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Award Flight Search Engines: The FULL List (2024)

Travel hacking has been my passion since I was 13 years old, and one of the most rewarding parts is when you actually manage to book a flight using your hard-earned miles at a great value. For me, points and miles enabled me and my family to do things I wouldn’t be able to do otherwise, like taking my partner on Lufthansa First Class class for his birthday.

Navigating the seemingly complex universe of frequent flyer programs and miles can be overwhelming. Still, with the right technology, you can reveal hidden gems and turn them into unforgettable journeys.

In this blog post, I will guide you through the best award flight search engines available in 2024, demystify their features, and help you maximize your travel potential while saving significantly on your adventures. Let’s go!

Best for: Overall Fastest search engine Great mobile experience Impressive UI Multiple programs Free trial

Best for: Concierge service Great for someone who doesn’t want to deal with all the booking details Several additional services Supports hotels Free trial

Roame Travel

Best for: Credit Card Points Simple interface Advanced filters Alerts and notifications Friends of Roame ($9.99) Free forever

Tools to find award flights: Quick comparison

How to find award availability in 2024: the best award flight search engines, 1. awardfares.

Simply put, AwardFares is the world’s fastest search engine for award flights. It searches across multiple frequent flyer programs, displays real-time availability for multiple dates, monitors and alerts you via email when spaces open, and has a handy trip planner.

Ongoing Offer

Get 20% OFF when you upgrade to AwardFares Gold or Diamond using my link , or my code AIRLAPSE .

AwardFares Key Features

• Fast and easy to use.
• Modern user interface that works on mobile.
• Easy to understand and explore available award seats.
• Advanced filters (cabin type, airlines, number of stops, etc.).
• Best search tool for Star Alliance flights.
• Support for American Airlines AAdvantage, Alaska MileagePlan, SAS EuroBonus, United Mileage Plus, Air Canada Aeroplan, and more coming soon.
• Alerts for specific routes and dates. When award seats become available that match the alert criteria, AwardFares sends an email notification.
• Awesome trip planner to pick flights in sequence (open jaw, round the world, etc.)
• Pricing options for both casual (Gold) and hardcore users (Diamond).

2. Point.me

Point.me is a free online search tool designed to assist users in finding the best use for their travel reward points or miles. It aims to simplify the process of award travel booking by showing users how they can leverage their points across various frequent flyer programs. Point.me also offers a forum and a concierge service that can help book award flights and hotels.

Point.me Key Features

• Wide Airline Coverage.
• Flexible Search Parameters: Users can input their desired route and dates, and the tool will show available award flights and the points required for each option.
• Point Cost Estimation: Point.me estimates the points or miles required for each potential flight. This makes it easier to compare options across different programs.
• Simple and intuitive interface.
• No Booking Function. Similar to other award travel search tools, Point.me doesn’t provide booking functionality. After finding a flight, you will need to book the flight directly through the airline or relevant booking platform.

3. Roame.travel

Roame Travel is a free award travel search engine that allows users to search for award flights across multiple frequent flyer programs. It searches among 12 airline loyalty programs and covers over 122 airlines, which include alliance and non-alliance partners (with more to come).

Roame Travel Key Features

• Forever Free.  No subscription is required.
• Fast. Roame.travel searches for award availability in 12 seconds (on average).
• Comprehensive. Supports 12+ different frequent flyer programs.
• Easy to use and navigate.
• Advanced filtering . Filter search results by a variety of criteria, such as airline, cabin class, and departure and arrival dates.
• Great guides. To understand how to convert and transfer points from different loyalty programs.
• Skyview (paid). Great deals in the next 48h.

SeatSpy is a recent tool that helps you find award seat availability on British Airways Executive Club and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. It operates on a “freemium” model, which means you can complete a limited number of economy award searches for free. However, you’ll need to pay for a premium subscription to perform searches for premium cabins, set up award alerts, and perform unlimited award searches.

SeatSpy Key Features

• Real-Time searches award seat availability. Just BA and Virgin Atlantic.
• Easy to use and simple interface.
• Alerts for specific routes and dates. When award seats become available that match the alert criteria, SeatSpy sends an email notification.
• Detailed information. The search results show detailed information about each flight, including the number of rewards and upgrade seats available.
• Advanced filters (cabin type, stops, passengers).
• Pricing. SeatSpy offers both free and paid tiers. The free version offers limited features, while the paid tiers provide more comprehensive services and faster alert notifications.

5. Award Nexus

Award Nexus is a premium online tool for frequent flyers who use reward points or miles to book flights. It’s a powerful search engine that helps users find available award seats on flights across various airline alliances and frequent flyer programs. However, Award Nexus is only a premium service, meaning users must pay for access. They offer limited free accounts just for users at FlyerTalk or BoardingArea .

Award Nexus Key Features

• Multiple Airline Search.
• Alerts. They call it “automated searches”. Award Nexus can continually check for award space and notify users via email when it becomes available.
• Flexible simultaneous searches for multiple dates and routes.
• Detailed flight Information (number of stops, duration, aircraft type).
• Easy-to-use interface, although it looks dated compared to other tools.

6. AwardHacker

AwardHacker is an interesting proposal. The platform is a free product from  US Credit Card Guide , and can show you the best possible redemption options, but it does not contain availability info . Therefore, you are not allowed to input dates in AwardHacker, and you need to check the availability info on the official websites of the mileage programs.

I listed it in this position because, in a way, it can be a great complement to a tool like AwardFares : you can look first at the desired routes in AwardHacker, and then use AwardFares to search for available seats on that route.

AwardHacker Key Features

• Broad Airline Coverage.
• Flexible search parameters but no dates (since it doesn’t show up availability).
• Mileage Estimation.
• Routing Information (useful for planning travel).
• User-friendly.
• Search Tool Only . It’s important to remember that AwardHacker is a search tool only and doesn’t provide booking functionality.

7. KVS Tool

KVS Tool is an ancient legacy. It stands for KVS Availability Tool, and it is one of the pioneers in the space. It’s primarily used to search for flight availability, including award and upgrade availability, across a wide range of airlines and alliances. The tool can also provide fare information, seat maps, and more.

KVS Tool Key Features

• Wide Airline and Alliance Coverage.
• Flexible Search Parameters.
• Fare Information. In addition to flight availability, KVS Tool can provide fare codes and fare information, which can be useful for understanding pricing and booking class availability.
• Seat Maps and Aircraft Information. The tool can provide seat maps and detailed aircraft information, which can be helpful when selecting seats or comparing flights.
• Subscription-Based. KVS Tool operates on a subscription model, with different levels of access and features available depending on the subscription tier.

As a technologist, I love when tools have a huge impact on the way we do things while giving you back your time. Searching for award flights has always been rewarding but painful, confusing, and with a steep learning curve , given that each airline/program has its portal and workflow.

While award flight availability tools and search engines have been around for many years, I feel they are just starting. It wasn’t until recent years that the underlying technology to implement fast, smooth, and mobile experiences became available. I love the fact that these tools can help new users and beginners get started, democratizing opportunities for everyone.

Feel free to let me know your thoughts and comments below, and you can also reach out to me on Instagram at any time!

Other posts you’ll love

• New AwardFares Features! Support for American AAdvantage, Alaska MileagePlan, And More (2023)
• Roame Travel: A New Search Engine For Award Flights That Takes 12 Seconds (Review)
• Best ExpertFlyer Alternatives: Top Free And Paid Options!

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14 Powerful Tools to Optimize your Award Travel

When you’re trying to juggle dozens of credit cards, deals, loyalty accounts, and award redemptions, organization is everything. Luckily, there are several tools that can save you a lot of time. In this post, I will walk through the tools and services I use to streamline my award travel earning and redemptions.

Organizing your Credit Cards, Bank Accounts, and Gift Cards

For credit cards, I use a password-protected spreadsheet that lists all my card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes. I include when I applied for the card when I was approved, the signup bonus amount and requirements, as well as when I plan to cancel the card. I use the same spreadsheet to keep track of:

• Any bank account bonuses that I am pursuing
• Visa and Mastercard gift cards
• Third-party gift cards that I am reselling
• Purchases made for buying groups

I save the spreadsheet in my OneDrive account so I can access it anywhere, but I have also used Dropbox and Google Sheets to do the same thing.

I use Credit Karma and Credit Sesame to track my credit score. I monitor my credit card, bank account, and investment transactions and balances using Personal Capital . While the service is primarily for investing and budgeting, the ability to see purchases across all cards on one screen saves a ton of time. It is also a particularly useful way to catch annual fees on older cards right after they post to your account.

Managing your Loyalty Accounts

Award Wallet will monitor all your loyalty accounts and travel reservations. It can notify you about changes in your point balances and status levels and even inform you about any approaching point and certificate expirations.

AwardWallet touts support for 696 loyalty programs, including all major airlines and hotels. You can also link store loyalty accounts such as Staples or voucher-based sites such as Groupon and Living Social.

