Should you buy that flight with cash or frequent flyer points? As a general rule of thumb, points are worth 1-2 cents per point. If a flight will cost you $1,000 or 50,000 points, go ahead and use the points (which are worth max of $1,000; $.02 x 50,000). Converting at 2 cents per point is quite good.
International flights often offer the best value, but sometimes you have to decide if avoiding spending a lot of cash is worth not getting the best deal on your miles. For example, a round-trip business class seat on United from Newark, NJ to Hanoi, Vietnam costs approximately $4,800 or 360K mileage points + $100 (travel in Oct ‘2022). That puts the point value at 1.3 cents ($4,800-$100)/360,000 points = $.013 per point. Not great, but it does keep $4,800 in your pocket. Taking one big trip with miles will get you big savings now, versus an alternative that may involve making several much shorter trips over a number of years (as often point travel is not available).
Many of us simply get frustrated not being able to use our miles and get tempted to use them on even low-cost flights. Don’t, for example, spend 100,000 points ($1000-$2000) on a $500 trip. What to do instead?
Check websites like www.cashformymiles, www.sellmymiles and www.thepointsking and others to get a sense for the value for your miles, and even sell them.
But be careful. It’s always better to use for yourself or your family than to risk selling to a third party. Airlines forbid selling miles. And while point buyers are careful to prevent airlines from finding out, there is always risk.
