The World’s Best Airline Rewards Programs

Airline loyalty programs are multi-billion dollar businesses, but — perhaps surprisingly — the majority of the points travelers earn and spend on flights don’t actually come from flying. In fact, most of those points are earned through credit card programs and other non-flying methods, and the revenue airlines earn from their credit card partners far exceeds the profits they earn from operating flights. 

These partnerships aren’t just good for the airlines and credit cards. They are also good news for travelers, as they mean travelers don’t have to be frequent flyers to earn points they can leverage for travel. Consumers also have more choices than ever when it comes to both how they earn points and how they get value from those points. 

The downside of all these options is that travelers who don’t have expert-level knowledge of the various programs can be left confused about which one is best for their needs and travel style — especially when it comes to redeeming those points for flights.

“Each program has an elite status (recognition) component and a mileage-earning and redemption (reward) component, and these are really two separate things.

You may want to earn status with your carrier of choice, but may prefer earning miles with a different program when it comes to positioning yourself for the award that you want. The best airline for your day-to-day travels may not offer the best mileage program for your award trips! 

You may do better focusing your credit card spending, online shopping purchases, and other mileage activity elsewhere.”

Gary Leff, View From The WIng

Of course, we know everyone has their favorites, and the particulars of a person’s situation will impact which program provides them the most value. Just because we’ve ranked a program at a certain number does not necessarily mean it’s going to be the best for every individual. In short: Your mileage may vary. 

Ultimately, we want you to have confidence that your everyday loyalty choices are setting you up to successfully navigate a system that often feels intentionally opaque.

Whether it’s what credit card to use or where to credit miles earned from a flight, travelers can use these rankings to determine the best airline rewards programs for their needs.

The 10 best airline rewards programs

Consumers — particularly in the United States — have tremendous choice in what rewards they earn through their everyday activities.

Our members have made it clear they desire flexibility in travel, and while many have a preferred airline, that airline does not always fly the routes or times that a person is looking for.

We started three years ago partnering with a wide array of high-value airline programs to give our members the ability to redeem their points for their favorite airline or their favorite route, allowing them to fly virtually anywhere in the world on virtually any airline using the points they earn from paying rent and spending in their neighborhood.

BRANDT SMALLWOOD, BILT CHIEF STRATEGY OFFICER

The top worldwide programs excel at providing value for customers who engage with their extensive networks of financial and commercial partners, building brand loyalty and traveler awareness even for those travelers who have yet to fly on the host airline directly.

Flying Blue, the loyalty program for Air France and KLM, is the top-scoring program on our list and had exceptional performance across the board. Flying Blue received top marks in nearly every category and is on par with the global average when it comes to change fees/policies. 

With a focus on driving revenue to the overall business through loyalty engagement, Flying Blue has made significant adjustments to its loyalty strategy that have led to great redemption rates, extensive partnerships that make it easy to earn miles (even without ever boarding an Air France or KLM flight), and flexible routing rules that make it easy to reach destinations worldwide. 

Additionally, consumers can transfer points from all of the major credit card points currencies to Flying Blue (American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi, and Marriott Bonvoy), which makes it easy to amass enough points for a flight even if your spending is spread among programs.   

“Flying Blue has made a number of enhancements that benefit consumers, with a goal of providing great value when you transfer and redeem points for travel with Air France, KLM, or our 40+ airline partners.

Offering an attractive program allows Flying Blue to broaden its reach, captivating travelers and fostering loyalty, even among those who have yet to experience our airlines firsthand.”

BENJAMIN LIPSEY, SVP Customer Loyalty, President, Flying Blue

United Airlines MileagePlus has consistently proven to be a strong loyalty program when it comes to giving members access to the world. Thanks to United’s Star Alliance partnerships and its own extensive route network, members enjoy points redemption options to some of the most far-flung destinations on the globe. Over the last two decades, I have immensely enjoyed traveling across six continents thanks to United MileagePlus and helped countless others do the same.

With the recent introduction of miles pooling, United has made it easier than ever before for families and friends to create priceless memories together. If there is anywhere in the world you wish to visit, chances are strong that your United miles can take you there.

MATTHEW KLINT, LIVE AND LET’S FLY

MileagePlus miles are easy to earn through a host of partner and co-branded credit cards, and they’ve implemented dynamic award pricing in a way that can actually be beneficial to casual travelers — particularly those tied to school schedules and fixed dates.

While a nonstop business class flight from Los Angeles to Sydney over peak dates may be priced at 300,000 miles each way — a price that hard-core miles nerds would certainly balk at paying — it’s still a fraction of what the other US programs would charge (AAdvantage and SkyMiles are both 400k+ miles each-way on this route in peak season), plus MileagePlus offers close to last-seat availability on many dates.

Virgin Atlantic has some of the best economy redemption rates of the programs we evaluated, and a commitment to making seats available for award redemptions on every flight. Combined with the range of US credit card programs they partner with (American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt, Capital One, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy), this earned Flying Club a place in the top five.

The big caveat: Carrier-imposed fuel surcharges are extremely high in premium cabins, so travelers will want to budget or supplement with a cash-back card accordingly. However, the program particularly shines when it comes to offering space on flights that travelers are most interested in; we consistently see economy flights from New York to London for under 9,000 points per person, with availability for the entire family.

Virgin Flying Club has taken some real steps forward in the last couple of years. By guaranteeing 12 seats for Virgin Points on every flight, every day, you have far more chances of getting the flight you want. 2023 also saw a push into leisure routes with the Maldives, Dubai, and Turks and Caicos launching. 

Just as importantly, by finally joining an airline alliance — SkyTeam — your Virgin Points can now be used on 18 alliance partners as well as good value long-standing partners such as ANA. Taxes can be high in premium cabins, but the trade-off is that seats are available, and partner airlines offer multiple opportunities for those who want lower fee options. 

– ROB BURGESS, HEAD FOR POINTS

Some partner bookings need to be made over the phone (and the Flying Club website doesn’t always make it clear when this is the case), and while joining SkyTeam has increased partner availability, Virgin Atlantic doesn’t have quite as many overall redemption options as the higher-ranking programs on our list.

American Airlines AAdvantage established the first modern airline loyalty program back in 1981 and continues to offer a strong program. Depending on travel patterns, American’s footprint and strategy mean that AAdvantage could be a better focus program for some consumers than the higher-ranked programs on our list.

American Airlines stands out as one of the best loyalty programs globally, thanks to its excellent redemption rates for Oneworld partner airlines such as Qatar Airways, Japan Airlines, and Cathay Pacific. The ability to book experiences like Qatar Airways Qsuites, renowned as one of the top business class products, for just 70,000 AAdvantage Miles one-way from the U.S. to the Middle East shows the incredible value of American Airlines’ loyalty program.

American Airlines also provides consumer-friendly award search options, which further enhances the value and usefulness of its loyalty program. Their quick and reliable award search functionalities, coupled with the handy award calendar, empower customers to maximize their American Airlines miles effectively.

– MAX DO, MAX MILES POINTS

While the program is great overall, it is more difficult to earn AAdvantage miles than with many other programs. You can earn AAdvantage miles directly with their co-branded cards and savings account partners, but they don’t work with transferable points programs outside of Marriott Bonvoy (their partnership with Bilt Rewards ended in June). 

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan receives less attention than the other major US programs, possibly due to the West Coast-heavy route network. But the program itself is solid, with great availability on a range of partner airlines and the ability to add a complimentary stopover of more than 24 hours on award tickets — even on one-way trips.

I’m a big fan of the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Program because of their wide range of partnerships with many of the world’s top airlines — including Oneworld’s leading carriers, like Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, and Qatar Airways, but also unique independent partnerships of their own, such as Fiji Airways and Starlux Airlines.

I’ve personally redeemed countless Alaska miles over the years for amazing travel experiences with all of these airlines, regularly topping up my mileage balance during Alaska’s frequent Buy Miles events — another fantastic hallmark of the program.

– RICKY ZHANG, PRINCE OF TRAVEL

The downsides? Overall redemption rates are less competitive than other top programs (though this can vary drastically based on route and partner), and the miles can be harder to earn as they have limited transfer partners (Bilt and Marriott Bonvoy), though the new Bilt Rewards partnership provides for many more earning opportunities.

