Amex Membership Rewards Transfer Partners: Which are Best?

13

a group of blue text

Amex Membership Rewards points are transferable to many airline and hotel partners. Below you’ll find a complete list of Amex transfer partners as well as quick tips for best uses.

This post has been updated to include Membership Rewards’ recent addition of Qatar Airways Avios as a transfer partner.

Tips to Redeeming Amex Membership Rewards

Don’t transfer until ready to book: Don’t transfer points until high value awards are available and you are ready to book them.  Transfers are one-way only.  Membership Rewards points are valuable for their flexibility. Once you transfer, you are locked into a single program that may or may not have awards available.

It’s possible to transfer points to a friend’s loyalty account: You can transfer points to a friend’s loyalty account as long as you add them as an authorized user or employee to one of your Membership Rewards accounts.  Once your friend has been an authorized user for 90 days you can transfer points to their loyalty accounts.

Watch out for transfer bonuses: Amex often offers improved transfer ratios through limited time transfer bonuses. You can see the full list of current transfer bonuses below.

Always have at least 1 transferable credit card account: Some Membership Rewards cards do not directly allow point transfers (such as the discontinued Blue for Business card), but most do. As long as you have at least one card that permits transfers, then you’re good to go.  The best fee-free options that allow transfers are: Blue Business Plus (my preferred choice) and Amex EveryDay.

Don’t forget about the pay with points option: Usually, paying for travel with Amex points results in poor value: 1 cent per point or less.  However, the Amex Business Platinum card makes it possible to get approximately 1.5 cents per point value or more on certain flights.  See our Membership Reward’s Guide for details.

Current American Express Transfer Bonuses

If Amex is running any transfer bonuses, details will appear here:

Transfer Bonus DetailsEnd Date
[Targeted] 20% transfer bonus from Amex to Etihad Guest2024/04/04

Amex Membership Rewards Transfer Partners: Hotels

Transfers to hotel programs from Amex rarely results in good value except when transfer bonuses are in effect.  Here are the standard offerings:

Rewards ProgramBest UsesAmex Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)
ChoiceChoice Privileges points seem to be randomly valuable within the US, but dependably valuable internationally in expensive locations such as Scandinavia and Japan. Points can sometimes offer great value when used towards participating Preferred Hotels of the World.1 to 1 (Instant)
Hilton5th Night Free awards. Best value is usually found with very low end or very high end Hilton hotels. Bonus: award nights are not subject to resort fees.1 to 2 (Instant)
Marriott Bonvoy5th Night Free awards. Opportunities to get outsized value exist but can be hard to find.1 to 1 (~1 day)

Amex Membership Rewards Transfer Partners: Airlines

It is free to transfer Membership Rewards points to foreign airlines. For transfers to US airlines, however, Amex charges an “excise tax offset fee” of $0.0006 per point (with a maximum fee of $99). Airlines subject to this fee are noted below.

Best Amex Airline Transfer Partners

The following airline transfer partners represent the best potential value in my opinion.

