Loyalty programs are huge moneymakers for airlines and hotel companies because they support multiple revenue streams. One of these revenue streams is selling airline miles and hotel points directly to travelers.
Programs can get an immediate cash injection by selling points and miles as travelers prepay for future travel. However, as a traveler, keep in mind that it generally only makes sense to purchase points and miles when a discount or bonus offer is available.
This roundup of points and miles sales walks you through some of the best current offers on airline miles and hotel points, including some that may be targeted.
But first, when does it make sense to buy points and miles?
Should you buy points and miles?
There are a couple of things to consider before taking advantage of points and miles sales.
First, buying points and miles only makes sense for certain travelers and at certain times. It’s generally a much better deal to earn them for “free” through welcome bonuses tied to travel rewards credit cards.
However, buying them during good promotions can make sense for those who have tapped out their credit card options and can get high value from their rewards. It can also make sense when you need more points to lock in a specific redemption.
We generally only recommend buying points or miles if you have an immediate use in mind. In that case, the purchase might save you thousands of dollars. However, we don’t recommend stockpiling your loyalty rewards, as programs frequently undergo unexpected devaluations.
With that, here are some current promotions for buying points and miles.
Daily Newsletter
Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter
Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts
Related: What are points and miles worth? TPG’s current valuations
Promotions for buying airline points and miles
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- Current promotion: 50% to 70% bonus miles
- Purchase rate: As low as 1.74 cents per mile
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 1.5 cents per mile
- End date: June 26
- Buy Alaska miles
With Alaska’s tiered bonus, you can get 50% more miles when you purchase at least 3,000, 60% more when you purchase at least 20,000 and 70% more on 40,000-plus miles. With the maximum 70% bonus, you’ll pay roughly 1.74 cents per mile after taxes. Though this is slightly above our current valuation, it could potentially save you money if you already have a high-value redemption in mind and have confirmed award availability.
American Airlines AAdvantage
- Current promotion: 10% to 40% discount
- Purchase rate: As low as 2.25 cents per mile
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 1.5 cents per mile
- End date: Unknown
- Buy AAdvantage miles
American Airlines AAdvantage is offering up to a 40% discount on miles, depending on how many you buy. You must purchase at least 6,000 miles to get the lowest 10% discount, and you’ll get the maximum discount of 40% when you buy 151,000 miles or more, dropping the price to 2.25 cents per mile. This is significantly higher than TPG’s current valuation of American miles, but buying American miles for specific high-end awards could still make sense.
Avianca LifeMiles
- Current promotion: Up to 155% bonus miles
- Purchase rate: As low as 1.3 cents per mile
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 1.4 cents per mile
- End date: June 14
- Buy Avianca LifeMiles
Avianca LifeMiles has one of the best offers on buying miles right now, but you’ll need to act fast. You’ll get between 135% and 155% bonus miles when you purchase at least 1,000 miles by June 14. The highest bonus, which requires buying at least 51,000 miles (before the bonus), lowers the price to 1.3 cents per mile — not a bad deal compared to TPG’s valuation of 1.4 cents per mile.
Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (targeted)
- Current promotion: 50% discount
- Purchase rate: As low as 1.5 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 1.3 cents per point
- End date: July 22
- Buy Rapid Rewards points
Southwest is offering summer savings on Rapid Rewards points. These offers may vary, but we’ve seen a 50% discount when you buy at least 7,000 points. The sale price of 1.5 cents per point is still above TPG’s current valuation of 1.3 cents, so purchasing points will only make sense if you’re planning a redemption soon.
United Airlines MileagePlus (targeted)
- Current promotion: Up to 100% bonus miles
- Purchase rate: As low as 1.88 cents per mile
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 1.35 cents per mile
- End date: June 29
- Buy MileagePlus miles
United MileagePlus’ latest sale is targeted, so your offer may be different. The best offer we’ve seen is a 100% bonus when you purchase at least 45,000 miles. You’ll pay 1.88 cents per mile after taxes; this essentially halves the cost per mile — though it’s still well over our valuation. Therefore, we wouldn’t recommend purchasing additional miles unless you have a specific redemption in mind and want to top off your account balance.
Promotions for buying hotel points
Choice Privileges
- Current promotion: Up to 30% off
- Purchase rate: As low as 0.72 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 0.6 cents per point
- End date: June 20
- Buy Choice Privileges points
For a limited time, Choice Privileges members can get a discount of 25% when they purchase at least 8,000 points and 30% when they purchase 18,000 or more. The maximum discount lowers the price to 0.72 cents per point — still higher than TPG’s estimate, so we wouldn’t recommend stocking up on Choice points right now.
Hilton Honors (targeted)
- Current promotion: Up to 100% bonus points
- Purchase rate: As low as 0.5 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 0.5 cents per point
- End date: July 24
- Buy Hilton Honors points
This promotion from Hilton Honors is targeted, but the best we’ve seen is a 100% bonus on purchases of 5,000 points or more. You’ll pay only 0.5 cents per point with this bonus, in line with TPG’s valuations, so it could be a good idea to buy the points you’ll need for your next redemption. For instance, you could purchase the 110,000 points needed for a night at the Grand Wailea Maui, A Waldorf Astoria Resort for only $550 during this promotion — a great deal considering cash rates start around $900.
IHG One Rewards
- Current promotion: 100% bonus points
- Purchase rate: 0.5 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 0.5 cents per point
- End date: June 13
- Buy IHG One Rewards points
IHG One Rewards’ latest promotion is a good deal, but it’s only available for a couple more days. You can get 100% bonus points when you buy at least 11,000 points. This brings the point cost down to 0.5 cents per point — right on par with our valuations, so it might be worth considering. Check out our guide on how you can redeem IHG points for maximum value.
Marriott Bonvoy
- Current promotion: 30% bonus points
- Purchase rate: As low as 0.96 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 0.7 cents per point
- End date: July 16
- Buy Marriott Bonvoy points
With Marriott Bonvoy’s current bonus, you can score 30% extra points when you buy 2,000 points or more. You’ll still pay over 0.9 cents apiece — much higher than our postdevaluation estimate of Marriott points. So, we wouldn’t advise purchasing points in most circumstances.
World of Hyatt
- Current promotion: 20% bonus points
- Purchase rate: 2.2 cents per point
- TPG June 2025 valuation: 1.7 cents per point
- End date: July 21
- Buy World of Hyatt points
World of Hyatt is offering 20% bonus points on purchases of at least 3,000 points. This drops the price to 2.2 cents per point — nothing spectacular compared to our current valuation. We’d only recommend taking advantage of this promotion if you need a few extra points to complete your next redemption.
Which credit card should you use to buy points and miles?
Most of these promotions are processed through Points.com rather than directly by the hotel or airline, so you won’t earn bonus rewards with most travel rewards cards. You’ll want to use an everyday spending card that offers a solid return on nonbonus spending.
The main exception to this rule is American Airlines. This airline reportedly codes mileage purchases as airfare, so you may want to use a credit card that earns bonus miles on airfare for the highest return when buying AAdvantage miles.
Or, if you’re working toward a minimum spending requirement to earn a welcome bonus on a new card, using that card may be the way to go.
Remember that you could incur foreign transaction fees on some cards when buying points or miles from a program abroad. So, you may want to use one of the following cards:
Bottom line
Buying points and miles isn’t always a good idea, but it can make sense in some situations — especially if you can take advantage of a promotion. In most cases, it’s best to have a specific redemption in mind and confirm award availability before considering paying for points and miles.