The travel guide to Amex Membership Rewards points: Part 2 – How to transfer points

Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

You get lots of travel flexibility with Amex Membership Rewards points. That’s because if you don’t have set travel plans for a future trip, these transferable points give you the option to choose from multiple airline and hotel partners when the time comes.

Those of us in the miles & points hobby know earning transferable points, like Amex Membership Rewards points, is one of the best ways to earn free travel. This can mean a first class adventure around-the-world, a family trip to Europe, or so many other options. And it’s easy to earn Amex Membership Rewards points from some of the best American Express cards.

The Amex Membership Rewards points program has many direct airline and hotel partners. Plus, you’ll get access to other indirect partners as well. And we’ll show you how quick and easy it is to link your loyalty accounts to Amex and transfer Amex Membership Rewards points to travel partners.

You Can Use Flexible Amex Membership Rewards Points for Big Travel to Beautiful Destinations, Like Bruges, Belgium! (Photo by dem10/iStock)

The Ultimate Guide to American Express Membership Rewards Points:

Cards that earn transferable Amex Membership Rewards points

You can earn Amex Membership Rewards points with the following cards:

Personal cardsBusiness cards
American Express® Gold CardThe Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
The Platinum Card® from American ExpressAmerican Express® Business Gold Card
American Express®️ Green CardThe Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express
The information for the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card and the Amex Green Card has been collected independently by Million Mile Secrets. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Link airline & hotel loyalty accounts

Before you transfer Amex Membership Rewards points to your loyalty accounts, you’ll need to link your airline or hotel account.

This only takes a few minutes. We recommend linking all of your airline and hotel loyalty accounts, even if you don’t have immediate plans to transfer points.

Because sometimes it can take a day or two to verify your accounts. So by linking your accounts sooner rather than later, you’ll be ready to transfer points when the time comes.

Here’s how you can link your accounts:

Step 1.  Log-in to your Amex account

First, log-in to your Amex account. On the account summary page of any of your Amex Membership Rewards cards, you’ll see your total points.

Underneath the points balance, click “Explore Rewards”.

 

On the next screen, click “Transfer Points” and then “View All”.

Step 2.  Select program to link

Next, you can select from any of the 22 airline and hotel transfer partners. As an example, I selected Singapore Airlines.

 

Here’s a look at the transfer ratios and estimated transfer times for each of the airline partners:

AirlineTransfer RatioEstimated Transfer Time
Aer Lingus1:1Instant
AeroMexico1:1.624 Hours
Air Canada1:1Instant
Alitalia1:1Instant
ANA1:148 Hours
Cathay Pacific (Asia Miles)1:148 Hours
Avianca1:1Instant
British Airways1:1Instant
Delta1:1Instant
El Al1000:20Instant
Emirates1:1Instant
Etihad1:1Instant
Flying Blue (Air France / KLM)1:1Instant
Iberia1:148 hours
Hawaiian Airlines1:1Instant
JetBlue250:200Instant
Qantas1:1Instant
Singapore Airlines1:1Up to 24 hours
Virgin Atlantic1:1Instant

Here’s a look at the transfer ratios and estimated transfer times for each of the hotel partners:

HotelTransfer RatioEstimated Transfer Time
Choice Hotels1:1Instant
Hilton1:2Instant
Marriott1:1Instant

Step 3.  Enter loyalty account information

The next step is to verify your Amex account by entering your credit card information. If you have multiple Amex cards, you can just choose one and enter the required details. You can link loyalty accounts in your name or in the name of an authorized cardholder.

At this step, you’ll also enter your airline or hotel loyalty number. This will let Amex know where to transfer the points!

Note: If you don’t have a frequent flyer number, there’s an option at the top of the screen to create a loyalty account with the airline or hotel.

Step 5.  Confirm account is linked

You’re ready to begin transferring points! You’ll see a confirmation indicating your airline or hotel account is now linked to your Amex Membership Rewards account.

Transfer Amex Membership Rewards points

After your account is linked and verified, you can begin transferring points. Here’s how to do it:

Step 1.  Find your linked account

On the Amex Membership Rewards page, you can see linked loyalty programs under “Your loyalty programs”.

Step 2.  Select airline or hotel to transfer points

Earlier, I linked my Singapore Airlines account. So that’s what shows in the list of linked loyalty programs. To transfer points, you can click at the bottom of the linked loyalty account.

Step 3.  Enter number of points

The next step is to enter the number of points you’d like to transfer to the airline or hotel partner.

As an example, I entered 1,000 Amex Membership Rewards points, which will transfer to 1,000 Singapore Airlines miles.

Similar to before, you’ll also have to enter your credit card information to verify it’s you.

Keep in mind, after you click “Confirm & Transfer Points”, your points will be debited from your Amex Membership Rewards balance. You will not be able to get them back to your Amex Membership Rewards account.

Remember, if you’re transferring points to a U.S. airline, you’ll have to pay an excise fee.

Step 4.  Confirm your transfer

You’ll get a confirmation message that your points are being transferred to the airline or hotel partner.

How To Transfer American Express Membership Rewards Points
Your Points Are on Their Way to Your Airline or Hotel Loyalty Account!

Remember, the time it takes to transfer to each partner can vary. In this case, Amex says I should see the points in my Singapore Airlines account within 3 to 7 business days.

Bottom line

To transfer Amex Membership Rewards points to any of the 22 airline and hotel partners, you’ll first need to link your accounts. I recommend linking all of your loyalty accounts to Amex so you can save time when you decide to transfer points in the future.

After your accounts are linked, you can transfer points in a few quick steps. Just remember, all transfers are final. So after your points are moved to an airline or hotel partner, you will not be able to get them back to your Amex account.

And if you’re looking to earn more Amex Membership Rewards points, check out our post about the best American Express cards.

Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)

Join the Discussion!

1 Comment
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments