Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan occasionally offers discounts on miles. These miles can be difficult to earn, so buying them during these sales can help top up or save up for future redemptions.
From now until Oct. 30, Alaska is providing a bonus of up to 60% when you purchase miles, with prices as low as 1.85 cents per mile. Simply log in and buy miles through the Alaska Airlines website.
TPG’s valuations peg Alaska miles at 1.4 cents each. However, buying miles slightly above this value can still be worthwhile if you have a specific redemption in mind. This sale is especially beneficial if you’re ready to book a high-value award flight and have already found available award space.
Now, let’s take a closer look at this offer.
Buying Alaska Miles with up to a 60% bonus
In our tests, Mileage Plan accounts are eligible for the following offer:
| Miles purchased | Mileage bonus | Price per mile |
|---|---|---|
| 3,000 to 24,000 miles | 40% | 2.11 cents |
| 25,000 to 44,000 miles | 50% | 1.97 cents |
| 45,000 to 100,000 miles | 60% | 1.85 cents |
Purchasing miles with the 60% bonus decreases the cost to 1.85 cents per mile as long as you purchase at least 45,000 miles.
This is one of the highest bonuses we’ve seen for Alaska miles, though not as good as the 70% bonus we’ve occasionally seen in the past. You’ll notice an extra tax recovery fee is listed when you buy Alaska miles, but this fee is included in the price per mile we discuss throughout this story.
You can occasionally get more than our valuation of 1.4 cents from your miles. You can redeem Alaska miles for first- and business-class travel on one of Alaska’s many international airline partners like Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines and Fiji Airways. Sometimes, you can get more than 5 cents per mile in value with these redemptions.
Related: 6 things to know about the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan program
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How many Alaska miles can I purchase?
If you hold MVP, MVP Gold, MVP Gold 75K or MVP Gold 100K elite status in the Mileage Plan program, there’s no annual limit on how many Alaska miles you can buy or receive as a gift. If you don’t hold elite status with Alaska, you can only buy or be gifted up to 150,000 miles per calendar year.
Know, though, that the calendar year limit for non-elite members doesn’t include bonus miles. If you’re targeted for a 60% bonus and haven’t purchased or received any Alaska miles as a gift this year, you could buy 150,000 miles through this sale and receive 90,000 bonus miles for a total of 240,000 miles deposited into your account.
However, keep in mind that you’d need to purchase your miles in two transactions since the website only supports buying up to 100,000 miles per transaction.
Related: Alaska Airlines devalues Japan Airlines awards without notice, increasing award rates by up to 100%
How should I redeem Alaska miles?
Alaska Airlines partners with many great airlines. On top of Alaska’s Oneworld and Oneworld Connect partners, the airline also partners with various other airlines, including Korean Air and LATAM.
Best of all, you can add a free stopover on many Alaska Mileage Plan awards. You can check out Alaska’s starting award prices for inspiration, but here are a few of our favorite ways to redeem Alaska miles.
Stopover in Fiji on the way to the South Pacific in business class
With its pristine beaches, Fiji is a bucket-list destination for many travelers. You can redeem 55,000 Alaska miles to fly from the continental U.S., Alaska or Canada to Fiji in Fiji Airways’ business class, making it one of the best redemption values for Alaska miles.
During this sale, 55,000 Alaska miles would cost you about $1,018 if you buy the miles at a rate of 1.85 cents each. Plus, you can use Alaska’s free stopover to continue to New Zealand, Australia or another South Pacific destination for no additional miles.
Fly from the US to South America in LATAM business class
LATAM is the largest airline in South America, with hubs in Santiago, Chile, and Lima, Peru, as well as other major cities. You can book a one-way award from the continental U.S., Alaska or Canada to South America in LATAM business class for just 45,000 Alaska miles.
During this sale, 45,000 Alaska miles would cost about $833 if you can buy the miles at a rate of 1.85 cents each.
Head to Asia in Cathay Pacific first class
Cathay Pacific flies from several different U.S. gateways to its hub in Hong Kong. You can use your Alaska miles to fly in Cathay Pacific’s swanky first-class product to Hong Kong and beyond for just 70,000 Alaska miles one-way with minimal taxes and fees. Considering these tickets often cost more than $5,000 one-way, purchasing miles is an excellent deal for this award.
During this sale, 70,000 Alaska miles would cost about $1,295 if you can buy the miles at a rate of 1.85 cents each. However, ensure you find first-class award availability before buying the miles. Fair warning: It can be hard to come by.
Use 1 of these credit cards to pay for Alaska miles
Points.com — not Alaska — will process your purchase if you use this promotion. Because Alaska isn’t processing the purchase, you won’t earn bonus rewards for using a card with airline spending as a bonus category.
Pay with a credit card that offers a solid return on everyday purchases to earn the most rewards for your purchase. For example, consider using the following cards that offer bonus earnings on all purchases:
Related: The best credit cards for buying points and miles
Bottom line
We don’t recommend buying points or miles speculatively, but if you have an upcoming trip that you want to book with Alaska miles and you’ve found award availability, this sale may let you earn Alaska miles at a reasonable rate.
If you don’t need the miles immediately and are instead starting to plan a trip, you may prefer to sign up for an Alaska Airlines credit card and earn miles through its sign-up bonus and bonus categories. For example, the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card currently offers a sign-up bonus of 60,000 bonus miles plus a companion fare from $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23) when you make $3,000 or more in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account.
