Have you ever been short miles for an award flight?
Combining miles from multiple accounts (for example, spouses) can boost your balance so you can book the award. But it usually is NOT worth it. Because most airlines charge expensive fees to share points between accounts.
There are important restrictions. I’ll explain how it works!
Earn Free Flights Faster With JetBlue Family Pooling
Link: JetBlue Family Pooling
Most US airlines charge a fee to share points. But JetBlue and these other airlines allow point sharing for free! With JetBlue, there are never blackout dates for award seats. And folks love their extra legroom, free in-flight Wi-Fi, and awesome snacks. While JetBlue lets you combine points for free through Family Pooling, there are restrictions!How Does It Work?
Link: JetBlue Card from Barclaycard
Link: JetBlue Plus Card from Barclaycard
Link: JetBlue Business Card from Barclaycard
JetBlue allows up to 2 adults and 5 children (under age 21) to combine their JetBlue points in a Family Pooling account for free. Normally, JetBlue charges 1.25 cents per point when you transfer points to someone else’s account, which is NOT a good deal because JetBlue points are only worth ~1.4 cents each toward award flights. So this is an easy (and free) way to accumulate your family’s points in 1 account instead of having them spread across several accounts.
An adult (aged 21 or over) must open the Family Pooling account as the “Head of Household,” and they can invite ONE other adult and up to 5 children (under 21) to join.
Once you’ve accepted an invitation to join a Family Pooling account, you’ll have to agree to contribute at least 10% of the JetBlue points you earn to the account. You can change this once per year. So, if you sign up for a JetBlue Plus credit card any time after joining the account, your bonus points will be distributed according to that percentage. But there are other important rules you should know:- The Head of Household controls the points in the account and is the only person who can book award flights with the points
- The Head of Household can always combine his or her own JetBlue points with the points in the Family Pooling account
- When you accept an account invitation, you can make a one-time transfer of any amount of points for no fee. Later, any contribution above your pledged percentage will cost 1.25 cents per point.
- You can NOT be part of more than 1 Family Pooling account at once. If you leave or are removed from the family account, the points you’ve contributed will remain in the account.
- When a child turns 21, they can either fill an empty “adult” space, or else they are automatically removed from the family’s plan
- You can deposit up to 100% of the points you earn into the shared account
- If you leave or are removed from a Family Pooling account, you must wait a full year to rejoin
Even though this program is called Family Pooling, anyone can share points! Examples they give include mom, grandpa, uncle, and friend.
I experimented with a Family Pooling account and JetBlue allowed all 6 “family” slots to be categorized as “other.” Family members can have different addresses. They don’t even have to be related!
Is This a Good Deal?
A Family Pooling account is useful for families or friends who want to build their point balance together. Parents can use the points earned by the whole family towards award tickets in the future (maybe a romantic getaway!). Or, 2 long-distance friends can share a balance so that one can more frequently visit the other.
This is a great deal for folks who have family or friends that travel less frequently. Instead of your family members each earning a small, un-redeemable amount of points, they can be combined towards a single ticket. This makes your group’s points much more useful!
JetBlue to Peru, for Example
Say you and a friend are planning to visit Peru. But you each have only 9,000 points. Because neither of you has enough to book an award flight, you can pool your points together and have enough for a one-way ticket to Peru. And split the savings! Note: For those of y’all not as familiar with JetBlue, they also fly outside the US! With JetBlue points you can get to many Caribbean islands, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, and Peru!Fly Mom Across the Country in a Lie-Flat Business Class Seat
Or maybe a couple living in San Francisco wants to fly out Mom from Boston in style for her birthday. They can both sign up for the JetBlue Plus card, which currently offers 30,000 bonus JetBlue points after meeting minimum spending requirements.
After combining their points (and meeting the minimum spending requirement), they will have 62,000 points.
They can then book Mom in JetBlue’s lie-flat Mint class seat for ~45,300 points! And still have more than enough points to fly her back home. This would not have been possible if they couldn’t combine their 2 accounts.
The biggest inconvenience of this plan is that only 2 of your 7 family members can be over 21. This makes the plan less useful for families without kids.
Keep in mind, you can always use your own points to book a ticket for someone else! Just book a friend’s ticket using miles from your account – no transfer necessary!
More Ways to Earn JetBlue Points
The entire family can earn JetBlue points and boost the shared account:
- Flying JetBlue (you’ll earn points based on the ticket price)
- Flying partner airlines such as Singapore Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, and Emirates (you’ll earn points based on distance flown)
- Credit card sign-up bonuses and everyday spending
- Travel partners such as Marriott, Rocketmiles, and Avis
- JetBlue online shopping portal
- Enrolling in the JetBlue dining program
- Various bonuses, such as rewards for completing a number of segments
Bottom Line
Airlines usually charge high fees for point sharing. But JetBlue is one of the few airlines that has a workaround. JetBlue’s Family Pooling allows family and friends to work together in collecting enough points for free flights!There are restrictions, such as the inability to change your contribution percentage for an entire year. But if you fly JetBlue often (and your family doesn’t) this is a terrific option to combine points in one place!
Let me know if you’ve used JetBlue Family Pooling in the comments!