Your complete guide to Capital One transfer partners

When Capital One added new transfer partners to its travel rewards program in 2018, credit cards from the issuer became considerably more valuable. Over time, the card issuer has also added new transfer partners to the mix while improving the transfer ratios for others.

As it currently stands, Capital One miles can be transferred to 18 different frequent-flyer and hotel loyalty programs, some of which overlap with programs offered through American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards.

While some Capital One transfer partners are more flexible and lucrative than others, most of these programs can help users get more value each time they redeem miles for travel. If you’re considering adding Capital One miles to your travel portfolio but wondering how to earn them and where they transfer to, read on to learn everything you need to know.

How to earn Capital One miles

First off, you should know that not all Capital One credit cards let you earn miles, and that some offer a more standard form of cash back instead. Capital One travel credit cards that do earn miles that transfer to airlines and hotels include — but are not limited to — the following credit cards:

Capital One transfer partners

Once you earn miles in the Capital One travel program, you have the option to redeem them for travel statement credits at a rate of 1 cent per point. So if you charged a $100 flight to your eligible Capital One card, you can use 10,000 miles to cover the charge.

Other redemption options include gift cards, merchandise, experiences, travel through the Capital One Travel portal or purchases made via Amazon or PayPal. These redemptions will also yield 1 cent per point or — in the case of Amazon and PayPal — less in value.

You can also transfer miles to Capital One partners at the following transfer ratios:

View this interactive content on CNN.com

Once you transfer your miles away from Capital One and into a partner’s program, your rewards become governed by the terms and conditions (including expiration dates) of your chosen program. Also, note that transfers to Capital One transfer partners are all one-way, so you cannot transfer miles from airlines and hotels back into your Capital One account.

You may consider transferring your Capital One miles to a transfer partner to take advantage of “sweet spots” that exist within each program. For example, you can transfer miles to Avianca LifeMiles to book a one-way business-class ticket from the US to Europe for as few as 63,000 miles. We’ll highlight some of the best sweet spots within each transfer partner later in this article.

How to transfer Capital One miles to partners

Transferring your Capital One miles to a partner is simple. To start, login to your Capital One account and find the rewards box on your account’s home page. Then, click the “Travel” button at the bottom lefthand corner of the box.

Look at the center of the page and click the “Convert Rewards” button. You will be presented with a list of Capital One’s transfer partners. Click the “Transfer Miles” button to the right of the partner you’d like to transfer miles to and follow the on-screen prompts to link your account and transfer miles.

Aeromexico Rewards

While the Aeromexico frequent-flyer program was once called Aeromexico Club Premier, it’s now called Aeromexico Rewards. The program uses dynamic pricing, meaning that awards can cost more or less based on factors like demand.

If you are flexible with your plans, however, there are deals to be had. For example, you can find one-way flights from Houston (IAH) to Cancun (CUN) starting at 18,000 Aeromexico Rewards points plus around $91 in airline taxes and fees per person. That said, compare your options with other Capital One transfer partners and even booking through Capital One Travel.

Meanwhile, a round-trip flight with the same departure and destination over similar dates would set you back twice as much. Aeromexico Rewards also lets you redeem miles for seat upgrades, checked baggage and seat selections in scenarios when you cannot select a seat for free.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada Aeroplan is an integral part of Star Alliance, and it’s one of the relatively few frequent-flyer programs left that still publishes an award chart. Better yet, Aeroplan award charts show how many miles you need for flights on Aeroplan as well as its partners.

Flight awards from Aeroplan are based on distance flown, and the frequent-flyer program does not add high fuel surcharges to partner flights. There are deals to be had when it comes to using Aeroplan miles and flying with the airline or partners like United or Lufthansa. For example, partner flights within North America that fly 500 miles or less start at just 6,000 Aeroplan points one-way in economy.

Plus, you can add stopovers on most international flights for just 5,000 miles. This means you can book a trip from Newark (EWR) to Copenhagen (CPH) for 40,000 points in economy class, and pay just 5,000 more points to add a stop in London-Heathrow (LHR) on the way. Just note you cannot add stopovers within the US or Canada.

Asia Miles (Cathay Pacific)

Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles program also uses several award charts, and all its flight awards are priced based on the distance flown. The airline is also part of the Oneworld alliance, so you can use miles to fly with partners like American Airlines and British Airways.

As the flag carrier of Hong Kong, some of the best and most exclusive awards with Asia Miles are flown into and out of the city. For example, a Long-Type 2 award booking from Hong Kong (HKG) to Los Angeles (LAX) would set you back 110,000 Asia Miles in first class. That said, Asia Miles will raise the cost of many redemptions on October 1, 2023.

