How you can maximize your Capital One miles: From reserving journey to redeeming rewards

With a powerful record of 15-plus switch companions for choose Enterprise and Spark cardholders, Capital One miles switch to most of the identical priceless journey companions as Chase Final Rewards factors, Citi ThankYou Rewards factors and American Categorical Membership Rewards factors.

Capital One additionally permits you to mix fixed-rate miles earned on different bank cards to maximise transferable miles. Listed here are the perfect methods for maximizing your return on Capital One miles.

Incomes Capital One miles

Listed here are the 5 Capital One playing cards that earn Capital One miles:

Card	Annual price	Welcome provide	Notable perks
Capital One Enterprise Rewards Credit score Card	$95 (see charges and costs)	Earn 75,000 bonus miles if you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.	2 miles per greenback on purchases, no international transaction charges, International Entry/TSA PreCheck software price credit score (as much as $100)
Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Credit score Card	$395 (see charges and costs)	Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases throughout the first three months from account opening.	2 miles per greenback on purchases, International Entry/TSA PreCheck software price credit score (as much as $100), no international transaction charges, prolonged guarantee safety, Precedence Cross Choose membership, Capital One Lounge entry and 10,000 annual bonus miles
Capital One Enterprise X Enterprise	$395 (see charges and costs)	Earn 150,000 bonus miles if you spend $30,000 within the first three months from account opening.	2 miles per greenback on purchases, annual $300 Capital One Journey credit score, $10,000 annual bonus miles and International Entry/TSA PreCheck software price credit score (as much as $100)
Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit score Card	$0 (see charges and costs)	Earn 20,000 bonus miles when you spend $500 throughout the first three months from account opening.	1.25 miles per greenback on all purchases
Capital One Spark Miles for Enterprise	$0 introductory annual price the primary 12 months, then $95 (see charges and costs)	Earn 50,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,500 on purchases throughout the first three months of account opening.	2 miles per greenback on all purchases
Capital One Spark Miles Choose for Enterprise	$0	Earn 50,000 miles after you spend $4,500 on purchases throughout the first three months of account opening.	1.5 miles per greenback on all purchases, free worker playing cards

The data for the Capital One Spark Miles Choose has been collected independently by The Factors Man. The cardboard particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or offered by the cardboard issuer.

Associated: Finest Capital One bank cards

How you can redeem Capital One miles

You’ve got two broad choices for redeeming your Capital One miles: for a fastened worth or transferring them to airline and lodge companions.

Transferring will often get you a greater worth. Nonetheless, the power to combine and match redemptions to fit your journey wants provides Capital One a singular edge over the competitors.

Fastened-value rewards

Capital One gives a number of choices for getting a fixed-value return if you redeem your miles. Nevertheless, not all choices will present an equal return.

Redeem for Amazon and PayPal purchases

Once you use your factors to pay with Amazon and PayPal, you may get 0.8 cents per mile. You possibly can hyperlink your Amazon account right here and your PayPal account right here.

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Redeem for latest journey

You should use your miles to redeem for latest eligible journey purchases made within the final 90 days in your Enterprise or Spark card at a set price of 1 cent every. There isn’t any minimal redemption quantity. You possibly can redeem for purchases made with airways, resorts, rail strains, automotive rental companies, limousine providers, bus strains, cruise strains, taxi cabs, journey brokers and timeshares.

E book new journey

You possibly can e book new journey by means of Capital One and redeem your miles on the identical worth of 1 cent every, however this might stop you from double dipping with any rewards program supplied by a web-based journey company. Keep in mind that reserving resorts by means of a third-party website (together with Capital One) would probably stop you from incomes factors and having fun with relevant elite standing perks. Consequently, you are probably higher off reserving journey immediately after which redeeming miles towards these prices.

Redeem for present playing cards

You should use your Capital One miles for present playing cards on the identical price of 1 cent per mile, however since present playing cards can usually be bought on sale, redeeming miles to cowl journey purchases is a greater choice.

Redeem for money again

You must do every little thing potential to keep away from this feature, as it would solely present a redemption worth of 0.5 cents per mile.

