{"id":65,"date":"2023-05-01T11:59:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-01T11:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/moneywithkatie.com\/cash-or-points-for-travel\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T21:49:28","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T21:49:28","slug":"cash-or-points-for-travel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moneywithkatie.com\/cash-or-points-for-travel\/","title":{"rendered":"Cash or Points For Travel? Here\u2019s How to Decide [2025]"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\"><strong>Advertising Disclosure<\/strong>: This content is not sponsored or endorsed by any of the card brands described here and is accurate as of the posting date, but some of the offers mentioned may have expired. Money with Katie is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>This week on <em>The Money with Katie Show<\/em>, we revamped our patented (okay, it\u2019s not patented, but it should be) <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/how-to-travel-for-free-in-2023\/id1589146097?i=1000611547146\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">travel rewards strategy<\/a>. And lest you distrust the personal finance wench\u2019s hot takes on travel rewards, I\u2019m bringing in the big guns: Ben\u00e9t Wilson, former senior editor for <a href=\"https:\/\/thepointsguy.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">The Points Guy<\/span><\/a>. But how do you know when to redeem your points, or when you should pay cash instead? Ideally, the answer is, \u201cAll points all the time, because I have millions of them!\u201d But for those of us who haven\u2019t crossed the 7-figure points mark, a little strategy and #math is involved.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">First, how to accumulate points &amp; miles<\/h2>\n<p>The best way to get started is to apply for a premium travel credit card. My most-used cards are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>The American Express Platinum Card\u00ae<\/strong>, which will get you access to the Membership Rewards portal (average value per point listed below). The card carries a hefty $895 annual fee (I review why I think it&#8217;s still worthwhile <a href=\"http:\/\/moneywithkatie.com\/american-express-platinums-new-annual-fee-of-695-worth-it\/\">here<\/a>), but right now, the welcome bonus is as high as 175,000 Membership Rewards\u00ae points after $12,000 in eligible purchases in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you\u2019re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount\u2013all with no credit score impact. If you\u2019re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.<br \/>\nYou&#8217;ll also get a slew of valuable travel benefits that renew annually, like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Up to $120 TSA PreCheck\u00ae or Global Entry credit<\/li>\n<li>Up to $200 in annual statement credits for airline incidentals for your chosen airline<\/li>\n<li>Up to $300 in statement credits semi-annually on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts\u00ae or The Hotel Collection bookings, minimum 2 night stay required<\/li>\n<li>Up to $200 in annual Uber Cash for Uber and Uber Eats ($15\/month and $35\/month in December)<\/li>\n<li>Up to $120 in statement credits each calendar year for Uber One<\/li>\n<li>Up to $209 CLEAR+ Credit<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0Up to $300 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $25 in statement credits each month after you pay for eligible purchases with the Platinum Card\u00ae at participating partners. Enrollment required.<\/li>\n<li>Terms Apply. See Rates and Fees.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>The American Express\u00ae Gold Card<\/strong>, which\u2014yes, I know what you&#8217;re thinking\u2014I have both, because this one is great for high food &amp; dining spending (like mine!). This card&#8217;s annual fee is $325 and right now carries a welcome bonus of as high as 100,000 points after $8,000 in eligible purchases in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you\u2019re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount\u2013all with no credit score impact. If you\u2019re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted. Terms Apply, see Rates and Fees.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Chase Sapphire Preferred card<\/strong>, which I carry to get inexpensive access to the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal. (The premium version of this card is the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, which I do not have!)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Once you&#8217;ve spent a few months accumulating points, you may wonder how to think about leveraging them most strategically (and, honestly, when to just pay in cash for your travel instead).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<h2 style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">When to pay with cash<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">The magic number you want to isolate to make this decision is called the <strong>redemption value<\/strong>. Luckily, all you need is:<\/p>\n<ul data-rte-list=\"default\">\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">A 4th grade understanding of long division<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">The price in points<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">The price in dollars<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Once you\u2019ve got that, you want to run the following equation:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"block-animation-site-default\">\n<blockquote data-animation-role=\"quote\"><p>&gt;<br \/>\n\u201c[the cost in dollars] \u00f7 [the cost in points] = the value of each point\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">[the cost of the flight or hotel in dollars] \u00f7 [the cost of the flight or hotel in points] * 100 = the value of each point for this transaction in cents, which tells you whether or not it\u2019s a good time to use your points.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Let\u2019s pretend you\u2019re debating between spending $200 on a flight or spending 18,000 points on Southwest, where Rapid Rewards points are valued\u2014on average\u2014at about 1.5 cents apiece.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">$200 \u00f7 18,000 * 100 = 1.111111, which means your 18,000 points are worth 1.1 cents\/each.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">So what do you do? 1.1 cents per point isn\u2019t a great redemption value\u2014remember, the average value is about 1.5 cents.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Now, what would happen if you <em>paid<\/em> $200 for the flight?<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">You could earn an additional 1,500 points by buying the flight with cash, which would (on average) be worth about $22.50 in the future when you redeem them (1,500 points * 1.5 cents average = $22.50).<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">If it\u2019s really close and you\u2019re torn, you can treat those earned points almost like \u201cmoney off\u201d: $22.50 in points makes your $200 flight\u2019s net cost $177.50. In that way, it\u2019s like you\u2019re comparing spending 18,000 points vs. $177.50.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">In situations like these, it really could go either way\u2014if you have tons of points (and a Southwest Companion Pass), it\u2019s probably not a big deal. But if you have, say, 20,000 points total, this might not be the most worthwhile flight to spend them on.