Qatar Airways serves a dozen US cities, offering flights to over 90 countries through its Doha hub, including many international destinations that would otherwise require multiple connections for most US travelers. The route network alone makes Privilege Club a solid option for those with more breadth in their travel patterns, and points prices are competitive — even the “Flexi” awards, which are roughly twice as costly as the “Saver” awards, stack up well against the lower-ranking programs on this list.   

Having recently been named the world’s best airline for the 8th time, securing the top spot as the best airline rewards program in the Middle East by point.me is a proud achievement and a valuable addition to Qatar Airways Privilege Club. This recognition reinforces our position as leaders in customer loyalty, driven by our vision to offer our members rewards, benefits, and experiences that are unparalleled in the industry. We remain committed to staying ahead and continuously bringing new ideas and innovations to our Privilege Club members.

– THIERRY ANTINORI, CHIEF COMMERCIAL OFFICER, QATAR AIRWAYS 

On top of that, Qatar Airways is part of International Airlines Group (IAG), and Privilege Club participates in the broader Avios system. This means travelers can not only redeem on Oneworld and other Privilege Club partners, but they can also move points between the various IAG Loyalty programs to take advantage of the best flight options across Qatar Airways, British Airways, Aer Lingus, Finnair, and Iberia. They can also transfer points from American Express, Citi, and Marriott Bonvoy.

JetBlue TrueBlue has a host of traveler-friendly benefits, including a no-expiration policy and their Points Pooling program which makes it easier for families to earn and redeem points. They also offer competitive pricing on popular East Coast routes, including last-minute deals between New York and top destinations in Florida and Mexico, sometimes for as few as 8,000 points per person.

What propels TrueBlue into our top 10 list, however, is the addition of meaningful redemptions on partner airlines. JetBlue TrueBlue has long offered limited opportunities for using points on Hawaiian Airlines, but the addition of partnerships with Qatar Airways and Etihad Guest has given TrueBlue a global reach — a real win for travelers. Like some of the other top-rated programs on this list, TrueBlue also accepts transfer points from the majority of the major credit card programs, including American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy.

Which airline has the best rewards program in each region?

While we evaluated programs across the globe, we limited our list to loyalty programs that are reasonably accessible to US-based travelers or those who can engage with major United States financial institutions. That said, there are regional differences between loyalty programs — the majority of programs in Asia and Oceania have high change fees, for example. Here are our rankings for the best programs in each geographic region.

Best airline loyalty programs in North America

Best airline loyalty programs in Europe

Best airline loyalty programs by category

Travelers have lots of options when it comes to airline rewards programs, and it’s fair to be picky. We’ve identified nine key factors that make up the overall value of a program so potential members can fully evaluate which loyalty programs are best for them based on what qualities they value the most.

Knowing the world’s best airline rewards programs could help determine where to credit miles for an upcoming paid flight, which credit card moves to the front of a wallet, or even what online portal to select on the next shopping trip. By sharing our rankings and breakdowns, we hope to help consumers make more informed and educated decisions — and make it a bit easier to take that next trip! 

Best airline frequent flyer programs for ease of earning miles

From fueling your car to celebrating home team touchdowns, airline loyalty programs are constantly adding new ways of earning rewards without stepping foot on a plane. Combined with the tremendous range of points-earning credit cards, US consumers have plentiful choices.

All else being equal, we recommend a card that earns flexible travel rewards for most travelers. This allows you to earn points now and transfer them to an airline when you’re ready to redeem them, giving you maximum flexibility. 

These programs offer the best mix of earnings options outside of flying; focusing on cards and activities that allow you to accumulate or transfer points to one of these programs will give you the most opportunities to acquire enough points for a key trip.

Best airline frequent flyer programs for redemption rates

There are so many factors that go into determining how many points or miles will be needed for a trip, including which airlines service your local airport. While point.me can show you both recent estimates and real-time points prices for your specific situation, as a general rule these airline reward programs offer the most competitive redemption rates across the board.

Best airline frequent flyer programs for availability on partner airlines

As airline loyalty programs have matured, we’ve seen a shift from award inventory being universally shared across an entire alliance to separate strategic agreements with more tailored partnership terms. 