Rewards ProgramBest UsesAmex Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)
Accor Live LimitlessUse to pay hotel bill with value of 2 Euro cents per point. In some cases (such as hotel to airline transfer bonuses) it may make sense to convert Accor points to the following airline miles at a 1 to 1 ratio: Finnair, Iberia, Qantas, or Virgin Australia
Aegean Miles + Bonus
Aer Lingus AviosFuel surcharges are sometimes lower when booking with Aer Lingus (Avios.com) rather than British Airways, Qatar, or Iberia. It's possible to move points (Avios) between Iberia, British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Qatar.  See also: Avios Sweet Spots for Award Tickets.1 to 1 (Instant)
Aeroflot Bonus
AeroMexico ClubPremierAeroMexico is a SkyTeam partner. Club Premier points can be used to book flights on AeroMexico, SkyTeam alliance members (such as Delta or Korean Air), or on select partner airlines. Unfortunately many have reported that awards are extremely difficult to book through AeroMexico so we do not recommend transferring points to this program. If you want to fly AeroMexico, look to transfer points to another SkyTeam partner (such as Air France) and then book AeroMexico with that program.1 to 1.6 (1 to 2 days)
Air Canada AeroplanRedeem for Star Alliance flights and/or flights with Air Canada partners (such as Etihad). No fuel surcharges; $39 CAD award booking fee; 5,000 points to add stopover on one-way award. See: Air Canada Aeroplan: Everything you need to know.1 to 1 (Instant)
Air China Phoenix Miles
Air France KLM Flying BlueMonthly Air France Promo Awards often represent very good value. Air France miles can be used to book Sky Team awards, including Delta awards. Air France often offers very good business class award pricing between the US and Europe & Israel.1 to 1 (~10 minutes to 1 day)
Air New Zealand Air Points
Alaska MileagePlanAlaska Airlines offers decent oneworld award pricing, excellent short-distant pricing, and uniquely allows free stop-overs one one-way awards. Additionally, Alaska allows free award changes and cancelations (although they do have a small non-refundable partner award booking fee)
Alitalia MilleMiglia
Allegiant
Altitude Points
American AAdvantageBest for AA's web special awards or for partner awards such as Cathay Pacific business class, Qatar business class, Etihad first class, etc. AA no longer charges change or cancellation fees on awards.
Amtrak Guest RewardsGet up to 2.9 cents value per Amtrak point toward Amtrak travel.
ANA Mileage ClubRedeem for Star Alliance flights. Multiple stopovers allowed. ANA offers many great sweet-spot awards, including flying around the world in business class for as few as 115K miles! See also: ANA - a terrific Membership Rewards gem.1 to 1 (~1 day)
ArrivalRedeem points for travel charges to get full value
AsianaRedeem only 50K miles for one-way first class Star Alliance awards between US and Europe! Beware very high fuel surcharges when flying airlines such as Lufthansa.
Avianca LifeMilesAvianca LifeMiles can be great for Star Alliance awards. They offer reasonable award prices and no fuel surcharges on awards. They also offer shorthaul awards within the US (for flying United, for example) for as few as 7,500 miles one-way. Best of all, their mixed-cabin pricing can lead to fantastic first-class award prices. See this post for details.1 to 1 (Instant)
Best Western
Bilt
Brex
British Airways AviosWhile flights on British Airways itself often incur outrageously high fuel surcharges, many BA partners charge low or no fuel surcharges. Excellent value can be had in redeeming BA points for short distance flights. It's possible to move points (Avios) between Iberia, British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Qatar. See also: Avios Sweet Spots for Award Tickets.1 to 1 (Instant)
Capital One Miles
Cathay Pacific Asia MilesCathay Pacific has a decent distance based award chart, but they no longer allow stopovers longer than 24 hours. Cathay Pacific Asia Miles can be a good option for booking American Airlines flights with a distance based award chart, especially if other OneWorld Alliance miles aren't available. For long distance flights, it is possible to reduce the cost of a premium cabin award by adding on a lower cabin segment. See this post for details.1 to 1 (Instant)
China Eastern Airlines
China Southern Airlines’ Sky Pearl Club
ChoiceChoice Privileges points seem to be randomly valuable within the US, but dependably valuable internationally in expensive locations such as Scandinavia and Japan. Points can sometimes offer great value when used towards participating Preferred Hotels of the World.1 to 1 (Instant)
CNB Rewards
Copa Airlines ConnectMiles
Delta SkyMilesDelta no longer charges change or cancellation fees on awards originating in North America. Flash award sales and flights to/from locations other than the U.S. or Canada can offer great value. See: Best uses for Delta miles.1 to 1 plus excise tax (Instant)
EL AL Israel AirlinesEl Al’s award prices tend to be considerably higher than other programs charge for the same flights. I wouldn’t bother.
Emirates SkywardsThe best use of Emirates miles has been to fly Emirates itself. Unfortunately fuel surcharges can be steep. See: Emirates Sweet Spot Awards - First class from 30K miles round trip. 1 to 1 (Instant)
Etihad GuestEtihad offers a distance based award chart for flying Etihad and another for its partners. Points may offer good value for expensive but short-distance flights.1 to 1 (Instant)
EVA Air Infinity MileageLandsIf you want to fly one of the best business class products in the sky, the best way to snag EVA flights is with their own miles since they release more award space to their own members. One-way business class flights from the US to Taipei cost 75K to 80K miles. Fuel surcharges are very low on these routes.
Expedia+
Finnair Plus+Award prices are quite high compared to competing programs. Interestingly, miles can be exchanged for tier points (towards elite status).
FlexPoints
Frontier Miles
Garuda Indonesia Frequent FlyerDon’t bother. Garuda's award pricing isn't particularly good. Worse, you’re supposed to go in-person to a Garuda sales office to ticket your award.
Go Far Rewards
Hainan AirlinesI’m not aware of any great uses for Hainan miles
