How to redeem Capital One miles at a fixed value to buy travel, gift cards, and more
Once you’ve accumulated a certain number of Capital One miles, it’s time to start brainstorming ways to redeem them.
At TPG, we often discourage keeping your miles. They can be a poor long-term investment, so it’s best to start looking at redemption options as early as possible.
While we often recommend transferring your Capital One miles to one of the issuer’s 15+ transfer partners to maximize their value, this isn’t always the best idea for every situation. You might find a particularly cheap travel deal, be too busy to chase rewards, or want the flexibility of keeping your miles within Capital One’s ecosystem.
If you value simplicity, your Capital One miles can go far. That’s because you have a variety of fixed-value redemption options, and you can redeem your miles for travel purchases, experiences, gift cards, cash back, and more.
Here’s what Capital One cardholders should know.
Capital One Miles: Fixed Value Redemption Options
Here are the fixed-value redemptions you can make with Capital One miles:
| redemption options | value per mile |
|---|---|
| Book your trip with Capital One Travel | 1 point |
| Covers recent travel purchases | 1 point |
| Capital One Entertainment | 0.8 cents |
| gift card | 0.8 cents |
| Shop online with Amazon or PayPal | 0.8 cents |
| cash back | 0.5 cents |
To view your options, log into your Capital One account and click the “View Rewards” button next to your mileage balance.
You will then be able to see all redemption options – including the fixed value options outlined above.
With these fixed-value redemption options, you can expect to earn 1 cent per mile in value when you redeem travel-related purchases within 90 days through Capital One Travel or with an eligible Capital One card.
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Capital One’s website states that the following purchases are generally considered travel for purposes of covering past purchases, but notes that availability depends on the category assigned by the merchant:
- airline
- Bus lines
- car rental agency
- cruise line
- hotel
- limousine service
- railway line
- taxi
- timeshare
- travel agency
When you redeem miles for Capital One Entertainment purchases, gift cards, or online purchases through Amazon and PayPal, you’ll earn 0.8 cents per mile. Redeem miles for cash back with a minimum fixed value redemption of 0.5 cents per mile.
Of course, you can always transfer your miles to a Capital One partner for a higher redemption value. Capital One miles are worth 1.85 cents each, according to TPG’s November 2025 valuation, and transferring your miles to loyalty program partners like Air France KLM Flying Blue can give you even more value.
For example, you can book a one-way business class ticket on Air France from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) for 60,000 miles and $242.50 in taxes. A full-fare ticket costs $2,158, which means you’re getting about 3.2 cents per mile in value by transferring your Capital One miles to Flying Blue.
Still, this option requires more effort than the fixed-value selection we’ll detail in this article.
Related: Why You Should Get a Fixed-Rate Rewards Credit Card
Book your trip with Capital One Travel
If you want to plan a trip with rewards and don’t want the hassle of transferring it to a partner, the Capital One Travel Portal is a great option.
When you redeem Capital One miles to book flights, hotel stays, vacation rentals and car rentals, you’ll receive a value of 1 cent per mile.
All you have to do is visit the Capital One Travel Portal and book a trip. From there, you’ll see your options for booking with cash or miles.
Of course, you need to remember that there are many benefits to booking direct rather than through a portal like Capital One Travel. When you book direct, you’ll receive elite status benefits (if you have elite status) and can earn points or miles through the brand’s loyalty program.
However, it might be a good option if you’re staying at a boutique hotel or booking a one-off flight through an airline you fly with infrequently.
Regardless, if brand-specific benefits are important to you, you’ll find that with our next option, you can book travel directly and still offset the cost with Capital One miles for just 1 cent per mile.
Related: Should you book flights on travel portals? Compare fares from Amex, Capital One, Chase and Citi
Covers recent travel purchases
This is a real game changer for travel enthusiasts looking to redeem Capital One miles at a fixed value.
You can book many types of eligible travel purchases and use your miles to offset charges on eligible Capital One cards – as long as the purchase is made within the past 90 days.
To access this redemption option, simply click “Covered Travel Purchases” on the Rewards page. You’ll see all your eligible travel purchases here and can choose how many miles you’d like to use to pay for them.
Capital One defines travel broadly here, as you can redeem miles for everything from flights and hotels to train tickets, Uber rides, Airbnb stays and taxi rides.
After selecting a purchase to pay for, you can directly approve the redemption or edit the number of miles to use and receive partial credit for the fee.
Related: How to Redeem Points and Miles to Rent a Car
Capital One Entertainment
You can also redeem Capital One miles at a fixed value for event tickets and experiences booked through Capital One Entertainment.
With this option, you’ll earn 0.8 cents for every mile you redeem.
This isn’t the best option for maximizing your rewards, but it’s a good option if event tickets take up a large portion of your budget.
However, we generally don’t recommend redeeming miles this way because you get less than 1 cent of value per mile.
Related: The Best Credit Cards for Concerts and Music Festivals
gift card
You can also use Capital One miles to buy gift cards for a variety of merchants, including Apple, Amazon, and Airbnb. For most of these redemptions, you’ll earn 0.8 cents per mile.
However, you may notice that certain brands (such as Adidas, Neiman Marcus, or Uber) occasionally run sales that will give you a slightly higher value depending on the deal.
Since there are many ways to purchase gift cards at a discount, this is unlikely to be the best option for redeeming Capital One miles.
Related: How to use points and miles to give gifts with zero out-of-pocket cost
Shop online with Amazon or PayPal
If you’d like to use Capital One miles to make an online purchase, you can choose to do so during checkout through Amazon or PayPal.
It’s important to note that you’ll earn 0.8 cents per mile.
Because the redemption value is not as valuable as using miles for travel, we generally don’t recommend using miles in this way.
Related: Ways to Save Money on Amazon Orders
cash back
Redeeming Capital One miles for cash back is the least valuable option, since you only get 0.5 cents per mile when you go this route.
You can choose to receive cash back as a statement credit or as a check in the mail.
However, we generally discourage this option because there are many other ways to get more value for your hard-earned miles.
Related: The best cash back credit cards
Earn a Capital Mile
If you don’t have a card that earns Capital One miles yet, consider applying for one of the following personal or business cards and get a great welcome bonus:
- Capital One Sparks Business Milestones: Earn 50,000 miles when you spend $4,500 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
- Capital One Entrepreneurship Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
- Capital One Ventures X Business: Earn 150,000 bonus miles after you spend $30,000 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
- Capital One Ventures X Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
- Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card: Earn 20,000 miles after you spend $500 in purchases within the first three months of account opening. Additionally, new cardholders will receive $100 in Capital One Travel portal credit to use during the first year of account opening (no purchase required to earn points).
- Capital One Spark Miles Business Selections: Earn 50,000 miles when you spend $4,500 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Capital One Spark Miles Select business card information is independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Related: The Best Credit Card Welcome Bonuses This Month
bottom line
While you can maximize your Capital One miles by transferring them to a loyalty partner, redeeming miles at a fixed value is a great option for beginners or cardholders who value simplicity above all else.
It’s also a good option for people who want to redeem miles to save on non-travel-related purchases, such as Amazon purchases, holiday gift cards, or concert tickets.
Since multiple redemption options offer different values, it’s worth considering your options before redeeming your miles.
RELATED: 15 Dream Trips Through the Capital One Miles
