Guide - Getting Started with Points & Miles

Garrett Falcone
Dec 16, 2025
4 min read

I get asked this question a lot - "where do I start with points & miles?" My answer is usually something along the lines of getting a credit card and importantly DO NOT REDEEM THE POINTS FOR STATEMENT CREDITS, GIFT CARDS, OR PRODUCTS. I feel a small part of me die inside when people tell me that's how they use their points.

So I thought why don't I actually write down step by step how I would start in the points & miles world. And it just so happens that with the birth of our first child, I'll actually be going through these steps to set him up for his future in the points & miles world.

Hotel Programs
Airline Programs
Credit Cards
In Summary

Hotel Programs

The first step I would take in my points & miles journey is to sign up for hotel rewards programs since it's free and I might as well earn those points. There's a ton of smaller programs out there, but I'll only cover the 3 major US chains (Hyatt, Marriott, Hilton) since that's what I use 99% of the time. At a minimum, I would sign up for these three. Disclaimer - these are my personal opinions on the pros and cons of each based on my experiences with each program.

World of Hyatt

Pros:

By far the most rewarding in my opinion
Top-tier status (Globalist) has the most value including confirmed suite upgrades, guaranteed 4pm checkout, waived resort fees and parking on reward bookings, and access to a personal concierge
App and website are the easiest to use in my opinion

Cons:

Smallest global footprint of the top 3 US chains with ~1,450 properties
Most restrictive reward redemptions - high-end properties have limited reward rooms available and often need to be booked many monts in advance in my experience
Horrible logo

Marriott Bonvoy

Pros:

Largest global footprint with ~9,300 properties
Most available reward redemptions - generally if a room can be booked with cash it can be booked with points

Cons:

Least valuable rewards program
Top-tier status (Titanium) isn't worth much
Horrible program name

Hilton Honors

Pros:

Large global footprint with ~9,000 properties
It's possible to find some very good value for points due to high earning rates

Cons:

Luxury portfolio has been lacking though this has improved in recent years through new partnerships
Premium room points redemptions are completely absurd
Lacking technologically - no way to confirm room upgrades ahead of time, no way to redeem free night certificates online

Redeem Hyatt Points at the Andaz Maui - Maui, Hawaii 2020

Airline Programs

In the US, there are three major airlines (United, Delta, American) and each belongs to one of the 3 global networks (Star Alliance, Skyteam, Oneworld). Like hotels, these programs are free to join so I would sign up and earn the miles since it doesn't cost anything. Unlike hotels, you are sort of locked in to whichever airline has the most flights out of your home airport. ORD is a hub for both United and American, so we do get a choice but my experiences with American have always been incredibly poor so I try to stick with United as much as possible. Again, these are opinions based on my personal experiences.

United MileagePlus

Pros:

Strongest international network
Consistent long haul business class product
Top-tier status is the most valuable
Best technology and app
Star Alliance Network

Cons:

Reliability is lower than Delta
Sometimes customer service can leave a lot to be desired unless you have status
Miles have been significantly devalued recently

Delta Skymiles

Pros:

Most reliable
Best on board product
Skyteam Network

Cons:

Least valuable rewards program (there's a reason they are called Skypesos)
Weaker international network

American AAdvantage

Pros:

Most valuable rewards program

Cons:

Where to start - pretty much everything except the rewards program

Credit Cards

Credit cards are the best way to turn everyday spend into points which can then be used to redeem for flights and hotels at more value. On most cards, the face value of 1 point = 1 cent. This is usually the redemption value if you were to use points for statement credits, so you should almost NEVER redeem points if you are getting less than 1 cent per point.

My Credit Card Rules

It's great to earn points for money you were going to spend anyway, but ther are a couple rules that I personally always follow (this is not financial advice!)

I don't spend "extra" money I wouldn't have otherwise spent just to get points
I don't carry a balance because I will never be able to get more value out of credit card points than I would pay in interest.

Major Credit Card Rewards Programs

Each of the major US credit card issuers has their own points program which is essentially its own currency. Generally, these points can be redeemed for statement credits, merchandise, travel, or transferred to other programs (the most valuable use - more on this in a later guide).

Chase Ultimate Rewards
Citi ThankYou Rewards
American Express Membership Rewards
Capital One Miles

Getting Started

For anyone just getting started in the world of points and miles I always recommend to start with a well-rounded card that will award you bonus points in the categories you spend the most money on.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred is one of my favorites as the annual fee is only $95 and you'll earn 3x points on dining and 2x points on travel. Having a premium (i.e., not free) Chase card will also give you access to the valuable transfer partners.

Another favorite of mine is the Citi Doublecash which earns you 2x points on everything and comes with no annual fee making it a great card for any spend you have that isn't getting bonus points on another card.