17 Best Ways to Earn Lots More ANA Mileage Club Miles

BY 

Stephen Au

- UPDATED: April 30, 2021   |    12

1. Travel  / 
2. Airlines

12

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All Nippon Airways (ANA) is a Japanese carrier with hubs at Haneda Airport (HND) and Narita International Airport (NRT) in Tokyo, and Itami Airport (ITM) and Kansai International Airport (KIX) in Osaka.

Members of the ANA Mileage Club can earn miles by booking flights on ANA, its Star Alliance airline partners, and a variety of other travel and non-travel partners. Most partners only award miles to members within Japan. However, there are plenty of opportunities to earn ANA miles and redeem for flights and travel services in the U.S., too!

Here are the best ways to earn miles in the ANA Mileage Club, including the use of credit cards. By the time you finish reading, you’ll be ready to begin earning tons more ANA Mileage Club miles!

Earn Miles Through ANA Mileage Club

1. Become an ANA Mileage Club Member

Enroll as an ANA Mileage Club member and immediately receive your digital ANA Number to start earning miles on any qualifying activity. You will receive a physical membership card within 2-3 weeks if you live in Japan or 3-4 weeks outside of Japan.

All miles are valid for 36 months and their expiry cannot be extended through earning activities.

2. ANA Domestic and International Flights

The formula that determines ANA Mileage Club miles for domestic and international flights:

[Basic Sector Mileage] multiplied by [Accrual Rate for the Booking Class]

Typically, you will earn between 50%-150% of miles for domestic flights and 30%-150% on international flights. ANA publishes a chart with the percentages and total ANA miles earned on the website. Here’s the accrual chart for international flights:

Whereas the accrual chart for international flights corresponds to a single-letter fare code, this isn’t the case for domestic flights. Instead, the accrual chart depends on the actual name given to the fare. Here’s the accrual chart for domestic flights:

Putting this all together, let’s do a quick calculation of how many miles you would earn. If you flew a one-way flight from San Francisco (SFO) to Tokyo-Haneda (HND), which measures 5,160 miles in distance, on a N class premium economy ticket, you’d earn 70% of 5,160 miles, which is 3,612 ANA miles.

Like other airline loyalty programs, you can’t earn miles for award tickets.

3. Star Alliance Partners

Earn 30% to 125% of miles for flights with the Star Alliance carriers, depending on your fare type. The Star Alliance airlines are listed below for reference.

To find out the earning structure for each Star Alliance partner, visit this link.

4. Other Airline Partners

The following airlines are other partners in the ANA Mileage Club and earn 30% to 125%. To find the exact percentage for each fare class, click on the applicable link for the airline you’re interested in:

*While ANA suspended some awards on Etihad, this has not affected earning miles.

5. ANA Premium Points

To earn elite status in ANA Mileage Club, you’ll need to collect Premium Points. The formula for earning Premium Points is:

[Basic Sector Mileage] multiplied by [Mileage Accrual by Class/Fare Type] multiplied by [Route Ratio] plus [Boarding Points]

See the graphic below for the Premium Points needed to earn Bronze, Platinum, and Diamond status:

Here are the bonus miles earned at each status level:

While you’re earning miles, here is something else to aspire to: The Million Miler Program.

The Million Miler Program tracks your lifetime miles since joining the ANA Mileage Club. Receive special benefits for reaching 500,000 miles, 1 million miles, 2 million miles, 3 million miles, and 4 million miles.

Benefits include permanent ANA Suite Lounge access, no miles expiration, and Super Flyers card eligibility.

Check your lifetime miles balance by logging into your account on the ANA website and going to the Mileage Balance Inquiry screen.

Hot Tip: Use all of those extra miles you are earning to treat yourself to a business class flight on ANA or a luxurious first class flight on the ANA A380!

Earn ANA Miles With Credit Cards

6. American Express Membership Rewards Credit Cards

Rather than using a credit card with a low earning rate, why not transfer American Express Membership Rewards to your ANA Mileage Club account instead? Each Membership Rewards point transfers to Amex at a 1:1 ratio.

Recommended American Express Cards (Personal)

Recommended American Express Cards (Business)

7. ANA Co-Branded Cards

Most of the co-branded cards in the ANA Mileage Club are from Japanese banks. However, there is one U.S. card that earns ANA Miles: ANA Card U.S.A.

This is a Visa card offered by First National Bank of Omaha that earns 1 mile per $1 spent on all purchases, not the best earning power for an airline credit card, unfortunately.

In addition, the ANA Card U.S.A. has a $70 annual fee and low sign-up bonus. For reference, find the entire line-up of ANA co-branded cards here.