For example, Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan will essentially “purchase” flights on some of their partners — allowing access to additional inventory that would not typically be open for award redemptions — albeit at a points premium.

Best airline frequent flyer programs for ease of booking

While extremely frequent flyers may be experts at navigating an airline’s app or have an exclusive phone number they can call when redeeming miles, for most travelers, being able to book flights using points in a simple and straightforward manner is key.

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, for example, received an average score due to the difficulty around booking award tickets for a family (each passenger must be pre-registered with the program, and there are multiple authentication steps). 

Delta SkyMiles and JetBlue True Blue were among the programs receiving top marks in this category, as not only are their websites and apps user-friendly, but their phone agents are well-trained and can ticket awards efficiently.

Most airline frequent flyer programs offer expanded availability on their own airline

The majority of airline rewards programs now offer additional award inventory to members of their own programs. While, in theory, it would be preferable for programs to provide equal access to their partners, that’s not a broadly popular sentiment amongst airline programs presently. In the current environment, this matters to travelers because own-airline inventory creates additional opportunities for redeeming points, even if the points fares are a bit higher.

For example, Air Canada Aeroplan dynamically prices awards on flights operated by Air Canada. While these can be expensive compared to partner awards, having the option to redeem points versus paying cash is beneficial to everyday travelers.

Best airline frequent flyer programs for routing rules

While most trips may be simple out-and-back adventures, there are times when travelers need more creative itineraries, such as when traveling to or from a more remote area, connecting to an airport with limited service, adding a stopover along the way, or just taking a cruise that starts in one city and ends in another. These programs received the highest marks for granting flexibility in where and how people construct their itineraries.

• Air Canada Aeroplan
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
• Flying Blue

Airline frequent flyer programs that allow travelers to hold awards

While most credit card companies offer instant transfers to the bulk of their airline reward partners, the promised transfer time is often 24-28 hours. Technical issues are rare — but not non-existent — so we always recommend placing an award on hold before making the transfer when that’s an option. 

On top of that, being able to place an award flight on hold while finalizing other aspects of the trip can be incredibly valuable for complicated or high-dollar trips such as family vacations. These programs received extra points for their customer-friendly hold policies:

Best airline frequent flyer programs for customer service quality

The following programs have invested in the customer service experience, which leads to short hold times, agents that are empowered to solve problems, and efficient resolution of problems, including flight cancellations:

In contrast, some loyalty programs, including those associated with airlines that are otherwise renowned for their onboard customer experience, fall short when it comes to their call centers.

Twenty-seven programs on our list received poor marks in this category, primarily due to how difficult they make it for customers to get help when a scheduled flight changes or is canceled prior to departure.

Best airline frequent flyer programs for change fees/policies

Plans change! While reward tickets are more flexible across the board than paid tickets, there can still be costs associated with changing or canceling your trip. These programs have the most generous policies, allowing travelers to redeposit their miles and start fresh with no penalty:

Methodology and data

The point.me picks for the Best Airline Rewards Programs of 2024 are the loyalty programs that offer the most value for consumers — even those who don’t fly frequently. Our ranking factors consider how much money has to be spent to earn a free flight, the points charged by the program on various routes, and how easy (or difficult) it is to book an award flight, along with other customer-friendly considerations.

“Getting real value from airline loyalty points is often significantly harder for passengers than it needs to be. This report drew on our team’s collective travel expertise and deep data-led insight from our reward metasearch engine to take everyday travelers behind the curtain, unraveling the intricacies of reward programs to spotlight where the true value lies.”

Adam Morvitz, CEO & Founder, point.me

How we chose the programs to include

We selected frequent flyer programs that are accessible to US-based travelers; essentially, those that partner with major United States financial institutions or global hotel loyalty programs, including American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One Miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou, Accor Live Limitless, and Marriott Bonvoy. 

Individual loyalty programs were not notified of their inclusion until just prior to this report’s publication. The team at point.me evaluated a total of 62 worldwide programs when ranking the Best Airline Rewards Programs.

Calculating the rankings

We used a mix of quantitative and qualitative data to evaluate aspects of each program as of August 1, 2024. A computed overall score was then determined for each of the airline loyalty programs.

