Many of the credit card offers that appear on this site are from credit card companies from which we receive financial compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). However, the credit card information that we publish has been written and evaluated by experts who know these products inside out. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse. This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers that are on the market. See our advertising policy here where we list advertisers that we work with, and how we make money. You can also review our credit card rating methodology.
We may be compensated when you click on product links, such as credit cards, from one or more of our advertising partners. Terms apply to the offers below. See our Advertising Policy for more about our partners, how we make money, and our rating methodology. Opinions and recommendations are ours alone.
Alaska Airlines began offering flights from Anchorage, Alaska in 1932. Today, the airline offers flights to over 115 destinations across U.S., Mexico, Canada, and Costa Rica and is part of the Oneworld alliance and partnered with many other airlines operating all over the world.
Luckily for you, there are some great ways to earn lots of miles with Alaska’s Mileage Plan program, from flights on Alaska Airlines or its partners to credit cards and shopping.
The Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan program allows you to earn miles without signing up for an affiliated credit card. To earn points, you simply need to create an account.
The Mileage Plan account number you receive upon signing up will be used almost every time you want to earn miles. Make sure you keep this number within reach when you utilize the earning tactics below.
There are 2 paths to earning Alaska miles with credit cards. One involves 2 cards that earn Alaska miles directly, while the other 2 cards earn points that can be transferred to your Alaska account.
You might think earning Alaska miles directly is the best way to go, but stick with us — you might be surprised.
While it is possible to earn points without signing up for its co-branded credit cards, the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card and Alaska Airlines Visa® Business Credit Card from Bank of America allow you to earn substantial miles simply for signing up for a card and using it on everyday purchases.
Provides the potential to earn plenty of miles to fly with Alaska Airlines or over a dozen partners. Plus, get an annual companion fare from just $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23)!
With the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card in your wallet, you could get great perks and earn miles at the same time. This is a win-win if Alaska is the airline you prefer to fly with! Plus, its annual companion fare is a great benefit for traveling couples.
Hot Tip: If you want to apply for either of these cards, visit our article on credit cards and credit scores explained to learn more about getting approved!
The Alaska Signature card occasionally offers bonus miles for each referral you provide that is approved. All you have to do is get a friend or family member to sign up using the link you sent to them.
There isn’t a limit to how many times you can receive this referral bonus, so this is a great way to boost your Mileage Plan miles when these referral bonuses are offered.
You can earn Marriott Bonvoy points and transfer those to Alaska Airlines at a transfer rate of 3:1. Plus, for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points that you transfer, you’ll receive an extra 5,000 Alaska Airlines miles bonus.
Recommended Marriott Bonvoy Cards
A great option for Marriott hotel fans who want a no annual fee card and automatic Marriott Bonvoy elite status.
Casual travelers who like to frequent properties that are part of the Marriott Bonvoy collection of brands may want to consider the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card.
The Marriott Bold card rewards cardholders for Marriott stays and gives them a boost towards Marriott Bonvoy elite status.
Marriott loyalists will love this card's annual free night award, automatic elite status, and up to 17x points per $1 on Marriott hotel stays.
If you’re a frequent traveler and a Marriott loyalist, there’s a lot to love about the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card. The card comes packed with several great benefits like a free hotel night once a year, automatic Silver Elite status (with a fast-track to Gold Elite status), and multiple options for redeeming points.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesThe Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card gives you automatic Marriott elite status and helps you earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on your everyday purchases.
The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, the latest mid-tier offering in the Marriott Bonvoy lineup of cards, offers cardholders automatic elite status and ways to earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on each of their stays and daily purchases.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesA premium card for Marriott fans who want perks like an annual statement credit and Free Night Award, plus a fast track to Marriott elite status.
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card is a premium card designed with road warriors and Marriott Bonvoy loyalists in mind.
So is the card a worthwhile addition to your wallet?
Points transfer from Diners Club International credit cards at a 10,000 to 11,825 transfer ratio.
As of the time of writing this article, Diners Club International is not accepting new consumer credit card applicants. We’re hopeful that this will change in the future.
We all spend plenty of money on shopping and dining out, so why not get some Mileage Plan miles in return for it?
Regardless of whether you sign up for the Alaska Signature card, as a Mileage Plan Account member, you have access to the Mileage Plan Shopping portal.
Through the shopping portal, you can earn miles on purchases regardless of which credit card you use.
Alaska Airlines has partnered with over 850 stores to offer a mileage bonus for each purchase made through the portal. All of the stores can be viewed on the portal website, but here are some of the top stores:
To earn Mileage Plan miles for your purchases:
Pay close attention during the holidays as the Mileage Plan Shopping portal often offers bonus miles on top of the miles you would normally earn.
Many airlines participate in a dining program to help customers earn extra miles on eating out at participating restaurants. Mileage Plan Dining has over 10,000 participating restaurants, bars, and clubs.
Signing up is free and you don’t have to use an Alaska-branded card to enroll.
To earn miles with the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Dining:
Usually, you will earn up to 5 miles per $1 you spend at participating restaurants, bars, and clubs. First-time members have the chance to earn up to 500 bonus miles.
