Capital One rewards cardholders every time they make a purchase on a Capital One card. Points never expire and you can use them for cash back and travel.
Let’s explore some of the best ways to earn and redeem Capital One rewards so you can get the most out of them.
How to earn Capital One rewards
The best way to earn Capital One rewards is with travel rewards credit cards.
How to redeem Capital One rewards
Capital One rewards are worth an estimated 1.11 cents each for the typical cardholder, based on Credit Karma’s standard point valuations.
But the precise value you get depends on how you redeem your miles.
The simplest way to use your miles is to “erase” the cost of recent travel purchases. But if you’re willing to put in a little more energy searching for a good deal, you might get a better value by transferring to one of Capital One’s hotel or airline transfer partners.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at a few flexible redemption options, which may offer the best way to use your Capital One rewards.
1. Book a stopover
A stopover is a layover you can look forward to. Instead of waiting at the airport for your connecting flight, you may be able to stretch out your trip and schedule enough time between flights to get out and explore. Whether you have just a few extra hours or even days, it can be a great way to squeeze in another destination on your trip.
If you’re looking to take advantage of a stopover, check which Capital One partner airlines offer this option. You can transfer your miles to a partner airline and use them to book a flight with a stopover.
2. Relax at a fancy hotel
You could also transfer your Capital One rewards to Accor.
The Accor Live Limitless rewards program gives you access to a number of luxury hotel brands, including the following:
- Banyan Tree
- Delano
- Emblems
- Fairmont
- Mondrian
- Morgans Originals
- Onefinestay
- Orient Express
- Raffles
- Rixos
- SLS
- SO/
- Sofitel
3. Turn cash back into miles
Only Capital One’s travel cards are eligible to transfer points. Unfortunately, that means if you have a cash back card from Capital One, you won’t have direct access to these hotel partners and airline partners.
But if you have multiple Capital One credit cards, you can link your accounts and convert cash back into miles by transferring to a travel card. From there, you can transfer the miles to one of Capital One’s loyalty partners.
4. Spread the wealth
If you’re feeling generous, you could also share your Capital One rewards miles with friends and family who have a travel card.
Whether you’re helping to pay for their trip or pooling your rewards together for a shared vacation, Capital One makes it easy to lend a helping hand.
What else you need to know about Capital One rewards
Capital One treats all of the miles you accrue from its travel cards the same — whether you have a personal credit card or business credit card. So as long as you have a travel card from Capital One, you can move cash back from another Capital One card to your travel account and convert it into miles.
This might not be the right move for everyone, particularly those who only want one credit card. But if you already have multiple Capital One cards, or you’re thinking about applying for another one, it’s worth keeping in mind.