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You’ve opened a new American Express card, hit the spending target for the welcome offer, and have earned a stash of shiny Amex Membership Rewards Points. Now, how should you redeem those points for the best value? We’ll walk you through what you need to know.
Oftentimes, when we’re talking about maximizing credit card points, we’re talking about getting 1.5 cents per point (CPP) instead of 1. Or, maybe, 1.8 CPP on a good day.
But the spread on American Express Membership Rewards Points is way bigger than that. Truly, it’s bananas. On the low end, you have Amex itself admitting its points are worth a paltry 0.6 CPP for statement credits. On the high end, you have users on the r/Amex subreddit claiming they’ve gotten 3 CPP or more through savvy redemptions.
So, how did the latter group do it? Can you really stretch a 100,000-point or so welcome bonus to $3,000 or more in value? It’s definitely possible with the right mix of knowledge and timing, so without further ado, let’s explore the best redemption options for Amex Membership Rewards.
1. Transfers – up to 3 CPP (possibly more)
If you head to r/Amex on reddit, you’ll see that there’s hardly any mention of a redemption option that doesn’t involve a transfer. In fact, if you tell the more-than-400,000-strong community that you redeemed points for cash back or gift cards, you’ll most likely elicit a confused stare or a pat on the head at best.
The reason Membership Rewards Points are more-or-less treated as “transfer fuel” is because they can be worth 2, 3 or even 5 CPP once you move them out of the Amex ecosystem. If you transfer them 1:1 to Virgin Atlantic, for example, you could potentially book a 1,000-mile route on a Delta flight for as little as 11,000 points. That same flight might otherwise cost you 25,000 points or more when booked through Amex Travel, meaning you’re getting a stunning deal.
Here’s a complete list of Amex’s transfer partners as of this writing. Note that transfer ratios are always 1,000 Membership Rewards Points to 1,000 partner program points unless otherwise stated.
Airline partners
- Aer Lingus
- AeroMexico (1,000 Points = 1,600 AeroMexico Rewards Points)
- Aeroplan
- AIR FRANCE KLM
- ANA Mileage Club
- Avianca LifeMiles
- British Airways Executive Club
- Cathay Pacific
- Delta Air Lines
- Emirates Skywards
- Etihad Guest
- HawaiianMiles
- Iberia Plus
- JetBlue TrueBlue (250 Points = 200 TrueBlue points)
- Qantas Frequent Flyer (500 Points = 500 Qantas Points)
- Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
Hotel partners
- Choice Privileges
- Hilton Honors (1,000 Points = 2,000 Hilton Honors Points)
- Marriott Bonvoy
Of course, the trick to maximizing your CPP via transfer is to wait until you have travel plans to book and then see which of the above transfer partners might get you there. You’ll also want to familiarize yourself with how airline alliances work—such as the example above of using Virgin points to book a Delta flight as both are SkyTeam Alliance members—so that you can find the best deal.
It may take some research, planning and timing, but the payoff is clearly well worth it.
2. The Amex Business Platinum Card’s Airline Rebate – 1.35 CPP
To preface, this option is specific to The Business Platinum Card® from American Express. It’s called the 35% Airline Bonus, and even though it’s hidden in the fine print, it’s actually one of the most lucrative perks of the card.
Here’s how it works:
- Log in to your Amex account and choose an airline you’d like to apply both the $200 Airline Fee Credit and the 35% Airline Bonus to.
- Book with that airline through Amex Travel using your Membership Rewards Points (e.g. 50,000 Points for a $500 flight).
- About six to ten weeks later, you’ll get 35% of your points back.
Terms apply. For example, if you select Southwest or Spirit as the airline you want this benefit to apply to, you’ll need to book your flight by calling Amex’s Business Platinum Travel Service or you won’t get the 35% points rebate.
That said, this under-the-radar benefit of the Business Platinum offers incredible value. For example, let’s assume you have 100,000 points to spend with your chosen airline (not all on one flight, perhaps, but over time) , you’ll eventually get 35,000 points right back—easily enough to cover another domestic flight.
