Buying points is the direct purchase of miles or points from the programme for cash, usually at a rate above what those points are worth on redemption.
Buying points is the direct purchase of miles or points from the programme for cash, usually at a rate above what those points are worth on redemption.
Also called: Buying miles, Mileage purchase.
How it works#
The purchase only works when the price per point sits below the value of a redemption already identified and the award seat is actually available. In that order: find the seat, do the maths, then buy. Buying speculatively reverses the order and takes on the programme’s full devaluation risk for a trip that has not been decided yet.
Not to be confused with#
Buying points is not the same as points plus cash: a purchase lands the points in the account first, while points plus cash ties them to one specific booking.
In German#
The German term is Punktekauf. German version of this term
Related terms#
- Cents per point: Cents per point is the measure of a redemption’s value: the cash price avoided, minus any co-payment, divided by the number of points spent.
- Points plus cash: Points plus cash is a redemption format in which part of the price is settled with points and the remainder with money.
- Award availability: Award availability is the number of seats an airline releases on a given flight for redemption with miles, which is usually far smaller than the number of seats still on sale.
Articles that use this term#
TopicEvery article and term onPoints and miles.