A free account will get you most of AwardWallet’s core features. However, if you upgrade to AwardWallet Plus, you can get more detailed monitoring as we as unlimited and faster updating of your accounts. See a comparison of the features here . It costs $30 to upgrade, but if you use my code free-esofxt, you can get a year of Plus for free. 

Searching for Flight Routings

Google Flights certainly does not require an explanation. It is probably one of the most popular resources out there to check and track the price of flights. One of Google Flights’ more useful features is the ability to search by region. For example, if you are planning a long weekend trip to Europe but did not know which city you wanted to fly into, you could type your origin airport and type Europe as the destination.

Flight Connections allows you to see all nonstop and multi-stop flights originating from a specific airport. This can be extremely useful when planning out routing for a complex or round-the-world itinerary. When booking an award ticket, it may be necessary to add a positioning flight from your home airport to another airport that services a nonstop flight to your final destination. Flight Connections can help you understand the best airports to route through. For example, the map below shows all nonstop routes to Bali (Denpasar), Indonesia.

Searching for Award Flights

Award Hacker is a free tool that lists the cheapest award redemptions by routing. It is a great starting point when determining which point currencies you should focus on earning for a specific trip.

Award.flights i s a chrome extension that allows you to initiate award searches across multiple airlines with one click. While you need to provide your login credentials for each airline when setting up the extension, it can certainly save you time when searching multiple sites. Unfortunately, it does not offer any automated search functionality.

The AA Award Map is American Airlines’ tool for searching all available AAdvantage award space by region, including flights of their OneWorld partners that are bookable on AA.com. It has been around for many years but is a handy tool to use when you have a lot of AAdvantage miles to burn and want to scan availability across an entire region.

While AA has vastly improved the number of Oneworld partners bookable through AA.com over the past few years, there are still a few partners that will not show in your searches, including LATAM, S7, and China Southern.

Juicy Miles

Juicy Miles aims to be the most comprehensive, yet also easiest to use, award flight search engine out there. For $29.99 a month or $9.99 for five days, you can conduct unlimited searches across 27 loyalty programs. After entering in your origin, destination, and travel date, Juicy Miles will provide you with possible redemption options. Juicy Miles is best for finding the lowest-priced award redemption. It even considers any current transfer bonuses from Marriott, Citi, Amex, and Chase.

While the monthly $29.99 subscription price is a bit steep compared to other services described below, I could see where the $9.99 5-day pass could be a great deal when you are in the midst of trip planning.

Although it can easily be considered the Swiss Army Knife of award search tools, there are still some limitations. For example, Juicy Miles only shows Saver level availability for American Airlines and does not yet support Aisa Miles.

Juicy Miles may be best for running dozens of searches to find what destinations and dates have award availability. However, what if you have already determined your destination and travel dates, but there is no award availability?

Monitoring Award Space for a single destination or trip

Many airlines will release award space when their booking calendar opens (usually 330 – 360 days out) and then may release additional seats closer to the departure date. For example, Cathay Pacific has historically released some Business- and First-class award space to its partners in the days leading up to departure. The award travel tools below provide the ability to search and monitor award availability for specific flights or routings.

Award Nexus

Award Nexus provides search functionality across all three major alliances. While you could certainly run all these searches yourself, the value comes from the amount of time saved.

Unlike Juicy Miles’s subscription model, with Award Nexus, you pay for a certain number of credits that roughly correspond to the number of searches you want to perform. One credit entitles you to search one airline site for an award flight between two airports, on one date, and in one class. There are a few different packages, including 500 points for $59, 1,400 points for $129, or 2,800 points for $140. The two higher plans come out to 9 cents per credit, which can certainly add up when you are monitoring multiple routes and dates. These premium plans also provide access to an automated search with results delivered through email.

One of Award Nexus’ more economical packages is an unlimited-search trip pass for $45. This pass entitles you to run an unlimited number of searches for up to a year to 3 destinations that complete within 45 days. The package also includes one daily automated search that can use up to ten credits.

If you have a Flyertalk account, you can sign up for a free community membership, which will provide you with 100 credits per quarter.

Expert Flyer

Expert Flyer is another great award travel tool for monitoring award availability. The $9.99 monthly subscription option allows you to set up to 100 alerts for specific flights. They offer a free trial of their premium service when you sign up . Unfortunately, several airlines are missing from the service, including Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, and Qatar Airways. Luckily, these are all available through Award Nexus and are also easily searchable on AA.com. See a list of Expert Flyer’s supported airlines here .

Expert Flyer does not disclose how often they check award availability; instead, they say they have a “proprietary algorithm that varies the polling frequency based on several factors, including how far away the departure date/time is.” Their company representative wrote on Flyertalk that their algorithm “checks at minimum several times a day.” If true, that would mean Expert Flyer should alert you to new availability faster than Award Nexus.

Expert Flyer also offers a flight availability search, which can show you how many seats in each fare class are left. Just like the Award & Upgrade search, you can set up an alert for when the number of remaining seats is above or below a specified amount. This function can come in handy when a flight is listed as sold out and you’re attempting to redeem a flexible-level award. For example, American’s AAnytime awards are available whenever there is at least one seat open.

While they can be priced significantly higher than an AA Saver Award, AAnytime awards might still represent a great value compared to the price of a cash ticket. Earlier this year, I redeemed a 30,000 AAnytime award for a flight from MIA to JFK two days before departure. The cash price of that flight was consistently above $450.

Other useful tools

Cash Back Monitor : Shows the best portal rates available for each store. While Rakuten frequently offers the highest value, especially when you are earning Membership Reward points, that’s not always the case.

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Time Shifter is an app to combat jet lag. After entering your travel details, the app provides a step-by-step plan on when to sleep, drink coffee, and get exposure to bright light.  

Did I miss any award travel tools? Comment below or send me an email .

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Best Free Award Flight Search Tools: Top 6 Reviewed

R.J. Weiss, CFP®

• Updated December 20, 2023

Award flights are a cornerstone of travel hacking , allowing budget-conscious travelers to leverage their miles and points for free or discounted air travel. 

However, the quest for the perfect award seat comes with challenges, including limited availability. (Not every seat on a flight can be booked with points.) 

Over the past year, there’s been a significant uptick in awards flight search engines — some of which are entirely free, while others offer robust features if you pay to upgrade your account. 

Drawing from my extensive testing and investment in these platforms, this article introduces you to the best free tools for finding award flights. Along with my thoughts and insights, this guide will help you determine which option is best suited for your specific needs.

Here are my top picks:

• Point.me . Ideal for travelers enrolled in multiple loyalty programs who are looking for a comprehensive way to search across various airlines.
• PointsYeah.com . Best for those with flexible dates and a need for real-time award seat alerts.
• Seats.aero . Perfect for travelers open to exploring premium international awards across regions.
• Roame.Travel . Suited for those who prioritize search speed and are open to exploring multiple destinations quickly.
• AwardLogic . Great for travelers in the planning phase who need to conduct extensive research in a short amount of time.
• ExpertFlyer . Tailored for travelers focused on upgrading specific flights and monitoring seat availability.

#1. Point.me

Point.me allows you to search award availability across over 30 loyalty programs and 100 airlines, making it a go-to first stop for finding award flights. It does have a subscription fee, but there’s a simple way to get nearly full access for free. 

Best for : Point.me is useful for those enrolled in multiple loyalty programs and have transferable point currencies (such as Chase, Amex or Citi points) with a specific destination in mind.

The tool allows you to conduct three free searches to give you a taste of its capabilities; if you sign up with Bilt (which is free) you can access Point.me for free through their partnership. 

How I use this tool : Point.me is my go-to platform when searching for award availability to a particular destination. The site’s real-time updates have been instrumental in helping me optimize my points usage for multiple trips.

I use it as an excellent starting guide to see what’s available, though I always double-check the information on the airline’s website (there have been multiple occasions where the prices differ on the airline’s site compared to Point.me). To get around the fact that the search engine is slow, I perform searches in multiple tabs. This way, I can search multiple dates or airports faster than by using just one tab. 

Final verdict : Point.me is an excellent choice for travelers seeking a comprehensive award flight search tool. Its clean user interface, akin to Kayak, allows for easy searches to and from specific destinations. While its limitations include the inability to search date ranges and occasional inaccuracies, its ease of use makes it a valuable resource for finding award flights. 

#2. PointsYeah.com

PointsYeah.com specializes in award flight searches across 18 loyalty programs and over 120 airlines. Currently, it’s 100% free. The standout features are the ability to search three days at a time and a unique alert system.

Best for : Ideal for travelers who have flexible dates and who want to stay updated on award seat availability. PointsYeah.com’s “My Points Price Alerts” feature offers functionality similar to Kayak or Google price alerts, though it caps you at three active alerts.

