10 Airline Rewards Programs That Provide the Most Value for Your Points

There are many airline loyalty programs out there, but they don’t all give you the same bang for your buck — or in this case, reward mile.

To determine the best airline rewards programs, Point.me analyzed over 60 programs based on a number of factors, including how easy it is to earn miles from non-flying methods, the value you get for miles, how easy it is to book an award flight, frequency of award availability, flexibility in routing rules, change fees, customer service and more.

Based on its analysis, these are the best airline rewards programs if you’re seeking to make your points and miles go furthest.

• Overall score (out of 100): 93.06
• Ease of earning miles: Great
• Redemption rates: Great

According to Point.me, Flying Blue has “extensive partnerships that make it easy to earn miles (even without ever boarding an Air France or KLM flight).” It’s also easy to redeem credit card points for miles, as you can transfer points from all of the major credit cards — American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Marriott Bonvoy.

• Overall score (out of 100): 77.43
• Ease of earning miles: Great
• Redemption rates: Good

Aeroplan scored high marks for the ease of utilizing points on partner airlines. In addition, the program accepts transfer points from most major credit cards, including American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase and Marriott Bonvoy.

• Overall score (out of 100): 72.22
• Ease of earning miles: Great
• Redemption rates: Average

According to Point.me, “MileagePlus miles are easy to earn through a host of partner and co-branded credit cards, and they’ve implemented dynamic award pricing in a way that can actually be beneficial to casual travelers.”

• Overall score (out of 100): 69.10
• Ease of earning miles: Great
• Redemption rates: Average

The British Airways credit card is now one of the best airline credit cards available when it comes to the ease of earning points, according to Point.me. Even if you don’t have the airline credit card, you can transfer reward points from five out of the six major credit card programs: American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase and Marriott Bonvoy.

• Overall score (out of 100): 69.10
• Ease of earning miles: Great
• Redemption rates: Average

Virgin’s rewards program scored high marks for its impressive economy redemption rates. The airline also makes seats available for award redemptions on every flight, so miles are easier to redeem. In addition, you can transfer points from American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Marriott Bonvoy.

• Overall score (out of 100): 68.06
• Ease of earning miles: Average
• Redemption rates: Great

Point.me notes that while AAdvantage scored high, it’s most valuable for loyal fliers and those with American Airlines credit cards. American Airlines’ rewards program doesn’t accept transfer points programs aside from Marriott Bonvoy.

• Overall score (out of 100): 65.97
• Ease of earning miles: Average
• Redemption rates: Good

One major perk of Alaska Airlines’ program is the ability to add a complimentary stopover of more than 24 hours on award tickets, Point.me reported. However, overall redemption rates are less competitive than other top programs.

• Overall score (out of 100): 62.85
• Ease of earning miles: Good
• Redemption rates: Good

Qatar Airways’ program is useful for those looking to fly internationally. It also offers competitive point prices. Additionally, it’s easy to transfer points to other airlines — including British Airways, Aer Lingus, Finnair and Iberia — and you can transfer points from several major credit cards, including American Express, Citi and Marriott Bonvoy.

• Overall score (out of 100): 61.81
• Ease of earning miles: Great
• Redemption rates: Average

JetBlue makes it easier to accrue points by allowing you to pool points with family members via its Points Pooling program. Reward miles also go far — you can score last-minute deals between New York and Florida or Mexico for as little as 8,000 points, Point.me reported.

In addition, it’s easy to transfer miles with partner airlines, including Hawaiian Airlines and Qatar Airways, and it’s easy to to transfer credit card points, as JetBlue accepts travel rewards from American Express, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Marriott Bonvoy.

• Overall score (out of 100): 59.72
• Ease of earning miles: Great
• Redemption rates: Great

LifeMiles accepts transfer points from American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Citi and Marriott Bonvoy. However, it didn’t score higher because it can be difficult to book flights from the U.S.