The Guide to JetBlue TrueBlue

There are a lot of reasons why JetBlue Airways is a pretty great airline. It's long been known for its affordable fares. Its points have no blackout dates and a straightforward value with no award charts to worry about. It has among the best inflight entertainment out there.

And of course, there's the JetBlue TrueBlue rewards program, which allows you to earn points for your flight — which you can in turn apply toward a future free flight.

Based on our most recent analysis, NerdWallet values JetBlue TrueBlue points at 1.5 cents apiece. To determine the value of reward miles, we compared cash prices and reward redemptions for economy roundtrip routes across several destinations and dates. We divided the cost of the cash ticket by the cost of the reward ticket to determine a “cent per mile” value for each flight, then averaged this value across several flights and dates. Read more about how we arrived at these figures.

This is therefore a baseline value for JetBlue points, based on real-world data collected from hundreds of economy routes, not a maximized value. In other words, you should aim for award redemptions that offer 1.5 cents or more in value from your JetBlue points.

To determine the value of your points for specific flights, divide the cash value of the ticket (less any applicable taxes/fees if you redeem miles) by the number of miles required for the flight. So if the ticket would cost either $100, or 15,000 miles + $10 in taxes/fees, the math would be as follows:

($100 – $10) / 15,000 = 0.006, or 0.6 cent per mile.

It’s important to note that JetBlue does not have a published award chart. Instead, the price you’ll pay in points correlates to the going cash price of the ticket.

Because JetBlue points are typically “fixed” to the value of cash prices, it’s harder to find super sweet spots. You won’t usually find outsized value for your TrueBlue points, but you can rest assured that you’ll generally get at least 1 cent per point value at minimum.

JetBlue came in sixth out of nine airlines in our most recent analysis on the best airline loyalty programs. That ranking is largely due to to the fact that JetBlue was all over the place when ranking in individual categories.

It came in first in terms of in-flight entertainment, a precedent set way back when it first launched with free DirecTV on seat back screens. These days, JetBlue offers not just free live TV, but free movies, free Wi-Fi and free in-flight messaging. In fact, it’s the only airline of all we reviewed to offer free Wi-Fi to all passengers).

But in other categories, JetBlue stumbles. It ranked the worst for operations, meaning it has a pretty abysmal rates of on-time performance, coupled with high rates of cancellations, passenger rebookings and baggage mishandling. It’s also not the airline for you if you’re flying with a pet (pet fees are high and limits on what type of animal you can bring are strict)

Here's a closer look at how JetBlue competed across categories:

• Fourth in rewards (mile) value.

• Worst in operations.

• Sixth in elite status benefits.

• Fifth in terms of total fees.

• Third worst basic economy ticket.

• Best in-flight experience.

• Second worst airline for flying with a pet.

JetBlue’s program gives rewards called TrueBlue points. Joining the TrueBlue program is free and you can start earning points by booking flights online. Points do not expire, according to JetBlue's website.

Earning TrueBlue points when you fly

Earning on JetBlue: The number of points you earn depends on three factors.

• The cost of the ticket. You earn JetBlue points based on the ticket cost, not the distance flown.

• The fare class of the ticket. Each fare type has a different multiplier, from 1 to 3. So a $100 ticket would earn 100 to 300 points, depending on the fare class. See the chart below for full details.

• Where you book your ticket. Booking through JetBlue.com or the JetBlue app earns 1 to 5 bonus points per dollar spent depending on the fare class. See the chart below.

In February 2021, JetBlue eliminated change and cancellation fees on Blue, Blue Extra, Blue Plus and Mint fares. Full details about what you get (or don't get) with JetBlue's fare classes are available on JetBlue's "Our Fares" page.

Other flight programs offer additional points: Purchasing an “Even More Space” seat earns you an additional 200 TrueBlue points. Flying with your pet gets you 300 extra points, and booking a JetBlue vacation package (airfare plus hotel) earns 6 points per dollar spent.

There are no blackout dates on flights operated by JetBlue, so you can use points for any seat at any time, and points don’t expire. In addition, JetBlue offers the option of pooling points with family and friends.