How I use this tool : I use PointsYeah.com mainly for its alert features and fast multi-date searches. It’s my primary tool for tracking award availability for specific periods. Because it’s fast, the tool is a great starting point if you have multiple destinations in mind and want to see what’s available.

Final verdict : If Point.me weren’t available for free through Bilt, PointsYeah.com would be my preferred tool for award flight searches. While its user interface isn’t as polished as Point.me’s, it compensates with quicker search speeds and the highly valuable multi-date search feature. It’s also beneficial in the early stages of trip planning, showing you how many points you’ll need for your dream destination (which can inform your strategy on the best ways to earn points and miles ). However, it does have limitations, such as the absence of nearby airport search functionality and the notable omission of Southwest Airlines. 

#3. Seats.aero

Seats.aero offers a unique approach to award flight searches by allowing you to search across entire regions with instant results — e.g., search North America to all of Africa. While it does offer a pro account for more advanced features, the free version provides substantial value. 

Best for : Seats.aero is ideal for travelers who aren’t tied to specific destinations and are looking for premium international awards. The free version allows you to create unlimited alerts and explore awards by clicking on airport codes, making it great for brainstorming trips or finding last-minute availability. 

How I use this tool : As a paying user, I find Seats.aero ideal for searching for potential destinations on specific dates, especially given that I have to take my kids’ school calendars into consideration. For example, it allows me to see to what destinations my points can buy five international business class seats during Spring Break.

The free version offers insight into two months of award availability, providing a good starting point for planning or for those who like taking last-minute trips. Being a premium user allows you to see up to a year of availability on all routes. 

Final verdict : Seats.aero is a powerful tool for those who enjoy exploring award flight options across regions. Its unique features, like regional search and unlimited alerts, make it stand out compared to the competing alternatives. However, its interface could be more intuitive, as it resembles a database more than a user-friendly search engine like Kayak. Despite this, the tool offers unique value in the space and is worth getting familiar with to help plan your next trip. 

#4. Roame.Travel

Roame.Travel is a relatively new but promising award flight search engine. It covers 14 airline loyalty programs and over 122 airlines, offering real-time pricing information and advanced filtering options. While it excels in speed, it lacks features like multi-date search.

Best for : Roame.Travel is best suited for travelers who prioritize speed. Therefore, it’s a great starting point for seeing what’s available at numerous destinations. For example, if I wanted to get from New York to the Caribbean on a certain date, I would use Roame.Travel to search the many combinations of potential destinations. The tool’s SkyView feature, available only to paid subscribers, allows for region-to-region searches, similar to Seats.aero (but with a better user interface). 

How I use this tool : I appreciate Roame.Travel for its speed. Because it produces results so quickly, it’s a great tool for brainstorming potential trips. I also find their free newsletter valuable for keeping an eye on great redemption opportunities. 

Final verdict : Roame.Travel is a newcomer with a lot of potential. Its speed and user-friendly interface make it a strong contender in the award flight search space. The SkyView feature, available only to paying members, allows for region-to-region searches, adding unique value. However, it does have limitations, like the absence of multi-date and multi-airport searches, which could be a drawback for some travelers.

# 5. AwardLogic

AwardLogic is a robust award flight search engine resembling Point.me in functionality, though it also offers valuable features like multi-date search and award alerts. While free for the first three days, it switches to a paid model afterward and is one of the more expensive tools on this list. 

Best for : AwardLogic is best suited for travelers in the planning phase who need to conduct extensive research quickly. While many free tools offer similar functionality, AwardLogic stands out for its multi-date search and modern user interface.

How I use this tool : I haven’t used AwardLogic extensively, primarily because the free tools mentioned above fit my needs and thus I’m not inclined to pay more than $199 per year in fees.

Final verdict : AwardLogic offers various pricing tiers: $4.99 for a day pass, $19.99 monthly, or $199.99 annually. Although it was one of the first award search tools on the market (thereby justifying its higher price point), the proliferation of free tools now makes it a less compelling option.

#6. ExpertFlyer

ExpertFlyer offers seat alerts, tailored for travelers looking to upgrade on specific flights. It offers two pricing tiers: basic and premium, but does provide one free alert. 

Best for : ExpertFlyer is most useful for travelers who have a ticket and are eyeing upgrade opportunities on that specific flight. The seat alert feature is its standout offering, allowing you to monitor availability for upgrades.

How I use this tool : I’ve used ExpertFlyer’s free seat alerts in the past. While I haven’t personally had success with upgrades, I know others who have. The tool is not as user-friendly as some other platforms; its interface is somewhat outdated and not very intuitive.

Final verdict : ExpertFlyer excels in its unique seat alert feature, making it a valuable tool for those focused on upgrading specific flights. However, its user interface could use an update to improve usability. The pricing tiers and the availability of free alerts make it a flexible option, especially for those who frequently seek upgrades but are on a budget.

Final Thoughts

When I started in the points and miles world, these tools weren’t available. 

Whether you’re new and considering the best first credit card for earning points and miles or an experienced award traveler, these search engines can help cut hours off the process of finding award availability.

A few tips I’ve found helpful when using any award search engine:

• Double-check with the Airline . Never transfer your hard-earned points until you’ve confirmed that the seats are actually available directly with the airline or loyalty program. Award search engines are great, but they’re not infallible.
• Compare with The Big Three . Before transferring your points, make sure to also check Delta, American Airlines and United. I’ve had instances where these loyalty programs showed lower award prices than I found on the search engines. I mention these three specifically as they’ll allow you to search across each of the major alliance networks. 
• Set up alerts . Award availability is volatile. What’s available today might not be there tomorrow, and vice versa. While it’s true that the best seats often open up far in advance, airlines also release award seats at random intervals. So, set up alerts and keep your options open.

Don’t overlook these steps; they could be the difference between a smooth booking experience and a frustrating one. And once you’ve secured your flights, don’t forget to look into how to book hotels with points .

Not sure where to start or what’s available? Check out my travel hacking case studies guide for examples of free trips I’ve booked over the years.

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Ask a Travel Nerd: How I Introduce Friends to Award Travel

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I’ve been an enthusiastic award traveler for over a decade, using points and miles earned from credit cards to book flights, hotels and more. Award travel has granted me experiences that would have otherwise been over my budget, helping me explore the world, spend time with loved ones and get where I’m going in comfort.

I’m grateful for my hobby and eager to share it with curious friends and family. However, award travel has complexities and pitfalls that make it risky.

I’ve learned over the years that introducing others to award travel requires a degree of care, so here are five guidelines I use when I welcome new players to the points and miles game.

1. Set realistic expectations

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average U.S. household spent over $1,850 on transportation and lodging for out-of-town trips in 2022. With that figure in mind, I’m not surprised people commonly get into award travel as a way to cut costs. But while “get a credit card and travel for free” sounds alluring, the reality is it’s not free and not that simple.

Booking with points and miles takes varying degrees of effort, depending on where you want to go and how luxuriously you want to travel. In addition to planning your itinerary, you’ll have to figure out which airline and hotel programs you’ll use to book it.

Once you earn enough points and miles, there’s no guarantee the airplane seat or hotel night will be available. Even when they are, booking them may involve out-of-pocket costs, such as taxes, fuel surcharges or resort fees . In short, it’s no sure bet.

To manage expectations, I paint an honest picture of award travel. While it’s not a golden ticket to first class seats and presidential suites, it can help you travel for less.

2. Start small

Since I started collecting points and miles in 2010, I’ve opened over 80 credit cards in pursuit of sign-up bonuses, spending rewards and other benefits. I've sometimes averaged more than one new credit card per month.

I can handle that volume because I’ve worked up to it, learning how to manage my credit and loyalty accounts over the years. But a beginner attempting that same pace would be like a student driver entering a Formula One race.

I encourage newbies to start small and set an achievable travel goal (like booking one flight or hotel stay with points) and figure out how best to meet it. That narrow focus provides an opportunity to learn the ins and outs of award travel without getting overwhelmed. If things go well, ramping up is easy. If not, the cost of failure is low.

3. Emphasize good financial habits

You’re not likely to ding your credit score by trying chess or snorkeling, but getting into award travel generally involves opening (and monitoring) various financial and loyalty accounts.

Richard Kerr, vice president of travel at Bilt Rewards, says that award travelers must set their priorities appropriately.

“Rewards never outweigh interest and fees,” Kerr said, who adds that it's important to make sure "the well-being of your personal finances always comes first in your pursuit of points and miles.”

According to data from the Federal Reserve, credit card annual percentage rates averaged more than 20% in 2023. Meanwhile, when redeemed for travel, most points and miles are worth just 1 to 2 cents.

Mismanaging accounts can be costly, so I stress the importance of organization and fiscal responsibility. I implore new award travelers to pay their credit card balances on time and in full and warn them against overspending. I also offer tips for keeping track of accounts and due dates and share my organizational tools where needed.

