How much are frequent flyer miles "worth"? Five route/fare scenarios:
|
Route |
Class of service |
Airline |
Typical round-trip fare if purchased, including taxes |
Typical miles required round-trip (airline) |
Taxes/fees on frequent flyer ticket |
Value proposition What your miles are worth including taxes/fees (cents/mile) |
|
New York to LA |
Economy |
$259 |
25,000 to 60,000 |
$5 |
Poor value. Your miles are worth 1 to .4 cents each. The good news is that it’s usually easy to find seats at the 25,000 mile level on this route, if you’re flexible in your flight times and dates. |
|
|
Chicago to Bangkok |
Business class |
Star Alliance partner using US Airways Dividend miles |
$6079 |
90,000 |
$100 (approx.) |
Assuming you can find seats, your miles would be worth 7 cents each, which is good value. |
|
LA to Honolulu |
First class |
$1482 |
75,000 to 180,000 |
$5 |
Most likely you’ll have to fork over the full 180,000 miles for this popular route, so your miles would be worth just .8 cents each |
|
|
San Francisco to New York |
Economy to Business class upgrade |
United |
$2700 for business class, upgraded from $600 economy class |
30,000 |
$100 co-pay roundtrip |
Great way to spend miles. For 30,000 miles you get $2700-$700=$2000 in value; your miles are worth 6.6 cents each |
|
Dallas to London |
Business class |
British Airways |
$5300 (nonstops) |
100,000 |
$665 |
For 100,000 miles you get $5300-$665 in value for 4.6 cents per mile. |
