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Earning and Using Airline Points

June 21, 2017
5 min read
IMG Alaska Airlines first class seats featured
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Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.

Interested in using your airline miles and points, but not sure how to go about it? Have you already earned tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of them and want to learn the best ways to use them for their maximum value? See posts written by our highly knowledgeable team of points industry veterans, selected specifically to help you learn how to earn airline miles and use them like a pro.

Just want to know...

... What points are worth and if purchasing points is worth it? See our updated Points Valuations
... The best airline & hotel transfer partners? See: 10 Most Valuable Transfer Partners for Flights & Hotels
... The best ways to fly to Asia in business class? See: Top 8 Ways to Fly to Asia in Business
... The best ways to get to Europe in business class? See: Top 10 Ways to Fly to Europe in Business
... The most valuable airline credit cards? See which American, Delta and United card is best.

Alaska Airlines - Mileage Plan

See: all things Alaska

Using Points: want to use your Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan points? See this post:


American Airlines - AAdvantage

Earning Points: Want to earn AAdvantage miles? See this post:

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Using Points: Want to use your AAdvantage points? See this post:


British Airways - Avios

See: all things British Airways

Earning Points: Want to earn Avios? See this post:

  • Earn 100k British Airways Avios

Using Points: Want to use your British Airways Avios points? See these posts:


Delta Air Lines - SkyMiles

See: all things Delta and SkyMiles

Have a Delta Companion Certificate and want to use it? See this post:

Earning Points: Want to earn Delta SkyMiles? See this post:

Using Points: Want to use your Delta SkyMiles? See these posts:


JetBlue Airways - TrueBlue

See: all things JetBlue

Earning Points: Want to earn TrueBlue points? See this post:

Using Points: Want to use your TrueBlue points? See this post:


Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards

See: all things Southwest

Earning Points: Frequent Southwest flyer? Want to earn a Companion Pass? See this post:

Using Points: Want to use your Rapid Rewards? See this post:


United Airlines - MileagePlus

See: all things United

Frequent United flyer? Want to earn United points? See this post:

Using Points: Want to use your United Miles? See these posts:


Virgin America - Elevate

See: All things Virgin America

Virgin America will be merging with Alaska Airlines, and Alaska's Mileage Plan will take over. Here's what you need to know:


Can't find what you're looking for? Check out our guides or travel resources page. Still nothing? Shoot us an email and we'll do our best to get back to you: info@thepointsguy.com. If you'd like to see something added to this FAQ, send us a Facebook message with what you think we're missing. If your request is popular with other readers we'll add it!

TPG featured card

Best for businesses with high spending
TPG Editor‘s Rating
4.5 / 5
Go to review

Rewards

2 - 10X miles

Intro offer

LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles

Annual Fee

$395

Recommended Credit

740-850
Excellent

Why We Chose It

The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)

Pros

  • The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
  • In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
  • Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.

Cons

  • The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
  • Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
  • LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
  • Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
  • Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
  • With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
  • Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
  • Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
  • Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
  • Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
  • Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
  • This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month
Apply for Capital One Venture X Business
at Capital One's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees
Best for businesses with high spending
TPG Editor‘s Rating
4.5 / 5
Go to review

Rewards Rate

2X miles2 miles per dollar on every purchase
5X miles5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
10X miles10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Business Travel
  • Intro Offer

    LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles
  • Annual Fee

    $395
  • Recommended Credit

    740-850
    Excellent

Why We Chose It

The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)

Pros

  • The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
  • In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
  • Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.

Cons

  • The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
  • Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
  • LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
  • Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
  • Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
  • With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
  • Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
  • Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
  • Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
  • Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
  • Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
  • This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month