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<h3 style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Here\u2019s the <a href=\"https:\/\/thepointsguy.com\/guide\/monthly-valuations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">average value per point<\/span><\/a> for the major loyalty programs we covered on the show this week<\/h3>\n<ul data-rte-list=\"default\">\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Chase Ultimate Rewards: 2.05 cents per point<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">American Express Membership Rewards: 2 cents per point<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards: 1.5 cents per point<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">United MileagePlus: 1.21 cents per mile<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Marriott Bonvoy: 0.84 cents per point<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"block-animation-site-default\">\n<blockquote data-animation-role=\"quote\"><p>&gt;<br \/>\n\u201cGenerally speaking, you\u2019ll achieve much higher redemption values by transferring points.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">But there\u2019s another factor to consider: While it\u2019s not a hard and fast rule, generally speaking, you\u2019ll achieve much higher redemption values by transferring points from Chase Ultimate Rewards or American Express Membership Rewards <em>to a partner hotel or airline<\/em> than you will booking travel directly in the credit card rewards portal.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">You\u2019d think the numbers would be similar, but they can actually vary substantially: A Delta flight might cost 30,000 Membership Rewards points in the American Express travel portal, <em>but only 18,000 Delta points<\/em>. Transferring your points to Delta (rather than booking directly in the portal) can change the calculus of whether or not the redemption is \u201cgood.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<h2 style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">When to pay with points<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Let\u2019s say you\u2019re perusing the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal for a hotel room and you stumble across a room that costs either $266 or 21,820 points (I pulled this example for the Residence Inn by Marriott in Big Sky, Montana, because I\u2019m trying to drop hints to the universe that I really want to go).<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Using our earlier formula: $266 \u00f7 21,820 points = about 1.22 cents per point<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Hmph. This isn\u2019t great, especially for Ultimate Rewards points.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Let\u2019s try another hotel from the same list: $354 \u00f7 25,512 points = about 1.4 cents per point<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">That\u2019s a little better! Anything encroaching on 1.5 cents per point is usually fine by me. As we\u2019ve already hinted, a lot of the value assigned to the \u201caverage\u201d Ultimate Rewards points value comes from the fact that they can become ludicrously valuable when you transfer them (like to a partner airline for a flight worth <a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneywithkatie.com\/blog\/your-guide-to-chase-ultimate-rewards-transfer-partners-airlines-and-hotels\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">$1,400<\/span><\/a> for 35,000 points, making the flight redemption value worth a whopping 3.7 cents per point).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<h2 style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Where you\u2019ll probably find the most extreme discrepancies between points &amp; dollars<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">The American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards portals will usually have (relatively) consistent ratios. In other words, you probably won\u2019t often find situations in which the points are worth a lot more than the standard two cents each.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">One thing to note: The AmEx Platinum Card\u2019s Fine Hotels &amp; Resorts Collection <em>does<\/em> make certain redemptions extra valuable, since the booking comes with so many more perks (resort credits, free breakfasts, late checkout, etc.).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"block-animation-site-default\">\n<blockquote data-animation-role=\"quote\"><p>&gt;<br \/>\n\u201cWhere you\u2019re more likely to see point values fluctuating is when you directly book with the hotelier or airline.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Where you\u2019re more likely to see point values fluctuating is when you directly book with the hotelier or airline. This is because the airlines and hotels offer peak and off-peak pricing models, in a lot of cases.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">In other words, if you\u2019re looking at Hyatt, you know you\u2019ll always be able to find a \u201cCategory 1\u201d hotel for, say, 5,000 points per night, and that the most you\u2019d ever spend for a \u201cCategory 4\u201d hotel is 90,000 points\/night.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Without standard award charts like the example above, a flight or stay could cost as little (or as much) as the vendor wants for reasons we\u2019ll never know, which makes it less predictable (and usually, more expensive).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\">\n<h2 style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Making sense of the complicated algorithms that determine what things \u201ccost\u201d in Points &amp; Miles Land<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">The weird thing about this dilemma\u2014when to pay with points and when to pay with cash so you can earn more points\u2014is that while we can usually analyze these decisions in a pretty straightforward way, it can be a little\u2026emotional.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">I\u2019ve found myself agonizing over whether I should burn the points on a certain trip or just use \u201creal money,\u201d even when I\u2019m looking at a good redemption value, just like I\u2019ve found myself burning points like they\u2019re Monopoly money when I knew the redemption value wasn\u2019t all that great.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Oftentimes the financial context of our life from month to month can impact this decision. If you\u2019re already over budget, it can be painful to tally another few hundred bucks in the Travel category when your points bank is sitting there staring at you from Loophole Central. It\u2019s not always cut and dried (even when it technically should be).<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">In summary<\/h3>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"white-space: pre-wrap;\">Your best bet is to use the \u201cdollars divided by points\u201d equation every time and determine if the redemption value is strong compared to what the geniuses of the internet say is the average.<\/p>\n<p>#<\/p>\n<p><i>Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are author&#8217;s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.\u202f<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Advertising Disclosure: This content is not sponsored or endorsed by any of the card brands described here and is accurate as of the posting date, but some of the offers mentioned may have expired. Money with Katie is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites. This compensation [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":178814,"featured_media":2239,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"si-template-single-post-everyday-spending-and-budgeting.php","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[45,66],"class_list":["post-65","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-rewards","tag-everyday-spending-and-budgeting","tag-popular-travel-rewards"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Cash or Points For Travel? 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