4. Follow along 

Points and miles can open a lot of doors, but throwing folks in the deep end to fend for themselves can do more harm than good.

Once I introduce someone to award travel, I feel some responsibility for the outcome, so I offer my continued assistance as needed to help them stay afloat.

I try to proactively check in with folks about their progress and ensure they’re meeting spending requirements, managing accounts and avoiding unnecessary costs. If all goes well initially, I keep them apprised of future opportunities (like award sales or outsized credit card bonuses ).

5. Don’t be pushy

The prospect of traveling at a heavy discount has the ring of a late-night infomercial, making many folks distrustful of it initially. I talk about award travel without sounding like I’m selling something. I speak plainly, avoid overhyping and never force details on disinterested parties.

On a related note, I’m upfront about any way I stand to gain personally. For example, I always disclose when a credit card offer earns me a referral bonus (even though I send my friends only the best available offers anyway).

Finally, I don’t ask for anything in return — my help comes with no strings attached.

on American Express' website

on Chase's website

on Citibank's application

Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.

Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

Earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 ThankYou® Points per $1 spend on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through June 30, 2024.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2024 , including those best for:

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

On a similar note...

• Features to look for in a rewards tracking app 

Top credit card rewards tracking apps

The best search tools for booking flights on points and miles, track your credit card rewards and book the best award flights with the best apps and tools in 2024.

Affiliate links for the products on this page are from partners that compensate us and terms apply to offers listed (see our advertiser disclosure with our list of partners for more details). However, our opinions are our own. See how we rate credit cards to write unbiased product reviews .

• Credit card reward deadlines, expiration dates, and rotating bonuses can be challenging to remember.
• The best reward apps track upcoming offers and expiration dates on the credit cards in your wallet.
• New award travel search tools help you find the best deals on booking flights with points and miles.
• Read Business Insider's guide to the best travel rewards credit cards.

How do you keep track of how many points or miles you have? Some people use spreadsheets, while others log into various bank, airline, and hotel websites to track them individually. But the smartest award hounds are using these popular tools to maximize their rewards

Why use a credit card rewards tracking app?

Playing the credit card game can be insanely rewarding. Racking up points and miles, scoring huge sign-up bonuses , and earning outsized cash-back percentages can feel like winning the lottery.

However, keeping up with the rules of the game can also be challenging. Bonus categories can change every few months, sign-up thresholds can fade to the back of your mind, and travel transfer partners and rates are ever-changing. If you're struggling to keep all those numbers straight, consider one of the apps we recommend below.

Features to look for in a rewards tracking app 

You've worked hard to earn your rewards, so you'll want to keep them safe and make sure they get used before they expire — ideally at maximum value. Here are some questions to keep in mind as you consider different tracking tools.

Comprehensive rewards management

In a perfect world, the ideal app would integrate with every rewards program you use and tell you the best credit card to use each time you pull out your wallet to make a purchase. But no such tool exists as of today, so many dedicated award hounds use a combination of the apps below to track all of their credit card rewards.

Some tools, like CardPointers, link to major issuers such as Chase , Amex , Capital One , and Citi to update you on offers specific to your credit cards. Others, like AwardWallet, help you track every loyalty program and rewards system you use, from travel companies to retailers. 

Security and privacy features

As with any fintech tool, there's some measure of risk involved in sharing your financial information. Credit card tracking apps integrate with your issuers to pull data from your credit card usage, so make sure you understand what each company offers in terms of security before you share your bank credentials. 

• AwardWallet: Best for tracking multiple loyalty programs
• CardPointers: Best for managing your wallet and maximizing credit card offers
• Travel Freely: Best for couples earning points together
• MaxRewards: Best for monitoring credit alongside of rewards

AwardWallet

Cost: Freemium — Free version works for most. AwardWallet+ $30/year.

If you're considering a reward tracking app, AwardWallet is something of a holy grail. This tool monitors nearly 700 loyalty programs and has well over half a million users. From the big names like Chase Ultimate Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards to hotel chains, cruise lines, rental car companies and even retailers like Sephora, this service covers every angle of the rewards game.

• Tracks travel plans and sends email alerts about flight delays or other interruptions
• Analyzes spending to make sure you're using the right cards to earn the most points
• Award concierge service can help find your best redemption offer and save you searching and comparison time
• Has approximately 700,000 users and high marks in both the App Store and the Play Store
• Premium version costs $30/year
• Concierge service costs $50 search fee per traveler and a $100 booking fee per traveler

CardPointers

Cost: Freemium — Free version works for most. Premium is $6.99/month, $59.99/year, or $199.99 lifetime 

CardPointers is a relatively new app that helps you track, manage, and maximize every credit card you own — as long as you take the time to fully set up your account, of course. 

This tool's standout feature is its ability to integrate with Amex and Chase to help you add special offers to specific credit cards in your account. Amex Offers , for example, can be legendary for generous cash back rewards with certain merchants. But you have to add individual offers to your targeted credit card, then make the required purchase on that specific card in order to earn your offer bonus.

CardPointers eliminates the need for all of that tapping and pecking: When you link this app to your credit card accounts, paid members can bulk-add all offers to their credit cards, while free-version members can add them more efficiently than they would on the issuers' websites or apps. If you install the browser extension, CardPointers will suggest which card to use when you visit various retailer websites. 

CardPointers is highly customizable, with a sleek, clean interface that's easy to use. You can manually add each card you own, or sync the app to your accounts and let it suggest cards for you to include.

If you use the correct name for each credit card, CardPointers will automatically input its bonus categories, earn rates, and offer suggestions on which card to use for your next purchase. It even includes sections to input your card anniversary so it can remind you when anticipate a bonus or consider closing the card, and helps you track your progress toward welcome offer requirements.

• Clean, simple app interface with customizable fields
• Tracks annual fee due dates, progress toward welcome offers, bonus categories, and far more
• Free version provides plenty of benefits and features

Default browser extension card suggestions can feel intrusive at times, although you can personalize these settings in your account preferences. 

Travel Freely

Cost: Free for everyone

As the name suggests, Travel Freely is all about traveling without spending any money on the actual trip. The app's bold promise is that you can get more than $2,000 every year by using it, and the big differentiating point with this tool is the ability to track up to two users. So if you and your "Player 2" are both racking up points and miles to put toward big vacations each year, this is a good way to collaborate. 

The main feature of this app is the ability to track when credit card annual fees  are approaching, when a bonus deadline is near, and when you're close to exceeding the Chase 5/24 rule (opening five new cards in 24 months). It's a relatively simple app, and it comes with a CardGenie tool that helps recommend the next card to add to your wallet.

• Ability to track two users' credit card reward activity
• Helps stay on top of deadlines and offers suggestions for downgrading cards to avoid annual fees
• Good way to keep track of the potential of applying for too many credit cards in a certain timeframe

Only focused on travel — so not a great pick if you're looking for cash back

Cost: Freemium — Free version works for most. MaxRewards Gold $7/month or $84/year (with sliding scale discounts)

Most credit card rewards tracking apps are solely geared to monitor how your points are piling up. However, MaxRewards sets itself apart with a running progress bar of the credit card balance you're carrying, and your credit utilization ratio. This can be especially valuable in avoiding the temptation to focus on growing your rewards balance, rather than on paying your outstanding balances in full each month, which keeps your credit score healthy .

You'll also benefit from the company's auto-recommendation tool when you're deciding what card to use at certain merchants. For example, if your card currently has a 5x bonus at grocery stores, the app will tell you when you're ready to pay to make sure you don't use a different — and less-rewarding — card.

MaxRewards also comes up big in one of the small, often-overlooked elements of today's credit card landscape: opt-in offers. Programs like Chase Offers and Amex Offers typically require cardholders to manually activate a new discount opportunity, but the company will automatically activate all those savings for MaxRewards Gold members. 

• Recommends the most rewarding card to use based on bonus categories
• Monitors your card balances and your credit utilization ratio
• Will automatically activate limited-time offers for cardholders
• Many negative user reviews indicate the app has struggled with card issuer syncs for years

Read more: What are points and miles worth? Our complete valuations

How to maximize your credit card rewards

Tracking apps are helpful for managing your rewards, but redeeming them effectively is another matter. You know best what matters to you in terms of benefits, whether that's cruising the Caribbean or flying first-class to Japan. Keep these considerations in mind when it comes to using your rewards.

Regularly monitor your rewards

Your rewards are essentially another form of currency, and deserve to be monitored the same way. Check your points balances from time to time, just like you would track cash in your bank account. Are you earning what you should from recent transactions? Are you suddenly missing some points? Do any of them have expiration dates coming up that require some attention? Rewards tracking apps should help you simplify this chore, but it's still up to you to protect what's yours. 

Keep track of credit card bonus categories and limited-time offers

Your tracking app can be one of the best ways to maximize rewards. But if you prefer to keep things old-school, many people stick labels or stickers onto their credit cards to help themselves — and their families — remember which card is for groceries, which one is for dining out, which is for travel, and so on. Whatever system you choose, find one that works for you and stick with it.