Bottom Line: While the ANA Card U.S.A is an option, we wouldn’t recommend this card given other cards earn bonus points and transfer to ANA. 

8. Marriott Bonvoy Credit Cards

You can earn Marriott points and transfer your Marriott points to ANA at a transfer rate of 3:1. Plus, for every 60,000 Marriott points that you transfer, you’ll receive an extra 5,000 ANA miles bonus.

9. IHG Rewards Credit Card

Points earned in the IHG Rewards can also be used for ANA Mileage Club redemptions. Transfer a minimum of 10,000 IHG Rewards points for 2,000 ANA Mileage Club miles.

Earn points quicker when you use the IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card along with the card’s good benefits.

10. Other Hotel Loyalty Credit Cards

Other hotel loyalty programs that permit you to transfer points to ANA Mileage Club are Hilton Honors (10,000 points = 1,000 ANA miles) and World of Hyatt (2.5 points = 1 ANA mile).

The credit cards associated with these loyalty programs are listed below:

CREDIT CARD	CARD INFO
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card Learn More (at Amex's secure site)	Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $2,000 in purchases on the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card in the first 3 months of Card Membership. Plus, you can earn an additional 50,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend a total of $10,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months. Earn a Weekend Night Reward from Hilton Honors after you spend $15,000 on purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Earn 12x Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton portfolio. Earn 6x Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases on your Card at U.S. restaurants, at U.S. supermarkets, and at U.S. gas stations then 3x on all other eligible purchases. Good to Excellent Credit Recommended (670-850) Annual Fee: $95 Terms Apply. For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Surpass Card, click here.
Hilton Honors American Express Card Apply Now (at Amex's secure site)	Earn 80,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $1,000 in purchases on the Hilton Honors American Express Card in the first 3 months of Card Membership. Plus, you can earn an additional 50,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend a total of $5,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months. Earn 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton portfolio. Earn 5X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations. Earn 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card. Enjoy complimentary Hilton Honors Silver status with your Card. Plus, spend $20,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year and you can earn an upgrade to Hilton Honors Gold status through the end of the next calendar year. Annual Fee: $0 Terms Apply. For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Amex Card, click here.

Using ANA Travel Partners

11. Rental Car Partners

Because ANA Mileage Club is a Japanese loyalty program, many rental car partners award miles based on the Yen. However, there are a few car rental agencies that award ANA Miles to members who rent in the U.S. and Canada.

*Extra 100 miles for booking online through the ANA website

The car rental partners who award miles for rentals in Japan are:

12. ANA Hotel Partners

Earn ANA Mileage Club miles when you stay at participating partner hotel brands. Some hotels do not participate in the ANA Mileage Club, so click on each relevant link to read the terms and conditions for each hotel or hotel group.

13. Other Hotel Transfer Partners

In addition to the transfers partners of IHG Rewards points, Hilton Honors points, and Hyatt, you can also transfer points as a member of the following hotel loyalty programs:

14. Hotel Booking Portals and Miscellaneous Travel Agency Partners

Lastly, you can use some hotel booking portals and travel agencies to boost your ANA miles as shown here:

Other Earning Options

15. ANA Sky Shop

Inflight duty-free shopping is available on ANA international and domestic flights in the ANA Sky Shop. ANA Mileage Club members can present their membership cards to earn miles for purchases over ¥1,000 (every ¥100 including tax = 1 mile).

16. Luggage Delivery Services

ANA Mileage Club members traveling from Japan to the U.S. on business can take advantage of a their in-house packing services that eliminate the need to pack and carry luggage.

The idea is that you can send your heavy luggage directly from your home or office and then collect it again at the destination airport’s baggage carousel. This is called Tebura, which is the more expensive service, and earns 100 miles for every piece of baggage delivered.

The cheapest service, called ANA Airport Baggage Delivery Service, delivers from your home/office to your departure airport instead of the destination airport. Also, the reverse is possible. You’ll receive 50 miles for each piece of baggage delivered.

17. Earn Miles for Those Who Live in Japan

In addition to all the above tips for earning ANA Mileage Club miles, there are many other ways for people who live in Japan to earn miles.

These options include airport parking, souvenirs, international calling, taxis, and so much more!

Final Thoughts

We’ve discussed a number of useful strategies for maximizing the miles you earn in the ANA Mileage Club. Even though ANA is based in Japan, there are certainly many opportunities to earn miles in North America.

Make sure to enroll in ANA Mileage Club so you can begin accruing miles right away!

The information regarding the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card, and ANA Card U.S.A was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. 

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, click here.
For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Business Gold Card, click here.
For rates and fees of The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors American Express Card, please click here.