These extra miles are given if you spend $30 or more at a participating restaurant within 30 days of joining the program and review your experience within 30 days after dining.
Find this new member bonus offer and other bonus offers under the Earn more section.
Hot Tip: You can only link a credit card to 1 dining portal at a time, so choose the one that is best for you. Remember that you’ll earn points on your credit card in addition to miles from the dining program.
There are other ways to earn even more Mileage Plan miles on everyday spending, including the following partnering retail offers:
| Retail Company | Bonus Miles |
| 1-800-FLOWERS.COM | 20 miles per $1 spent (use code AKA3) |
| CARRS/Safeway | Every 100 points gets you a Reward to clip for 100 Mileage Plan miles |
| GCI | 1 mile per $1 spent on phone, internet, and TV in Alaska |
| GetYourGuide | 4 miles per $1 spent |
| Laithwaites | Earn 2,250 miles with your introductory case and 1,000 miles with each subsequent subscription case you take. Plus, earn 3 miles per $1 spent on non-subscription purchases. |
| Rover | 3 miles per $1 spent on your first booking, 1 mile per $1 after |
| Teleflora | 10 miles per $1 spent (use code BAAAL10) |
| Vinesse | 5,000 miles upon initial sign-up, as well as 5 miles per $1 spent (use code ALASKA) |
With all of the interesting ways to earn Mileage Plan miles, it’s easy to forget that you can earn them when traveling.
As we mentioned above, the Alaska Signature card and Alaska Airlines Business card earn 3x miles per $1 on Alaska Airlines tickets.
You will also earn bonus Mileage Plan miles flying with any of Alaska’s Oneworld partners or other partner airlines when you attach your Mileage Plan number to your booking.
For the most part, your mileage earnings will be anywhere from 25% to 500% of the miles flown, depending on the partner and fare class you’re flying in.
Hot Tip: Here’s more information about crediting your miles to a partner airline.
Alaska Airlines offers a class of service/premium cabin bonus.
This means that you’ll earn 10% to 100% more miles depending on if you’re flying in first, business, and certain economy classes on Alaska Airlines and some partner airlines.
The percent bonus on actual miles flown with partnering airlines varies greatly.
The following is the bonus breakdown when flying in certain seats on Alaska Airlines:
Visit the Bonus Miles section to see more about this bonus.
Mileage Plan has an elite qualifying program called “Most Valued Passenger” or MVP. Reach MVP levels by flying often on Alaska Airlines or partnering airlines.
Here is a table outlining what you need to do to qualify for each MVP level:
| Annual Qualification Period January 1 to December 31 | MVP | MVP Gold | MVP Gold 75K | MVP Gold 100K |
| Miles on Alaska and Qualifying Partner Airlines | 20,000 | 40,000 | 75,000 | 100,000 |
| Segments on Alaska and Qualifying Partner Airlines | 30 | 60 | 90 | 140 |
| Minimum Number of Segments Flown on Alaska to Earn/Retain Status | 2 | 6 | 12 | 24 |
You’ll earn more miles each time you fly once you reach a given status level. Earn 50% bonus Mileage Plan miles as MVP, 100% bonus as MVP Gold, 125% bonus as MVP Gold 75K, and 150% bonus as MVP Gold 100K.
Those who fly enough to reach MVP Gold 75K status will also receive 50,000 Bonus Miles upon qualification!
If you have something to ship, Alaska Airlines has the biggest passenger airline cargo operation on the U.S. West Coast. All packages — small (16 ounces) up to large (ULD) — can be shipped on board Alaska Airlines flights.
You’ll earn extra miles when you use Alaska Airlines for your shipments. Simply book at the Alaska Air Cargo website and use your Alaska Signature card when you make your purchase.
You will earn 3x miles per $1 spent on your cargo shipment using your card.
Rent a car with a partnering car rental company and you will also earn mileage bonuses:
| Car Rental | Bonus Miles Offer |
| Alamo | 50 per day |
| Avis | Earn up to 1,250 miles |
| Budget | Earn up to 1,250 miles |
| Dollar | 50 per day; 150 per day on all rentals of 3 or more days |
| Hertz | 50 per day (up to 4 days); 500 per rental over 5 days |
| National | 50 per day |
| Thrifty | 50 per day; 150 per day on all rentals of 3 or more days |
Be sure to check the Mileage Plan Deals section of the Alaska Airlines website. The partnering car rental companies occasionally have promotions where you can earn even more miles per rental.
You can earn Alaska Airlines miles by using Lyft, earning 1 mile for every $1 spent. Just link your accounts and select Alaska Airlines as your earning preference.
The Mileage Plan has multiple hotel partners with which you can earn additional miles for your stay or per night booking.
Check out the bonus miles you could earn for your stay at one of the participating hotels:
| Hotel | Bonus Miles |
| Alaska Hotels | Up to 10,000 miles per night |
| Best Western | 250 miles per stay |
| Choice Hotels | 250 miles per stay |
| Coast Hotels | 250 miles per stay |
| IHG Hotels & Resorts | 2 miles per $1 spent or 500 per stay |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 1 to 2 miles per $1 spent, depending on hotel |
| Rocketmiles | 500 to 10,000 miles per night |
| Westmark Hotels | 2 miles per $1 spent |
Hot Tip: Be sure to choose “Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan” as the program for which you would like to earn miles when you make reservations and check in at the hotel.