Learn how to effectively book award travel for the best value

Most of us aren't world-class experts on airline transfer partners and open-jaw tickets, but these new tools we review below can help everyday people get better returns on travel rewards. 

• point.me: Best for great deals on last-minute award flights
• Roame: Best for helping newbies find award flights on specific routes
• seats.aero: Best for finding premium redemptions across a wide range of dates and locations
• Points Path: Best for comparing cash vs. points on Google Flights

Award travel search tool reviews

Cost: Freemium — $5 for one-day pass, standard plan for $12/month or $129/year, premium plan for $260/year. Concierge services available for an additional fee. Certain Amex cardholders get free access. 

Point.me  can reduce many of the hassles of comparing options, and introduce you to opportunities you didn't even know existed. 

Rather than going through the maze of manually comparing different transfer options for your points, this tool syncs with all of the major card programs to help you easily see how you'll be able to get the best deal. point.me regularly finds economy redemptions worth 6 to 8 cents per mile, and first- and business-class deals top out with some serious value in the neighborhood of 24 cents per mile.

If you aren't used to paying for award search assistance, you'll have to acclimate to this platform's price tag. You can buy a day pass with unlimited searches for $5, or subscribe on a monthly basis for $12 (or get a 10% discount if you opt for an annual bill of $129). But if you're sitting on hundreds of thousands of points, that investment can help you maximize your rewards before they expire or devalue.

• Saves time by eliminating the need to search different airline sites
• Offers step-by-step instructions on how to transfer points and book available redemptions
• Helpful tips for booking flights on a preferred airline via another airline's site for fewer points (example: booking a Delta flight through Aeromexico)
• Free for many American Express cardholders as of March 2024
• Paid concierge booking services available for complex trips 
• Subscription plans ranges from $129 to $260 per year
• Solely focused on flights, so you're on your own for searching for hotel deals

Cost: Freemium — Free version works for most. Basic version $109.99/year, business version $3,499.99/year.

Award travel search tools have proliferated since revenge travel boomed post-pandemic. Roame was initially designed for award travelers who didn't want to pay a monthly subscription fee for point.me. (Of course, Roame now offers a premium subscription plan, and some cardholders can now access point.me for free.)

Roame is great for coaxing friends and family to expand their points and miles travel, since the clean, simple layout is all but fool-proof. Simply pop in your departure and arrival cities, desired departure date, and choose whether you're flying in economy or business/first class. The algorithm spits out a list of options, and you can filter or sort your search results by travel length, price, and departure time. 

Roame even helps you figure out which loyalty program is a transfer partner for the airline operating each flight, so you can quickly see if you can book that redemption or not.  

• User-friendly interface is easy to use
• Can search for multiple seats on the same flight
• Compares more than one dozen airline programs to find you the best rate
• Premium version can show availability within a seven-day date range
• Free account requires sign-up, and offers slightly limited search capabilities
• Primarily focuses on direct or one-stop routes
• Can't search round-trip or multi-stop itineraries
• Defaults to business/first class seats, which can throw off first-timers

Cost: Freemium — Pro version is $9.99/month or $99/year

Deal hunters and regular travelers travel differently: Most people book flights based on their availability, while sale-seekers plan their trips around great travel deals. 

Seats.aero isn't as sleek-looking as Roame, but it's far more powerful in other ways. This tool allows you to search award flights by city, region, country, and even continent to find the best, elusive deals on award travel sweet spots in economy, premium economy, business class, and even first class. 

Business Insider experts have flown in first-class cabins from Asia to North America for less than 100,000 points, and spent nearly 24 hours in Singapore business class for the cost of a single welcome bonus . 

Seats.aero offers a paid version with access to premium search capabilities such as looking up flights more than 90 days in advance. But the free version will be more than sufficient for most beginner and advanced award travelers.

• Powerful search capability can search a broad range of departure and arrival opportunities across multiple dates
• You can look up flights for a specific date, or find more options using the ±1, ±3, and ±7 day search function
• Layout isn't as beginner-friendly as some of the other tools reviewed in this guide
• Searching 90+ days in advance or filtering out flights with high award taxes and fees requires a paid subscription

Points Path: Best for Google Flights price comparisons

Points Path requires the least amount of work out of every tool listed in this guide. Simply download this nifty little Chrome browser extension , then open Google Flights and run a flight search as usual. A new field will pop up in your search results, showing you how much each flight costs in miles or points and pointing an arrow toward the better deal. 

Points Path has some limitations — it doesn't search all major airlines or work well with alliance partners yet, so you'll have to manage those redemptions independently. But it's fantastic for quickly evaluating your next trip budget, eliminating the cash vs. points dilemma of calculating the value of your rewards. You can also use Points Path to help you understand which rewards program or welcome offer you should target next. 

• Google Chrome plug-in is incredibly easy to use and doesn't require future maintenance
• Helps you compare the cash vs. award redemption price of specific flights
• Doesn't cover all airline award programs

FAQs about reward tracking apps

CardPointers manages all of your credit cards within a single app. It tracks your progress toward new welcome bonuses, shows how much you pay in annual fees each year, suggests the best card to use for different purchases, and tallies the total value you can maximize from your credit cards.

A good rewards tracking app should help you maximize your credit card rewards, keep track of expiration dates and upcoming annual fees, and help you take advantage of special offers that are available.

Many credit card tracking apps integrate with your bank accounts. Carefully research any financial institution's policies on digital security before you submit any confidential information. 

A number of new tools help travelers search for award flights. Points Path is a Chrome browser plug-in that integrates with Google Flights that shows the miles cost of a flight next to the cash price, and automatically suggests the better deal for you. Other tools like point.me, seats.aero, and Roame search dozens of airlines at once to find the best or lowest-priced flights on points or miles. 

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards .

Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

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How To Book an Award Flight: A Step-By-Step Guide

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Like any skill, booking award flights requires a lot of practice before it becomes second nature. If you've never booked an award flight before — or think you're at risk of missing a step — this post is for you.

Here's a step-by-step guide walking you through the entire process of booking an award flight.

Step 1: Pick a Destination

Choosing a destination is sometimes the most challenging part. To save us some time, we'll make the call.

Let's say we want to go from sunny SoCal to Hawaii's pristine beaches — flying From Los Angeles (LAX) to Honolulu (HNL).

Which airlines fly to Honolulu?

Determining which airlines fly between your intended origin and destination (with or without stopping) is important. This information will prove helpful as you decide which program you should book with and whether or not you can leverage any airline partnerships .

Not every U.S. domestic airline flies to the Hawaiian capital, but most do. To gather the complete list of airlines that frequent HNL, you can scope out airline route maps on their respective websites, visit the airport's webpage, or pull up Daniel K. Inouye International Airport's Wikipedia page. You also can visit Flight Connections to see your options.

After doing some research, you'll find that the following domestic airlines fly into Honolulu:

• Alaska Airlines
• American Airlines
• Delta Air Lines
• Hawaiian Airlines
• Southwest Airlines
• United Airlines

Step 2: Take Inventory of Your Points and Miles

Fairly regularly, we'll update our post on the best points and miles for free flights to Hawaii .

What's helpful about this specific post is the table showing the frequent flyer programs you can use to book a flight to Hawaii (notice the similarities to the list of airlines that fly into HNL), the “starting at” award price, and which programs you can transfer points from. While it's not an exhaustive list, you can find the same table below.

As you scroll through the table, think about what points you have. Are they transferable points, or are they miles associated with one of the frequent flyer programs? This information will provide a helpful baseline when you decide which program to book with.

For instance, if you only have American Express Membership Rewards , you'll want to focus on the programs that you can transfer these points to.

Continuing with our example, we'll keep it simple and say we've got a balance of 30,000 Amex Membership Rewards — more than enough to book our roundtrip ticket between LAX and HNL.

Step 3: Find a Redemption

Now that we know our mileage balance, the next step is looking for a redemption. It's time to put the miles to good use!

Briefly adding to our example trip specifics, we'll plan to fly in February 2024. Generally, the more flexible your dates are, the better your chance of finding cheaper award fares, more availability, and more reasonable flight times.

In our example, I've got a balance of 30,000 American Express Membership Rewards — so what can I do with those?

With Membership Rewards, I can transfer these points to the following airline loyalty programs:

Many of those airline loyalty programs can be used for flights to Hawaii, which is both a positive and a negative. On the plus side, you can compare prices across carriers to get the best award fare. On the negative side, very few people have the time or patience to run award searches through over a dozen programs.

Here's where an award search tool will come in handy.

Use an award search tool to make your search easier

Utilizing an award search tool will make your life easier as you search for the best deal. There are lots of tools out there, which means the competition is high — and some of these are free.

