Donate miles to charity Look on the airline's website for the option to donate miles to charity. This counts as activity on your account, which helps you, but also helps others in need. If you don't have enough miles for an award or even a magazine subscription, sharing them with a charity is a saintly alternative.

In 2026, donating miles almost always counts as "account activity" that prevents your remaining miles from expiring. Major programs like Alaska Mileage Plan, American AAdvantage, and United MileagePlus treat a charitable donation (usually a minimum of 1,000 miles) as a valid transaction that resets the expiration clock for another 18–24 months. This is a popular "save-your-miles" tactic for travelers who don't have enough points for a flight but want to keep their balance alive. However, there are two important 2026 caveats: first, donated miles are NOT tax-deductible, as the IRS views the miles as a gift from the airline, not from you. Second, some "fixed-term" programs (like Singapore KrisFlyer or Emirates Skywards) may have "hard" expiration dates where miles expire after 36 months regardless of any activity, including donations. Always check your specific program's "Activity" definition in the 2026 terms to ensure a donation will actually extend your balance before you commit the points.