The first step you need to take to ensure that you are earning miles is you need to sign up with your preferred airline(s) frequent flier program. Every airline has their own signature program and they are typically free to join. Don't spread yourself too thin....pick the airlines that you fly the most or that service the airport closest to you. There's no harm in joining every airline available but it's much easier to earn a worthwhile amount of miles if you narrow your focus down. I've included the most common US airlines below for easy access to enroll!
American Airlines (AAdvantage)
Delta Airlines (Skymiles)
JetBlue (TrueBlue)
Southwest Airlines (Rapid Rewards)
United Airlines (MileagePlus)
Once you're enrolled, it's time to start earning those miles! This list is not all-inclusive by any means and frequent flier programs are constantly evolving and changing. Check with your specific frequent flier program often to see new and different ways to earn miles.
Option 1: Shopping
Option 1 is by FAR my favorite way to earn miles and probably the least well known of all the options. This girl loves.to.shop. Seriously, if I could do it as a profession I would. But I digress. If you watch TV at all, you've probably seen those commercials for Ebates where women talk about how much money they've earned shopping online. Same concept, only airlines have their own specific sites where you go to earn those miles. So basically what you do is you go to their gateway shopping site first and log in with your frequent flier program number and password, search for the store you want to shop at and then they will direct you to that store's site. Easy peasy! I literally buy everything I can online. Need something you don't want to ship or just can't wait to have in your hands? If the store has a store pickup option, shop on the frequent flier miles site and choose store pickup instead of shipping....you'll still earn miles! I just bought something this morning on Best Buy through the AAdvantage eshopping site and picked it up about an hour after I bought it. I typically earn at least 2000 miles per month using the airline shopping sites. If you do the math, that's 24,000 miles a year which is enough for a 1 way ticket!
Option 2: Credit Cards
I know, I know credit cards are taboo...just hear me out because there are benefits to having these cards, I promise! Airlines typically have their own credit card which allows you to earn miles for each purchase. I'll give you the bad first...the airline credit cards usually have a higher APR than other cards and some have annual fees. Ok now that we're through the worst, let's talk about the benefits of being a cardmember. You know those pesky little baggage fees that add up? Some cards eliminate the baggage fees for you. Priority boarding instead of waiting at the back of the line to get on the plane? Some cards give you priority boarding. Companion ticket for $49 to anywhere in the continental US? Yup, one of the perks of being a card member for a particular airline. Most airlines will also give you a nice little chunk of miles upfront just for applying for their card....sometimes enough to cover a round trip ticket. If you want to see your miles add up quickly, credit cards are the way to go. (insert disclaimer about being a responsible adult and making wise credit decisions here)
I maximize my mileage accrual by having all of my bills autopay from my United account and pay it off in full each month. This way I'm earning miles for paying my monthly household bills!
Have an airline card AND love to shop? Double your earnings! I use my United credit card to make purchases through the AAdvantage eshopping site so I'm earning American miles and United miles at the same time!
Option 3: Partners
Every airline has partners that they work with that will also allow you to earn miles, such as other airlines, hotels, car rental companies, cruises, etc. Flying to London for Spring Break? British Airways is a partner airline of American Airlines so if you book a flight on British Airways you will earn air miles for American Airlines. Same for hotels...if you are a loyalty member for a hotel chain you may be able to convert those loyalty points into airline miles. Renting a car? There's usually a corporate or discount code associated to your frequent flier program that will allow you to earn miles for your rental. Frequent flier program partner lists can be found on your program's website, usually under something along the lines of "earn miles".
Option 4: Home and Utility Services
Some airlines will give you a nice chunk of miles for signing up for home or utility services with one of their preferred partners. For example, you can earn 25,000 miles for United Airlines when you sign up for cable service with DirecTV. There are energy companies, loan refinancing companies, cable companies, ,magazine subscriptions and lots of other options available!
So there you have it! There are so many ways to earn miles without ever actually sitting in a plane. Keep in mind, most frequent flier plans require you to have activity on your account within the last 18 months or you will lose your miles so make sure whatever option(s) you choose you log activity on that account regularly. It's a great big world so take advantage of those frequent flier miles and get out there to see it!
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| Sample of the American Airlines eshopping site |
I know, I know credit cards are taboo...just hear me out because there are benefits to having these cards, I promise! Airlines typically have their own credit card which allows you to earn miles for each purchase. I'll give you the bad first...the airline credit cards usually have a higher APR than other cards and some have annual fees. Ok now that we're through the worst, let's talk about the benefits of being a cardmember. You know those pesky little baggage fees that add up? Some cards eliminate the baggage fees for you. Priority boarding instead of waiting at the back of the line to get on the plane? Some cards give you priority boarding. Companion ticket for $49 to anywhere in the continental US? Yup, one of the perks of being a card member for a particular airline. Most airlines will also give you a nice little chunk of miles upfront just for applying for their card....sometimes enough to cover a round trip ticket. If you want to see your miles add up quickly, credit cards are the way to go. (insert disclaimer about being a responsible adult and making wise credit decisions here)
I maximize my mileage accrual by having all of my bills autopay from my United account and pay it off in full each month. This way I'm earning miles for paying my monthly household bills!
Have an airline card AND love to shop? Double your earnings! I use my United credit card to make purchases through the AAdvantage eshopping site so I'm earning American miles and United miles at the same time!
Option 3: Partners
Every airline has partners that they work with that will also allow you to earn miles, such as other airlines, hotels, car rental companies, cruises, etc. Flying to London for Spring Break? British Airways is a partner airline of American Airlines so if you book a flight on British Airways you will earn air miles for American Airlines. Same for hotels...if you are a loyalty member for a hotel chain you may be able to convert those loyalty points into airline miles. Renting a car? There's usually a corporate or discount code associated to your frequent flier program that will allow you to earn miles for your rental. Frequent flier program partner lists can be found on your program's website, usually under something along the lines of "earn miles".
Option 4: Home and Utility Services
Some airlines will give you a nice chunk of miles for signing up for home or utility services with one of their preferred partners. For example, you can earn 25,000 miles for United Airlines when you sign up for cable service with DirecTV. There are energy companies, loan refinancing companies, cable companies, ,magazine subscriptions and lots of other options available!
So there you have it! There are so many ways to earn miles without ever actually sitting in a plane. Keep in mind, most frequent flier plans require you to have activity on your account within the last 18 months or you will lose your miles so make sure whatever option(s) you choose you log activity on that account regularly. It's a great big world so take advantage of those frequent flier miles and get out there to see it!
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