In our previous article, “From Beginner to Pro with Credit Cards (1): How to Get Free Flights — Sign-Up Bonus + Award Tickets,” we showed the simplest way to get free flights through credit cards. Hopefully, everyone now has a basic idea of how that process works. In today’s article, we’ll introduce another equally simple process. Compared with the previous method, it adds just one extra step: transfer points.

ss111

Basic Steps

  • Apply for a credit card whose sign-up bonus gives bank points (or transferable points such as SPG)
  • Meet the requirements to earn the bonus (such as minimum spending or adding an authorized user)
  • Receive the sign-up bonus points
  • Transfer the points into the airline miles you need
  • Use those miles on the airline’s official website to book an award ticket
  • Enjoy your free flight

Example 1: AMEX SPG Credit Card--->Free U.S.–China Flight

Choose to apply for the AMEX Starwood Preferred Guest credit card (sign-up bonus: 30,000 StarPoints)

ss1

Meet the sign-up requirement by spending $3,000 within three months, and receive 30,000 Starpoints

  • The points will appear in the SPG member account linked to the credit card
ss2

Transfer those points into the airline points you need

Option 1: Transfer to AA miles and redeem for a U.S.–China flight

  • In your SPG account, select Transfer your Starpoints ot miles
ss3
  • Choose to transfer the points to AA miles (for every 20,000 transferred, you get an extra 5,000 miles, so transferring 30,000 gives you a total of 35,000 AA miles)
SS4
  • Go to the AA website and use the transferred 35,000 miles to book a one-way ticket from Dallas (DFW) to Shanghai (PVG) (for more detailed steps, see: Using AA Miles)
ss5
  • Enjoy this free ticket (worth $700+)

Option 2: Transfer to British Airways miles

  • Similarly, 30,000 Starpoints can be exchanged for 35,000 British Airways (BA) miles. You can book an award ticket directly on the BA website, and a one-way flight from Chicago to Shanghai happens to cost just 35,000 BA miles.
ss6

Example 2: AMEX PRG Credit Card--->Free Flight Within North America

Choose to apply for the AMEX Premier Gold Rewards credit card (sign-up bonus: 25,000 Membership Rewards)

ss7

Complete the required spending to earn the sign-up bonus, receive 25,000 Membership Rewards (MR) points, and transfer 5,000 MR points into British Airline miles

ss8

Go to British Airway to search and book

You can book a one-way ticket from New York (LGA) to Toronto (YYZ)

SS10

You can book a one-way ticket from New York to Washington, DC

ss11

Summary

By applying for a credit card -> meeting the sign-up requirements -> receiving the sign-up bonus points -> transferring those points into the corresponding airline miles -> booking an award ticket, you can also get free flights. Unlike the points given by airline credit card sign-up bonuses, bank points (AMEX Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Points) and hotel points (SPG Starpoints) can be transferred to the miles programs of many different airlines and then used to book award tickets. So you need to think carefully about which airline miles to transfer to, which program requires the fewest miles for the ticket you want, and which flight option offers the best experience. If you understand the characteristics of each mileage program, you’ll be able to make the most of these points and miles, and your credit card applications can be much more targeted.

Advanced Reading