Everything you need to know about Membership Rewards points: how to use them, how to transfer them, how not to waste them [agg.2026].
The first and most important rule to memorize is that membership rewards points are worth money, they can be worth little or [...]
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The first and most important rule to memorize is. membership rewards points are worth money, they may be worth a little or a lot depending on their use. Our goal is to teach you how to get the most out of them.
Having memorized this rule, we can now move on to explain how they are collected.
In this article:
American Express offers its points collection to almost all of its customers; in fact, cobranded cards, i.e., Italo amex, are excluded from the MR collection, Payback And corporate cards.
Each amex customer can then hold multiple cards, both personal and business, and credit all his or her points to a single membership rewards account. By doing so, all points earned will flow into a single piggy bank.
How many points I accumulate, at what expense, and how long they last
MR points do not expire, are usable as long as the card participating in the collection is active. It may sound strange, but unlike all the point collections we are used to in Italy, they do not have a deadline, do not have to be consumed and can be accumulated without any limit.
What if your next trip was because of points?
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Generally you get 1 point for each euro spent with the card, however, there are cards that allow you to accumulate more points, such as Explora which for certain product categories allows you to collect 3 points for every euro spent. There are, of course, also specific promotions that enhance collection from time to time.
As mentioned almost all expenses allow you to earn points, so it is first to list which ones do not carry points: expenditures at gas stations in Italy; payment at the post office of bulletins, f24 and other transactions; payments of bulletins and other fees online through the website americanexrpress.co.uk.
How to accumulate points faster
The first mode is take advantage of the welcome bonus trying to find the best offer that allows you to start not from zero, but from 50k/80k points. For example, by requesting through this link your American Express Platinum you can get 25,000 MR immediately.
One of the best ways to earn extra points once you get the card is to introduce friends, that is, to invite them to apply for an amex card. For each user who becomes a customer through your invitation, you will be awarded extra points up to a maximum of 175k points per year.
In addition to the indicated "ploys," obviously the most important is to try to move as many payments as possible to the collection credit card.
Some examples of how I have recently used MR points.
In recent times I have been using points to Save about 1,000 euros for a stay at the Ritz-Carlton in Cancun, Mexico. One of the most famous resorts in this Costa Maya resort and I broke the piggy bank to give away a Nearly 10k stay at brand new Hilton resort in Maldives Without spending even 1$.
Speaking of flying, my favorite conversion, the list is so long: the first class suite with Singapore Airlines, a Ticket in the best airline in the world aboard the best business cabin class. What makes me happiest, however, is how TFC readers, after following our advice have booked amazing stays, honeymoon included.
How to use membership rewards points and how not to use them
Points can be used in many ways, but be careful not to waste them.
The first thing to know is that for American Express the value of one point is €0.004, so 1000MR at the current exchange rate is worth €4.
You can then decide to discount an expense or as amex call center operators often suggest to lower the annual fee Of the paper using MR points. Here are two examples of how NOT to use MRs, possibilities from avoid like the plague. The reason? It is the worst conversion that can be done among all those available.
But we also see other cases where it is not recommended. Thanks to the partnership with Mediaworld, you can access the dedicated store, where you can pay with MR points instead of money. Let's take an example: we want to buy an iPhone 11 128 gb, its cost in points is 189k MR, a counter value of 756€, while the same phone on the official apple store costs 890€. As we can see a saving of 134€, this is therefore a better conversion than the shop with points, but still it remains a solution to avoid and you will find out why in a moment.
A third way to use points is to choose rewards from the catalog as in a classic supermarket points collection; this solution is also not a thrifty choice.
The absolute best way to convert accumulated MR is to transfer it to partners.
Amex in Italy has 3 partners in the hotel industry: Radisson, Hilton Honors e Marriot Bonvoy.
Radisson Rewards 1 MR = 2 GP
Hilton Honors 1 MR = 1 HH
Marriot Bonvoy 5 MR = 4 MB
Our advice is to use this conversion only if we need only a few points in order to reach the necessary threshold in the desired collection; conversely, we do not recommend moving large amounts of points.
![Are you an Amex Platinum holder? Here's a guide to all the vip lounges you have access to in the world [agg 2023].](https://www.theflightclub.it/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Entrance-of-Centurion-Lounge-at-LAX-big-1-844x675.jpeg)
The other partners in the travel industry are the airlines, ed this is where the conversion rate can turn a handful of MRs into real dream trips.
The partner airlines are: Cathay Pacific, British Airways, Delta, Emirates, Air France/ KLM, Iberia, SAS, Singapore Airlines.
Flying 1MR=1VL
Asia Miles 5MR= 4AM
BA 5MR= 4AV
Delta 3MR= 2SM
Emirate 5MR= 2SW ( for Centurion cardholders it remains 5:4)
AF/KLM 3MR= 2FB
Iberia 5MR= 4AV
Sas 5MR= 4EB
Singapore 3MR= 2KF
The transfer procedure is very simple, just go to the amex website and enter the appropriate section.
At this point you select the collection to which you want to convert the membership rewards points and that's it. Within a few minutes or a couple of days at most, the MR points will be credited to your chosen program.
Taking the example of the 189K MR needed to buy an iPhone, the same amount of MR can become about 120K Flying Blue points sufficient to buy a first-class ticket with Air France or Emirates, worth well over €5,000 in value.
Can I fly with other airlines using Membership points?
The answer is yes, but obviously it is important to understand the difference between transferring directly to a program and booking through a pre-flight program on a third-party carrier.
For example, it is possible to move to Flying Blue to fly with ITA or Virgin Atlantic, but in this case seat availability and prices will be those of Flying Blue, not their respective loyalty programs
On the contrary, I remember that you can transfer from Membership Rewards to British Airways and from there move to Qatar and Finnair, But this is a condition that occurs only for those who use Avios points, not for everyone.
In conclusion
Here is all the information you need to learn how to best manage the points you earn, as is evident the best use is to use them to fly far and in the highest class possible.
