The Guide to Capital One Transfer Partners

Unlike co-branded credit cards, transferable point currencies give cardholders the ability to convert their points to a number of different travel partners. Among the available options, Capital One has beefed up its partnerships with hotel and airline loyalty programs to become competitive with other transferable point currencies. This shows, with more favorable transfer ratios and a widening variety of hotel and airline partners from which to choose. And in a recent NerdWallet analysis, we value Capital One points to be worth 1.4 cents when transferred to a partner.

Let’s take a look at Capital One transfer partners, their ratios and which cards will earn you Capital One Miles.

Capital One has 18 transfer partners, including three hotel programs. Most of these partners transfer at a 1:1 ratio, which means that one Capital One Mile becomes one point. Just note that not all transfer at this ratio. For some programs, including ALL Accor Live Limitless and EVA Infinity MileageLands, the transfer ratios are worse.

Here are the Capital One transfer partners and their transfer ratios:

When it come to Capital One airline transfer partners, you’ll find representation from all three major airline alliances. Its airline partners are:

Aeromexico

A member of SkyTeam, you can transfer your Capital One Miles over to Aeromexico’s Club Premier at a 1:1 ratio.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada is Canada’s national flag carrier and a member of the Star Alliance (so you can use Aeroplan points to book award flights on any Star Alliance airline, including United). You can transfer Capital One Miles to Air Canada’s Aeroplan at a 1:1 ratio.

Thanks to its distance-based award chart, Aeroplan redemptions tend to be especially valuable for last-minute flights that would otherwise be expensive when booked in cash. Plus, the Aeroplan program has made recent, consumer-friendly changes including the opportunity to share miles with up to eight family members.

Asia Miles

The loyalty program of Oneworld member Cathay Pacific, each Capital One Mile transferred becomes one Asia Mile.

Avianca LifeMiles

Avianca is, like Singapore and Air Canada, a member of the Star Alliance, meaning you can use Avianca LifeMiles to book flights on partners like United and Lufthansa, among others. You can transfer your Capital One Miles to Avianca LifeMiles at a 1:1 ratio. Based on our most recent analysis, NerdWallet values Avianca LifeMiles at 1.2 cents each.

Although some warn against redeeming points with LifeMiles due to its poor customer support, this program can provide reasonable redemptions to Europe and the Middle East. The lack of fuel surcharges doesn't hurt either.

British Airways Executive Club

This well-known airline is a Oneworld member that relies on a distance-based award chart. Capital One Miles convert to British Airways Executive Club Avios at a 1:1 ratio.

And while most travelers might think of British Airways in terms of flights to London, that's not usually where the top value of British Airways Avios lies. In fact, most British Airways Avios sweet spots don't involve flying British Airways. Instead, British Airways tends to serve as a smart way to book inexpensive awards on American Airlines, Alaska Airlines and other Oneworld partners. That includes flights to the Caribbean for just 7,000 Avios each way.

» Learn more: What’s the value of British Airways Avios?

Emirates Skywards

If you want to fly in those flashy first class suites on Emirates, you can transfer Capital One Miles to Emirates Skywards at a 1:1 ratio. Access to Emirates’ award program is especially critical for those premium cabin redemptions, as the airline typically limits reward availability for these seats almost entirely to direct bookings. A NerdWallet analysis found that you only get about 1 cent per mile in value for Emirates economy, but the value of Emirates miles may be higher when you book Emirates business class.

Etihad Guest

Another favorite among points and miles nerds, Etihad’s first class product features amenities like beds, showers, bars, sliding doors and up-scale menus. Capital One Miles for these (and all other) flights transfer to Etihad Guest at a 1:1 ratio.

EVA Infinity MileageLands

EVA Air, the Taiwanese airline, is a member of Star Alliance. Capital One Miles transfer over to its loyalty program at a 2:1.5 ratio.

Finnair Plus

Although not as well known as some other Oneworld members, Finnair Plus still provides some solid value. You can convert your Capital One Miles at a 1:1 ratio.

Flying Blue

The Flying Blue reward program is a joint venture between Air France and KLM. Miles can be redeemed interchangeably between these two airlines; you can also use these miles for other SkyTeam partner flights. Capital One cardholders can transfer their miles over to Flying Blue at a 1:1 ratio.

Watch out for Flying Blue's monthly promo awards that discount certain routes by up to 50% (which means you can sometimes find one-way travel from the U.S. to Europe as low as 11,250 Flying Blue miles).

