---
title: "What is Buying points? | Benefit Systems"
description: "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."
source: "aus dem gebauten HTML abgeleitet"
---
# What is Buying points?

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](/de/glossar/punktekauf)

## Related terms #

- [Cents per point](/en/glossary/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](/en/glossary/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](/en/glossary/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 #

- [Is buying points ever worth it?](/en/knowledge/buying-points)
- [Points or cash: how do you decide?](/en/knowledge/points-or-cash)
- [How do points-plus-cash rates work?](/en/knowledge/points-plus-cash)
- [What happens to your miles if the airline fails?](/en/knowledge/miles-if-airline-fails)