The new year brings new resolutions and a chance to plan my travel and loyalty goals.
In addition to setting my elite status goals and planning some fun travel (I’ve already taken advantage of British Airways Avios And blue mile flight Taking my partner to Japan for the first time this April), I’m wondering how I will earn points and miles this year.
I have several different credit cards, some of which earn transferable currencies and some earn income directly with an airline Or hotel loyalty program. So, I’m always thinking about the best ways to maximize your points and miles earnings in the ever-changing world of travel loyalty.
i value it Flexibility of transferable currenciesSo here’s my points earning strategy for 2025 – and some tips for developing your own plan.
Connected: How (and why) you should earn transferable credit card points in 2025
protect oneself from devaluation
Devaluation is an unfortunate reality of collecting points and miles.
Just a few weeks into 2025, we’ve already seen an increase in Cost of Air France and KLM seats to Europe and beyond through the Flying Blue programme. To compensate for this, the program promises additional availability at the lowest Saver rates, and the increased Saver rates are still reasonable.
Earning transferable currencies is an easy way to protect yourself from devaluation, which often happens without notice to membersWhile I’m often tempted to transfer all my transferable points to an airline or hotel program during an attractive event transfer bonus, These transfers are irreversible. As a result, transferring points – even during a transfer bonus – is not wise unless I have an immediate use for the points.
You can protect yourself from devaluation by “storing” your points and miles in your credit card account until you’re ready to redeem them. This way, if an airline or hotel program devalues your miles overnight, you won’t have all your eggs in one basket.
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Preparation for high welcome proposals
I’m always on the lookout for enhanced welcome bonuses, which come and go on a regular basis. I make sure I’m down Chase’s 5/24 rule And my beloved has also been demoted Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card In preparation for the next enhanced welcome offer. By doing this, I can reapply for the card when an enhanced offer becomes available (haven’t received a welcome bonus for over 48 months). The new bonus has not been announced, but I hope it will be soon.
I will do it too monitor my credit score To increase my chances of acceptance.
Let’s say you’re considering applying for a particular card. In that case, it is worth knowing what the regular welcome bonus is. Then, if the bonus increases or new perks or benefits are announced that could make a good card even more attractive, you’re ready.
subscribe to TPG’s daily newspaper A great way to get informed about the extended welcome offers to 2025.
Connected: These are the best credit card welcome bonuses
Knowing my transfer options
A great thing about transferable points is their wide range of transfer partner options. Although you may see some similar programs on almost every transfer partner list, transfer partners vary slightly from one transferable currency to another.
For example, World of Hyatt Points are among the most valuable hotel currencies you can earn. However, only chase the ultimate rewards And Built Rewards Points can be transferred to Hyatt. So, if you’re ready to build your Hyatt balance, focus on earning Chase and Built points.
Transfer partners may change over time, but thankfully none of the major transfer point programs have lost big enough partners for me to lose interest in them. Still, I definitely have my favorite shows,
As I select which card I want to use for each purchase, it makes sense to have at least a vague idea of how I might use the points I earn.
Wells Fargo Rewards Program A handful of new transfer partners were added in 2024. However, only seven partners in total (three of which are Avios partners, so I can easily count). Transfer Avios between different programs Those who use it), it still doesn’t excite me enough to focus my spending on their card in 2025.
You do not need a photographic memory of each transfer partner for each program (Bookmark our cheatsheet here instead). Still, if you don’t value its transfer partners and aren’t able to easily redeem points, it’s a good idea not to focus too much on earning transferable currency.
Knowing which cards go well together
Given the varying earning rates and other perks, you might assume the best way to maximize points earned is to have one of the “best” cards from each issuer. However, this is not necessarily true. There are excellent card combinations available from the same issuers. I might consider adding a new card from an issuer I already use, or I might get two new cards from a new issuer in 2025, provided they work well together.
For example, I mentioned earlier that I want to apply for Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Again, because I must be eligible for the welcome bonus. I previously downgraded my Chase Sapphire Preferred to the no-annual fee Chase Freedom Unlimited® card (although it was maintain my credit line And History was one of my oldest cards as my favorite). I haven’t used the Chase Freedom Unlimited card much since upgrading.
