Frequent flier miles can unlock amazing travel opportunities, turning everyday spending into worldwide adventures. Whether you’re aiming for a lie-flat business-class seat on an international flight or want to take the whole family on a getaway, miles can make travel more luxurious and more affordable.
But navigating the world of frequent flier miles can be complex. Airlines have intricate systems for award bookings, often with limited availability and varying redemption values. Taxes, fees, and expiration policies can further complicate the process. Without careful planning, it’s easy for travelers to stumble into pitfalls that can diminish the value of their hard-earned rewards.
The good news is there are myriad strategies for making the most of your miles. We polled eight points-and-miles experts on what to avoid when earning and redeeming air miles.
Failing to plan ahead
Airlines allocate a limited number of award seats for each flight, and the most desirable routes and dates often fill up quickly. Waiting until the last minute to book an award flight can leave you with fewer options—or none at all.
“As soon as you know your travel dates, start searching and book your flight,” says Jessica Bohorquez, founder of Points by J, a travel rewards blog. “Waiting can mean missing out.”
The ideal window for award availability is nine months to a year in advance for international travel or for peak seasons like holidays. If your preferred travel dates aren’t available, set up price alerts on websites like Google Flights, Hopper, or Kayak to monitor changes.
Ignoring redemption value
“A big mistake I see people make when redeeming their airline miles is not realizing their true value,” says Max Do, founder of Max Miles Points, a website offering courses about how to maximize points. He adds that many travelers use their miles for low-value redemptions, such as inexpensive domestic flights. “The key is to treat your miles like a currency—one with varying value depending on how and when you use it. For example, redeeming miles for a premium international flight or a more expensive ticket often provides far better value than using them for low-cost flights. By strategically choosing high-value experiences, you can stretch your airline miles further and save significantly more on travel.”
Similarly, it’s important to note that not all points are worth the same.
“Each airline’s miles have a different value, and 10,000 Delta miles aren’t worth as much as 10,000 Alaska miles or 10,000 American miles,” says Julian Khell, founder and CEO of Points Path, a browser extension that inserts the points prices next to Google Flight’s cash prices to tell users which is the better deal. “So unlike cash, you can’t compare points prices directly across airlines because the lowest mileage cost isn’t necessarily the best deal.”
Khell recommends using valuation charts at websites like NerdWallet to calculate how much each flight’s price in miles is actually worth.
Overlooking partner airlines
Many travelers choose to redeem miles with the airline they earned the miles from, but partner airlines can provide better availability or lower mileage requirements. That’s because partner airlines can access different inventory or impose lower fees, offering better overall value.
Gary Leff is a points expert and founder of View from the Wing blog, which covers frequent flier news and award travel. In his experience, he’s found that some of the best international business and first-class award tickets come from partner airlines, “where the available seats offered are almost always only those seats expected not to sell.”
Shop around to find the award charts and availability in your airline’s alliance or with its partners. For instance, if you’re planning a trip to Europe and have United miles, not only can you book a United flight, but you can book with United’s European partners, which include Lufthansa, Swiss, TAP Air Portugal, Austrian, and Turkish Airlines. Looking at availability on flights with airline partners can unlock unique routes and premium-cabin availability.
“To efficiently find award flights and instructions on which airline loyalty programs get you the best deal on those flights, try a service like Point.me,” Leff recommends. (Point.me is a fee-based search engine for award flights across 30 loyalty programs, including those of major credit cards.)
Refusing to be flexible with dates and destinations
Airlines will let you book any seat with cash, but most don’t offer the same flexibility with miles or points. It’s not uncommon to find that there isn’t an award seat available on your preferred date or route.
“That doesn’t mean you should give up, but you need to set appropriate expectations,” says Spencer Howard, an award-travel expert and founder of Straight to the Points, a website that helps people find premium awards flights. “However, the more flexible you are, the more likely you are to find a way to use your miles and get great value out of them.”
You’ll usually get better award value on flights that are expected to be lightly booked, according to Leff. Those offers are not often available on flights that are expected to sell out, because the airlines prefer not to give up a possible cash sale.
“It’s tough to find award tickets at peak travel times like Thanksgiving domestically or even summer Europe,” Leff says. “You get the best deals traveling where and when other people aren’t and by also traveling at unpopular times.”
Kheel suggests that if you can’t find a good flight with your miles to the specific overseas city you want to visit, you might be able to find one to an alternate nearby location and then you can get to your final destination by taking a train or tacking on a short flight paid with cash.
Hoarding miles
Sitting on treasure troves of miles might do more harm than good. The reality is that points devalue over time. Airlines tweak award charts and loyalty programs constantly. (United, Alaska Airlines, and British Airways are recent examples.) Unused points aren’t worth a thing.
Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet, a credit card education site, says, “Sure, the thrill of squeezing every last ounce of value out of your points can feel like a game worth winning. But obsessing over the ‘perfect’ redemption is often more stressful than it’s worth. The best redemption is the one that saves you from spending actual cash when you need it most.”
Not leveraging stopovers and open-jaw tickets
Many frequent flier programs allow stopovers or open-jaw tickets, enabling you to visit multiple destinations on one award ticket. Overlooking these options can mean missing out on turning a single trip into a multi-city adventure (without requiring additional miles).
Cashing in on nonflights
Howard says that one of the biggest mistakes he sees people make with their airline miles is redeeming them for gift cards and merchandise. “Airlines and banks provide tons of options for redeeming points and miles, but flights are where you’ll get the most bang for your buck,” Howard says. “Remember, just because they offer you something doesn’t mean it’s good!”
Letting your airline miles expire
Some airlines have mileage expiration policies. American Airlines AAdvantage miles, for example, expire after 24 months of inactivity.
“The good news is it’s easy to keep them active—just earn or redeem miles at least once every two years,” says Bohorquez. “A simple way? Use the airline’s shopping portal to earn a few miles.” Taking advantage of dining programs or co-branded credit cards associated with the airline is another way to keep your account active and extend the life of your miles.
Tori Dunlap, host of the Financial Feminist podcast and founder of Her First $100K, a financial literacy brand, says she recommends “regularly checking the terms and conditions of your loyalty program. The same way you keep track of your bills, set reminders or mark calendar dates so you don’t lose sight of when your miles are due to expire.”
