Your guide to airline and hotel loyalty point expiration policies

One of the most common questions surrounding travel rewards is “What’s the worst thing you can do with your points and miles?” The answer often surprises people. While some think it has to do with getting poor redemption value, the only true mistake you can make with your rewards is to let them expire.

When collecting points and miles across multiple airline and hotel loyalty programs, it can be easy to lose track of the expiration policies and unintentionally forfeit them. But with the right tools and knowledge, you can hold on to your points longer and use them for that vacation you’ve been saving up for.

We’ve done the legwork for you and compiled a list of the most common point programs, their expiration policies and tips for keeping your rewards from expiring. Here’s everything you need to know about point expiration policies.

When do travel rewards expire?

Points and miles — more generally referred to as travel rewards — from airline and hotel loyalty programs typically have expiration dates, and the specific expiration policy depends on the program and its terms and conditions.

Some programs have a hard expiration date, where the points or miles expire after a fixed amount of time — often around 12 months to 24 months. Other programs have a more flexible expiration policy, where the points or miles expire only if there is no account activity within a certain period, such as 18 months to 24 months.

In general, the best way to keep your points and miles from expiring is to engage in account activity. This can include earning or redeeming points or miles, taking a flight or staying at a hotel, making a purchase with a co-branded credit card or even completing a survey or signing up for promotional offers.

It’s important to note that expiration policies can change, so it’s a good idea to keep track of your travel rewards’ expiration dates and check the program’s terms and conditions periodically to stay informed. Additionally, some programs offer options to extend the expiration date or to reactivate expired points or miles, often for a fee or by earning new points or miles.

Airline mile expiration policies

Airline mile expiration policies vary by airline, but in general, miles can expire if there is no activity on the account for a certain period. The exact time frame depends on the airline’s policy, but it’s typically around 6 months to 36 months.

Most airlines offer ways to keep your miles from expiring, such as making a purchase with a co-branded credit card, taking a flight, redeeming miles for a reward or having elite status. Lufthansa’s Miles & More and Air France and KLM’s Flying Blue programs even let you keep your miles active by carrying a co-branded credit card.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, All Nippon Airways’ Mileage Club miles expire after 36 months and there’s no way to keep them active. If your miles do expire, some airlines offer options to reinstate them for a fee or by earning new miles.

It’s important to check your airline program’s specific terms and conditions to ensure you understand the rules and requirements for keeping your miles active. With so many different expiration policies to track, we’ve made it easy for you.

Hotel point expiration policies

Hotel point expiration policies are similar to those of frequent flyer programs. Most hotel points expire within 12 months to 18 months of earning, which is fairly standard. Here’s a look at current hotel point expiration policies.

How to reinstate expired points

Once your points expire, you might still be able to get them back. Some programs allow you to reinstate your points for a fee, while others might do so free of charge if you call the customer service line and state your case.

However, if you do need to reinstate expired points, here are some loyalty programs that will allow you to do so.

How to keep points and miles from expiring

To keep most travel rewards from expiring, you often just need to keep redeeming or earning them. There are many ways to do this without staying at hotels or flying with a specific airline. Here are some easy ways to keep your rewards from expiring.

Get notifications before your rewards expire

The best way to keep your points from expiring is to keep track of their expiration dates. This can be a tedious process to undertake manually. Of course, you can sign up to receive notifications from each loyalty program. However, that’s not a foolproof option since emails sometimes end up unread or in the spam folder. A point-tracking tool like Award Wallet can simplify this process.

Award Wallet is free to use, though there is also a premium version with extra perks you can pay for. While Award Wallet supports more than 600 loyalty programs, there are exceptions, including American AAdvantage miles and United MileagePlus. You’ll need to track these programs on your own.

Earn rewards

Most loyalty programs allow you to avoid reward expiration by continuing to earn them. You can often earn points on flights, hotels, vacation packages and rental car bookings. Some loyalty programs let you earn points for completing surveys, participating in dining rewards programs, shopping online or even buying miles.

Many loyalty programs also offer co-branded credit cards that allow you to earn points or miles on everyday purchases. Using the card regularly can help you keep your account active. For example, the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® allows you to earn AAdvantage miles on every dollar spent using the card.

Some loyalty programs allow you to transfer points or miles to another member’s account, which can be an excellent way to keep your account active if you don’t have any upcoming travel or other activities that would earn travel rewards. Some programs don’t charge a fee for this, while others charge less than if you were to buy points or reinstate them.

Be sure to check the terms and conditions of your loyalty program to see what activities qualify.

Redeem points

The most straightforward way to redeem points is for travel, such as for flights or free night awards. But that’s not the only way to keep your account active. You can redeem points for activities, tour packages, merchandise, digital downloads and more. In the case of IHG One Rewards, you can use points for digital downloads (movies or books) starting at just 250 points. This can be a great way to keep your account active without redeeming thousands of points for a free night award — though redeeming IHG points for a free hotel stay can also be a good option.

If you have a hotel-branded credit card, you can often keep your points from expiring by charging the occasional purchase to the card. For example, by spending on the Hilton Honors American Express Card or the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, you can keep earning for each dollar you spend. Alternatively, you could consider donating your points to charity, which is a much better use for your points than letting them expire.

Frequently asked questions

How do you know when your points expire?

If you’ve opted-in to receive notifications from the loyalty program, many will let you know when your rewards are about to expire. The best way to keep track of when your points are expiring is to familiarize yourself with each program’s expiration policy and use a tracking tool like Award Wallet.

How long do hotel points last?

Hotel points generally expire between one year to four years after earning them, depending on the program. However, there are ways to keep your points active longer than that — the easiest of which is to continue to earn or redeem them. Best Western Rewards is the only hotel loyalty program with points that never expire.

Which programs have rewards that don’t expire?

While most airline and hotel points expire, there are a few exceptions. For example, points and miles within Best Western Rewards, Delta SkyMiles, Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles, JetBlue TrueBlue, Southwest Rapid Rewards, United MileagePlus and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club don’t expire. That being said, it’s important not to hold onto your points for too long. Airlines and hotels routinely increase award redemption rates or devalue their programs in different ways.

Looking for a new travel credit card? Check out CNN Underscored’s list of the best credit cards currently available.