UPDATES:
- Transfer Amex Membership Points to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points and get a 30% bonus through June 14, 2023.Â
- Transfer Amex Membership Points to LifeMiles and get a 15% bonus through May 31, 2023.Â
- Transfer Amex Membership Points to Air France KLM Flying Blue points and get a 25% bonus through May 22, 2023.Â
Membership Rewards (MR)Â is the rewards points program you earn with American Express Cards. The best way to get the best value from your MR points is to transfer them to loyalty programs that partner with American Express. Your MR points are worth so much more when redeeming them this way. The way it works is you transfer your MR points to a frequent flyer airline for miles at a 1:1 ratio, and you then can use those miles to redeem for a flight that the cash price costs more than 1 cent per mile.Â
To transfer your MR points to frequent flyer programs, you need to have one of the American Express Cards that earn the MR points and can directly transfer those points to Amex partners.
Transfer Amex MR Points to Iberia Plus For Iberia Business Class |
Table of Contents  [show/hide] |
Amex Airline Transfer Partners
Amex Hotel Transfer Partners
Amex Membership Rewards Points Transfer Ratio, Transfer Time & Transfer Fee
Below is how long Amex MR points typically take to transfer based on the miles and points community data points.Please note that Amex charges a small federal exercise tax fee of 0.06 cents per 1,000 points when you transfer MR points to US frequent flyer programs such as Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, and Hawaiian Airlines fee is capped at $99. Amex also offers you to pay that exercise tax fee using your MR points, but don't do it as that's not a good use of your MR points.
The minimum MR points Amex requires for the transfer is 1, except for the JetBlue program. See the chart below:
Amex Membership Rewards Points
|
Transfer Ratio
| Transfer Time |
Transfer Fee |
Airline Transfer Partner | Min. MR Points: Airline Miles | ||
Aer Lingus AerClub | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
AeroMexico Club Premier | 1000:1000 | ~4 days | None |
Air Canada Aeroplan | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Air France KLMÂ Flying Blue | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Alitalia MileMiglia | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
ANA Mileage Club | 1000:1000 | ~3 days | None |
Avianca LifeMiles | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
British Airways Executive Club | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Delta Air Lines SkyMiles | 1000:1000 | Instant | 0.06 cents per 1,000 points. $99 max. |
Emirates Skywards | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Etihad Airways Guest | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles | 1000:1000 | Instant | 0.06 cents per 1,000 points. $99 max. |
Iberia Plus | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
JetBlue TrueBlue | 250:200 | Instant | 0.15 cents per 250 points. $99 max. |
Qantas Frequent Flyer | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1000:1000 | ~2 days | None |
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
Hotel Transfer Partner | Min. MR Points: Hotel Points | ||
CHOICE Privileges | 1000:1000 | Instant | None |
HILTONÂ Honors | 1000:2000 | Instant | None |
MARRIOTTÂ Bonvoy | 1000:1000 | ~2 days | None |
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Amex Charges Federal Exercise Fee To Transfer Points To US Frequent Flyer Programs |
Which Amex Credit Card Earns Membership Rewards Points?
The following American Express Credit Cards earn Membership Rewards (MR) points. Earned MR points can be transferred directly to an airline or a hotel loyalty program that has a partnership with American Express:
- American Express Platinum Card
- American Express Gold Card
- American Express Green Card
- American Express EveryDay Credit Card
- American Express EveryDay Preferred Credit Card
- American Express Business Plus Credit Card
- American Express Business Platinum Card
- American Express Business Gold Card
Editor's Note: American Express EveryDay Credit Card is a no annual fee credit card. It can earn MR points that can directly transfer to Amex airline and hotel partners. It is also a great card to keep your MR points alive if you need to cancel all your Amex MR points earned credit cards that have an annual fee.Â
How To Transfer Amex Membership Rewards Points To Partners?
It is essential to know that transferring Amex MR points to partners is a one-way street, and you cannot move points back to Amex once the transfer is finalized.Performing Amex MR points to partners transfer online or on the pho is possible. For online:
The rule of thumb is to transfer only if you know you will use those miles. Use these as a guideline to help to make a decision:
Generally speaking, the speculative transfer can negatively impact you because you are stuck with a particular airline's frequent flyer miles and cannot use those miles. Airlines can devalue their award chart, and so can hotels, and most programs have policies in place that those unused points can be expired.
From time to time, American Express offers transfer bonuses that can be lucrative for me to perform the transfer speculatively; however, the rule of thumb still applies: I only transfer if I will use those miles. For example, Aeromexico Club Premier is one of the worst mileage programs. Their award booking site needs to be more extensive with search functionality and almost impossible to use. Their award booking call center is also a nightmare to deal with. So, in the end, I don't care when Amex offers any transfer bonus to Aeromexico Club Premier.
For what is worth, I have many favorite Amex transfer airline partners such as Air Canada Aeroplan, Air France KLM Flying Blue, Avianca LifeMiles, British Airways Executive Club, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Delta Air Lines SkyMiles, Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles, Iberia Plus, JetBlue TrueBlue, Qantas Frequent Flyer, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
- Sign in to your American Express credit card account.Â
- On the right-hand side, click on Explore Rewards.Â
- You should see a menu tab in the middle of the page that says Transfer Points. (See screenshot below). Click on it.Â
- Amex should take you to the transfer points page. Click on View All to see all participating loyalty programs.Â
- Select the loyalty program that you want to transfer. If it is your first time moving MR points to a specific loyalty program, Amex will first ask you to link your loyalty program. Â
- Follow the web interface to indicate how many points you want to transfer. Simply follow the prompts to finalize the transfer.Â
Remember Amex does charge a small federal exercise tax fee of 0.06 cents per 1,000 points when you transfer MR points to US frequent flyer programs such as Delta Air Lines, JetBlue and Hawaiian Airlines. The fee is capped at $99. Amex also offers you to pay that exercise tax fee using your MR points, but don't do it as that's not a good use of your MR points.
Should You Transfer Amex Membership Rewards Points To Airline & Hotel Partners?
It is crucial to remember that you cannot transfer loyalty program points back to American Express once the transfer is complete. While transferring Amex Membership Rewards points to loyalty programs provides the best points value in return, transferring MR points to hotel points is often worse than transferring MR points to airline miles. Airline miles result in the best return value of your Amex points.The rule of thumb is to transfer only if you know you will use those miles. Use these as a guideline to help to make a decision:
- Search and confirm the award availability of the flight that you want.Â
- Understand how that mileage program works, such as how to book, mileage expiration policy, and award cancellation/change policy if you have to cancel.Â
- If you cancel, will you be able to use those miles later on?Â
Generally speaking, the speculative transfer can negatively impact you because you are stuck with a particular airline's frequent flyer miles and cannot use those miles. Airlines can devalue their award chart, and so can hotels, and most programs have policies in place that those unused points can be expired.
From time to time, American Express offers transfer bonuses that can be lucrative for me to perform the transfer speculatively; however, the rule of thumb still applies: I only transfer if I will use those miles. For example, Aeromexico Club Premier is one of the worst mileage programs. Their award booking site needs to be more extensive with search functionality and almost impossible to use. Their award booking call center is also a nightmare to deal with. So, in the end, I don't care when Amex offers any transfer bonus to Aeromexico Club Premier.
For what is worth, I have many favorite Amex transfer airline partners such as Air Canada Aeroplan, Air France KLM Flying Blue, Avianca LifeMiles, British Airways Executive Club, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Delta Air Lines SkyMiles, Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles, Iberia Plus, JetBlue TrueBlue, Qantas Frequent Flyer, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Regarding hotel partners, I only transfer MR points to participating hotel partners when I need to top off my hotel's rewards account for a memorable award night stay somewhere in the world.
Amex Membership Rewards Points Current & Past Transfer Bonus History
Below is the chart for Amex MR points current and past transfer bonuses. These bonus histories are for reference purposes only, so you have an idea of when the next transfer bonus is. There's no guarantee the transfer bonus will return, but it's worth waiting it out if you have the flexibility.Amex Transfer Partners | Transfer Bonus | Offer End Date |
Aer Lingus Aer Club | 25% | September 30, 2022 |
40% | May 15, 2022 | |
40% | September 30, 2021 | |
40% | October 1, 2019 | |
AeroMexico Club Premier | 20% | September 30, 2022 |
20% | February 15, 2022 | |
25% | September 30, 2021 | |
25% | February 14, 2019 | |
25% | November 30, 2018 | |
20% | March 6, 2015 | |
Air Canada Aeroplan | 15% | September 30, 2022 |
20% | September 30, 2021 | |
20% (targeted) | May 2019 | |
20% (targeted) | November 2018 | |
10-20% (targeted) | December 2, 2017 | |
Air France KLM Flying Blue | 25% | May 22, 2023 |
25% | December 7, 2022 | |
25% | September 30, 2022 | |
25% | June 15, 2022 | |
25% | November 30, 2021 | |
25% | September 30, 2021 | |
30% (offer by AF link) | August 15, 2021 | |
25% | April 29, 2019 | |
25% | June 15, 2018 | |
Alitalia MilleMiglia | 40% | December 13, 2016 |
25% | October 31, 2016 | |
Avianca LifeMiles | 15% (offer by LifeMiles) | May 31, 2023 |
15% | December 7, 2022 | |
15% | September 30, 2022 | |
15% | May 31, 2022 | |
15% | September 30, 2021 | |
15% | April 1, 2019 | |
British Airways Executive Club | 25% | September 30, 2022 |
40% | May 15, 2022 | |
40% | September 30, 2021 | |
40% | October 1, 2019 | |
40% | November 15, 2018 | |
40% | September 17, 2017 | |
50% | October 10, 2016 | |
40%Â | January 31, 2015 | |
Etihad Airways Guest | 20% | July 30, 2022 |
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 20% (targeted) | Expired |
10-30% (targeted) | March 2019 | |
10-30% (targeted) | September 2018 | |
Emirates Skywards | 25% | November 22, 2018 |
Etihad Guest | 20% | June 15, 2016 |
Choice Hotels Privileges | 25% | September 30, 2022 |
Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles | 20% | January 31, 2023 |
20% | September 30, 2022 | |
20% | March 22, 2022 | |
25% | September 30, 2021 | |
25% | June 30, 2021 | |
25% | June 26, 2018 | |
25% | June 21, 2017 | |
25% | June 21, 2016 | |
25% | December 21, 2015 | |
20% | June 23, 2014 | |
HILTON Honors | 30% | April 30, 2023 |
30% | September 30, 2022 | |
30% | March 31, 2022 | |
30% | October 31, 2021 | |
40% | June 15, 2021 | |
40% | October 31, 2020 | |
Iberia Plus | 40% | September 30, 2021 |
40% | October 1, 2019 | |
40% | November 15, 2018 | |
50% | December 16, 2016 | |
25% | December 31, 2015 | |
JetBlue TrueBlue | 40%Â | June 2019 |
25% | October 1, 2018 | |
10-30% (targeted) | March 25, 2018 | |
25% | November 30, 2017 | |
25% | May 31, 2017 | |
25% | September 15, 2014 | |
MARRIOTT Bonvoy | 20% | September 30, 2022 |
25% | May 31, 2022 | |
30% | October 31, 2021 | |
40% | June 15, 2021 | |
40% | October 31, 2020 | |
Qantas Frequent Flyer | 20% | September 30, 2022 |
20% | September 30, 2021 | |
20% | June 30, 2019 | |
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 20% | Expired |
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 30% | June 14, 2023 |
30% | December 29, 2022 | |
30% | September 30, 2022 | |
30% | March 31, 2022 | |
30% | September 30, 2021 | |
30% | July 1, 2019 | |
10-30% (targeted) | November 2018 | |
30% | September 12, 2018 | |
30% | November 30, 2017 | |
30% | May 22, 2017 | |
30% | May 31, 2016 | |
25% | April 30, 2015 | |
35% | November 30, 2014 | |
30% | May 31, 2014 | |
30% | November 30, 2013 |
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