How to Use American Express Points to Book Flights and Travel

With 21 transfer partners — including 18 airlines and 3 hotels — American Express has one of the most useful points currencies with its Membership Rewards program. And while it's easy to use the Amex Travel portal, those transfer partners are where you'll get the most value for your points, from phenomenal business-class and first-class flights to five-star hotels and more. 

Here's everything you need to know about how to use AMEX travel points to book flights and travel.

Using Amex Membership Rewards points to book travel with transfer partners 

American Express has nearly two dozen hotel and airline transfer partners. When you have Amex points, whether it's from spending on an American Express credit card or earning a welcome bonus, you can transfer your points to any of these programs. However, there are some ways to use Amex points for travel that are better than others; we’ll discuss those in detail in a minute.

Airline programs

Hotel programs

Paying for travel with Amex points via transfer partners 

Each airline and hotel partner has a specific transfer ratio — the number of partner points you'll receive for each Amex point you transfer.

Some Amex points transfer to partners at a 1:1 ratio, meaning you'll get one partner point per dollar amount for each Amex point. Others might have different ratios (e.g., 1:2 or 3:2), meaning you'll get two or three partner points for every Amex point. Check the Amex Membership Rewards website or your account for the current transfer ratios.

American Express also runs frequent transfer bonuses, which earn you additional points or miles when you transfer your Amex points to a partner program. Some programs, like Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, and British Airways Executive Club, offer transfer bonuses more frequently. These bonuses can significantly increase the value of your Amex points and boost your Membership Rewards balance, so it's worth keeping an eye out for them.

Transfer-bonus offers usually occur at the beginning of the month after months of card membership and typically last about a month. However, while transfer bonuses can be extended, you’ll want to transfer points to your preferred program ASAP.

Booking flights with the Amex Travel booking portal

A traditional booking platform, AmexTravel.com lets you use Amex points to book flights and travel directly. You’ll enter your departure and arrival airports (if booking flights), departure dates, and cabin class, and the next page will display your results.

The important section here is the number of points required to book your flight, which you’ll see on the right side of the screen.

After you’ve selected your flight, you have the option of using some or all of your points to cover your booking.

Check out as you would normally, and that’s it!

Booking domestic flights with Amex points

Some of the best ways to book domestic flights with American Express Membership Reward points are by transferring points to British Airways Avios, Delta SkyMiles, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.

British Airways Avios

Booking domestic flights with British Airways is the best way to get maximum value from your Membership Rewards points. That’s because British Airways uses a distance-based award chart — not only for its own flights but also its partners, including American Airlines.

Unfortunately, British Airways does not publicly post its award chart, but the breakdown below is generally understood to be British Airways pricing for partner awards per calendar year.

This award chart is handy when booking short-haul flights, particularly on the U.S. East and West Coasts. Note that Zone 1 flights to, from, or within North America will cost at least 7,500 Avios.

Let’s take a look at a sample itinerary from New York to Boston. You can use a tool like Great Circle Mapper to calculate the distance between two airports — in this case, 190 miles.

Next, navigate to BA.com and select “Book flights with Avios.” You can then input your departure and arrival airports and dates and select a one-way or round-trip option.

Your results will be on the next page. On this route, for our specific dates, one-way award flights start at 8,250 Avios. 

If you have enough Avios, you can book your flight. If not, you can transfer them from a transfer partner, like American Express

Delta SkyMiles

Unlike British Airways, Delta does not use an award chart. Instead, its loyalty program, Delta SkyMiles, uses dynamic pricing. That means the cost of a reward flight can be higher or lower depending on factors such as seasonality, demand, and more.

While Delta SkyMiles aren't typically highly valued as a points-and-miles currency, they can be incredibly valuable for booking short-haul domestic flights. For instance, flights between the airline's Atlanta hub and Washington, D.C., start at just 8,500 SkyMiles each way — an excellent deal for such a popular route.

Another way to use SkyMiles for domestic flights is to book travel to U.S. territories, such as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. SkyMiles awards on these flights are usually extremely affordable, such as the fare we found from New York to San Juan for just 9,500 one-way.

Booking international flights with Amex points

Booking international flights with Amex points is similar to booking domestic flights, although there is a bit more planning involved.

Once you've chosen a transfer partner, search for award availability on their website or through partner airlines in their alliance. (Not sure which transfer partner to seach with for your route? point.me can help. We search hundreds of airlines and dozens of loyalty programs to show you the best points fare, then tell you exactly how to transfer points and book them.) 

If you transfer points to a membership with a SkyTeam member, like Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, you can book flights on partner airlines, like Delta, as long as you have enough miles in your membership rewards account. This expands your options and can help you find more convenient routes or better redemption rates.

As you’ll see in the example below, a Delta flight from Atlanta to Rio can cost just 44,000 Flying Club points — and while Virgin doesn’t fly on this route, you can still book partner flights through its Flying Club program.

Tips for booking flights with American Express points

Sometimes award availability on your preferred airline or program will be limited. In those cases, consider using the Membership Rewards travel portal to get a points rebate or book flights directly. While this option may offer less value than transferring points to airlines, it can still be convenient, especially for last-minute bookings or when flexibility is limited.

Speaking of flexibility: Keeping your travel dates and destinations open can significantly increase your chances of finding available award seats, especially during peak travel seasons.

When redeeming points for international flights, be aware of additional taxes, fees, and surcharges that may apply. Some programs have lower fees than others, so compare the total cost — including points and fees — across different redemption options to ensure you're getting the best value.

One last piece of advice: Award availability tends to be more limited for international flights, especially in premium cabins. Try to book as early as possible — ideally nine to 12 months in advance — to secure the best redemption options and maximize your chances of finding award seats.

Using airline alliances to maximize your Amex points

To make the most of your Membership Rewards points, take a look at the Amex Travel transfer partners that have points and miles you can use on other airlines. For instance, you can book American Airlines flights with British Airways Avios, while Aeroplan points can be used for United Airlines and Etihad Airways.

Travel purchases you can pay for with Amex points

You can redeem points to pay for various travel purchases, such as flights, prepaid hotels, prepaid car rentals, vacation packages, and cruises. 

The best ways to redeem your Amex points 

The best way to redeem your American Express points is by booking flights and hotels, especially on airlines like Emirates, Etihad, Singapore, or British Airways. These airlines offer some of the best ways to fly in business and first class — think: Emirates First Class (which offers an onboard shower!) or Etihad’s Apartment. 

Even if you don’t manage to score one of those highly coveted seats, not to worry. Amex has more than a dozen transfer partners, including many of the world’s largest airlines, so you’re bound to find a fare that fits the bill.

The worst ways to redeem your Amex points

The worst way to redeem your American Express points is on non-travel purchases. Generally, you’ll want to avoid using points to cover charges on your American Express card, whether it's for cash back or a statement credit, to pay for items at merchants like Amazon, and on gift cards or other eligible purchases.