» Learn more: Current can’t-miss Flying Blue flight discounts and promos

Qantas Frequent Flyer

Yet another Oneworld airline, Capital One Miles can be transferred to Qantas points at a 1:1 ratio. Qantas operates on a distance-based award chart, meaning you can find some decent deals on expensive short-haul flights.

Singapore Airlines

You can convert Capital One Miles to Singapore’s KrisFlyer program at a 1:1 ratio.

You can find especially great Singapore KrisFlyer sweet spots on flights to Europe and Hawaii, and flights within the continental U.S. Singapore — a Star Alliance member — has an excellent business class product, though redemptions aren’t cheap. And in fact, converting mile to KrisFlyer is typically the only way to book the award-winning Singapore first class product with points.

TAP Portugal Miles&Go

The flag carrier of Portugal and a participant of Star Alliance, you can transfer your Capital One Miles to TAP’s loyalty program at a 1:1 ratio. NerdWallet values TAP Portugal miles at 0.8 cent each when redeemed for economy award flights.

Turkish Airlines

Turkish’s Miles&Smiles program offers great value to travelers, including the ability to fly to Europe in business class for just 45,000 miles. Capital One Miles convert at a 1:1 ratio. Based on our most recent analysis, NerdWallet values Turkish Airlines miles at 1.1 cents each.

Virgin Red

The reward program for nonalliance airline Virgin Atlantic, your Capital One Miles can be transferred over to Virgin Red at a 1:1 ratio.

ALL Accor Live Limitless

Accor, the popular European hotel chain, will give you a 40 euro discount for every 2,000 points you redeem with its program. Capital One Miles transfer over to ALL at a 2:1 ratio.

Choice Privileges

Choice Privileges, another of Capital One’s hotel partners, allows you to transfer over your miles at a 1:1 ratio.

Wyndham Rewards

The third hotel program on this list, Wyndham Rewards can be converted from Capital One Miles at a 1:1 ratio. Along with its own reward program, Wyndham Rewards has partnered with Vacasa to offer the ability to book full-sized vacation homes with your points.

After comparing thousands of possible redemptions, a NerdWallet analysis has determined these are the six best Capital One transfer partners:

1. Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles.

2. Air France/KLM Flying Blue.

3. Air Canada Aeroplan.

4. Avianca LifeMiles.

5. Singapore Airlines.

6. British Airways Avios.

Of course, you might certainly find individually great redemptions among Capital One partners not named in this top six. But if you're not sure where to transfer your miles, these airline loyalty programs are the best ones to start with.

What about the worst Capital One transfer partners?

Unless you do find a killer redemption, skip the following Capital One transfer options, which provide the least advantageous transfer ratios:

• ALL Accor Live Limitless.

• EVA Infinity MileageLands.

Generally speaking, only transfer points from Capital One to those two travel loyalty programs to top off your account if you're a few points shy of booking a hotel or airline with your existing points or miles balance. Otherwise, you’re generally better off booking those two travel providers directly within the Capital One travel portal.

The most common way to earn Capital One Miles is through spending on a Capital One credit card that participates in the Capital One Miles program. Just note that not all Capital One credit cards earn miles that can be transferred to these partners. Capital One credit cards that do earn transferable miles include:

All of the Capital One miles transfer partners feature the same transfer ratio, no matter which card you have. However, the miles earned on each transaction vary based on the card that you hold. Notably, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and Capital One Spark Miles for Business all earn at least 2 miles per dollar spent on all purchases — no matter where you’re shopping, so they can be great all-purpose cards.

And of course, one of the best ways to earn a boatload of Capital One miles in one go is through each card's welcome offers, which will give you a bunch of points for hitting a certain spending threshold in a relatively short period of time. See the best Capital One credit card offers for travel available now.

Capital One has a good variety of transfer partners, and although it’s missing any relationships with domestic airlines, you can still redeem rewards on Star Alliance, SkyTeam and Oneworld. Along with its airline partners, Capital One’s three hotel partnerships can offer good redemptions for your miles. However, before you make any bookings, make sure that you’re getting good value.

So how do you know if you're getting a good value? Use NerdWallet’s Capital One points calculator below to determine the value of your points, based on both the baseline and NerdWallet estimated values:

With a few calculations and a little bit of research, you can squeeze even more value out of your Capital One miles when you maximize its transfer partners (versus using miles to book travel directly through the Capital One Travel portal).

The information related to Capital One® Spark® Miles Select for Business credit card has been collected by NerdWallet and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer or provider of this product or service.