To Buy or Not to Buy?

Insider tips on accumulating airline rewards points

- Lark Gould

IN THE PURSUIT of airline rewards points, one of the fundamental tenets is to never buy miles. The point of accumulating points is to travel for free. However, there are exceptions to this rule. Buying miles can make sense in certain situations. For example, airlines offer miles for purchase at a rate of around 3.5 cents per mile, with a 2,000-mile minimum. But how far will that get you? That depends on the context and need.

The best way to accumulate miles is through credit card purchases. If you have time to plan ahead, putting cash on your card for needed purchases is a win all around. As you accumulate mileage on your credit card, it goes down to $1 per mile, often multiples of that for various purchases.