What is a credit card point actually worth?
Last updated: October 2, 2026 Card terms checked: September 2026
A credit card point has three prices: the cash floor, the portal rate, and a transfer value that depends on what you book. At The Points Guy's September 2026 estimates, transfer values are 2.05 cents for Chase, 2.0 cents for Amex, 1.9 cents for Citi, and 1.85 cents for Capital One. This site uses 1.8 cents as its base. If you never transfer, none of those numbers is yours. Your number is the floor or the portal rate.
Values are estimates, not guarantees. Pay every card in full each month.
Why there is no single number
The same formula gives very different answers:
| Illustrative redemption | Cash price | Points plus cash | Cents per point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic flight | $600 | 30,000 plus $5.60 | 1.98 |
| Business-class seat, one way | $4,800 | 70,000 plus $120 | 6.69 |
| Mid-range hotel night | $180 | 30,000 plus $0 | 0.60 |
Cents per point = (cash price minus the cash you still pay) divided by points, times 100.
The floors and portals, bank by bank
| Program | Cash floor | Portal or travel | The Points Guy, September 2026 | 100,000 points: floor to estimate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Ultimate Rewards | 1 cent | 1 cent; Points Boost up to 1.5 cents on hotels and 1.75 cents on select flights (Preferred) | 2.05 cents | $1,000 to $2,050 |
| Amex Membership Rewards | about 0.6 cents | 1 cent on flights through Amex Travel; about 0.7 cents on most other | 2.0 cents | $600 to $2,000 |
| Citi ThankYou (Strata Premier) | 0.75 cents (reported 1 cent with a linked Citi cash back card) | 1 cent through Citi Travel | 1.9 cents | $750 to $1,900 |
| Capital One miles | 0.5 cents | 1 cent through Capital One Travel or covering travel purchases | 1.85 cents | $500 to $1,850 |
Transfer values, and where 1.8 cents comes from
The Points Guy publishes estimated values every month. For September 2026 that is 2.05 cents for Chase, 2.0 for Amex, 1.9 for Citi, 1.85 for Capital One, and 1.75 for Wells Fargo.
Those numbers assume you transfer points to partners and book the kind of awards points-focused travelers book. They are averages, not a price anyone guarantees. Some redemptions come in well above them, like a business-class seat. Some come in below, like a hotel night.
This site uses 1.8 cents as its base. It is a little under The Points Guy's figures for the two biggest programs, and it is one round number you can apply to any of them. Every table on this site shows the higher figure next to it, so you can see how much an answer depends on the value you pick. If you never transfer, neither number is yours.
Your number, and the 2% test
What a point is worth depends on how many you earn per dollar. Effective return by earning rate and point value:
| Earning rate | At 0.5 cents | At 0.6 cents | At 1 cent | At 1.8 cents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1x | 0.5% | 0.6% | 1.0% | 1.8% |
| 2x | 1.0% | 1.2% | 2.0% | 3.6% |
| 3x | 1.5% | 1.8% | 3.0% | 5.4% |
| 4x | 2.0% | 2.4% | 4.0% | 7.2% |
A flat 2% cash back card is the benchmark. Cents per point needed to beat it:
| Points per dollar | Cents per point needed to beat 2% cash back |
|---|---|
| 1x | More than 2.0 cents |
| 2x | More than 1.0 cent |
| 3x | More than 0.67 cents |
| 4x | More than 0.5 cents |
A 4x card beats a 2% card even at the lowest cash floor. A 1x card almost never does.
Points lose value, so do not hoard
The bank sets the exchange rates, and it can change them. Two examples from this year. On October 1, 2026, Sapphire Preferred points began transferring to World of Hyatt at 4:3 instead of 1:1, so 1,000 Chase points now become 750 Hyatt points. The Sapphire Reserve kept 1:1. And Citi cut cash redemptions on the Strata Premier from 1 cent to three-quarters of a cent for many cardholders.
Neither change touched a points balance. They changed what the balance buys. A big pile of points with no plan is a risk, not savings. Earn them with a use in mind, redeem them when a good use comes up, and keep a simple list of what you hold. See how to track bonuses, credits, and fees.
Where to go next
For how transfers work, see credit card transfer partners. For the two biggest bank programs side by side, see Chase Ultimate Rewards vs Amex Membership Rewards. The free rewards calculator shows your yearly rewards at cash value and at travel value.