How long do Chase Ultimate Rewards points take to transfer to partner programs?

3 weeks ago 11

Chase Ultimate Rewards points make an excellent foundation for an award traveler's portfolio. Like other transferable loyalty currencies, these points can be redeemed for highly valuable awards through airline and hotel transfer partners.

As with any transferable points program, an essential aspect of using Chase Ultimate Rewards points is knowing how long it takes to transfer them to whichever partner you want to utilize. Long transfer times make planning and booking awards more difficult, especially when availability is limited. American Express Membership Rewards offers some instant transfers, while Citi ThankYou Rewards transfers can take up to a week.

Here's what you can expect with transfer times for your Chase points.

Related: Best credit cards

Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer times

To determine how long it takes for Chase Ultimate Rewards points to transfer to partners, we enlisted the help of numerous team members here at TPG. We gathered data points where staffers transferred points to their corresponding individual airline and hotel partner accounts over the last several months. We then tracked how long it took for them to show up. Here's what we found:

Out of the 14 programs, Ultimate Rewards transferred to 13 partners instantly, and we never waited more than two days for points to appear in any program. In most cases, any applicable transfer bonuses also posted instantly — though Nick Ewen, TPG's senior editorial director, did need to wait an extra 24 hours for his Aeroplan bonus to arrive in December 2023.

Of course, these transfer times represent our experiences and shouldn't be considered hard-and-fast rules. However, others have reported a similar timeline when transferring points from Chase Ultimate Rewards.

Your transfers may be faster or slower — especially if it's your first transfer or you just recently signed up with a loyalty program — but you can use them as guidelines when planning your trips.

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Things to consider before transferring Ultimate Rewards

While these results set a high bar for any transferable points program, there's still some risk that award availability can change while waiting for points to appear in your account. Transfers are irreversible, so you could be stuck with thousands of points in a program you have little use for if the flight or hotel room you were banking on disappears.

Even though Ultimate Rewards offers mostly instant transfer times, here are a few tips to help you avoid a situation where award availability goes away while waiting for points to transfer.

Make sure the name on your Chase credit card matches the name on your loyalty program account exactly.
Put your award reservation on hold before transferring, if the program allows this.
Choose flights that have more than one available award seat. This is helpful in case someone else books before your points or miles show up. You can do a single search for three or four passengers, which should give you an idea of how many seats are open.
Have a backup plan. If your original itinerary is kaput because availability has dried up, consider another option (or multiple options) so you can still book when your points arrive.

If your original flights disappear, don't panic. Remember that award availability changes frequently and can increase dramatically as your departure date approaches. Check regularly, and be ready to act quickly when seats do open up.

Can you transfer Ultimate Rewards to someone else's account?

Chase allows you to transfer points freely among your own accounts. You can even convert cash-back rewards earned with a card like the Chase Freedom Flex® or the Chase Freedom Unlimited® into transferable Ultimate Rewards points. You need an Ultimate Rewards-earning card to be eligible for this transfer option.

You can also transfer your points to another Ultimate Rewards account belonging to your spouse or household member. If you have a business card like the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, you can transfer your points to an Ultimate Rewards account belonging to a company co-owner.

How to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points

If you're looking to give your Ultimate Rewards account a boost, there are currently three Chase cards offering generous rewards and substantial welcome bonuses:

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Chase Sapphire Reserve®: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Ink Business Preferred Credit Card: Earn 120,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first three months after account opening.

Just keep in mind that Chase enforces a 5/24 rule, meaning that if you've opened five (or more) cards at any bank in the last 24 months, you will likely not be approved by Chase.

Bottom line

Transferring Ultimate Rewards points to airline and hotel partners is often the best way to get the most value out of your points.

Whether you're looking to book a cheap domestic ticket through Southwest Airlines or a first-class Star Alliance adventure, this program can help you get there. With points transferring instantly at a 1:1 ratio to nearly all transfer partners, earning Ultimate Rewards points is worth it for almost any traveler.

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

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