[ANALYSIS] American Express Membership Rewards Program
You can earn American Express Membership Rewards points with the American Express Gold or Platinum cards.
You can redeem your points for various rewards. Below are some of the top options:
TripFlex Rewards
This is one of the simplest use of your points. You can redeem your points for a travel credit. A travel expense includes: flights, hotels, car rentals, cruises, vacation packages, travel agencies, tour operators, online travel websites, etc.
We have 3 months from the date that the travel transaction was posted to our accounts to redeem points online or 12 months from the transaction posting date to redeem by phone. The minimum redemption requirement is 1,000 points for a $10 credit. We can only redeem the points we need to cover the exact charge, but not more.
Transfer Membership Rewards
My favourite is to transfer my points to either an airline or hotel partner. Below are the minimum points that need to be transferred and the amount of points you will receive in the transfer.
Airline Partners
1,000 Membership Rewards = 1,000 Aeroplan Miles (Air Canada)
1,000 Membership Rewards = 1,000 Avios (British Airways)
1,000 Membership Rewards = 750 MilleMiglia Miles (Alitalia)
1,000 Membership Rewards = 750 Asia Miles (Cathay Pacific)
1,000 Membership Rewards = 750 Delta SkyMiles (Delta Air Lines)
1,000 Membership Rewards = 750 Etihad Guest Miles (Etihad Airways)
Hotel Partners
1,000 Membership Rewards = 1,000 HHonors Points
1,000 Membership Rewards = 500 Starpoints (Starwood Preferred Guest)
There are sometimes double dipping opportunities where you can transfer your points and get a bonus for it. It has been a while since the last transfer bonus promotion, so hopefully there will be one soon. Keep in mind that some of the airlines belong to airline alliances, which gives you even more flexibility with your points.
Star Alliance – Aeroplan
Oneworld – British Airways, Asia Miles
SkyTeam – Delta SkyMiles, Alitalia
As you can see, all three major airline alliances are covered so if you need to top up your account on one of the partners, you can do that with your Membership Rewards points. If you prefer, you can also transfer your points to hotel partners, which can also become useful in your travels.
Other Rewards
Otherwise, there are a host of other rewards that you can redeem your points for including: lounge passes, luggage, hotel gift cards & certificates, travel gift cards & certificates, travel accessories, etc. I do not feel that these rewards give you as much value as the airline points. Ideally you want to get more than 1 cent per point in value.
Conclusion
I am hoping for some bonus transfer promotions. Otherwise, as always, do your calculations before deciding which reward works best for you.