However, it would be a powerful combination if I were approved for the Chase Sapphire Preferred again (and kept my Chase Freedom Unlimited card). With an active Sapphire card, 3% cash back can be earned on food and drugstore purchases and 1.5% earned on all other purchases made with Chase Freedom Unlimited. Convert Ultimate Rewards PointsI can then transfer these points to Sapphire transfer partners, including the fantastic World of Hyatt option.
For smaller purchases, I might also consider adding these Citi Rewards+® Card (Look Rates and Fees) with me Citi Strata Premier℠ Card (Look Rates and FeesWhile the Strata Premier earns a lot THANK YOU® REWARDS Points for larger purchases (as I’ll explain below), points for smaller purchases Citi Rewards+ Card Automatically rounds up to the nearest 10. That means 10 points per $1 purchase – which is more than I earn from Strata Premier.
If you’re considering applying for a new card in 2025, check out our Guide to the Best Credit Card CombinationsAdding a new card from your existing go-to card issuer can be a smart way to maximize earnings on every purchase.
My Membership Rewards journey begins again
Before the coronavirus pandemic, I was an active person American Express Membership Rewards members, taking advantage of The Platinum Card® from American Express And it has a long list of travel features. However, despite only having two Amex cards in the past (the second is one). Delta SkyMiles Card), of Amex Welcome Bonus Tool Keep getting the unfortunate news that I am no longer eligible to earn welcome bonuses on any cards I have applied for.
This has led me to favor cards from other issuers that consistently approve me for welcome bonuses. However, I miss the opportunity to earn great multipliers on my regular purchases. For example, I can earn four points per dollar spent at restaurants around the world (up to $50,000 per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar). American Express® Gold Card And five points per dollar spent on flights amex platinum (Up to $500,000 per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar).
I’m hesitant to apply for an Amex card with a substantial annual fee if I don’t get an introductory bonus. Instead, I plan to apply for a card with no welcome bonus (or a smaller bonus) and make regular purchases through that card this year. This will help me earn some membership rewards and hopefully show Amex that I’m a real customer worthy of a welcome bonus in the future.
If you’ve received unwanted pop-ups from Amex when applying for a new card, you may want to try this strategy as well.
Connected: 11 Best American Express Credit Cards
Giving Capital One Miles priority over Citi ThankYou points
i’m a big fan of his Citi Strata Premier CardMainly because it earns 10 points per dollar spent on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked citytravel portalIt also earns 3 points per $1 spent on other travel, restaurants, supermarkets, gas and EV charging stations. With the many bonus categories included here, I earn at least three points per dollar on most purchases.
With a generous welcome bonus of 75,000 ThankYou points after spending $4,000 in the first three months from account opening, I earned over 200,000 ThankYou points on the card last year. I did this just to charge the card for most of my everyday purchases.
Some months, I earn more points than I can spend, which is a nice problem to have.
City Thank You Award Program transfer partner list is acceptable. However, there is one notable exception that I’ve been struggling with lately: Aeroplan is My Favorite Star Alliance Loyalty ProgramIf it isn’t my favorite airline loyalty program. Unfortunately, Aeroplan is not a city transfer partner. However, I hope this changes soon.
Until then, considering how many points I redeemed with Aeroplan last year and plan to redeem again this year, I’ve stopped using my Strata Premier card for most of my everyday spending. Instead, I’ve shifted that expense to myself Capital One VentureThat’s because I earn a generous two points per dollar on every purchase and because Capital One miles transfer to Aeroplan. Additionally, the card earns 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through the said portal.
While Venture Rates and Fees) exceeds Strata Premier’s $95 annual fee, Venture Capital One Travel Portal And the 10,000-anniversary mile. I would argue that this makes up for most, if not all, of Venture
Overall, I won’t be able to earn as many transferable points with my Venture Still, if you strongly prefer one currency’s transfer partners over another, you may be willing to take a small hit to your points earnings to access your preferred partners.
ground level
The world of points and miles is always changing with a regular cycle of good and bad news. New transfer partners join, sweet spots come and go, and higher welcome offers are received pop up,
There is no card, transferable points currency, or transfer partner that is a perfect fit for my spending and travel habits. As a result, I like to diversify my points and miles to protect myself from devaluation and increase flexibility. And since points and miles are none great long term investmentI will try to redeem most of the points earned this year by the end of the year.
Implementing your own transferable points plan can help you earn more points and miles and redeem them for the best possible rewards.