The Premier Assortment

The Premier Assortment, accessible completely to Enterprise X and Spark Journey Elite cardholders, gives premium perks like room upgrades, free breakfast and a $100 on-property credit score at boutique and luxurious resorts when booked by means of this platform. For those who redeem your factors for a Premier Assortment lodge, you may get simply 1 cent per level, although the on-property perks might make for a greater redemption. Whereas Capital One does not assure you may earn factors and standing qualification by means of lodge loyalty packages, you may at all times attempt to add your loyalty quantity forward of (or at) check-in.

For those who do not need to play with transferable factors, contemplate redeeming your Capital One miles at a set worth. The method is comparatively straightforward and does not require leaping by means of any hoops.

Here is a step-by-step information exhibiting how one can use your Capital One miles at a set worth.

How you can redeem Capital One miles at a set worth

First, sign up to your Capital One account and click on in your mileage steadiness. There, you may see a number of fixed-value redemption choices — you should use your miles for journey, present playing cards, money, Amazon, PayPal and experiences, or switch them to a different account.

When redeeming miles for journey, you may both e book new journey or use the miles as an announcement credit score towards earlier journey purchases. No matter your route, the redemption price when utilizing Enterprise miles for journey is 1 cent per mile.

Switch to airline and lodge companions

If you would like increased worth on your miles, transferring to airline companions could also be your greatest guess. Choose “Convert rewards.” From right here, you may switch your rewards to greater than 15 airline and lodge loyalty packages.

Here is an summary of this system’s airline switch companions, most of which have a 1:1 switch ratio.

Given the incomes price of two miles per greenback on the Spark and Enterprise playing cards, you may successfully consider them as incomes 1.5 or 2 associate airline miles per greenback spent on each buy, relying on the associate. Keep in mind that these companions have variable switch instances, so take a look at our information to Capital One switch instances so you understand how lengthy you may have to attend on your miles to publish.

In the meantime, this is an summary of this system’s lodge switch companions:

Since Accor is a revenue-based program, there isn’t any strategy to get outsize worth from these rewards. Alternative Privileges and Wyndham Rewards do provide some stable redemptions, although different lodge packages are usually extra rewarding.

Redeeming miles for journey vs. transferring to airways

Capital One’s Enterprise and Spark playing cards have at all times allowed cardholders to redeem miles for journey; you may redeem your miles for 1 cent every as assertion credit towards any journey buy you have made throughout the final 90 days. So, how do you resolve when to switch miles and when to redeem for journey to e book a home flight, as an illustration?

• Price: For those who discover any home fares for $120 round-trip or much less, it is most likely greatest to redeem miles for journey as an announcement credit score as an alternative of transferring them to the airline that can cost 12,000 miles for a similar ticket.
• Award availability: Subsequent, search for award availability on the lowest mileage ranges utilizing the key home carriers’ web sites (American Airways, Delta Air Traces and United Airways) or ExpertFlyer (owned by TPG’s guardian firm, Purple Ventures). Once you discover saver-level award house, you should use the chart above to see what number of airline miles it would require.
• Think about mileage incomes and improve alternatives: Once you redeem miles for journey, you may e book tickets as you usually do. Meaning you may earn miles from the flight and credit score towards elite standing. For those who at present maintain elite standing, you need to nonetheless take pleasure in all your elite standing advantages, together with being eligible for upgrades. When transferring your Capital One miles to a associate, it’s possible you’ll not obtain these advantages.
• Take into account taxes and costs: All frequent flyer packages will add Transportation Safety Administration taxes, a minimal of $5.60 every approach on nonstop, home flights. Nevertheless, some packages tack on hefty surcharges on prime of that.

Maximizing Capital One’s airline switch companions

TPG values Capital One miles at 1.85 cents apiece, because of the worth you may get by transferring to a handful of associate packages.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada’s loyalty program, Aeroplan, has lengthy been some of the in style choices for reserving Star Alliance awards, particularly in premium cabins. After United switched to dynamic award pricing, it has been extra necessary than ever to leverage international companions with award charts that set fastened mileage costs, and Aeroplan is a superb choice.

