Loyalty programs are a huge money-maker for airlines and hotel companies because they support multiple revenue sources. One of these revenue streams is the sale of airline miles and hotel points directly to travelers.
Plans can be cash-in immediately through sales points and miles as sales points and miles for travelers to prepay future trips. However, as a traveler, remember that when there is a discount or bonus offer, buying points and miles usually only make sense.
This summary of points and miles gives you some of the best current offers on airline miles and hotel points, including some that may be targeted.
But first, when does it make sense to buy points and mileage?
Should you buy points and miles?
There are a few things to consider before leveraging points and mileage sales.
First, buying points and miles only make sense for certain travelers and certain times. Generally, earning “free” through welcome bonuses associated with travel reward credit cards is a better deal.
But for those who take advantage of credit card options and get high value from rewards, it makes sense to buy them during a good promotion. This may also make sense when you need more points to lock in a specific redemption.
We usually only recommend that you purchase points or miles when using immediately. In this case, buying could save thousands of dollars. However, we do not recommend that you stock your loyalty rewards, as plans often experience unexpected devaluation.
In this way, here are some promotions currently used for buying points and miles.
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Related: What are the key points and mileage? TPG’s current valuation
Promotions for purchasing airline points and miles
American Airlines AADVANTAGH
- Current Promotion: 10% to 40% discount
- Purchase Rate: As low as 2.25 cents per mile
- TPG June 2025 Valuation: 1.5 cents per mile
- End date:unknown
- Buy Aadvantage Miles
American Airlines Aadvantage offers a 40% discount on mileage, depending on the quantity you purchase. You have to buy at least 6,000 miles to get a minimum 10% discount, and when you buy 151,000 miles or higher, you get a maximum discount of 40%, reducing the price to 2.25 cents per mile. This is significantly higher than TPG’s current valuation of U.S. mileage, but buying U.S. mileage to earn specific high-end awards still makes sense.
Avianca Lifemiles
- Current Promotion: Up to 155% bonus mileage
- Purchase Rate: As low as 1.3 cents per mile
- TPG June 2025 Valuation: 1.4 cents per mile
- End date: June 14
- Buy Avianca Lifemiles
Avianca Lifemiles is now one of the best quotes on buying mileage, but you need to act quickly. When you buy at least 1,000 miles by June 14, you will get a bonus of 135% to 155%. The maximum bonus requires buying at least 51,000 miles (before the bonus), reducing the price to 1.3 cents per mile instead of TPG’s valuation of 1.4 miles instead of bad deals.
Southwest Airlines Quick Rewards (Target)
- Current Promotion: 50% discount
- Purchase Rate: As low as 1.5 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 Valuation: 1.3 cents per point
- End date: July 22
- Buy Quick Reward Points
Southwest offers summer savings on fast bonus points. These offers may vary, but when you purchase at least 7,000 points, we’ve seen a 50% discount. The 1.5 cents per point sells still higher than TPG’s current valuation of 1.3 cents, so buying points only makes sense if you plan to redeem them.
United Airlines Lireageplus (target)
- Current Promotion: Up to 100% bonus miles
- Purchase Rate: As low as 1.88 cents per mile
- TPG June 2025 Valuation: 1.35 per mile
- End date: June 29
- Buy miles
United Mileageplus’ latest sales target is target, so your offer may vary. The best quote we’ve seen is a 100% bonus when you buy at least 45,000 miles. After tax you will pay 1.88 cents per mile; essentially, that cuts the cost per mile in half – although it still exceeds our valuation. Therefore, we do not recommend purchasing additional miles unless you have a specific redemption and want to exceed your account balance.
Promotions for purchasing hotel points
Select Privileges
- Current Promotion: Get up to 30% off
- Purchase Rate: As low as 0.72 cents per point
- TPG’s June 2025 Valuation: 0.6 cents per point
- End date: June 20
- Purchase selection privilege points
For a limited time, select privileged members to purchase at least 8,000 points and 30% on purchases of 18,000 or above, they can receive a 25% discount. The highest discounted price is lowered to 0.72 cents per point – still above the TPG estimate, so we do not recommend storing at the selected point now.
Hilton Honors (Target)
- Current Promotion: Up to 100% bonus points
- Purchase Rate: As low as 0.5 cents per point
- TPG’s June 2025 Valuation: 0.5 cents per point
- End date: July 24
- Purchase Hilton Honors Points
This promotion to Hilton Honors is targeted, but the best we see is buying 100% bonuses for 5,000 points or more. Consistent with TPG’s valuation, you’ll pay only 0.5 cents per point, so it’s a good idea to buy the points you need for your next redemption. For example, you can buy the 110,000 points required for a night at Wailea Maui for just $550 in this promotion, which is a big sum to be taken into account that the cash rate starts around $900.
ihg a reward
- Current Promotion: 100% bonus points
- Purchase Rate: 0.5 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 Valuation: 0.5 cents per point
- End date: June 13
- Purchase IHG for one bonus point
The latest promotion for IHG rewards is a great choice, but only takes a few days. You can earn 100% bonus points when you purchase at least 11,000 points. This reduces the cost of points to 0.5 cents per point – comparable to our valuation, so it is worth considering. Check out our guide to learn how to redeem IHG points for maximum value.
Marriott Bonvoy
- Current Promotion: 30% bonus points
- Purchase Rate: As low as 0.96 cents per point
- TPG’s June 2025 Valuation: 0.7 cents per point
- End date: July 16
- Buy a Marriott Hotel
With the current rewards from Marriott Bonvoy, you can earn 30% of the score when you buy 2,000 or more points. You still have to pay more than 0.9 cents, which is much higher than our post-evaluation estimate of Marriott Points, so in most cases we do not recommend buying points.
Hyatt World
- Current Promotion: 20% bonus points
- Purchase Rate: 2.2 cents per point
- TPG’s June 2025 Valuation: 1.7 cents per point
- End date: July 21
- Buy the World of Hyatt Point
Hyatt World will offer 20% bonus points when purchasing at least 3,000 points. This drops the price to 2.2 cents per point – nothing spectacular compared to our current valuation. If you need some extra points to complete your next redemption, we only recommend taking advantage of this promotion.
Which credit card should you use to purchase points and miles?
Most of these promotions are handled via points.com, not directly through hotels or airlines, so you won’t get rewards with most travel reward cards. You will need to use a daily expense card that provides reliable returns on non-Bonus expenses.
The main exception to this rule is American Airlines. The airline reportedly takes the ticket as the code, so you may need to use a credit card that earns the highest-yielding bonus miles on your ticket when purchasing Aadvantage miles.
Or, if you are working to meet the minimum spending requirement to get a welcome bonus on your new card, using that card may be essential.
Remember that when purchasing points or miles abroad, you can charge foreign transaction fees on certain cards. Therefore, you may need to use one of the following cards:
Bottom line
Buying points and miles is not always a good idea, but it makes sense in some cases, especially if you can take advantage of the promotion. In most cases, it is best to consider a specific redemption and confirm the reward before considering paying points and miles.
