Capital One miles: How to get maximum value when redeeming miles
Editor's Note
With an impressive list of 15-plus transfer partners for select Venture and Spark cardholders, Capital One offers opportunities to transfer miles to many of the same valuable travel partners as Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards.
Capital One also offers multiple options for redeeming your miles at fixed rates.
Which options will give you the best value?
Here are the best strategies for maximizing your return on Capital One miles.
Limited-time offer for the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Enjoy $250 to use on Capital One Travel in your first cardholder year, plus earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. (That's equal to $1,000 in travel.)
Related: Capital One miles: How to earn, redeem and transfer rewards
How to redeem Capital One miles
You can redeem Capital One miles for a fixed value or transfer them to airline and hotel partners.
Fixed-value rewards
Capital One offers several options for redeeming your miles for a fixed value. However, not all options will provide an equal return.
- Redeem for recent travel (1 cent per mile): Redeem for travel purchases made in the last 90 days on your Venture or Spark card with no minimum redemption amount. Eligible purchases include airlines, hotels, rail lines, car rental agencies, limousine services, bus lines, cruise lines, taxicabs, travel agents and timeshares.
- Book new travel (1 cent per mile): Book new travel through Capital One and redeem your miles, but this would prevent you from double-dipping with any rewards program offered by an online travel agency. Remember that booking hotels through a third-party site (including Capital One) would likely prevent you from earning points or miles and enjoying applicable elite status perks with that hotel. As a result, you're likely better off booking travel directly and then redeeming miles toward those charges.
- Redeem for gift cards (1 cent per mile)
- Redeem for a stay at a Premier Collection hotel (1 cent per mile): The Premier Collection, available exclusively to Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card and Capital One Venture X Business cardholders, provides premium perks like room upgrades, free breakfast, early check-in, late checkout and a $100 on-property credit at boutique and luxury hotels when booked through this platform.
- Redeem for Amazon and PayPal purchases (0.8 cents per mile): Link your Amazon account and your PayPal account.
- Redeem for cash back (0.5 cents per mile): You may want to avoid this option due to its low value.
How to redeem Capital One miles at a fixed value
First, sign in to your Capital One account and click on your mileage balance. There, you'll see several fixed-value redemption options — you can use your miles for travel, gift cards, cash, Amazon, PayPal and experiences, or transfer them to another account.
Transfer to airline and hotel partners
If you want a higher value for your miles, transferring to partners may be your best bet. Select "Convert rewards" in your account. From here, you can transfer your rewards to more than 15 airline and hotel loyalty programs, with these airline options:
| Program | Transfer ratio |
|---|---|
Aeromexico Rewards | 1:1 |
Air Canada Aeroplan | 1:1 |
Air France-KLM Flying Blue | 1:1 |
Avianca LifeMiles | 1:1 |
British Airways Club | 1:1 |
Cathay Pacific Cathay | 1:1 |
Emirates Skywards | 4:3 |
Etihad Guest | 1:1 |
EVA Air Infinity MileageLands | 4:3 |
Finnair Plus | 1:1 |
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank | 4:3 |
JetBlue TrueBlue | 5:3 |
Qantas Frequent Flyer | 1:1 |
Qatar Airways Privilege Club | 1:1 |
Singapore KrisFlyer | 1:1 |
TAP Miles&Go | 1:1 |
Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles | 1:1 |
Virgin Red | 1:1 |
Here's an overview of the program's hotel transfer partners:
| Program | Transfer ratio |
|---|---|
Accor Live Limitless | 2:1 |
Choice Privileges | 1:1 |
I Prefer Hotel Rewards (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) | 1:2 |
Wyndham Rewards | 1:1 |
Maximizing Capital One's airline transfer partners
In our January 2026 valuations, TPG values Capital One miles at 1.85 cents apiece, thanks to the value you can get by transferring to a handful of partner programs.
Air Canada Aeroplan
Air Canada's loyalty program, Aeroplan, has long been one of the most popular options for booking Star Alliance awards, especially in premium cabins.
Sweet spots include United Airlines flights under 500 miles in economy class, starting at just 6,000 Aeroplan points. Or, how about business class to Western Europe from the Northeast starting at 60,000 Aeroplan points?
Air France-KLM Flying Blue
Flying Blue offers flights to Europe on Air France or KLM, regardless of origin or destination (including connections), from as little as:
- 25,000 miles in economy
- 40,000 miles in premium economy
- 60,000 miles in business class
Related: Is KLM premium economy worth it on the 787 Dreamliner?
Finnair Plus
You might never plan to travel to Finland or Northern Europe, but Finnair Plus is a great choice for your Capital One miles, thanks to its membership in the Oneworld alliance.
Finnair Plus offers domestic flights anywhere within the continental U.S. and Canada on Alaska Airlines for just 11,000 Avios and to Hawaii for just 13,500 Avios in economy class. Whether you're looking to fly within the Pacific Northwest or across the country, this can be an excellent deal for many thousands of miles of distance flown, plus minimal fees, taxes and surcharges.
Transferring Capital One miles to hotels
Transferring your Capital One miles to Accor Live Limitless at a 2:1 ratio could be an appealing option if you plan on staying at an Accor property, including one of its higher-end Fairmont hotels. The program uses a fixed-value redemption scheme where you can redeem 2,000 points for a 40-euro (about $47) discount on your hotel stay. Since you'd need to transfer 4,000 Capital One miles to get 2,000 ALL points, the transfer will give you a slightly higher redemption value (about 1.18 cents per point).
I Prefer Hotel Rewards is a more under-the-radar loyalty program, but it can provide excellent value. Though it doesn't have as large a portfolio as some of the more well-known brands, you can stay at luxury boutique properties around the world at a good deal. For example, to stay at a castle in Ireland, instead of it costing 50,000 I Prefer points per night, you could transfer just 25,000 Capital One miles to your I Prefer account.
How to earn Capital One miles
Here are the six Capital One cards that earn Capital One miles:
| Card | Annual fee | Welcome offer | Notable perks |
|---|---|---|---|
$95 | Limited-time offer: Enjoy $250 to use on Capital One Travel in your first cardholder year, plus earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. | 2 miles per dollar spent on purchases, no foreign transaction fees and a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit (up to $120 every four years) | |
$395 | Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. | 2 miles per dollar spent on purchases, no foreign transaction fees, a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit (up to $120 every four years), extended warranty protection, a Priority Pass Select membership, Capital One Lounge access and 10,000 annual bonus miles | |
$395 | Earn 150,000 bonus miles after spending $30,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. | 2 miles per dollar spent on purchases, a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit (up to $120 every four years), 10,000 annual bonus miles and an annual $300 Capital One Business Travel credit to use through the Capital One Business Travel portal | |
$0 | Earn 20,000 bonus miles after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. | 1.25 miles per dollar spent on all purchases | |
$0 introductory annual fee the first year, then $95 | Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $4,500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. | 2 miles per dollar spent on all purchases | |
$0 | Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $4,500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. | 1.5 miles per dollar spent on all purchases and free employee cards |
The information for the Capital One Spark Miles Select for Business has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Related: Best Capital One credit cards
Bottom line
Capital One miles have become super valuable, thanks to new transfer partners and improved transfer ratios. Miles transfer to most airline partners at a 1:1 ratio, which is phenomenal, considering the limited-time welcome offer for the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. Plus, you'll receive a $250 Capital One Travel credit to use during your first year.
With 15-plus transfer partners, Capital One offers one of the most flexible transferable currencies. The beauty of Capital One miles lies in combining transfer partner redemptions with fixed-value redemptions to suit your travel needs.
For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the benefits may be provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.