Many travel points from general rewards credit cards do not expire as long as you keep the card, but hotel points and airline miles do. It might also be difficult to keep track of the policies of each program. Tracking your points, even if it’s just in a simple spreadsheet that you update a few times a year, helps you set goals and ensure you can take that dream trip.
6. Understand the worth of your points
Although it may be difficult to think of points and miles in this way, they are a type of currency. Seeing rewards as actual money can assist you in making the greatest redemption decisions. Several incentive systems value points at an industry-standard penny apiece, making it quite simple to calculate the value of your rewards stockpile:
In such a system, 100,000 points are worth $1,000. The issue with many other reward systems is that point values are not solid. These might vary widely, and their worth can be subjective depending on your objectives.
But, with a little investigation, you can frequently find a “baseline” number, which is the per-point value you may realistically expect and should strive for. Any value below that baseline is a bad deal, while any value over it is pretty nice.
Make it a habit to evaluate your reward redemption before you make it. “Am I receiving excellent value for these points?” ask yourself.
7. Take advantage of card offers to save even more money.
If you’re not looking for them, you might miss them, but many credit cards from big issuers include one-time money-saving offers with other businesses – albeit they’re not automatic. You must first log in, then click to add the offer to your card before making a qualifying purchase at the shop.
The advertised discount, statement credit, or extra awards will then be applied to your account, albeit it may take some time for it to reflect on your statement. There is no penalty for activating offers that you do not use, so feel free to load your card with as many of these built-in coupons as you wish.
8. Stack your rewards
One easy action before you begin your online shopping can win you additional benefits. Rather than going directly to the retailer’s website, go through a shopping portal first. Shopping portals typically earn affiliate revenue for sales done through their platforms, and some of that revenue is passed on to you in the form of points or cash back.
9. Go outside of your comfort zone.
The simplest road, as with most things in life, is rarely the most gratifying To maximize your credit card rewards, you must sometimes step outside of your comfort zone. For example, using American Express Membership Rewards points to make Amazon purchases is really simple.
The issue is that you may only obtain roughly 0.7 pence in value per point in this method. Consider utilizing Membership Rewards points for travel instead, where they can be worth at least a full cent apiece and sometimes considerably more if transferred to an AmEx airline partner.
On that basis, the majority of airlines are part of an airline alliance partner program. Often, if you do a little research and go the extra mile of booking travel through an airline’s alliance partner (rather than directly with the primary airline), you can get a lower fare and thus keep more of your valuable miles.