Most transferable credit card points are worth about 1.5 to 2 cents each when you move them to an airline or hotel partner, and about 0.6 to 1 cent when you cash them out. Hotel points are worth far less per point: a Hilton point is valued at 0.35 to 0.4 cents. A point has no fixed price, so the useful question is what you give up to redeem it, and whether that beats the cash floor.
Three Published Valuations, Side By Side
Three well known publishers put a number on each currency. They use different methods, so read them as a range, not a price.
| Program | The Points Guy (Sept 2026) | Frequent Miler RRV | NerdWallet (2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Ultimate Rewards | 2.05 cents | 1.5 cents | not listed in source read |
| Amex Membership Rewards | 2.0 cents | 1.5 cents | not listed in source read |
| Capital One Miles | 1.85 cents | 1.45 cents | not listed in source read |
| Citi ThankYou | 1.9 cents | 1.5 cents | not listed in source read |
| Bilt | 2.2 cents | 1.55 cents | not listed in source read |
| World of Hyatt | 1.65 cents | 1.5 cents | 1.8 cents |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 0.75 cents | 0.73 cents | 0.7 cents |
| IHG One Rewards | 0.6 cents | 0.59 cents | not listed in source read |
| Hilton Honors | 0.4 cents | 0.35 cents | not listed in source read |
| American AAdvantage | 1.45 cents | 1.4 cents | 1.7 cents |
| United MileagePlus | 1.2 cents | 1.3 cents | not listed in source read |
| Southwest Rapid Rewards | 1.25 cents | 1.3 cents | not listed in source read |
| Delta SkyMiles | 1.2 cents | 1.1 cents | not listed in source read |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | 1.5 cents | 1.4 cents | not listed in source read |
Sources, all read 2026-09-30: The Points Guy monthly valuations (valuation date September 1, 2026), Frequent Miler Reasonable Redemption Values (the page shows no update date), and NerdWallet's 2026 valuations article (September 16, 2026), which named only three of these programs in the part we could read.
Why The Numbers Differ
The Points Guy says its figures reflect award pricing, redemption opportunities, fees, program rules and redemption data. Frequent Miler's Reasonable Redemption Values are meant as the value you can reasonably expect, and its transferable point figures assume you move points to airline or hotel partners for medium to high value awards. NerdWallet compares the cost of booking with points against the cash price of equivalent flights and hotel stays and takes the median.
So The Points Guy tends to sit highest on transferable points, and Frequent Miler sits closer to what a typical redemption gets. The gap matters most for bank points: 2.05 cents versus 1.5 cents on Chase points is a 37% difference ((2.05 minus 1.5) divided by 1.5).
The Floor: What A Point Is Worth With No Effort
Before any partner transfer, each bank sets a floor, the value you get by cashing out or booking in its own travel portal.
- Chase Ultimate Rewards: about 1 cent each as cash back or a statement credit, and about 1 cent on most Chase Travel bookings (point.me, September 1, 2026). Chase's Points Boost lifts select bookings to up to 1.75 cents on flights and 1.5 cents on hotels with the Sapphire Preferred, and up to 2 cents with the Sapphire Reserve. Cardholders enrolled in the old fixed rates keep them until October 26, 2027 (The Points Guy, September 21, 2026).
- Amex Membership Rewards: about 0.6 cents as a statement credit, about 0.7 cents for gift cards, about 1 cent on flights booked through Amex Travel, and about 0.7 cents on other Amex Travel bookings (point.me, August 27, 2026).
- Capital One Miles: Capital One's own example says 52,800 miles is "a $528 value", which is 1 cent per mile (Capital One Venture page, read 2026-09-30).
The floor is the number to beat. If a transfer gets you 1.2 cents on Amex points, that is double the 0.6 cent statement credit. If a transfer gets you 1.2 cents on Chase points, you gained only 0.2 cents over cash, and you gave up the flexibility of cash.
Work Out Your Own Value
Published values are averages. What your points are worth on a given booking is simple to calculate:
Cents per point = (cash price minus taxes and fees you still pay on the award) divided by points used, times 100.
Worked example with made up prices: a flight costs $420 in cash, or 25,000 miles plus $5.60 in taxes. (420 minus 5.60) divided by 25,000, times 100, is 1.66 cents per mile. That beats The Points Guy's 1.2 cent United value and Frequent Miler's 1.3 cents, so it is a good use of United miles.
Two adjustments make the number honest:
- Use the price you would actually pay. If you would never pay $1,800 for business class, the value is what you would have spent on the economy seat you would otherwise buy.
- Count the points you would have earned by paying cash. A paid ticket usually earns miles and card points. An award ticket usually does not. Subtract that from the value.
What This Means For Picking Deals
A points number is meaningless without a value. 10,000 Hilton points and 10,000 Hyatt points are very different rewards: at Frequent Miler's values, about $35 versus about $150 (10,000 times 0.35 cents, and 10,000 times 1.5 cents).
Pointsflare ranks deals by points per dollar, then shows an estimated dollar value for each deal using a per program cents per point figure. Each of those figures is marked in our settings as an assumption and checked against published values like the ones above. When a deal pays in a low value currency like Hilton points, read the dollar value, not just the points. Our guide on what a good points per dollar rate is explains how to compare the two.
When A Point Is Worth Less Than The Tables Say
- You would redeem for cash anyway. Then your Chase point is worth 1 cent and your Amex point about 0.6 cents, whatever the tables say.
- Your balance is small. 8,000 points in a program you rarely use may never reach an award you want.
- The program devalues. Airlines and hotels change award prices, and points have no guaranteed value. Earning and burning is safer than saving for years.
FAQ
What Is A Good Cents Per Point Value?
Beat the floor first: 1 cent for Chase and Capital One, about 0.6 cents for Amex statement credits. After that, anything at or above the published values in the table above is a solid redemption. For a transferable point, 1.5 cents or more is a common target.
Are Airline Miles Worth More Than Hotel Points?
Per point, usually yes. United, American and Southwest miles are valued at about 1.2 to 1.7 cents in the sources above, while Hilton, IHG and Marriott points are valued at 0.35 to 0.75 cents. Hotel programs simply charge more points per night, so compare in dollars, not in points.
Why Does The Points Guy Value Points Higher Than Frequent Miler?
They measure different things. Frequent Miler aims for the value you can reasonably expect; The Points Guy uses its own method based on award pricing, redemption data and program rules. Treat the two as the low and high ends of a realistic range.
Should I Cash Out My Points?
Cash out when you do not travel, or when the best redemption you can find is barely above the floor. With Chase or Capital One, cash is worth about 1 cent a point, which is a fair fallback. With Amex, statement credits at about 0.6 cents lose a lot of value compared with transfers.
Do Points Expire?
Expiry rules differ by program and by card, and they change. Read the terms page of each program you hold before you plan around a balance, and note any date it gives.
Want deals ranked by what they are actually worth to you? See this week's deals in the Pointsflare app.
