AMEX Membership Rewards - Rip off unless used for travel?

[Anonymous]

The true value in Membership Rewards is not the gift cards or even the basic travel/hotel flight search that both typically offer 1% back or less. Most people use Amex MR for their ability to transfer their MR points to the airline/hotel programs such as Continental, Jet Blue, Hilton, etc. Airline miles can easily net > 1% back and frequent travellers combine their regular miles from flying with the MR points to redeem for flights/hotels.

If you're looking to rack up a lot of miles but are not yet sure which airline you want to redeem on, MR points enable you to collect tons of miles in an airline/hotel agnostic program and then then transfer them to your program of choice when you're ready to book your travel.

The ability to transfer MR points to airlines/hotels is a capability of the Green, Gold, Platinum & Centurion Cards ONLY. Other cards (Blue, Znyc) which participate in MR do not have this ability and as such you are limited to the gift cards or the basic travel options.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The true value in Membership Rewards is not the gift cards or even the basic travel/hotel flight search that both typically offer 1% back or less. Most people use Amex MR for their ability to transfer their MR points to the airline/hotel programs such as Continental, Jet Blue, Hilton, etc. Airline miles can easily net > 1% back and frequent travellers combine their regular miles from flying with the MR points to redeem for flights/hotels.

If you're looking to rack up a lot of miles but are not yet sure which airline you want to redeem on, MR points enable you to collect tons of miles in an airline/hotel agnostic program and then then transfer them to your program of choice when you're ready to book your travel.

The ability to transfer MR points to airlines/hotels is a capability of the Green, Gold, Platinum & Centurion Cards ONLY. Other cards (Blue, Znyc) which participate in MR do not have this ability and as such you are limited to the gift cards or the basic travel options.

This part is of great interest to me.  Since AMEX CSRs can't tell me what their personal experiences have been with the airline/hotel points transfer strategy, could you and others please share of some success stories where you aggressively used accumulated MR points to travel for free while maintaining a >1% redemption return on points?

Again, it seems like the TrueEarnings card is superior to the charge cards at this point for "return on investment," but here's one reason why I am still considering the AMEX Biz Green: because it is a charge card, I can put my large business expenses on it every month and have it NOT mess up my FICO utilization; whereas the credit card must be paid down multiple times a month before the statement cuts.  Is this correct?  Also I like managing my assets online and Costco TrueEarnings forces me to wait at the end of the year to pick up the rebate check in-store, whereas the MR points can be spent "as you go."

[Anonymous]

The main way to get more than 1 or 2% is in redeeming for business class tickets or higher. Coach can also provide value as well. It really depends on if you're a frequent flyer member of the airlines which Amex enable you to transfer to and the ease in which you are able to redeem miles in your program(s) of choice. All of the typical policies (e.g. 25K for domestic coach in most programs, etc) still apply but Amex enables you to reach those goals through spending instead of just by travel.

Amex also has bonus offerings periodically where you get bonus miles when you transfer to an airline partner. E.g. 1 MR point typically equals 1 BA mile but right now 1 MR point = 1.2BA miles as a temporary promotion.

Flyertalk has indepth discussions on this. See link here -> http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/american-express-membership-rewards/1111596-20-mr-transfer-bonus-ba.h...

I personally just got the SPG Amex card (also offered by American Express and a similar program to MR with airline transfers but with a lower $65 annual fee) as a result of a 30K bonus points offer I received in the mail.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

The true value in Membership Rewards is not the gift cards or even the basic travel/hotel flight search that both typically offer 1% back or less. Most people use Amex MR for their ability to transfer their MR points to the airline/hotel programs such as Continental, Jet Blue, Hilton, etc. Airline miles can easily net > 1% back and frequent travellers combine their regular miles from flying with the MR points to redeem for flights/hotels.

If you're looking to rack up a lot of miles but are not yet sure which airline you want to redeem on, MR points enable you to collect tons of miles in an airline/hotel agnostic program and then then transfer them to your program of choice when you're ready to book your travel.

The ability to transfer MR points to airlines/hotels is a capability of the Green, Gold, Platinum & Centurion Cards ONLY. Other cards (Blue, Znyc) which participate in MR do not have this ability and as such you are limited to the gift cards or the basic travel options.

This part is of great interest to me.  Since AMEX CSRs can't tell me what their personal experiences have been with the airline/hotel points transfer strategy, could you and others please share of some success stories where you aggressively used accumulated MR points to travel for free while maintaining a >1% redemption return on points?

Again, it seems like the TrueEarnings card is superior to the charge cards at this point for "return on investment," but here's one reason why I am still considering the AMEX Biz Green: because it is a charge card, I can put my large business expenses on it every month and have it NOT mess up my FICO utilization; whereas the credit card must be paid down multiple times a month before the statement cuts.  Is this correct?  Also I like managing my assets online and Costco TrueEarnings forces me to wait at the end of the year to pick up the rebate check in-store, whereas the MR points can be spent "as you go."