When using a tool like Point.me , Roame.travel , AwardLogic , or PointsYeah , you'll get to plug your trip details in and select the credit card point currencies you have. When the results roll in, you'll see itineraries that are bookable with the points you have — an absolute time-saver.

Revisiting our example, we conducted a few searches across award tools for LAX to HNL flights for our February 6–10, 2024, trip. Here's what we found:

That first Delta SkyMiles option looks pretty good. We'll pick that one since it's the cheapest.

Step 4: Book the Flight

Let's go ahead and navigate to the Delta website to confirm that the itinerary is available. Especially if you use an award search tool, this is a quality assurance step to ensure you don't end up transferring points to an airline loyalty program for an award that might have disappeared. You want to ensure the seats are actually available at the price you want to pay before moving points to an airline program.

On Delta's page, make sure to check “Shop with Miles.”

In this case, we're safe. The 17,000-SkyMiles itinerary for the February 6–10 trip is available to book.

The next step is transferring your American Express Membership Rewards to Delta SkyMiles. For the exact steps on transferring, we've assembled a handy guide: How to transfer Amex points .

You can transfer Membership Rewards to Delta SkyMiles at a 1:1 ratio, which means you'll need to transfer exactly 17,000 Amex points to Delta. The best part? I'll only use about half of my original 30,000 Membership Rewards balance.

For most airline partners, transfers occur instantly. If you've already logged in to your SkyMiles account, you might need to log out and log back in to see the new balance. And from there, you'll go through the steps to book the flight.

Add your details like normal, use a travel rewards card to pay the taxes and fees , and wait for the confirmation to show up in your inbox. In most cases, it's that simple.

Final Thoughts

Booking award flights might take some practice until it becomes second nature, but it's a skill worth learning if you want to use points and miles to meet your travel goals .

The number of ways you can book a flight may seem overwhelming, but using an award search tool can make the process much easier and save you a lot of time. If you follow these steps, you'll be well on your way to booking your own award flight.

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My biggest reservation/concern with locating, and transferring miles to purchase a award tickets is the Possibility that between the time I locate award availability and time needed to transfer points the award availability may disappear. Perhaps could address in a future post your suggestions, insight and “knowledge” how to maximize the process of locating, transferring points and successful making a award reservation.

Hello, you don’t actually say HOW to pool/transfer points. Do I call each credit card company and transfer to another and then call to book with airline or?

Sorry accidentally hit reply. The above comment was toward OP.

The policies are going to differ by program. We dig into all of that in this post: https://awardwallet.com/blog/rewards-programs-allow-combine-points-miles-free/

Just getting into the travel hacks game. Ran a blog search for “beginners”. This popped up; and it is exactly what I was looking for. Bookmarking for future reference. Thank you for writing these “how-to’s” for those of us who are just starting to try to figure everything out!

Great to hear Lauren, if you have any questions don’t hesitate to reach out.

The date on top says June 28, 2019. All of the comments come from 2017. What the post updated in some way? Is all of the info in it current?

Yes, we constantly update our posts and all information is current.

Very comprehensible indeed. Yet it takes so much time and planning that often it is a lot easier to buy rather competitive airfare than use award tickets. Sad but true.

Sadly outside the US miles earning without flying is really hard! Hope you make an international series too to unlock the less-known deals outside the US.

I think two things which add value to points / miles are flexibility and having alternative. Flexibility allows you to redeem more easily for your favourite destination whereas having alternative allows you to have some plan B if something go wrong. This is even more true for families travelling together on high season.

Great article, but unfortunately for economy class traveler (leisure travel) from Europe reward flights are really hard to achieve, unless flying is part of your everyday business.

Hi, Any thoughts/suggestions on booking a business/first class trip to Hawaii, or is that essentially impossible?

Be flexible, but it certainly isn’t impossible: https://awardwallet.com/blog/the-best-points-and-miles-to-use-for-free-flights-to-hawaii/

It is very interesting to see just how many alternative ways to get to just one destination using points and miles. I tend to transfer my Membership Rewards to the same place, but this shows the value of keeping them until you need them for maximum flexibility. The article is also a very interesting demonstration of the use of pooling points from various sources.

I’m loving this new series Howie. Sometimes blogs tend to assume you’ve earned a lot of miles and redeemed a lot of them for flights and already know what to do. Many people don’t. Would love to see a follow up article on how to use points for stays/food/experiences once you’re there. Getting there and back is only half the challenge in my opinion.

Very good info. I am starting to plan an around-the-world trip, mostly southern hemisphere, and need to start planning.

very informative. the best travel guide. thanks

This is a comprehensive overview that should be helpful for a lot of people. I think a good follow-up blog article could examine when is it better to use points/miles vs buying a ticket. For example, an Alaska Airlines sale to Hawaii combined with the free companion ticket (excluding taxes and fees) from the Bank of America credit card could make for an incredible deal.

Wish I had seen this when I first started it would have saved me some time, money, and precious pionts

For those outside the US these rewards are not available 🙁

It is unfortunate. The US rewards/loyalty currency market is the most lucrative.

Yeah, that is very true!

Extremely informative article! Thx so much! What a treat to find applicable and helpful info all in one place! Mahalo!

This is awesome for beginners! It definitely is less complicated than it seems

One of the most helpful posts ever on a points and miles blog. Thank you!

This is such a great post and almost makes this miles and point hobby seem easy! I wish I had a reference like this when I had started out. I will be sharing this with skeptical family and friends.

Great things to consider. Does anyone else to their bookings through a partner airline? I tend to stick to American or United. Maybe it’s just fear of trying something new.

All the time, especially when there is a better value to be had.

Any one know the best way to book award travel LAX to Peru??

Delta and Alaska have some of the best rates at 35k round-trip in economy. United is at 40k as is AA.

According to Alaska website you can’t book directly thru them to get to Peru. Lima or more specifically CUZ.. either way the don’t have flights on their site.

you should be able to redeem with LAN.

This is an excellent post for those getting into points and miles. I will be sharing it with friends and relatives, who keep asking me for details. This explains the basics better than I ever could.

Interesting, I have yet to book an award flight but good to see the process so thoroughly explained

I tried to book an Award on LH with M&M – but the System always says “no Space on your Dates” – are there certain Route that don’t work?

What happens if you call M&M to book the same flights. I wouldn’t be surprised with limitations on the website.

They say “no” – but offer connecting flights..Like I tried FRA-LAX…they said “no”, but were trying to put me on FRA-NYC (LH) and NYC-LAX (on United)..

Award availability is limited, keep that in mind. FRA-LAX is a route with limited availability compared to NY.

Wow! This is a very informative article! I really appreciate the visual help.

Agreed! Great work

Many noob mileage collectors overlook that 2nd critical aspect of spending miles efficiently.

Thank you for this series. Trying to figure out how to do reward flights is so difficult. I hope you do continue this series to move onto the intermediate and advanced techniques of successfully booking award flights to various international destinations.

Solid piece. Wish I had this when I was starting out.

The link http://www.openflight.org/ is a typo. It should be http://www.openflights.org/ .

Thanks, Jeff, got that fixed.

Research, research, research is key in this game. I wouldn’t know half as much about miles/ points redemptions without great blogs like this.

This is a good workflow. Note, I think you meant OpenFlights instead of OpenFlight.

excellent advice for those just starting to enjoy the benefits of this hobby

Since comments seem to be turned off on the ‘importance of travel goals’ post, I’ll say it here: I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked by someone interested in getting into travel-hacking, “which card should I get?”. And the only way I can ever answer that is by replying with my own question: “where do you want to go?” I always tell newbies: one needs to start with a destination, and then figure out what the best pints currencies will be to get there.

Comments aren’t turned off (at least they don’t look like it from here) — but thanks for sharing; this is the exact question we always ask.

Weird. I’ve looked at the page several times and there is no “Reply” area showing…

There’s so much to consider, thanks for the smart grids and visual look at this. Most of us here have scratched down fifteen pages of notes when deciding how to book, where to book and which accounts work for us in any given scenario. This will be a big time saver.

Thanks! This is an awesome post I’ll definitely do some research on this for my next redemption.

This is one of your most informative posts, thank you!

Planning and research is key to getting the best trip experience and the best bang for your buck/points. Don’t burn those points or your hard earned $$ until you comparison shop….

Yup! Nothing worse than finding out you overpaid later..

This is such an awesome post! It just happens that I am planning a trip next spring to Hawaii. I’m bouncing back and forth between United and American. I’m looking for nonstop really but well, can’t be picky. But I’m unsure about all the transferring to SPG, etc. I think I might be looking at UR and book American, since they discount. I do admit I am curious about Hawaiian airlines.

This is exactly what I am looking for. Thanks for the writing!