Avianca LifeMiles

Avianca LifeMiles is the frequent-flyer program of Avianca Airlines, which is Colombia’s national airline. This partner is known for not adding fuel surcharges to flight awards with Star Alliance partners and for offering relatively cheap short-haul flight redemptions.

Avianca uses region-based award charts to let you know how many miles you need for a flight. You can use miles from this program to book flights with the airline or with Star Alliance partners to more than 1,250 destinations around the world.

One of the best deals is on flights from the US to Europe in business or first class. You can book these awards for as little as 63,000 or 84,000 LifeMiles, respectively, plus minimal taxes and fees.

British Airways Executive Club

British Airways is a popular Oneworld alliance airline that lets users transfer rewards from not only Capital One but also American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards. That makes the program popular among frequent travelers who want to rack up rewards that they can pool with a single airline for flights around the world.

While British Airways is known for adding exorbitant fuel surcharges on some international awards, the program is popular for short-haul flights within the United States. For example, you’ll pay as few as 9,000 miles plus $5.60 to fly one-way from Chicago-O’Hare (ORD) to New York-LaGuardia (LGA).

Emirates Skywards

Emirates Skywards is the frequent-flyer program of Emirates and flyDubai, and flight awards with the program start at just 15,000 miles. However, Emirates in particular is known for its over-the-top flight experiences, particularly in its premium cabins. If you do want to redeem Emirates Skywards for a premium cabin itinerary, however, you should plan on having a healthy stash of miles to do so.

For example, a one-way award from New York, New York (JFK) to Dubai, United Arab Emirates (DBX) in first class could set you back as much as 276,000 miles plus $1,714 in airline taxes and fees. At the same time, the cash price for the same flight can easily be over $20,000.

Etihad Guest

Etihad Guest is another major airline of the United Arab Emirates that isn’t a member of any specific airline alliance. That said, the airline does have a lengthy list of airline partners you can redeem miles with, including Air Canada, American Airlines and Korean Air, to name a few.

The program devalued many of its best awards earlier this year, moving all partner flights to a standardized distance-based award chart. Partner awards between 0 and 500 miles cost 6,000 miles in economy class, and the most expensive first-class tickets cost as much as 200,000 miles one-way.

Finnair Plus

Finnair Plus lets you redeem miles for flights with the airline and its Oneworld partners, and it is fairly transparent about how many miles you’ll need for a flight. Flights within Northern Europe start at just 10,000 miles one-way, and flights within the rest of Europe start at just 20,000 miles. Likewise, flights between Europe and Asia, North America, Doha or Dubai start at just 45,000 miles one-way in economy.

Generally speaking, however, Finnair Plus redemptions aren’t that great. For example, one-way domestic awards booked with American Airlines start at 45,000 miles in economy. You can get a far better deal by transferring miles to British Airways Avios and booking the same award ticket.

Flying Blue (Air France-KLM)

Flying Blue is the incredibly useful frequent-flyer program of Air France and KLM, and it is a partner of not only Capital One but also American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards. This program is known for its sweet spots when it comes to flights from North America to Europe or the Caribbean, especially if you’re flexible with your travel dates.

For example, you can find one-way business-class awards starting at around 55,000 miles (and sometimes less) to and from Europe if you’re flexible with your travel dates, and one-way economy flights to Europe can easily cost as little as 27,000 miles per person.

That said, all Flying Blue awards are priced dynamically, so prices change by route and when you want to fly. Keep an eye on Flying Blue’s monthly Promo Rewards promotions, which offer discounted award tickets to Europe from different airports every month.

Infinity MileageLands (EVA Air)

EVA Air is a possible partner you can transfer your Capital One miles to but probably not one you’ll want to transfer to. The program does have a series of award charts that makes it easy to figure out how many miles you’ll need, but bookings can be exorbitantly expensive.

For example, one-way flight awards between Asia and Europe start at 50,000 miles, and flights between Asia and Oceania start at 50,000 miles one-way in economy. You can often find a better deal on EVA Air flights by transferring Capital One miles to other Star Alliance partners like Air Canada Aeroplan or Avianca LifeMiles.

