Capital One Rewards Program: How to Earn, Redeem, and Maximize Your Benefits

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Introduction to Capital One Rewards

Capital One has been hyper-focused on self-improvement in recent years. The issuer now offers some of the best credit cards for earning travel and other rewards, and its momentum continues to build.

Overview of Capital One Rewards

Capital One historically offered fixed-value rewards worth 1 cent apiece that could be redeemed for travel by "erasing" eligible expenses on your credit card statement. But in the late 2010s, Capital One introduced a slew of travel partners across airline and hotel loyalty programs, significantly boosting the value of Capital One miles. Today, this issuer partners with 18 different airlines and hotels.

Further adding to the brand's value, Capital One has opened several airport lounges in recent years, including in Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), Denver (DEN), and Washington-Dulles (IAD) .

Travelers also have the option of purchasing flights, hotels, car rentals, and more through the Capital One Travel portal . Travel booked through the portal comes with exclusive features such as cancel-for-any-reason coverage, refunds for up to 10 days if your airfare drops (in the form of a Capital One travel credit, up to $50), and price-freezing for up to 14 days if you're not ready to book.

Let's look at the best ways to earn and redeem Capital One rewards today.

How much are Capital One Miles worth?

Capital One miles have an average redemption value of 1.7 cents each in Business Insider's most recent valuations, thanks to their evolution from basic cash back to a highly valuable transferable rewards program.

Capital One's roster of 15 airline and three hotel transfer partners gives these miles a high upside, and the option to redeem directly for statement credits on travel purchases provides a consistent value floor.

Read on to learn which redemption options you should target and avoid in order to maximize your return.

Earning Capital One Rewards

You need a Capital One miles-earning credit card in order to earn Capital One miles. Other Capital One credit cards earn rewards that can be converted into Capital One miles, but you'll need a credit card that earns Capital One miles to do that (we'll cover this in a minute).

Credit cards that earn Capital One Rewards

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is one of Business Insider's picks for the best credit cards on the market, thanks to its flexible rewards program and generous travel benefits. But many other cards in the Capital One family have spending categories that earn rewards and provide bonus offers and sign-up incentives.

Cards that earn rewards which convert to Capital One Rewards

Even Capital One's strictly cash-back cards can help you accumulate Capital One miles. As long as you have one of the cards listed above, you can instantly turn your credit card cash back into travel rewards .

In your Capital One online account, simply head to the "Share My Rewards" button in the Rewards tab. You'll receive 1 Capital One mile for every 1 cent you transfer.

You can then open cards like the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card , which earns cash back at the following rates:

• Earn a one-time $200 cash back after you spend $500 on purchases within three months from account opening
• 8% cash back on Capital One Entertainment purchases.
• 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel (terms apply)
• 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®)
• 1% cash back on all other purchases

The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card is a great card to pair with a card like the Capital One Venture to earn the most rewards on your everyday purchases.

Redeeming Capital One Rewards

While our points and miles valuations peg Capital One miles value at 1.7 cents apiece on average, there are myriad ways to use Capital One miles.

You can potentially juice significantly more value from your rewards — or significantly less, based on how you use them. If you're strategic, Capital One miles can unlock lie-flat airplane seats, luxury hotels, and much more for just the cash cost of taxes and fees.

Here are all the travel redemption options you can choose from:

Book travel through the Capital One Travel portal

You can use miles to book your travel directly through the Capital One Travel portal. You'll receive a value of 1 cent each toward flights, hotels, and car rentals.

We generally encourage readers to use their miles to "erase" travel purchases from their cards instead of using them through the Capital One Travel portal. That's because this method won't earn rewards for travel purchases.

For example, if you buy $500 in hotel accommodations through Capital One Travel with your Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you'll earn 5,000 miles for your purchase (10 miles per dollar). You can later go back and redeem 50,000 miles to offset the expense.

However, if you were to simply redeem 50,000 miles at checkout for $500 worth of travel, you would earn zero miles. 50,000 miles would be deducted from your account, and your card would never be charged.

Transfer Capital One Miles to airline and hotel partners

Here's the method that'll give you (by far) the highest value for your rewards.

Capital One has 18 transfer partners to choose from. You can convert Capital One miles into the following award currencies at the specified transfer ratio.

Capital One Transfer Partners

• Aeromexico Club Premier (1:1 ratio)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (1:1 ratio)
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue (1:1 ratio)
• ALL - Accor Live Limitless (2:1 ratio)
• Avianca LifeMiles (1:1 ratio)
• British Airways Executive Club (1:1 ratio)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1 ratio)
• Choice Privileges (1:1 ratio)
• Emirates Skywards (1:1 ratio)
• Etihad Guest (1:1 ratio)
• EVA Infinity MileageLands (2:1.5 ratio)
• Finnair Plus (1:1 ratio)
• Qantas Frequent Flyer (1:1 ratio)
• Singapore KrisFlyer (1:1 ratio)
• TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go (1:1 ratio)
• Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles (1:1 ratio)
• Virgin Red
• Wyndham Rewards (1:1 ratio)

You may not be familiar with several of the above loyalty programs, but they each can play a part in helping you travel on the cheap (or virtually free) to just about anywhere you'd like to go. For example, you could:

• Transfer 39,000 miles to Singapore Airlines and book a round-trip flight on United Airlines from the East Coast to Hawaii.
• Transfer ~60,000 miles to Aeroplan for a one-way lie-flat business class seat on Air Canada to Western Europe.
• Transfer 30,000 miles to Wyndham for two free nights in a one-bedroom cabin in the Rocky Mountains through Vacasa.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Depending on how you use your miles, you could receive a value well over 5 cents each.