Hawaiian MilesHawaiian Airlines’ award prices tend to be quite high, but there are some not-terrible uses: fly to neighboring islands for 7.5K miles, fly first class round-trip from Hawaii to South Pacific islands for as few as 95K miles, fly first class round-trip from Hawaii to Australia for as few as 130K miles, or use miles to upgrade paid flights.1 to 1 plus excise tax (Instant)
Hilton5th Night Free awards. Best value is usually found with very low end or very high end Hilton hotels. Bonus: award nights are not subject to resort fees.1 to 2 (Instant)
Hotels.comRewards
HSBC Rewards
HyattUse for Hyatt free nights, free suite nights, lounge upgrades, or suite upgrades. Hyatt points are often worth at least 2 cents each, but they’re sometimes worth far more. Bonus: award nights are not subject to resort fees.
Iberia AviosOn their own flights, Iberia offers low award prices and a very reasonable 25 Euro cancellation fee. Partner awards can offer good value under some circumstances as well, but these are usually nonrefundable. Fuel surcharges are sometimes lower when booking with Iberia rather than British Airways, Aer Lingus, or Qatar. It's possible to move points (Avios) between Iberia, British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Qatar. See also: Avios Sweet Spots for Award Tickets.1 to 1 (~12 - 72 hours (slower over weekend))
IHGIHG dynamically prices their awards and sometimes offer very good value. IHG Premier and IHG Premier Business cards offer the fourth night free on award stays.
JAL (Japan Airlines) Mileage BankJAL has a distance based partner award chart. Depending upon the length of the flights, this can lead to great award prices on partners such as Emirates and Korean Air.
Jet Airways Inter MilesJetAirways JetPrivilege miles are useful only for a few very specific cases such as certain flights to Hawaii for as low as 15K (30K business) one-way, or to the Caribbean or Central America for as low as 10K (20K business) one-way. Details can be found here.
JetBlueJetBlue points offer the most value when cheap ticket prices are available and when award taxes are high relative to the overall cost of the ticket (more details can be found here). The JetBlue Plus Card and the JetBlue Business Card offer a 10% rebate on awards, so you can get more value by holding one of these cards.250 to 200 plus excise tax (Instant)
Korean AirlinesKorean Air is known for having top notch business and first class on their international flights. Historically, first class awards were wide open for awards. Korean is also a fantastic program for booking certain partner awards. For example, it is possible to book Delta flights from the US mainland to Hawaii for only 25,000 points round trip in coach or 45,000 points in first class.
LATAM PassLATAM Pass points can be useful for flying LATAM member airlines: prices aren't bad for short or nonstop routes. Unfortunately, partner awards are often priced unreasonably high.
Leading Hotels of the WorldIt is often possible to get 8 cents per point value, or more from LHW points.
Malaysia EnrichGiven Malaysia's award chart devaluation in June 2017, I'm not aware of any good uses for these miles.
Marriott Bonvoy5th Night Free awards. Opportunities to get outsized value exist but can be hard to find.1 to 1 (~1 day)
Membership Rewards
Merrill
Miles & MoreGreat for booking United business class awards
Multiplus
PenFed Rewards
Penny Points
Qantas Frequent FlyerBest use is probably for flights on El Al with no fuel surcharges. Also useful for short AA flights. Qantas offers distance based award charts similar to Cathay Pacific. Both are OneWorld Alliance members. I recommend comparing award prices across both programs before transferring to either. Qantas offers round the world business class awards for only 280,000 points (but with many restrictions)1 to 1 (Instant)
Qatar Privilege Club AviosQatar has reasonable award prices for flying Qatar itself. Points are now transferable 1 to 1 to British Airways (and from there to Aer Lingus or Iberia). It is now also possible to book JetBlue flights with Qatar Avios.1 to 1 ()
Radisson Rewards
Royal Brunei Royal SkiesI have no idea if these miles are useful or not. My guess is not.
Saudia Airlines
Shop Your Way RewardsDon't do it. Shop Your Way points can be redeemed for a variety of gift cards. That said, unless Shop Your Way starts offering discounted gift cards, there's no point in converting transferrable points to Shop Your Way.
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyerUse to book Singapore Airlines First Class awards (generally reserved for their own members), Alaska Airlines economy awards, or for Star Alliance awards (including United Airlines).1 to 1 (Instant)
Sonesta Travel Pass
South African Airways Voyager
Southwest Rapid RewardsAward flights are fully refundable. Point values vary due to certain taxes not being charged on awards, but tend to average around 1.5 cents per point.
Spirit
TAP Air Portugal
Thai Airways International Royal Orchid PlusI'm not aware of any good uses for these miles
ThankYou Rewards
Turkish Airlines Miles & SmilesMiles & Smiles offers a number of awesome sweet-spot awards including 7.5K one-way anywhere within the US, even to Hawaii. Many awards cannot be booked online but can be booked via phone or email. See: Turkish Miles & Smiles Complete Guide and Turkish business class sweet spots from the US.
Uber CashUber, Uber Eats
UBS My Choice Rewards50,000 points for flight worth up to $900, or 25,000 points for flight up to $350
Ultimate Rewards
United MileagePlusUnited offers free award changes and free cancelations. Like Avianca and Aeroplan, United never charges fuel surcharges for awards. Unfortunately, United charges many more miles for international first class awards. Good uses of miles include United's Excursionist Perk awards and (sometimes) dynamically priced United economy awards.
Virgin Atlantic Flying ClubVirgin Atlantic offers a few great sweet spot awards including US to Europe on Delta One business class for 50K points one-way. See: Best uses for Virgin Atlantic points (Sweet Spot Spotlight).1 to 1 (Instant)
Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer
Vueling Club
Wells Fargo Rewards
WyndhamWyndham often allows booking multi-room suites for the same price as a standard room. It's sometimes possible to get great value from points in that way. Bonus: award nights are not subject to resort fees. Additionally, you can book Vacasa vacation rentals for only 15K points per room per night. Wyndham Earner cards offer automatic 10% discount on award stays.