Earning on other airlines: JetBlue has partnerships with a handful of other airlines, such as American, Icelandair, Hawaiian Airlines and Emirates. In general, the number of points you earn with partners is based on distance flown, but with American it's based on the fare that you paid.

Earning TrueBlue points with a credit card

NerdWallet's favorite co-branded credit card for the airline is the JetBlue Plus Card. It earns 6 points per $1 spent on JetBlue purchases, 2 points per dollar at restaurants and grocery stores and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. It's the rare airline card that offers bonus points at merchants other than the airline itself.

You start off with a nice sign-up bonus: Limited-Time Offer: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases and paying the annual fee in full, both within the first 90 days, with the JetBlue Plus Card.

Cardholders earn 5,000 bonus points on their account anniversary every year. The annual fee is $99.

Earning TrueBlue points through partners

JetBlue partners with dozens of retailers, hotels and other merchants, allowing you to earn additional TrueBlue points. A sampling of offers available as of January 2020:

• Hotels: Earn TrueBlue points by staying at participating properties in partner hotel chains, including Marriott and IHG (Holiday Inn).

• TrueBlue Dining: Register a credit card with the airline's dining program and earn points when you use that card at 11,000 participating restaurants, bars and clubs

• Amazon: Earn 3 points for every dollar spent if they access Amazon through the JetBlue site during a flight

• Car rentals: Earn at least 100 points per day and access special rates at Budget and Avis.

Search for partners and get details about earning at the TrueBlue partnerships page.

Purchasing additional TrueBlue points

You can buy additional TrueBlue points through the website, but they are expensive. If you buy 1,000 points, which NerdWallet values at $13, you will pay $37.63 — so you are paying nearly triple what they are worth.

Buying points can be good in a pinch if you’re just shy of the amount needed for an award and need to top off your TrueBlue account. But in general, it’s not a good idea to purchase points.

One of the best ways to redeem JetBlue TrueBlue points is through JetBlue flights themselves. While JetBlue launched with a focus on the eastern U.S., JetBlue has gradually expanded operations to more areas of the country. Hub cities include Boston, New York (JFK), Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Long Beach, California. It also flies to dozens of locations in the Caribbean, Mexico and South America, including Turks and Caicos and St. Thomas.

» Learn more: Plan your next redemption with our airline points tool

If you're like most people, you're booking your flights or vacation packages online. When searching for flights at JetBlue.com, toggle to see the fare displayed in either dollars or points.

JetBlue also has a “Best Fare Finder” tool, which helps you compare prices for different days in an easy-to-see calendar view. The calendar shows the lowest fares for an entire month, and you can view multiple months at once.

You can also donate points to charities, buy magazine subscriptions with them or use them to book JetBlue vacation packages or flights on Hawaiian Airlines.

Good redemption options

Unlike other airline loyalty programs, TrueBlue doesn’t offer any redemption options that give you less than 1 cent of value per point, so you’ll likely get a decent return on your rewards no matter how they’re spent. Purchasing vacation packages, which include flights bundled with hotel accommodations, can be a more valuable redemption option than booking flights alone. An even more valuable option is redeeming points for magazine and newspaper subscriptions, which comes out to around 4 cents per point.

Even though JetBlue has several partner airlines as far as earning miles goes — including Emirates, Icelandair and Singapore Airlines — there’s only one partner that you can currently redeem your TrueBlue points with: Hawaiian Airlines.

Redeeming JetBlue points for flights within Hawaii is an especially-good deal. That's because it costs just 6,000 points each way to fly within Hawaii if you use your TrueBlue points, compared to 7,5000 each way if you use Hawaiian Airlines miles on those same flights. Do the math, but — especially if cash prices are high — this could be a good redemption for your JetBlue points. Though, the deal is less-good for flights to Hawaii from elsewhere. Hawaiian Airlines flights start at 22,000 TrueBlue points from the mainland U.S., versus just 20,000 using actual Hawaiian Airlines miles.

Bad redemption options

It's rare we say this about any other airline rewards program, but JetBlue is special. Given the high value of TrueBlue points regardless of how you redeem, your only truly bad option would be to fail to use them.

What if you don't have enough JetBlue TrueBlue points to book a flight?

Another reason to love JetBlue: it is one of the few airlines that allows you to book with a combination of cash and points. To book with JetBlue’s Cash + Points option, search for a flight as usual and select “TrueBlue points” as your payment option. Upon selecting your flight, a scale will appear with a slider that you can drag to select how many points versus how much cash you want to spend.

More often than not, booking with Cash + Points ends up costing slightly more in overall value than it would had you purchased entirely in points or entirely in cash, but the difference is usually minor. If you don’t have enough TrueBlue points to cover the cost of your full itinerary — but you also don't like sitting on a small pile of points — then paying with the combo of points and miles is generally a smart idea.

Anyone can sign up for TrueBlue for free. Once enrolled, you're a basic member.

For now, there's just one simple level of JetBlue elite status called "Mosaic." Though, that's all set to change sometime in spring 2023 as the company announced plans to completely overhaul its TrueBlue loyalty program. When the changes are implemented, expect customizable perks, four levels of Mosaic elite status and a new tile system to track your progress toward rewards.

Until then, there are two ways to qualify for Mosaic status:

• Fly 30 JetBlue segments and earn 12,000 base points in a calendar year. A segment is defined as a single takeoff-to-landing flight.

• Earn 15,000 base points in a calendar year.

Note that the points needed to qualify for Mosaic are base points, which you earn at the rate of 3 per dollar when purchasing JetBlue flights. (So, 12,000 base points equals $4,000 spent on airfare, and 15,000 base points equals $5,000.) Bonus points earned for booking through JetBlue.com do not apply. Also, points earned through partners, including partner airlines, do not count toward Mosaic status.

Benefits of TrueBlue Mosaic status

• Free first and second checked bags.

• No cancellation or change fees.

• 15,000 bonus points awarded at qualifying.

• An additional 3 points per dollar spent on JetBlue fares.

• Early boarding and, at selected airports, expedited security screening.

• A dedicated customer service line.

• Free alcoholic beverages during in-flight service.

As of Oct. 13, 2021, Mosaic status members receive a number of reciprocal benefits with American Airlines via the Northeast Alliance partnership when flying on American. These benefits include priority check-in, priority bags, earlier boarding and complimentary same day changes to flights, among other perks.

The list of JetBlue partner airlines is ever-growing. JetBlue lists the following airlines as partners that allow you to earn TrueBlue points on their flights:

But perhaps even better than being partners is the full-fledged alliance between American Airlines and JetBlue. As of summer 2020, the two have a codeshare partnership, which allows you to book certain American flights directly on jetblue.com. With it, TrueBlue members now have the ability to earn on either loyalty program, while taking advantage of both JetBlue’s and American’s networks.

The following credit cards allow you to earn TrueBlue points:

JetBlue Card

• 3 points per dollar spent on JetBlue purchases.

• 2 points per dollar spent at restaurants and grocery stores.

• 1 point per dollar spent on other purchases.

• $0 annual fee.

JetBlue Plus Card

• 6 points per dollar spent on JetBlue purchases.

• 2 points per dollar spent at restaurants and grocery stores.

• 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

• 5,000 bonus points on account anniversary every year.

• $99 annual fee.

JetBlue Business Card

• 6 points per dollar spent on JetBlue purchases.

• 2 points per dollar spent at restaurants and office supply stores.

• 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

• First checked bag free.

• $99 annual fee.

JetBlue Mastercard Eleva (available only to Puerto Rican residents)

• 3 points per dollar spent on JetBlue purchases.

• 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

• First checked bag free for cardholder and up to three companions.

• $99 annual fee.

JetBlue Mastercard (available only to Puerto Rican residents)

• 2 points per dollar spent on JetBlue purchases.

• 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

• $0 annual fee.

Featured image courtesy of JetBlue.