Categories are weighted based on their impact on the everyday traveler. Scoring within a category is determined by relative calibration, with a penalty for being below the average (e.g. a ‘Poor’ customer service score rewards negative points in that category). For 2024, a maximum of 100 points were possible for each program based on the following factors:

Ease of earning miles (25% weight)

To determine the ease of earning the miles required for a trip, point.me analyzed the potential points awarded by co-branded credit cards in the United States, along with those of the major transferable credit card currencies, against the Bureau of Economic Analysis statistics on personal consumption expenditures. This provided benchmarks for US consumer spending and the average number of miles people could earn from non-flight activity. 

We also considered the relative frequency and ratio of credit card transfer bonuses and mileage sales promotions. 

Redemption rates (20% weight)

We analyzed the outputs of the 8,000,000+ searches conducted by everyday travelers on point.me in 2023 to determine the average number of miles required for a free round-trip flight on the most popular medium and long-haul routes.

Additionally, point.me considered median prices of short-haul flights from an airline’s hub or focus city (e.g., British Airways flights from London; Hawaiian Airlines flights from Honolulu) to account for regional variations and situations where travelers have fewer choices.

Finally, we compared the points programs charged for a given flight with worldwide fare data from Cirium; a loyalty program had to offer a redemption value of at least $0.01 USD/mile in order to receive positive points in this category. 

Availability on partner airlines (15% weight)

The best travel rewards programs have alliances and partnerships that expand the reach of their primary airline. These alliances include Oneworld, SkyTeam, and Star Alliance, though many programs have additional partnerships.

While there are agreements around award space, programs have significant discretion as to what partner flights they make available to members of their own loyalty program and under what conditions. We analyzed 430,673,800 of our point.me award flight results to determine the % of potential partner award space that was available to each loyalty program. 

Ease of booking (12.5% weight)

Scores in this category were based on the accuracy of online flight information and pricing, along with the requirements to ticket a reward flight.

The point.me team initiated reward flight bookings for local and international itineraries for each of the 62 programs and used a rubric to determine the relative ease of booking. Points were subtracted for programs that required phone or in-person ticketing.

Expanded availability on own airline (7.5% weight)

This is a binary score. A program either offers expanded availability to members of the loyalty program or it does not.

Routing rules (5% weight)

We analyzed the fine print for each of the 62 programs, including details on allowed segments, connection points, and layover times. A scoring rubric awarded points for airline reward programs that allow stopovers of more than 24 hours for no additional charge, flexibility in routing, or the ability to book one-way and open-jaw itineraries. 

Ability to hold awards (5% weight)

This is a binary score. A program either allows members to place flights on hold for an interval while plans are finalized and points are transferred, or it does not.

Customer service quality (5% weight)

To determine customer service quality across the top airline rewards programs, we analyzed records from 5,000 point.me concierge bookings in 2023. A scoring rubric considered the number of calls required to resolve the situation, the time spent on hold or waiting for an agent, and whether or not the customer was ultimately accommodated. 

Change fees/policies (5% weight)

We analyzed the cost for a family of four to make changes to an award flight booking more than 24 hours prior to departure. Service center fees are fairly standard, and on average, a family can expect to spend $100-$200 to change their reward flights. The programs receiving top marks allowed miles to be redeposited for no fee or new flights to be booked for only the difference in miles. 

Non-factors

In determining the world’s best rewards programs, we looked at factors that impact all travelers, regardless of airline status. This decision was made based on the stated airline industry desire to award more miles to non-flying activity, which levels the playing field for consumers as well.

As such, we explicitly did not consider tier benefits, in-flight status levels, or other factors tied to high participation in the traditional loyalty side of these programs.

Why point.me 

Loyalty programs have been around for decades, especially in the airline industry. However, booking award travel can feel cumbersome, like you’re jumping through multiple hoops just to book a flight. This is where point.me comes in.

We’re the first company to offer a tool that makes it easier to use miles and points for air travel. Not only does our tool show you flight options that are bookable using your points, but we also guide you step-by-step on how to book the flight yourself. And if you need a little help, we have a team of experts available to guide you. 

The World’s Best Airline Rewards Programs