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Travel Codex

Your Resource for Better Travel

Tips, Tricks, and Useful Tools for Award Travel

Earning points is straightforward, but how do you redeem them for free travel? This part worries a lot of people. It’s understandable since all that hard work invested in earning miles and points is not well spent if you can’t use them. Fortunately those of us who have been at this game for a while (and it  is a game a times) have learned a few tricks to make it easier.

We have created many guides to help you redeem your miles and points on free travel. These include general overviews as well as more specific insights on each loyalty program. To help you further, we have created tools like the Award Maximizer to help you find the cheapest award ticket and the Points Transfer Calculator to show you how to move your points between programs.

Still too much effort? Submit a request, and our Award Booking Service will do the work for you!

Introduction to Travel Hacking

• Travel Hacking for Beginners
• The Easy Guide to Finding Airline Award Space
• How to Book Your Next Award Flight Like a Pro

Transferring Points and Miles

Transferable loyalty currencies are like gold. It has value to everyone. Instead of being locked into the rules and prices of a single loyalty program, you can move your points to another program that might have cheaper prices, more generous rules, and even more award availability. Be sure to check out the Points Transfer Calculator for a quick overview.

• How to Transfer or Consolidate Ultimate Rewards Points
• How to Transfer Membership Rewards Points
• How to Transfer Marriott Bonvoy Points

How to Book Award Tickets with Each Airline Loyalty Program

Most of these guides have been created with the assumption that you have miles in the program operated by each respective airline. For example, a guide to booking travel with Alaska Airlines assumes you have miles with its Mileage Plan program. You can still use those miles to travel on a partner airline such as Cathay Pacific.

We recommend you read as many guides as possible for a deeper understanding of how these programs interconnect. For example, even if you are redeeming Alaska Airlines miles on Cathay Pacific, we might advise that you use the British Airways site to search for award space. We have included these links within each guide when relevant.

Rules for Booking Award Travel

• How to Book Award Travel with Alaska Mileage Plan
• How to Book Award Travel with Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
• How to Book Award Travel with JAL Mileage Bank
• How to Book Award Travel with Korean Air SkyPass
• How to Book Award Travel with Lufthansa Miles & More
• How to Book Award Travel with Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• How to Book Award Travel with Avianca LifeMiles

How to Search for Award Space

• How to Find Star Alliance Award Space on the United Airlines Website (for Star Alliance)
• How to Find Award Space on the Aeroplan Website (for Star Alliance)
• How to Find Award Space on the ANA Website (for Star Alliance)
• How to Find OneWorld Award Space on the American Airlines Website (for one world Alliance and Alaska Airlines)
• How to Find Award Space on the British Airways and Qantas Websites (for  one world Alliance and Cathay Pacific)
• How to Find SkyTeam Award Space on the Delta Air Lines Website (for Sky Team)
• How to Find Award Space on the Air France Website (for Sky Team)

Miles & Points Made Simple With Promising New Award Search Tool

POINT.ME is a new award search tool that lays the foundation for an award travel metasearch that can truly make our lives easier and our miles and points more valuable.

POINT.ME, A Promising New Award Search Tool

The new tool searches points and miles space on over 30 loyalty programs, which covers over 100 airlines. Imagine it: instead of searching every airline or alliance separately, you can search for everything in one place. And rather than just display results, it offers help (including video tutorials) on how to book the space and even helps you analyze which options are best.

Aimed for the mass market, this tool will greatly aid in helping consumers understand how valuable their frequent flyer miles and credit card points really are (which is immensely valuable, as far as I am concerned). I speak at many travel conference and my audiences are often novices in the world of points and miles. I’m amazed at how many people fail to remotely comprehend the versatility of their points.

For example, last weekend at Travel & Adventure show in Chicago I spoke to an older gentleman who had no idea that he could redeem his United Airlines miles for anything more than flights on United. It was like a moment of epiphany when I introduced him to all the partner booking options he had available too him.

Experts in the world of miles and points, including many Live and Let’s Fly readers, may encounter certain frustrations which I do not downplay: there is not currently the option to do a multi-city search or simultaneously search co-terminal airports. Results are not perfect (for example, there are issues with Flying Blue and at times other programs) and it does take time for results to load (though this is hardly surprising, considering how many simultaneous searches take place to provide these meta results).

I’ve been apprised of this product and its development for several months and I will have much more to say about the product itself (including a detailed tutorial) as well as a special promo code for Live and Let’s Fly readers…but I’ve opted to hold that for a bit until some kinks are worked out of the website.

No product has been prefect from day one and my searches thus far have revealed tremendous value in the site in its present state. And it will only get better, which really makes me excited. I also count the two co-founders, Tiffany Funk and Adam Morvitz, as friends. These two, as well as their staff, live and breathe miles and points and are subject-matter experts. That’s why I am confident that this website and product will only improve.

Even so, I wish to make clear that this post is not sponsored and also not a duty of friendship–I would not waste your time if I did not love this product and see great potential in it. Funk and Morvitz have partnered with key investors and have raised sufficient capital such that the funding for research and development to make this a far better product is already available.

You might think that heralding this product undercuts my own consulting business, Award Expert . Indeed, we both offer expertly-tailored, highly-personalized consultation services to businesses and individuals alike on the effective use of miles and points. But this tool is not for my client base, most of which cannot be bothered to search for award space themselves or even if they could, deem enlisting the help of my firm a better use of time and money than doing it themselves. My botique service is not threatened by this technology. Truthfully, my only threat is this tool empowering more users to take advantage of the limited inventory of airline award seats. Even so, it’s time for consumers to reclaim their points. I think (and sincerely hope) most would prefer to use their miles and points for family vacations over toasters and tablets…

It’s fun to know people before they were famous. When Ben from One Mile At A Time and I were teenagers, we used to mileage run on United Airlines, with no adoring fans coming up to him requesting a selfie (well, there was one ). I’ve known Tiffany and Adam for years and I am so proud of them for this great tech venture upon which they have embarked. I predict they will soon be (more) famous themselves for launching such an innovative product. Both are not just smart, but people of character and frankly people I would trust with my life. I don’t say that about many people…

So I’m excited to see this launch and the fact that the site is a bit bogged down represents the overwhelming response (and therefore the overwhelming demand) for software that demystifies the use of miles and points. Keep an eye on this space for more on POINT.ME as well as special promotion for Live and Let’s Fly readers.

About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

Related Posts

The 10 Best Airline Award Ticket Sweet Spots [2024]

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My Turkish Airlines Award Ticket Horror Story…

21 comments.

I think we can start the clock to see how long it is until they receive a cease and desist letter from one of the airlines. They usually hate similar services.

Tried point.me and paid $5 for a day. Did my own searches and found better flight and rates. Emailed point.me and told them about my experience an gave them examples. They basically stated that was impossible. I found better rates by booking direct with points from my existing AwardWallet stash of points. Emailed point.me for a refund and they did not return my emails. I also find it difficult to find any central site to give honest feedback besides forums or blogs so kind of like Amazon.com where you can not trust what some people say because they are getting paid by point.me to promote their business. Think twice before you use point.me is my personal suggestion

“No product has been prefect from day one”

Typo or humor?

Hi Matthew,

I don’t know if you know much about route networks, but figured it is worth asking. I am trying to qualify for United 1K this year, and have a work trip next month from Los Angeles to Miami, so really want to fly United, but United does not serve MIA or FLL from SoCal. I really do not understand how this isn’t part of their route map. If American can fly 10 777s a day, Delta, JetBlue, and Spirit all serve these routes, how can United not fill at least 1 or 2 737s a day? It just makes no sense to me. Do you know if there is any history behind this, or why this might be? I know you know a lot about United and LAX so figured it was worth an ask.

Thanks for the great content!

Hi Chris, good question, especially considering MIA used to be a UA hub. My best guess is exactly what you point out – competition is fierce at LAX and with so much competition, UA views its margins too slim to justify nonstop service to FLL or MIA. That said, I’d like to see such service too!

Love what you do, BUT when you hype a special promo code you lose some credibility. You, I and everyone else here knows there are no “special codes”, only kickbacks from a site looking to find additional revenues.

We all understand what you do, but at least be honest about it. I always thought you were more straight forward with your readers.

First, there is no promo code in this story. Second, there are no kickbacks. So I don’t get your issue…? To repeat, there are no kickbacks from the free promo codes you’ve seen floating around…if there were, indeed I would be legally obligated to disclose it.

You said there will be a promo code, did you not? So no disclosure needed at this point.

“ I will have much more to say about the product itself (including a detailed tutorial) as well as a special promo code for Live and Let’s Fly readers”

But when that free promo code comes, I will receive no kickback…just want to make that clear.

Thanks for making that clear. So no Quid pro Quo? If so, you are truly the only guy out there not looking for something by shilling for others in the industry. Won’t pay the bills but definitely a good look in a pool of sharks and desperadoes out for anything and everything they can get. Total respect for not being one of them.

And not being a dick, but is Ben really “famous”? You and I both know he wouldn’t have a Q rating of half of a percent. Ask 1000 people on street who Ben Schlappig is and you won’t get 5 with the correct answer.

