February Point Purchase Promos & Bonuses [Up to 100% Discount]

There is no shortage of ways to earn points and miles. From credit card welcome bonuses to bonus categories, shopping portals, and dining programs, the list goes on and on.

Given the numerous options, travelers are often conflicted about purchasing points for their trips. After all, why purchase points when you can just save up the points you earn from your everyday purchases?

This is a fair point and a solution that works for many. However, there are some instances where purchasing points and miles can make sense. We will explore each of those options later in the post, but first, let’s dive into all of the current promotions that allow you to receive a discount or bonus on your points and miles purchases.

Table of contents

Latest Point Purchase Promotions
When Should You Purchase Points?
Final Thoughts

Table of Contents

Latest Point Purchase Promotions
When Should You Purchase Points?
Final Thoughts

Latest Point Purchase Promotions

Alaska Airlines MileagePlan

Promotion:
- Buy 3,000 to 19,000 miles and get a 40% bonus (2.1 cents per point)
- Buy 20,000 to 39,000 miles and get a 50% bonus (1.97 cents per point)
- Buy 40,000 to 100,000 miles and get a 60% bonus (1.85 cents per point)
Deadline: February 20, 2023
Programs That Transfer to Alaska: Marriott Bonovy
Link to Purchase

We value Alaska Mileage Plan miles at 1.8 cents apiece, so the 60% bonus tier comes in slightly above our baseline. Given that, we’d only recommend this if you have a specific redemption in mind that you know can offer you significantly more value than what you’ll purchase the points for.

American Airlines AAdvantage

Promotion:
- Purchase 5,000 to 54,000 miles and get a 20% discount (3 cents per point)
- Purchase 55,000 to 149,000 miles and get a 25% discount (2.8 cents per point)
- Purchase 150,000 miles and get a 35% discount (2.4 cents per point)
Deadline: TBD
Programs That Transfer to American: Bilt Rewards
Link to Purchase

We value American Airlines miles at 1.4 cents per mile, so we wouldn’t recommend purchasing miles at these prices unless you are topping off your account for a specific redemption.

Hilton Honors

Promotion:
- Purchase 5,000 or more points and get a 100% bonus (0.5 cents per point)
Deadline: March 7, 2023
Programs That Transfer to Hilton: Amex Membership Rewards
Link to Purchase

We value Hilton points right at 0.5 cents per point, so this could be a solid opportunity to purchase points if you have a redemption lined up that will exceed this cent per point valuation.

JetBlue TrueBlue

Promotion:
- Purchase 3,000 to 14,500 points and get a 20% bonus — 2.67 cents per point
- Purchase 15,000 to 29,500 points and get a 40% bonus — 2.1 cents per point
- Purchase 30,000 to 50,000 points and get a 60% bonus — 1.85 cents per point
Deadline: February 24, 2023
Programs That Transfer to JetBlue: Amex Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy
Link to Purchase

Usually, you’ll receive somewhere around 1.3 cents to 1.5 cents per point in value on your JetBlue redemptions, so it makes little sense to purchase points for more than what you’ll be able to redeem them for, while at the same time forfeiting the points you’d have earned by booking a cash ticket.

Southwest Rapid Rewards

Promotion:
- Purchase 3,000 or more points and get a 45% discount (1.65 cents per point)
Deadline: February 20, 2023
Programs That Transfer to Southwest: Chase Ultimate Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy
Link to Purchase

Even with a discount of 45%, this promotion isn’t enough to make it a great deal. Southwest Rapid Rewards is a revenue-based program, meaning you’ll receive a fixed value for each point you redeem. If you purchase a “Wanna Get Away” fare (the airline’s cheapest ticket), you’ll receive about 1.2 cents of value per point. And if you maximize this promotion, you’ll be paying about 1.65 cents per point.

When Should You Purchase Points?

As promised, let’s go through some examples of when it might make sense for you to purchase points and miles.

Topping Off Your Account

It can be frustrating to have a redemption you’d like to make, with available award space to boot, but you don’t have quite enough points or miles to make the booking. Of course, you could wait until you do, but if you’re looking to book a business or first class award ticket, award space can vanish quickly.

In cases like these, it can make sense to purchase a small number of points to acquire the number of points or miles needed to book the award.

Price Arbitrage

We frequently discuss the opportunity to take advantage of price arbitrage when talking about purchasing points or miles.

For instance, say you’d like to fly business class from the U.S. to Europe in business class. You pull up Google Flights, pop in your desired destination and travel date, and the results reveal that the best nonstop option is an American Airlines flight that costs a whopping $2,500 — yikes.

While the best award redemptions require locating award space at the saver level, assuming it is available on the date you’d like to travel, you could purchase the points needed for this ticket for far less. For example, you could purchase 52,500 American Airlines miles for $1,595.30 with the 20% discount promotion — nearly $1,000 less than the retail price.

Simply put, purchasing points and miles can be a great way to get a substantial discount on flights you were planning to purchase anyway.

Preventing Points From Expiring

One of the annoyances of some loyalty programs is that their points or miles expire after a set period, usually 1 to 3 years. Depending on your travel habits, you may be at risk of your points expiring if you go long periods without earning or redeeming points within the program.

Fortunately, most programs count purchasing points as a qualifying earn activity, allowing you to extend the life of your miles simply by purchasing a small number of them.

Final Thoughts

In most cases, your primary points strategy should be earning them through new welcome bonuses, everyday card spending, and other point-earning activities like shopping portals, as these activities shouldn’t require a significant expense beyond what you might have spent anyways.

That said, there is a time and a place for when it can make sense to purchase points and miles. In those cases, promotions that allow you to receive a discount or bonus miles on your purchase can offer you even more value.

Of course, you should always run the numbers when deciding which path makes the most sense for your next redemption, but it is always great to have options.

Frequently asked questions

Should you purchase points and miles?

Usually, you’d be better off redeeming points and miles that you already have, rather than purchasing more.

That said, if your point balances are dwindling, and you have a redemption in mind where you know you’ll get more value than the cash price you pay for the points, then, yes, it can make a lot of sense to purchase the points.

You might always find it worthwhile to purchase points if you just need a small amount to make a certain redemption or if you’re trying to keep miles from expiring.

How much does it cost to purchase points?

That depends on the program, but generally, it will cost anywhere from 1 to 3 cents per point. However, we recommend timing your point purchases alongside promotions that offer a discount or bonus when you buy — both of which bring down the per-point cost you’ll pay.

Are there limits to the number of points you can purchase?

Yes, most programs implement a maximum number of points you are allowed to purchase each calendar year, though the amount varies drastically by the program.

How often are there point purchase promotions?

This varies by program, but usually in any given month, there are multiple current purchase promotions. We update this page each month to help you stay up-to-date on all of the latest point promotions you can take advantage of.

Do purchased points count towards elite status?

Unfortunately, no airlines or hotel programs count purchased points or miles towards elite status qualification.

Earn Points

Use Points

Business Credit Card Reviews

Business Guides

Air Travel Guides

Airline Points

Earn & Use Hotel Points

Hotel Loyalty Program Reviews

February Point Purchase Promotions & Bonuses [Up to 100% Bonus]