

Choose whichever way of booking uses fewer points (and fees) for the best value. 

Also check the cash price for any rewards booking before purchasing it (either through a portal or as a transfer), to make sure it’s a good use of your points. 

Ideally, you want to get a minimum of 2x the value when you use points. For example, if a flight costs $1,000 and your points are worth $0.01 each, you want to spend a maximum of 50,000 points — which equals $500, or half the total value of the flight.

So, in this case, if your $1,000 flight costs 75,000 points through your card’s travel portal, that wouldn’t be worth it. But if you were able to transfer your points to a partner and get the flight for 40,000 points, that would be a good deal.

READ MORE: How To Get the Most Out of Credit Card Points

Using points for flights, hotels, and upgrades

You may also want to reserve some points for upgrades. Whether it’s a better hotel room or first-class flight seat, many loyalty programs let you use your points to get upgraded. 

It’s up to you how you use your rewards points, but many times, seat and room upgrades cost as much (or more) as booking a future flight or hotel stay.

Avoiding poor redemption values

In general, using your rewards points for things like gift card purchases or “pay with points” when shopping online is not a great value. 

While convenient, cashback and equivalent redemptions usually are valued at nearly half the value of a similar travel redemption!

Compare the type of rewards redemptions before choosing to use your points or miles on cashback rewards.

FAQs About Earning Miles and Points

TL;DR: How To Earn Miles and Points

Travel rewards aren't just for frequent flyers! 

By choosing credit cards that match your spending habits, grabbing sign-up bonuses, and knowing when to transfer points versus using the card’s portal, you can turn everyday purchases into your next dream vacation. 

Start small with one rewards program that fits your lifestyle, then watch your points balance and travel possibilities grow!

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Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.