Can you use Amex points for other airlines?

Amex Membership rewards transfer to 18 airline frequent flyer programs and three hotel loyalty programs, allowing you to pick and choose the best program for the specific trip you want to book. Amex's transfer partners include the following: Aeromexico Premier. Air France/KLM Flying Blue.



In 2026, American Express Membership Rewards points are widely considered the most valuable travel currency because of their "1:1 Transfer" flexibility. You can transfer your Amex points to over 20 different airline partners, including Delta, British Airways, Emirates, Singapore Airlines, and Air France-KLM. This allows you to "shop around" for the best redemption value. For example, if you want to fly on United Airlines, you can't transfer directly to United, but you can transfer Amex points to Air Canada (Aeroplan) or Avianca (LifeMiles), both of which are Star Alliance partners and can be used to book those same United flights. In 2026, this "Partner Booking" strategy is the "pro-tip" for getting maximum value, as you can often find a Business Class seat for 60,000 points on a partner airline that would cost 150,000 points on the primary carrier's own site. Just remember that once you transfer points from Amex to an airline, you cannot transfer them back, so always confirm the "Award Space" exists before hitting the transfer button.

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For transfers to U.S. airline programs, you'll need to pay an excise tax offset fee before you can transfer points. AmEx charges a fee of $0.0006 per point up to a maximum fee of $99. You can use Membership Rewards points to cover this fee.

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While 200K Amex points will typically only give you about $2,000 in value when you shop for flights in the Amex travel portal, you can sometimes find Business or First Class flights — that can normally cost over $10,000 — for only 200K points, when transferred to a frequent flyer program.

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Membership Rewards® points can be redeemed for travel in a variety of ways: Book your next travel adventure through American Express Travel at amextravel.com. You can use points to cover all or part of your trip. Transfer points to participating frequent flyer and hotel loyalty programs.

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Delta SkyMiles deals For example, in the past, Delta has offered: Round-trip flights to Caribbean destinations starting at just 11,000 SkyMiles. Round-trip tickets to some major European cities starting at just 22,000 miles. Round-trip flights to Asia starting at just 30,000 miles.

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You'll typically yield more value by transferring your points to airline partners and booking flights, but using points for hotel stays can be smart too. You'll do well when redeeming points for luxury hotels or when demand for hotels is high which translates into high cash prices.

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