Do Atmos Points Expire?

The points you earned through Atmos Rewards — Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines' joint loyalty program — are valuable. So, when do they expire? Never, which is good news for frequent and infrequent travelers alike.

But while Atmos points don’t technically expire, your account can be locked. If your account is inactive for longer than two years, it may be frozen.

Alaska says this is for security purposes, so if you do get locked out of your account after 24 months, you can reverse the action. Call customer service to confirm your identity and they will unlock it for you. When that happens, all of your accrued points will still be present and accounted for.

When can Atmos Rewards close your account?

Atmos Rewards members have a year only after account inactivation (a total of three years after your last account activity) to reactivate. After that period, if your account has been locked and you’ve taken no action to have it unlocked, your account will be closed and you’ll lose any unused points. So take note of any alert emails you may receive about deactivation, and act quickly if you receive one.

If you don't want to deal with the hassle of an inactivated or closed account, keep your Atmos Rewards account open. All that's required is that you either redeem points or earn them at least once every 24 months.

You can do so by flying with Alaska or its airline partners (according to Alaska’s award chart, one-way flights start at 5,000 points), but there are also plenty of other ways to keep your points in play.

That includes using Atmos Rewards' shopping or dining portal, booking a qualifying hotel stay or reserving rental cars with participating companies. It’s likely you’ll be able to keep your account operational with little effort.

» Learn more: How to earn Atmos points

Earn points quickly

Another way to earn points easily and consistently — that also serves to keep the points you have from expiring — is to sign up for an Atmos-branded credit card.

An additional bonus: Your points never expire as long as your account is open. Plus, with Alaska's acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines, the free bag benefits on these cards apply for Hawaiian flights, too.

» Learn more: The best airline credit cards right now

Other ways to keep points from expiring

Don’t want to even take the chance that your account could be flagged as inactive? Atmos makes it easy to use points and keep your account open, even if you don’t have enough points to purchase an award fare.

You can book a ticket using a combination of cash and points and get up to a 50% discount on most fares (except the cheapest Saver fares), use points to upgrade to first class starting at 15,000 points, buy points for yourself or share them with someone else with an Atmos account.

Photo courtesy of Alaska Airlines.