That said I respect his ability to have made a living doing what he enjoys. Not everyone can say that.

I am frankly amazed at how well he is doing- we are not just talking about making a living here, but serious money.

The really surprising part is that he has managed to make it mostly through sheer perseverance (and I suppose that a dash of good fortune is also required for that level of success)- he doesn’t write in such an engaging way, he is a self-confessed introvert and his knowledge of the airline business (I don’t mean the product here, he clearly has amassed huge experience in that area) and wider world affairs isn’t especially deep.

(Apologies to Matthew if this comes across like a personal criticism of his friend- while I do sometimes value Ben’s reviews of business class on Very Obscure Airways Ltd, I don’t really find OMAAT very engaging at all)

Amex gave me a free trial via my gold card (only, not any other Amex cards in my case). The searches were tailored to their transfer partners. They will walk you through the transfer process & booking after selecting flights. I do think think this release will be more helpful at newbie level, which is a good thing IMHO. Once we can search multiple cities, select alliances, multiple destinations, etc., It will be a significant time saver for experts..

Who the f… would be pay for this?

I agree. It might be good but not worth paying for, well maybe for AA premium TATL routes. For newbies, they would be better off just using an award booking service.

One thing I have long wanted – and I’m not sure whether such a tool exists – is the ability to get an alert when a reward mileage requirement decreases. For example, I am flying back from London to Miami on April 10 and would prefer the AA non-stop – but it’s currently 57K miles. Usually I pay 30K for a transatlantic flight on AA . So I’ve held off booking another flight to see whether this one goes down. Similar to Google flight alerts, I wonder whether this new search app can monitor awards and let you know when an award either becomes available or the amount required decreases. Thanks for pointing out this new app.

Very useful but… expensive.

I love the miles game on an amateur’s basis and promote it all the time. I tried this site for a trip in April on DL JFK-FCO and found it to be very useful and I was able to save miles and move to J from PE for less miles, moving the return to UA. I will definitely use this going forward. I appreciate your decision to promote this for no compensation and respect you for it.

Anyone have a promo code they can share?

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How to use Awayz to improve your hotel award searches

I first heard of Awayz by Odynn when Bilt launched a hotel award availability tool powered by the site. Awayz is one of many apps and websites entering the market to make award redemptions easier to find and book.

Although I frequently use Point.me — a tool for finding award flights — I'd mostly ignored hotel award availability tools despite living out of hotels as a digital nomad . Although these tools can be useful for snagging difficult-to-find hotel availability, I usually redeem my points at value-focused hotels where award availability is rarely an issue.

But, especially after trying out Awayz when writing up the news about its integration with Bilt Rewards, I was eager to look closer at the full Awayz product and see whether it could help me find better hotel redemptions. Here's what I learned and how Awayz can be useful for travelers.

What is Awayz?

Awayz is a tool that helps travelers find hotels they can book with points in specific destinations. The tool also helps travelers decide when to redeem points and when to book a paid rate for a specific stay.

Awayz retrieves live award availability and rates so travelers can compare their options without needing to individually search with each hotel loyalty program. Finally, Awayz also offers the option to set award availability alerts if a hotel you want to book on specific dates isn't currently bookable with points.

Related: Apps and websites make award redemptions easier to find

What hotel programs does Awayz cover?

Currently, Awayz covers the following hotel loyalty programs:

• Accor Live Limitless
• Choice Privileges
• Hilton Honors
• IHG One Rewards
• Marriott Bonvoy
• World of Hyatt
• Wyndham Rewards

Awayz quickly added many of these programs, though. So, if Awayz doesn't cover a hotel loyalty program you frequently use, it may be added eventually.

Related: How to choose a hotel loyalty program

Researching a stay with Awayz

The primary use of Awayz is to research hotel stays, so let's consider a sample five-night stay in Austin.

Enter your desired dates and deselect any undesired hotel loyalty programs under the "All Hotels" dropdown. Expand the "Advanced Options" area to sort your results by cash, points, distance from center or star rating. You can also choose to only see results that you can book with rewards from select transferable points currencies or only see results you can book with specific free night certificates . Once you've gotten everything set up, click "Search."

Once you click "Search," you'll see award rates and paid rates for hotels at your destination for your dates. These rates aren't cached, so what you see is what was bookable when you clicked "Search."

You can click on any property's pin on the map and see the night rates in points and cash. Awayz will also tell you whether it believes you should redeem points or book a paid rate based on its points and miles valuations (which may differ from your own). You'll see in the example below that Awayz is considering the fifth-night free perk for Hilton Honors elite members and Marriott Bonvoy members.

Awayz is also useful when researching stays in cities and regions with few major hotel brands. For example, I was able to use Awayz to quickly learn there is only one hotel in Zermatt, Switzerland, that participates in any of the major hotel loyalty programs I use.

One aspect that frustrates me about Awayz is that when I zoom in and click "Search This Area," I'd like the results to update to only show hotels in that area. Unfortunately, this functionality doesn't work as expected. Instead it re-centers the search on that point but still displays results for hotels in a larger radius.

Related: Mistakes to avoid when redeeming hotel points

Organizing your Awayz wallet

As you might imagine, Awayz becomes more useful once you customize it. For example, you can tell Awayz you have specific cards that offer perks — such as the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card and its fourth-night reward when you redeem IHG points for stays of four nights or more. You don't need to enter personal information, such as your card number or even when you signed up for the card. Instead, you select the cards you currently have.

You can also add your bank and hotel reward balances, which Awayz would presumably consider when deciding which results to show you. However, there's no requirement to enter your balances. You can also click on Preferences on the top navigation bar and select your preferred hotel loyalty programs. Again, there's no requirement to do so.

Currently, Awayz uses a set of valuations for points (that you can't alter) to guide its recommendations to redeem points or book a paid rate for a specific stay. Hopefully, Awayz users will eventually be able to set their own valuations for each program's points if desired.

Related: The inside scoop on how much hotels get paid when you redeem points

Setting an Awayz award availability alert

I loved my stay at IHG's Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives in 2021 for its affordable — at least in terms of international resorts in the Maldives — excursions and easy speedboat from the airport. I'm planning another trip to the Maldives for the second half of 2024 and would like to return to the Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives. However, the resort isn't showing any award availability on my dates.

So, I went to Awayz and set up an award availability alert. To do so, I searched for the property by name and then clicked on its tile.

As expected, Awayz showed no award availability for my dates. I clicked on the green arrow on the right-hand side of the tile.

Then, I clicked on the "Availability Alert" button on the right-hand side of the screen. Doing so created an award availability alert for this property on these dates.

To check my Awayz award alerts, I can click the "Upgrade" button in the upper right of the window to go to my account page. On my account page, I can scroll down to see my current award availability alerts.

I expect to get an email when (or if) award availability becomes available at the Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives for my desired dates.

Related: The best hotel rewards programs in the world

How much does Awayz cost?

Awayz offers a free trial which is a good place for new users to start. The free trial offers five award searches and five award availability alerts.

If you like Awayz during your free trial, you may want access to more award searches and availability alerts. You can purchase 72-hour trip passes as needed for $4.99 each. These 72-hour trip passes give you 50 searches and 10 award availability alerts. Or you can enroll in a premium subscription for $11.99 per month (or $8.33 per month when billed annually), giving you 250 award searches per month, 20 award availability alerts and access to hotel deal alerts.

Awayz also offers a pro subscription with more award searches per month and additional award availability alerts. This option has no stated rate.

All Awayz members — from free trial to pro subscription members — get access to live cash and award pricing as well as a 12-month award availability outlook on their searches. All members can also search for hotel free night certificates and see award pricing that considers fourth- or fifth-night free benefits on their searches.

Finally, remember that you can use Awayz within the Bilt Rewards app or website to see availability with the Bilt Rewards hotel transfer partners: IHG One Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt.

Related: How and why you should maximize your hotel stays by using multiple loyalty programs

Bottom line

Awayz is a useful tool for researching upcoming hotel stays, especially if you are traveling to one or more new destinations and have a variety of hotel points (and transferable points that you can transfer to various hotel loyalty programs). The 72-hour trip pass is reasonably priced at $4.99 and provides 50 searches and 10 award availability alerts. This is likely enough for most travelers who may want to spend a few days planning one or more upcoming trips.

I'm hopeful the Awayz team will continue to improve the tool and add new features. As noted above, I'd love the ability to set my own valuations for hotel points — or at least know the valuation Awayz is using when it advises me to book a stay with points or cash.

Related reading:

• Best hotel credit cards
• When is the best time to book a hotel? Experts weigh in — and debunk a few myths
• The best credit cards to reach elite status
• A comparison of luxury hotel programs from credit card issuers
• Which credit cards offer the most lucrative rewards for hotel stays?
• The best hotel rewards programs in the world