Some hotel points can be transferred to your Alaska Mileage Plan account to earn more miles, but this should be avoided if at all possible because of the terrible transfer rate.
Save your hotel points for when you need hotel award stays.
If you have always wanted to go on a cruise to Alaska, look no further. You can earn bonus miles by booking through Alaska Airlines partner CruisesOnly (“America’s Largest Cruise Agency”).
You’ll earn 1 mile per $1 spent, and an additional mile per $1 spent if you’re an Alaska Signature cardholder.
Earning miles through your booking is simple. Visit ak.cruisesonly.com, search for a cruise, and enter your Mileage Plan number at checkout.
There are several other interesting ways to earn Mileage Plan miles from surveys to credit card partners to buying miles.
Alaska Airlines and finance company SoFi recently partnered to give new SoFi customers Mileage Plan miles when refinancing a student loan or taking out a new personal loan.
Currently, you can earn 1 Mileage Plan mile per $2 borrowed when refinancing a student loan or taking out a new personal loan through SoFi. Just note that there’s a 50,000-mile cap on mileage earning for both student loan refinances and new personal loans.
This option can make sense if you’re already considering refinancing a student loan or taking out a new personal loan. However, always make sure to shop around for the best interest rate before settling on SoFi.
Earning bonus miles is easy even without spending lots of money or owning one of the Alaska Airlines credit cards. Simply sign up for a free account with Mileage Plan partner The Opinion Terminal to start earning immediately — 400 miles when completing the first survey!
Surveys are often rather long (15+ minutes). Do this a few times a week, and the miles you earn from them will add up faster than you realize!
This can help you top off your account when you’re a few miles short of a free flight.
If you’re planning on redeeming miles for a certain value, you can calculate the cost to see if buying Mileage Plan miles is worth it.
Rarely is buying miles worth it. Leave it for topping off an account when you don’t have time to earn the last few miles for your next award flight.
For those without Alaska elite status, you are now limited to purchasing 150,000 miles per calendar year. Elite status holders can continue to buy miles without limit. Keep an eye out for any promotional sales!
The above strategies for earning Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles will help you earn tons of miles.
Whether through the credit card sign-up bonuses or the many partnering airlines with which you can fly, your options for earning miles are endless!
As soon as you start applying the strategies above, you’ll be rolling in tons of Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles. Then, when you’re itching for a vacation, you can begin researching ways to use them!
The information regarding the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding Alaska Airlines Visa® Business Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® card, click here.
Alaska Airlines’ points program is called Mileage Plan. The miles you earn, redeem, and transfer are Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles.
The value of Alaska Airlines miles depends on the ticket you are getting. You’ll usually always get somewhere between 1 and 2 cents per point. For example, the lowest fare first class ticket will give you a value of up to 1.6 cents per point.
At 1.6 cents per point, that’s like getting a $100 ticket for the equivalent of about 6,250 Alaska Airlines miles.
You can sign up for the Alaska Signature card and Alaska Airlines Business card. You can also use Marriott Bonvoy credit cards to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and transfer those to Alaska at a 3:1 rate.
Club 49 was set up to benefit Alaska residents as a thank you for 80 years of loyalty. Alaska residents can enroll to receive special benefits like discount fares with Alaska Airlines.
In your Alaska Airlines account, select Valid under Discount Codes on the left side of your account page. On the loaded page, select Shop and use the code listed under the Shop button to find flights. Note the expiration date for this code.
Choose your desired flights for 2 people and then go through the checkout process ensuring your discount code was applied (it should appear in the summary of the total price for 2 travelers).
Mileage Plan miles cannot be transferred to other airlines. They can, however, be redeemed for flights on other carriers, hotel stays, car rentals, and more.
No. See Alaska’s list of partners.
No. See Alaska’s list of partners.
Alaska Airlines miles should post to your account within 7 days. Miles from partner airlines activity can take 2 to 3 weeks to post.
If miles do not post in this time frame, you may request missing credit.
Alaska Airlines miles are fully refundable without needing to pay any cancellation fees.
Alaska Airlines miles expire after 24 months of inactivity. Earn or redeem at least 1 mile a minimum of every 24 months to keep your account from expiring.
Was this page helpful?
Always a fan of flying, it was only natural that Spencer was drawn to finding a way to improve the travel experience.
Like many, he started this journey searching for cheap flights to take him around the world. This was fun for a while, but Spencer was intrigued by the idea of flying in business and first class!
Throwing himself into what became an extensive research project, Spencer spent 3-4 hours per night learning everything he could about frequent flyer miles over the course of several months (he thinks this is normal). He runs Straight to the Points, an award-seat alert platform.
Get the latest travel tips, crucial news, flight & hotel deal alerts...
Plus — expert strategies to maximize your points & miles by joining our (free) newsletter.
We respect your privacy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA. Google's privacy policy and terms of service apply.
