Frequent Flyer Mile Value

Worked example

50,000 miles for a ticket that costs $500 cash with $50 in award taxes nets $450 in value, or 0.9 cents per mile. That sits below a typical 1.2 cent United benchmark, so paying cash may be better.

Related tools

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Frequently asked questions

• What is cents per mile (CPM)?

  Cents per mile (CPM) measures how much monetary value you extract from each mile or point redeemed. Calculate it as: (cash ticket price minus taxes and fees on the award) divided by miles required, multiplied by 100. Industry benchmarks: 1 CPM is generally considered the floor for a reasonable redemption; 1.5 CPM is solid; 2 CPM or above is an excellent redemption. Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer to partners at values regularly reaching 1.5-2.0 CPM on business class redemptions. Cashing out points for statement credits typically returns only 1 CPM.

• Should I subtract taxes from the cash price?

  Yes. What you are measuring is the value of the miles, not the value of the entire ticket. Taxes and fees must be paid regardless of whether you use miles or cash, so they should be subtracted from the cash comparison price before dividing by miles required. Example: a $1,200 flight costs 60,000 miles plus $85 in fees. The miles' contribution is $1,200 - $85 = $1,115. CPM = ($1,115 / 60,000) x 100 = 1.86 CPM. Skipping the fee subtraction overstates the value of the miles redemption.

• When is it better to pay cash?

  Pay cash when the redemption CPM falls below your points' baseline cash-out value. If you can redeem Chase UR points for 1 CPM as a statement credit, any award redemption under 1 CPM destroys value. Also pay cash when the cash price is low (under $200 domestic) -- spending 25,000 miles on a $180 ticket is only 0.72 CPM. Save miles for premium cabin international flights where cash prices are $3,000-8,000 and awards are available at 50,000-80,000 miles, yielding 3.75-10 CPM on the miles used.

• How do transfer partners affect the value of flexible points?

  Flexible points programs (Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Capital One Miles, Citi ThankYou) gain their value primarily through airline and hotel transfer partners. Transferring 60,000 Chase UR points to United MileagePlus for a business class seat that retails for $2,500 yields over 4 CPM -- far above the 1 CPM cash-out rate. Transfer ratios are usually 1:1 to airline partners. The key is finding partner award availability before transferring, since transfers are one-way and typically instantaneous but irreversible.

• What is the difference between award chart pricing and dynamic pricing?

  Award chart programs set fixed mile prices for flights by region or zone regardless of cash fare -- United, Air Canada Aeroplan, and Air France Flying Blue still use modified award charts. Dynamic pricing programs (Delta SkyMiles, JetBlue TrueBlue, Southwest Rapid Rewards) price awards as a percentage of the cash fare, meaning mile value is approximately fixed while award cost varies. Dynamic programs make it hard to find outsized value because the miles required scale with the cash price. Award chart programs allow you to redeem a fixed number of miles for a $10,000 first class seat, which is where the highest CPM values occur.

• How do miles compare to cashback credit cards for everyday spending?

  A 2% flat cashback card earns a guaranteed, liquid 2 cents per dollar spent. A miles card earning 2x points per dollar is worth 2 cents per dollar only if you redeem at 1 CPM -- and considerably more if you reach 1.5-2 CPM on transfers. The tradeoff is complexity and flexibility. Cashback never expires, requires no planning, and never has availability issues. Miles require actively finding good redemptions, booking award seats in advance, and managing expiration. For travelers who fly premium cabin internationally 1-2 times per year, miles consistently outperform cashback. For everyone else, cashback is often simpler and comparably valuable.