Qantas Frequent Flyer

Qantas is one of the most popular airlines in Australia, although its distance-based award charts make it an expensive program to use for flights down under from North America. However, awards within Australia can be a great deal. Qantas advertises one-way flights from Sydney to the Gold Coast or the Sunshine Coast starting at 6,400 miles.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer

Singapore Airlines is another frequent-flyer program that publishes an award chart, and you can easily find some sweet spots if you take a look. For example, short-haul flights to and from Singapore start at just 8,500 miles one-way. Meanwhile, one-way flight awards from the West Coast of the US to Singapore start at just 42,000 miles in economy or 146,000 miles one-way in Singapore Suites, the airline’s award-winning first-class suite.

The airline also offers a flight calculator that helps you figure out how many miles you’ll need for an award. As you’ll see in the example below, inputting some information lets you see that round-trip awards from Los Angeles (LAX) to Singapore (SIN) start at 84,000 miles in economy but can run as high as 140,000 miles.

TAP Miles&Go

TAP Miles&Go is the frequent-flyer program of TAP Air Portugal, which is the premier airline of Portugal. The program offers award charts that let you see how many miles you’ll need for a flight, and you can easily look for deals that way.

With a quick search, you can see that flights from North America to all of Europe can cost as little as 29,000 miles one-way. That said, the airline’s award charts only show the starting cost of a flight award, so reality can be much different.

TAP Air Portugal is part of the Star Alliance, however, so you can use miles to book with partners like Air Canada, Turkish Airlines and United.

Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles

Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles publishes award charts that show users a starting range for various flight awards with the airline and its Star Alliance partners.

Some of the best deals include flights from Turkey to the rest of Europe starting at 22,600 miles round-trip in economy. You can also find partner flights from North America to Europe starting at 30,000 miles one-way in economy.

But perhaps the best deal is paying just 15,000 for a round-trip flight within the US, including Hawaii. Just note that actually finding award space on United flights to Hawaii can be difficult, especially during peak travel times.

Virgin Red

Virgin Red is a program that encompasses Virgin Atlantic and all the other programs within the Virgin family of brands. Not only can you use Virgin Red points to book Virgin Atlantic flights (and flights with SkyTeam partners like Delta and Air France) but you can also use them to book adults-only cruises with Virgin Voyages or vacation packages with Virgin Atlantic Holidays.

Virgin Red has a range of offers you can choose from online that change all the time. For example, you can frequently book boutique hotel stays or get special details on gift cards through the Virgin Red portal.

Many frequent travelers also love using Virgin points to book partner flights for a reasonable number of points. For example, you can book one-way Delta One business-class tickets from the US to Europe for just 50,000 Virgin Red points one-way with minimal taxes and fees. This is by far the best way to book Delta One to Europe with Capital One miles.

Accor Live Limitless

Accor Live Limitless lets members book award stays at more than 4,200 properties around the world. Accor properties are commonly found throughout Europe in destinations like France, Hungary and Italy, as well as in the Middle East.

You can also redeem ALL points for stays in more than 5,000 private homes and villas in 50 destinations starting at just 7,200 points per night.

However, transferring your Capital One miles to Accor Live Limitless isn’t usually a good deal. Transfers process at a 2:1 transfer ratio, so 2,000 Capital One miles equals 1,000 Accor points. You can redeem 2,000 Accor points for a 40-euro (worth $40.98 at the time of writing) discount on a hotel stay, giving you just 1.02 cents per mile in value. This is far less than what you can get when transferring to an airline partner to book expensive airfare.

Choice Privileges

Choice Privileges is another hotel loyalty program that’s popular in Europe, yet there are more hotel options in this program than ever since it recently absorbed Radisson Rewards Americas. Free nights at properties around the world start at just 8,000 Choice Privileges points, and you can even redeem rewards for free nights at 20+ casino hotels and resorts as well.

Timeshare resorts in destinations like Orlando, Florida, and Las Vegas, Nevada, that are bookable through Choice Privileges also offer free nights starting at just 16,000 points.

Wyndham Rewards

Finally, consider Wyndham Rewards if you want to book award nights starting at just 7,500 Wyndham points. One aspect of this program that stands out is the fact that free night awards are only offered in three tiers — 7,500, 15,000 or 30,000 points per bedroom per night. Discounted cash-and-points stays are also offered with point supplements of 1,500, 3,000 or 6,000 points per bedroom.

Wyndham properties are bookable within the US and in destinations like Canada, Asia and Europe. While some destinations feature few properties to choose from, the entirety of the Wyndham Rewards program includes 8,900 hotels around the world. You can also book stays at Wyndham Vacation Clubs starting at 7,500 points per bedroom per night.

Want a credit card that covers you when you’re traveling? Check out CNN Underscored’s guide to the best credit cards with travel insurance protections.