This system’s award chart underwent a serious overhaul, and it eradicated gasoline surcharges for associate redemptions, bringing largely optimistic modifications to this system. Candy spots embrace short-haul economic system flights below 500 miles for simply 6,000 Aeroplan factors. Or, you may e book transcontinental business-class awards from simply 25,000 factors every approach — properly beneath what United would cost should you booked by means of its MileagePlus program.

Moreover, you may e book Emirates award tickets utilizing Aeroplan factors.

Avianca LifeMiles

Regardless of its IT and customer support woes, Avianca LifeMiles presents many bargain-priced award tickets. One in all its largest benefits is that it does not go on gasoline surcharges from associate airways, so you may e book Lufthansa first-class awards for 87,000 miles and simply $53 in taxes from 15 days earlier than departure (extra seats could also be launched on the final minute as properly).

LifeMiles additionally has the odd however consumer-friendly coverage of discounting mixed-cabin awards, such because the one-way business-class award on All Nippon Airways beneath from Ontario Worldwide Airport (ONT) close to Los Angeles to Tokyo’s Haneda Airport (HND). The LifeMiles award chart says the transpacific flight ought to value 90,000 miles, however due to the mixed-cabin award, you successfully get two free positioning flights and save 4,390 miles.

Turkish Airways Miles&Smiles

Turkish Airways Miles&Smiles presents a number of candy spots for Star Alliance-operated flights and has gotten extra user-friendly with the addition of a web-based reserving instrument.

This system costs award flights in accordance with region-based award charts. Since Hawaii is included within the North America area, you may e book United flights to the Aloha State for a similar quantity as another home flight — simply 7,500 miles every approach in economic system or 12,500 miles every approach in enterprise class. Alternatively, you can fly on United’s premium transcontinental routes on the identical costs. These charges are a fraction of what United usually prices for these flights should you had been to e book your awards immediately. Nevertheless, award availability on all these flights is extraordinarily restricted.

Different gems embrace flights from the U.S. to Mexico on United for 10,000 Turkish miles one-way in economic system and 15,000 in enterprise class. Or, you may head to Europe in enterprise class for simply 45,000 miles one-way on Star Alliance airways. Turkish does not cost gasoline surcharges on United flights, although they are often excessive on different companions like Austrian Airways and Lufthansa.

Associated: The whole information to the Turkish Miles&Smiles program

Transferring Capital One miles to resorts

You may also switch Capital One miles to the next three lodge loyalty packages:

This might be an interesting choice should you plan on staying at an Accor property, together with considered one of its higher-end Fairmont resorts. This system makes use of a fixed-value redemption scheme the place you may redeem 2,000 factors for a 40-euro low cost in your lodge keep (about $44). Because you’d must switch 4,000 Capital One miles to get 2,000 ALL factors, transferring factors provides you with a barely increased redemption worth (1.07 cents apiece).

We peg Wyndham factors at 1.1 cents apiece, although you may be capable to get a greater redemption by following our information.

In the meantime, Alternative Privileges can present stable worth as properly. This system usually prices between 6,000 and 35,000 factors for a free night time, although some resorts can value as much as 75,000 factors per night time. You often will not get nice worth on your factors when redeeming at these excessive factors prices. As well as, you may solely reserve a room utilizing factors inside 100 days of your keep.

Associated: Your final information to Capital One’s airline and lodge switch companions

Capital One miles have turn out to be far more priceless over the previous few years because of new switch companions, improved switch ratios and elevated welcome bonuses on its bank cards. Virtually all airline companions switch at a 1:1 ratio, which is phenomenal, contemplating the Capital One Enterprise Rewards Credit score Card earns 2 miles per greenback on on a regular basis purchases.

With 15-plus switch companions, Capital One presents some of the various transferable factors packages. The great thing about Capital One miles comes from the power to mix switch associate redemptions with fixed-value redemptions to fit your journey wants.