How Do I Transfer Amex Points to Avios Points?

If you have a membership reward American Express card and want to transfer your Amex Points to Avios for the first time it can be a little confusing! Unlike the BA Amex cards, points don’t automatically transfer over to Avios, you need to do this yourself manually. Read on to find out how and the best time to transfer your points!

How Do I Transfer Amex Points to Avios Points?

Before we begin… you will need to sign-up for a British Airways Executive Club account if you don’t already have one.

1) Log in to your American Express account. If you have multiple cards make sure you have selected the Membership Reward earning card in the top right corner. Select ‘Use your points’

2) In the search bar type in British Airways and hit return

3) Select British Airways Executive Club

4) If you haven’t already you’ll be prompted to link your British Airways Executive Club with American Express. Please note the names on your American Express and Avios account need to match.

5) Enter the number of points you’d like to transfer (minimum of 1,000) and verify by entering the four-digit CID number & three-digit CSC code on your card.

(you won’t see step 3 until you’ve entered how many points you want to transfer and click on ‘transfer my points’ at the bottom)

6) Finished! Now just wait for the points to show up in your BA account!

When should I transfer Amex Points to Avios Points?

If you aren’t looking to travel in the near future I would recommend keeping your points as membership reward points until you need them! The power of Amex Points is that they are flexible and can sit in your account into you need them. This gives you the flexibility to use them for other opportunities and helps you avoid getting caught out by loyalty program devaluations.

Unfortunately unlike some other partners, transfers to Avios points aren’t instant. So if you are thinking about booking redemptions on a popular route it’s best to be prepared and transfer your points over a few days in advance. The American Express website states that transfers should be completed within 3 days however in practise it’s often 1 – 2 days.

What value should I get from converting my Amex points to Avios?

Unfortunately, there isn’t a straight forward answer! It depends on your circumstances. Read our post on How To Work Out Avios Point Value? to gain a further understanding of the potential value you could be getting.

What is the best way to earn more Amex & Avios points?

This is my experience using the points system and is not a recommendation of any financial product. There are other credit cards which can earn you travel points including IHG credit card, Tesco Credit Cards (by exchanging Clubcard points for avios, hotel stays and more) & Virgin Atlantic credit card. If you use one of my links for a referral to an American Express card upon you being accepted I will receive points, this varies between 9,000 – 18,000 depending on the card I refer you from.

To get a referral (for bonus points) go here – https://pointsuncovered.com/amex-referral-link-uk/

There are 2 free cards that come with a great sign-up bonus if you are new to Amex. They are the Amex Gold Card (free for the first year) and the FREE BA Amex.

BA Free Card (no annual fee)

On the BA Free Card, you are getting 1% ‘back’ (1 Avios per £1) on general spend. The BA Free Card comes with a 5,000 Avios welcome bonus if you spend £1000 in 3 months. To earn that normally on the card you’d need to spend £5000.

Where can I fly to for 5,000 Avios

Gold Amex Gold (FREE first year, £140 annual fee afterwards)

On the Gold Amex Card, you are getting 1% ‘back’ (1 Membership reward point per £1) on general spend. Membership reward points transfer 1:1 into Avios. The Gold Amex Card comes with a 10,000 membership reward points (equal to 10,000 Avios) welcome bonus. You would need to spend £10,000 to earn those points on general spend!

Where can I fly to for 10,000 Amex points

There are other cards with an annual fee that carry larger sign-up bonuses and/or higher Avios earning rates. They include the Platinum Card and the British Airways Premium Plus Card.

If you are looking to kick-start your Avios with a huge 200,000 haul don’t forget to take a look at our guide to fast track yourself to a rather cool 200,000 Avios points – https://pointsuncovered.com/american-express/fast-track-yourself-to-2000000-avios-points/