Bilt Rewards adds Alaska Airlines as its newest transfer partner, but will end American partnership in June

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Bilt Rewards — the fast-growing rewards program behind the Bilt Mastercard® (see rates and fees) — is turning heads in the travel industry today. While the program has already announced many partnerships over the past year, including Marriott Bonvoy and Avianca LifeMiles, a new — and potentially stronger partnership opportunity — was just added.

Starting today, Bilt Rewards members can transfer Bilt Points to Alaska Airlines’ Mileage Plan, bringing the current number of transfer partners up to 17 programs. Alaska is known for its incredibly strong loyalty program due to its low reward rates and extensive partnerships.

Alaska Airlines is a member of the Oneworld alliance, opening up many opportunities both domestically and internationally. This lets travelers redeem miles on global airlines like American Airlines, Cathay Pacific and Japan Airlines.

Additionally, Alaska partners with many airlines outside of the alliance, where you can continue to see the world with Air Tahiti Nui, Condor and El Al Israel Airlines, as just a few examples.

This exciting news comes just days after Bilt announced that it would “wind down” its partnership with American Airlines — another Oneworld airline — this June.

So, how does this partnership work? And what are some of the best ways to redeem Alaska miles? Let’s dive into the details.

Learn more about and apply for the Bilt Mastercard.

Transfer your Bilt Reward points to Alaska Airlines

What’s most exciting about this new partnership is that Bilt Rewards is the only flexible rewards program that currently partners with Alaska Airlines. This transfer partnership does not exist with Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Points or Capital One Miles, giving travelers another reason to explore the Bilt program now more than ever.

Alaska Airline miles are also a strong currency — worth 1.5 cents apiece, according to travel website The Points Guy — with Bilt points transferring at a 1-to-1 ratio. This means, for every 1,000 Bilt points transferred over, you’ll earn 1,000 miles within the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan program.

Booking an award flight is incredibly easy with Alaska Airlines, with a straightforward online search engine and a calendar view to see award availability across most of its partner airlines.

Transfers from Bilt to Alaska are usually instant, but can take up to 24 hours.

Best ways to redeem Alaska miles

Before we dive into some of the best redemption options, there are a few things to note about Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan award tickets.

For tickets operated by Alaska Airlines and partners, there’s no longer a fixed award chart. The number of miles required for a particular flight can vary on any given day. Instead, you’ll find a distance-based award chart, with each distance band listing a “starting at” price.

Alaska Airlines doesn’t charge a fee for canceling an award and redepositing miles — which makes booking an award much easier, especially if plans are uncertain. There is a $25 fee for booking on partner airlines.

For those looking to fly domestically within the US, you can fly for as low as 4,500 miles one-way on short-haul Alaska flights. That said, you can sometimes book them for as few as 4,000 miles during promotions.

But a transcontinental flight on Alaska Airlines, such as one between New York and San Diego, will be slightly more at 12,500 miles one-way.

But if you’re looking to jet off to Europe, you’ll find that flying a partner airline is a great option. On Condor — a German airline — you can fly from the East Coast to Frankfurt for just 27,500 miles, plus $49 in taxes and fees — with plenty of availability this entire summer. Or, if you prefer to sit in the front of the plane, you can book that award for 55,000 plus the same incredibly low taxes and fees.

You can also fly to Tokyo, on partner airlines Japan Airways or American Airlines, starting at just 35,000 miles one way and $19 in taxes and fees.

You can also add free stopovers to Alaska Airlines award tickets. For example, you can fly from New York-JFK to Doha (DOH), spend a week in Doha and continue to Johannesburg (JNB). This itinerary costs 50,000 Alaska miles in economy — the same price as if you flew to Johannesburg with a short layover in Doha.

Earn bonus points when paying your rent with your Alaska credit card

This partnership also brings even more earning opportunities to those looking to enhance their Alaska Airlines balance. Those with the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card will be able to earn three miles per dollar spent when paying their monthly rent through Bilt Rewards. While this does come with a 3% fee (unless you use the Bilt Mastercard), many will find that the bonus miles earned outweighs the fee charged.

This bonus category will be rolled out later this year, so hold off on paying your rent with your Alaska Airlines credit card for now. Once this opportunity is available, card members will be capped at earning the bonus on the first $50,000 spent on rent per year.

Bilt Rewards is losing American Airlines AAdvantage as a partner in June

Unfortunately, Bilt has also confirmed that it’s losing American Airlines AAdvantage as a transfer at some point this June. While this is an unfortunate loss for the program, you still have time to transfer your Bilt points over to American Airlines, so plan your upcoming travels accordingly.

Bottom line

With Alaska Airlines being added as a new transfer partner, you’ll find even more ways to redeem your Bilt points. And with Bilt being the only transferable program that partners with Alaska, it’s a win for the program.

That said, losing American Airlines transfer this June is a big loss for Bilt Rewards. It’s one of the most popular loyalty programs in the US and has been a selling point for Bilt Rewards since it launched in 2021.

Learn more about and apply for the Bilt Mastercard.

Looking for the best overall credit card? Find out which cards CNN Underscored chose as its best credit cards currently available.

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