Request toward a credit card statement credit for travel purchases

Capital One miles can still benefit you if you don't want to deal with individual hotel or airline programs and you prefer to use rewards to cover any travel purchases you want.

All Capital One miles-earning credit cards give you the option to redeem your rewards to cover eligible travel purchases made to your credit card within the last 90 days. That's extremely convenient, especially considering you won't need the miles in your account before purchasing travel.

Miles are worth 1 cent each when using them this way. You can cash in your miles in any increment, unless you don't have enough miles to cover your entire purchase. In that case, your minimum redemption is 2,500 miles.

Any purchase that codes as travel on your credit card account qualify, including:

• Airfare
• Hotels
• Rental cars
• Cruises and more

While getting just 1 cent each per mile may not seem like an exceptional value, the fact you can redeem your rewards for any travel you want is a big deal. You won't have to deal with complicated rewards programs or award availability.

Redeem for cash back or gift cards

Capital One also lets you redeem rewards for cash back or gift cards.

When redeeming for cash, you'll receive just 0.5 cents per mile. That's unreasonably low. If you plan to redeem for cash with regularity, consider opening a cash-back credit card instead.

Gift cards, on the other hand, are offered at the standard 1 cent per mile redemption option (except for Amazon gift cards, for which you'll receive a value of 0.8 cents). Individual card offerings vary and are subject to change.

Shop through partner retailers such as Amazon and PayPal

You can use your Capital One miles for purchases made through Amazon and PayPal. If you've got an eligible Capital One credit card, link it to your account, and you'll see the option to pay with miles at checkout.

With either option, you'll only get a value of 0.8 cents per mile. This is far from the most strategic use of miles isn't a great redemption option, but it can be worth considering if you don't want to travel and are just after "free" stuff.

If you plan to use your rewards regularly with Amazon, read our guide to the best credit cards to use for Amazon purchases . You'll find a better credit card for your lifestyle there.

Avoid common pitfalls such as leaving your Capital One card linked to Amazon with your default payment method set to "pay with miles." This is one of the quickest ways to lose your hard-earned rewards and can be disheartening as well as an extremely poor value.

Maximizing your Capital One rewards

Capital One miles come with more redemption options than ever these days — including transfers to popular airline and hotel loyalty programs. You can still redeem your Capital One miles for any travel purchase charged to your account, as well as for gift cards and cash back.

If you're looking for a flexible travel credit card that fits your travel strategy, any Capital One travel credit card is worth exploring. Before you apply, however, take the time to compare other travel credit cards and their rewards programs to ensure you wind up with the right one.

Strategic spending for maximum rewards

One of the best ways to quickly rack up rewards is by leveraging your credit card's bonus categories for additional miles per dollar. For instance, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card earns 10 miles per dollar spent on hotels booked through Capital One Travel. If you have an upcoming hotel stay, simply booking your trip through Capital One could earn up to 10x the rewards you'd earn by using another credit card.

Comparing Capital One vs. Other Credit Card Rewards

Capital One has one of the most flexible rewards programs offered by any issuer. But Chase and American Express are two of its biggest competitors. Chase has recently begun opening its own airport lounges for Chase Sapphire cardholders, while Amex has long been known for its luxurious Centurion Lounges .

Unique features of Capital One Rewards

Capital One stands out for letting members use rewards to "erase" travel purchases in the form of statement credits toward their credit card's outstanding balance. While other issuers may offer Pay Yourself Back features, they typically aren't as flexible as Capital One, which treats most forms of transit or travel as eligible redemptions.

Tips for Capital One Rewards members

Capital One miles don't expire as long as your account is open and in good standing, so you don't have to worry about losing them to expiration dates. However, you may want to utilize a rewards tracking app to help you keep an eye on your miles.

Capital One Rewards frequently asked questions

How can I earn rewards with Capital One credit cards?

Rewards are earned through everyday spending on eligible Capital One credit cards, with certain categories like dining, entertainment, and travel often earning higher rewards. Special sign-up bonuses and promotional offers can also boost earnings.

What are the best ways to redeem Capital One Rewards?

While redemption options vary, using rewards for travel bookings through Capital One Travel or transferring points to airline and hotel partners often provides high value. Rewards can also be redeemed for cash back, statement credits, or gift cards.

Can Capital One Rewards expire?

Capital One Rewards do not expire as long as at least one of your credit card accounts remains open and in good standing. This allows you to save up rewards over time for larger redemptions.

Can I combine Capital One Rewards between accounts?

Capital One allows members to combine miles across their own accounts. You can also pool Capital One Rewards with friends and family, which offers incredible flexibility for redemptions.