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Very much correct. I've been paying twice a month religiously for the past three years, even before i got the *Edit*Costco AMEX, just to keep utilization at optimum levels( <9%)

Like the other poster said, I would look into Starwood AMEX see if it works for you. From reviews I read, theyre pretty generous about converting points into other frequent flyer programs. I'm just not partial to cards with AF

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The main way to get more than 1 or 2% is in redeeming for business class tickets or higher. Coach can also provide value as well. It really depends on if you're a frequent flyer member of the airlines which Amex enable you to transfer to and the ease in which you are able to redeem miles in your program(s) of choice. All of the typical policies (e.g. 25K for domestic coach in most programs, etc) still apply but Amex enables you to reach those goals through spending instead of just by travel.

Amex also has bonus offerings periodically where you get bonus miles when you transfer to an airline partner. E.g. 1 MR point typically equals 1 BA mile but right now 1 MR point = 1.2BA miles as a temporary promotion.

Flyertalk has indepth discussions on this. See link here -> http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/american-express-membership-rewards/1111596-20-mr-transfer-bonus-ba.html

I personally just got the SPG Amex card (also offered by American Express and a similar program to MR with airline transfers but with a lower $65 annual fee) as a result of a 30K bonus points offer I received in the mail.

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Right now AMEX is offering 3X MR points on airfare purchased on PLAT cards (between 7/1/10 - 9/30/10).  Again, flyertalk is a great resource for finding out more about these types of promotions (some are by invite only tho).

[ma_fico]

I don't think the 1% return on GCs is all that bad - certainly beats Citi "thank you points" redemption

Discover's GC redemption rate is fabulous (can you beat a $45 or $50 gc for $40?).  And statement credits 1:1 aren't bad either.

[C6]

1% return in gift certificates is bad when one can get 2% back in cash elsewhere. With regards to airline miles, unless one can book many months in advance, the net return per mile is usually only 1%. As an example, an unrestricted first class ticket from the mainland to Hawaii is 200,000 miles. I can frequently buy the ticket for $2000 - $2500 plus I get 2% back on that purchase and earn ~15,000 miles. With cash I'm not limited to one airline and I don't have to jump through any hoops

[ma_fico]

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@C6 wrote:

1% return in gift certificates is bad when one can get 2% back in cash elsewhere. With regards to airline miles, unless one can book many months in advance, the net return per mile is usually only 1%. As an example, an unrestricted first class ticket from the mainland to Hawaii is 200,000 miles. I can frequently buy the ticket for $2000 - $2500 plus I get 2% back on that purchase and earn ~15,000 miles. With cash I'm not limited to one airline and I don't have to jump through any hoops

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Re: the bolded part - that's about earning, not redeeming. 

I have a 2% cash back card, but if shopping at Amex mall earns 3-5-10% "points" and I get a a 25.00 gc at 2500 points, that works out better, assuming that I can USE the gc, of course. 

I get 3% on my Citi Driver's Edge at groceries, drugstores and gas stations, plus "drive rebates" - If I were stuck with the TY points, rather than the cash, I'd drop it in a heartbeat 'cuz the redemption value is so poor for TY points.

I don't travel much, so miles would be wasted on me, no matter how many millions I had. 

It's ymmv as always...

[Anonymous]

Keep in mind if using for business purposes a cash back or cash equivilent card will increase your tax liability whereas using points for airline miles, even for personal travel will not.  This is a big reason amex MR is preferable over a cash back card for business spending. So for me a 2% cash back card for business spending really only nets me about 1.3%.  It is not hard to get more than 1.3% from MR points.

The best bang for your buck is international first or business class flights by transferring to airline partners.  Sometimes redemption ratios are are 5% or more (whether you would spend that much on your own is a different story).  If you don't fly intl, domestic seats can be a decent remdemption value as well, but usually only on expensive or last minute flights.

Another good card is the Amex SPG, you effectively earn 1.25 miles per dollar spent.

[CHARGE_IT]

I use mr points for travel only and regularly for years. It seems to be the only way to get full or higher value. Purchasing or using mr points as cash usually cuts their value by twenty five percent.

The last half of 2009 they ran a 3 times points special on gas , grocery, pharmacy and seems like something else. Just six months of this really boost the accrued value and make the one percent irrelavent.

Greatest value for mr points always comes from booking travel on AMEX and second would be purchase through SHOP AMEX. Never use them to pay off your bill. Big loss there.

They run bonus programs every year, and more than once, so it is really hard to make a judgement about value. It would seem that is part of the value of membership; If you are a member you will know what is available and even then, some members will get better deal depending on the card , use and performance.

So, what you read on line about the cards and mr points is a bottom line projection. It ends up higher always when average over a year. My points always pay for my 'big' vacation each year, and with the six months boost last year, I am doing even better than usual. Paired with vacation spots desperation in th economy, I will be a having a special vacation this year.

Good luck,

CI