Useful Amex Airline Transfer Partners

The following transfer partners can offer great value under certain circumstances:

Rewards ProgramBest UsesAmex Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)
Delta SkyMilesDelta no longer charges change or cancellation fees on awards originating in North America. Flash award sales and flights to/from locations other than the U.S. or Canada can offer great value. See: Best uses for Delta miles.1 to 1 plus excise tax (Instant)
Emirates SkywardsThe best use of Emirates miles has been to fly Emirates itself. Unfortunately fuel surcharges can be steep. See: Emirates Sweet Spot Awards - First class from 30K miles round trip. 1 to 1 (Instant)
Etihad GuestEtihad offers a distance based award chart for flying Etihad and another for its partners. Points may offer good value for expensive but short-distance flights.1 to 1 (Instant)
JetBlueJetBlue points offer the most value when cheap ticket prices are available and when award taxes are high relative to the overall cost of the ticket (more details can be found here). The JetBlue Plus Card and the JetBlue Business Card offer a 10% rebate on awards, so you can get more value by holding one of these cards.250 to 200 plus excise tax (Instant)
Qantas Frequent FlyerBest use is probably for flights on El Al with no fuel surcharges. Also useful for short AA flights. Qantas offers distance based award charts similar to Cathay Pacific. Both are OneWorld Alliance members. I recommend comparing award prices across both programs before transferring to either. Qantas offers round the world business class awards for only 280,000 points (but with many restrictions)1 to 1 (Instant)
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyerUse to book Singapore Airlines First Class awards (generally reserved for their own members), Alaska Airlines economy awards, or for Star Alliance awards (including United Airlines).1 to 1 (Instant)
Virgin Atlantic Flying ClubVirgin Atlantic offers a few great sweet spot awards including US to Europe on Delta One business class for 50K points one-way. See: Best uses for Virgin Atlantic points (Sweet Spot Spotlight).1 to 1 (Instant)

The Other Amex Airline Transfer Partners

Here are the transfer partners that didn’t make my “best of” lists, above. Note that some of these are still worth considering under certain circumstances.

Rewards ProgramBest UsesAmex Transfer Ratio
(and transfer time)
AeroMexico ClubPremierAeroMexico is a SkyTeam partner. Club Premier points can be used to book flights on AeroMexico, SkyTeam alliance members (such as Delta or Korean Air), or on select partner airlines. Unfortunately many have reported that awards are extremely difficult to book through AeroMexico so we do not recommend transferring points to this program. If you want to fly AeroMexico, look to transfer points to another SkyTeam partner (such as Air France) and then book AeroMexico with that program.1 to 1.6 (1 to 2 days)
Hawaiian MilesHawaiian Airlines’ award prices tend to be quite high, but there are some not-terrible uses: fly to neighboring islands for 7.5K miles, fly first class round-trip from Hawaii to South Pacific islands for as few as 95K miles, fly first class round-trip from Hawaii to Australia for as few as 130K miles, or use miles to upgrade paid flights.1 to 1 plus excise tax (Instant)

Amex Transfer Partners: Indirect

In some cases it is possible to transfer to an airline or hotel program in order to then transfer from that program to another program. I’ll leave it to the reader to decide whether or not it is a good idea to transfer in these ways (hint: these transfers usually represent poor value).

Rewards ProgramAmex Indirect Transfer
IHG10K to 10K via Virgin Atlantic

See Also

Want to learn more about miles and points? Subscribe to email updates or check out our podcast on your favorite podcast platform.
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

13 Comments
newest
oldest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments