Transfer Partners & When to Use Them

What Are Transfer Partners?

Transfer partners are airlines and hotels that accept 1:1 point transfers from flexible credit card programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, and Capital One miles. This is the most valuable way to redeem flexible points.

According to Chase's transfer partner page, Chase Ultimate Rewards transfers instantly to 11+ airline and hotel partners at 1:1 ratios. You can convert 50,000 Chase points into 50,000 United miles, then book a $1,200 international business class flight for those 50,000 miles. That's 2.4 cents per point value — far better than the 1.25 cents per point you'd get redeeming through Chase's travel portal.

Why Transfer Instead of Using the Portal?

Transferring to partners unlocks 2-3x higher value per point for premium cabins and scarce award space.

Portal redemption: 50,000 Chase points = $625 in travel through Chase's portal at 1.25 cents per point.

Transfer redemption: Transfer 50,000 Chase points to United, book a round-trip business class flight to Europe (normally $3,000+). That's 6 cents per point value.

Portal redemptions work like cash and are priced at current market rates. Award tickets are priced by mileage charts and often cost far fewer points than the cash equivalent.

Chase Ultimate Rewards Transfer Partners

Chase transfers instantly (usually) to these partners at 1:1 ratios:

Airlines

• United MileagePlus: Best for domestic U.S. flights and Star Alliance international awards. 12,500-25,000 miles one-way domestic economy, 70,000+ miles round-trip international business class.
• Southwest Rapid Rewards: Best for domestic U.S. flights with no blackout dates. Points value varies by cash price (roughly 1.3-1.5 cents per point).
• Air France/Flying Blue: Best for sweet spots like U.S. to Europe business class (50,000-60,000 miles one-way). Flying Blue has monthly Promo Rewards with 25-50% discounts.
• British Airways Executive Club: Best for short-haul flights (7,500-15,000 miles for flights under 650 miles on American, Alaska, or other partners).
• Singapore KrisFlyer: Best for premium cabin redemptions on Singapore Airlines and Star Alliance partners.

Hotels

• World of Hyatt: Best hotel transfer partner. Points go far (5,000-25,000 points per night for most properties). See our Hyatt points guide for detailed values.
• IHG One Rewards: Huge footprint (6,000+ properties) but variable value. Good for budget hotels at 10,000-20,000 points per night.
• Marriott Bonvoy: 3:2 transfer ratio (60,000 Chase points = 50,000 Marriott points). Only transfer if you have a specific redemption in mind.

Amex Membership Rewards Transfer Partners

Amex transfers to 17+ partners. Transfers take 1-3 days (sometimes instant). 1:1 ratios unless noted.

Airlines

• Delta SkyMiles: Best for Delta flights and SkyTeam partners. No mileage chart — pricing varies. Good for domestic flights at 8,000-12,000 miles one-way.
• Air Canada Aeroplan: Best for Star Alliance awards and favorable pricing on North America to Europe/Asia. Fixed mileage chart with off-peak discounts.
• Singapore KrisFlyer: Same as Chase. Best for Singapore Airlines premium cabins.
• ANA Mileage Club: Best for round-trip awards (pricing is per round-trip, not one-way). Excellent business class pricing to Asia.
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club: Best for sweet spots like Delta One (business class) to Europe at 50,000 miles one-way.

Hotels

• Hilton Honors: 1:2 transfer ratio (1,000 Amex points = 2,000 Hilton points). Hilton points are less valuable than Hyatt, but the 1:2 ratio compensates. Good for stays at 40,000-80,000 Hilton points per night.
• Marriott Bonvoy: 1:1 transfer. Same as Chase — only transfer if you have a specific redemption.

Capital One Transfer Partners

Capital One miles transfer 1:1 to 15+ partners. Transfers are instant.

Best Partners

• Air Canada Aeroplan: Same as Amex. Excellent Star Alliance pricing.
• Turkish Miles&Smiles: Sweet spots for business class awards on Star Alliance partners at lower rates than United.
• Air France/Flying Blue: Same as Chase.
• Wyndham Rewards: 1:1 transfer, 7,500-15,000 points per night for most properties. Good for budget stays.

When Should You Transfer Points?

Only transfer after you've found available award space and are ready to book. Transfers are not reversible — once you transfer 50,000 Chase points to United, they're United miles forever. You can't transfer them back or to another airline.

Transfer Checklist

1. Search for award availability on the airline's or hotel's website (covered in Lesson 13)
2. Confirm the exact number of points/miles needed for your desired flight or hotel stay
3. Check transfer time (Chase and Capital One are usually instant; Amex takes 1-3 days)
4. Transfer the exact amount needed (don't transfer extra "just in case")
5. Book immediately after the transfer posts (award space can disappear)

Do Transfer Bonuses Matter?

Yes. Issuers and partners occasionally offer transfer bonuses of 15-50% extra miles when you transfer. These bonuses are temporary (usually 1-3 months) and can significantly increase your points value.

Example: Amex offers a 30% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic. You transfer 50,000 Amex points and receive 65,000 Virgin miles. You just saved 15,000 Amex points.

Track live transfer bonuses at pointsmafia.com/transfer-partners. If you're planning a redemption and a transfer bonus appears for that partner, transfer during the bonus period to maximize value.

Can You Transfer Points Between People?

Most programs do not allow transfers between members. You can only transfer points from your credit card account to your own airline/hotel loyalty account.

Exceptions:

• Chase household accounts: Pool Ultimate Rewards points between household members who both have eligible cards
• Hyatt: Free online points sharing between any two members (up to 500,000 points per year)
• Southwest: Free online points transfer between any members (as of Oct 2026)
• Marriott: Transfer up to 100,000 points per year to another member (free)

United, Delta, American Airlines, and most other programs do NOT allow free transfers between members.

Which Transfer Partner Should You Use?

It depends on your destination, travel dates, and which airline has award availability. There's no universal "best" partner. Common scenarios:

• Domestic U.S. flights: Southwest (Chase) or United (Chase/Amex/Capital One)
• International business class: Air France/Flying Blue (Chase/Cap One), Virgin Atlantic (Amex), ANA (Amex), Air Canada (Amex/Cap One)
• Hotels: Hyatt (Chase), Hilton (Amex with 1:2 bonus), Marriott (Chase/Amex)
• Short-haul economy: British Airways (Chase), Southwest (Chase)

Always search availability on multiple partners before transferring. One airline might have space when another doesn't.

Common Transfer Mistakes

• Transferring before confirming award space: Award space disappears while you wait for points to transfer
• Transferring too many points: You need 50,000 miles but transfer 60,000 "to be safe." The extra 10,000 are stuck in that program.
• Not checking transfer time: Amex transfers can take 1-3 days. Don't transfer the day of your flight.
• Ignoring transfer bonuses: Transferring 50,000 points without a bonus when a 30% bonus is active wastes 15,000 points of value

Next Steps

Now you know how transfer partners work. The next lesson covers how to calculate the value of your points and determine whether transferring or using the portal gives better value.

Move to Lesson 12: What Are Your Points Worth? (Use Our CPP Tool).