Best place to learn to redeem AMEX points

[MontegoMack]

I've racked up some AMEX points. Where's the best place to learn how to get me best bang for my MR bucks? 

I use Delta, Marriott and the likes, but 1:1 can't possibly be the best I can do.

[Anonymous]

There's no "best" in life that covers everyone or even most people.

If Delta and Marriott don't work for you, what else do you spend money on that you can redeem for?

Google result for calculate how to redeem amex points brings up a blog that lists 57 ways to redeem them.

[wasCB14]

I like AwardHacker.

That said, it's only useful if you have a reasonable idea of where you might want to fly.

[sunkissed]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

I like AwardHacker.

That said, it's only useful if you have a reasonable idea of where you might want to fly.

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Thanks for the suggestion. I now have AwardHacker bookmarked. It's super easy to use.

[UpperNwGuy]

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@MontegoMack wrote:

I've racked up some AMEX points. Where's the best place to learn how to get me best bang for my MR bucks? 

I use Delta, Marriott and the likes, but 1:1 can't possibly be the best I can do.

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Actually, 1:1 is the best you can do for the transfer of MR points into the partner program, and that's also true for Chase UR, Citi TYP, and Amex SPG points.  Where you get your value is by selectively redeeming the newly transferred points to book flights or hotel rooms that give you a point value of $.015 or better.  The rate of return on your credit card is your earnings rate multiplied by your redemption rate.  So if you earned 2x points and redeemed at $.015 a mile (after the 1:1 transfer), your rate of return would be 2 x 1.5 = 3.  And if you find a redemption worth $.02 or $.03 a mile, your rate of return is even higher.  Don't transfer the MR until you know how you will use them.

[Anonymous]

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@UpperNwGuy wrote:

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@MontegoMack wrote:

I've racked up some AMEX points. Where's the best place to learn how to get me best bang for my MR bucks? 

I use Delta, Marriott and the likes, but 1:1 can't possibly be the best I can do.

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Actually, 1:1 is the best you can do for the transfer of MR points into the partner program, and that's also true for Chase UR, Citi TYP, and Amex SPG points.  Where you get your value is by selectively redeeming the newly transferred points to book flights or hotel rooms that give you a point value of $.015 or better.  The rate of return on your credit card is your earnings rate multiplied by your redemption rate.  So if you earned 2x points and redeemed at $.015 a mile (after the 1:1 transfer), your rate of return would be 2 x 1.5 = 3.  And if you find a redemption worth $.02 or $.03 a mile, your rate of return is even higher.  Don't transfer the MR until you know how you will use them.

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Well actually there are times when a bonus transfer ratio is offered where you can do better than a 1:1 transfer rate.  As you point out though the ‘1’ in this situation doesn’t equate to one cent.  Last December I was able to transfer Amex points during a bonus program to Virgin America and then booked a flight on Virgin Australia for two in first class from Los Angeles to Australia and the points were worth over $.07 each.  The biggest mistake people make in trying to redeem miles/points for flights is that they forget to review whatever airline alliance the transfer partner belongs to and incorrectly assume that they can only use the miles on the airlines specifically listed for each reward program.  It can be time consuming and frustrating to learn about booking award flights but if you do your homework and are flexible with your travel plans, this is by far the best way to use MR, UR and TY points. There are other sites out there like FlyerTalk that can be very helpful in learning the ins and and outs of booking reward flights.

[bourgogne]

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@MontegoMack wrote:

I've racked up some AMEX points. Where's the best place to learn how to get me best bang for my MR bucks? 

I use Delta, Marriott and the likes, but 1:1 can't possibly be the best I can do.

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best place to learn would be reddit churn imo.  the folks there are really sharp, many do it for a living lol.  this forum is aimed for rebuilding for the most part, if you want to take it to the next level reddit is the place

[K-in-Boston]

Lot of great advice here!  Certainly know how you want to redeem them and figure out what works best for you.  I know that I could be getting more value out of my Membership Rewards points with extra work, but I like the simplicity of just being able to transfer 3:1 to SPG and 1:3 to Marriott, since I know that I'm going to ultimately end up getting right at 2-3 cents per point due to the way I redeem Marriott points (for a Cat 8 or 9, peak times when rates are really high and 5th night free work out much better than cpp on an off-peak 4 night stay for example).  As a general rule, though, the best bang for the buck seems to come from using transfer bonuses combined with reward flights on alliance airlines.  It's an ever-changing landscape, though, and many are switching to revenue-based redemption.  Southwest is the only airline where I've seen the switch to revenue-based actually not work out so bad.

[red259]

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@MontegoMack wrote:

I've racked up some AMEX points. Where's the best place to learn how to get me best bang for my MR bucks? 

I use Delta, Marriott and the likes, but 1:1 can't possibly be the best I can do.

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Really you should have had a basic idea how you were going to use these points before even apping for a credit card. There is a chance that there may have been better cards for your specific goals. IMO using Amex MRs for hotel stays is a poor redemption value but better than nothing I guess. I would look at where you want to travel to and then see if any of their travel partners go there. Be sure to price out the tickets though because if they are already heavily discounted then you might rather pay cash and use the points somewhere else. 

[red259]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

I like AwardHacker.

That said, it's only useful if you have a reasonable idea of where you might want to fly.

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+1 OMG I never even knew of this website and would do serious grunt work each time I wanted to take a trip researching all the redemption programs. While the website doesn't answer all the questions needed, it does really cut down on the time it takes to identify which airlines may be suitable.