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Intro bonus
Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases within the first 3 months of card membership| Annual Fee | $695 |
| Purchase APR | 19.49% - 28.49% variable |
| Foreign Transaction Fee | None |
at Bankrate
Reward Rates
- 5XEarn 5x points on flights and prepaid hotel stays booked through amextravel.com
- 1.5XEarn 1.5x points on purchases in select business categories (currently construction material and hardware suppliers, U.S. shipping providers, U.S. electronics retailers, and software and cloud system providers)
- 1.5XEarn 1.5x points on qualifying purchases of $5,000 or more in other categories
- 1XEarn 1x points on all other eligible purchases
Other benefits
- Travel benefits including hotel and car rental chain statuses, car rental insurance, trip cancellation/interruption and travel delay protection
- Protections including extended warranty and return protection
at Bankrate
To view rates and fees of the The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, see this page.
3. Invest with Schwab – 1.1 CPP (or >8 CPP, if you’re patient)
This is another card-specific redemption option, but one that’s absolutely worth mentioning. If you have The Platinum Card® from American Express Exclusively for Charles Schwab, you’ll have a similar list of benefits as The Platinum Card® from American Express–plus the option to deposit points into your Schwab investment account.
The feature is called Invest with Schwab, and it allows you to move Membership Rewards Points into your General Brokerage, Traditional, Roth or Rollover IRA accounts at a rate of 1.1 cents per point. That means if you earned 100,000 points from your welcome bonus, for instance, you could convert that into a $1,100 deposit—which is far better than the $600 you’d get in cash redemption.
Plus, let’s assume as a hypothetical that your $1,100 deposit nets a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7%, in which case your welcome bonus could become something like $8,373.48 in 30 years. Some might say that’s the best welcome bonus in the business—provided you’re patient!
4. American Express Travel – up to 1 CPP
If you’re unable to find a transfer that works—or you’re just not up for a complex game of “Transfer Tetris” while you’re planning a vacation—you can always redeem Membership Rewards Points through Amex Travel instead.
For the benefit of the uninitiated, we should explain that Amex Travel is a portal where you can book flights, hotels, rental cars and cruises using points, cash or a combo of both. Your points are worth a penny each when redeemed for flights and 0.7 cents each when redeemed for hotels, rental cars or cruises. Needless to say, unless you’re on the No Fly List, you’ll probably want to save your points for airfare.
The takeaway
When it comes to maximizing Membership Rewards Points, all of the data, stories and advice seem to boil down to three simple words: book a flight. If you can’t transfer your way to a cheaper award flight, you can always fall back on Amex Travel where your points are worth a penny a pop towards airfare.
That’s not to write off the hotel transfer partners, though—if you find the right room at the right rate, you might be able to get 1+ CPP with Hilton, Marriott or Choice Privileges.
One thing’s for sure, though—you don’t want to redeem 100,000 points for $600 statement credit when those points could easily take you somewhere exotic.
Learn more: American Express® Green Card vs. American Express® Gold Card vs. The Platinum Card® from American Express compared.
American Express® Gold Card
Intro bonus
Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership| Annual Fee | $250 |
| Purchase APR | See Pay Over Time APR |
| Foreign Transaction Fee | None |
at Bankrate
Reward Rates
- 4xEarn 4X Membership Rewards® Points at restaurants (including takeout and delivery in the U.S.)
- 4xEarn 4X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1x).
- 3xEarn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com booked directly with the airline or on amextravel.com.
- 1xEarn 1X points on all other eligible purchases
Other benefits
- Travel benefits including car rental insurance, trip cancellation/interruption and travel delay protection
at Bankrate
To view rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, see this page
Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefits guide for more details. Underwritten by Amex Assurance Company.
Please note that card details are accurate as of the publish date, but are subject to change at any time at the discretion of the issuer. Please contact the card issuer to verify rates, fees, and benefits before applying.
About the contributors
Chris Butsch is an expert on the subject of credit cards. Chris is a two-time author who has made it his mission to help people build better lives through financial literacy and positive psychology. His writing has been featured in Forbes Advisor, HuffPost, ConsumerAffairs, Money Under 30, and Investor Junkie.
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