Updated: October 7, 2026 | By Joseph Hellman-Benjamin
Selling airline miles or credit card points for cash is possible, and people do it every day. It is also against the rules of most loyalty programs, it can get your account closed and your balance taken, and not every buyer is honest. This guide lays out all of that plainly, then explains how a sale works and how to judge any broker, including The Points King.
We buy and sell miles and points for a living, so we have an obvious interest in you doing business with us. We have written this page as if we were advising someone who has not decided yet, because that is the reader who should be careful.
The short version
- Program terms: Most airline and credit card loyalty programs prohibit selling miles or points for cash, or restrict transfers to third parties. Breaking those terms is the main risk, and it sits with the account holder.
- Account risk: A program can freeze an account, cancel miles, or close the account. Reinstatement is not something anyone can promise.
- Legality: Whether a sale creates legal exposure beyond a terms violation depends on the program, the facts, and the jurisdiction. This page is not legal advice.
- Counterparty risk: Mileage buying attracts scammers. Who sends first, and who pays when, matters a great deal.
- No guarantees: We cannot guarantee that a program will not act on a transfer, and no honest broker can.
Why selling miles can break the rules
Miles and points are issued under each program’s terms and conditions. In most programs the currency is described as the program’s property, or as a benefit that may not be sold, bartered, or transferred for money outside the program’s own channels. Programs such as Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, American Airlines AAdvantage, Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, and Capital One miles each publish their own terms on transfers and sales, the wording differs from one program to the next, and programs change their terms from time to time. Read the current terms for the program you hold before you sell anything. Airline miles and credit card points are also treated differently in many cases, which is why they deserve separate treatment.
What can go wrong for the seller
1. The program acts on your account
A program that detects a prohibited transfer can remove the miles, suspend the account, or close it. If you hold a large balance or elite status, that loss is real. We cannot see inside any program’s enforcement process, so we do not claim to know how often it happens or how it is decided.
2. The buyer does not pay, or pays late
A seller who transfers miles before payment is confirmed is relying on the buyer to pay. Transfers generally cannot be reversed by the seller once they land in another account. This is where most of the outright scams happen, and it applies to us as well; see how our own process works below.
3. You hand over more than you should
Some buyers ask for account logins instead of using the program’s own transfer tools. Sharing credentials is a separate risk and usually a separate terms violation. Be cautious of anyone who asks for it.
How a sale works with The Points King
- You request a quote and we confirm it with you.
- You transfer the miles or points. In our process, the customer transfers first.
- We confirm the miles are there.
- We pay you by PayPal.
Most customers are paid within 15 minutes, provided the customer completes the transfer promptly. If there is a delay on the transfer side, payment follows once the transfer is done. Timing can vary, and we do not promise a specific outcome on any individual transaction. We also run basic checks on the people we buy from.
Because you transfer first, you are relying on us to pay once the transfer lands. That is the reason to check who we are before you start, using the questions in the next section. Separately, a program’s action on your own account is a different risk from whether we pay you, and we cannot promise how any program will respond to a transfer.
How to judge any mileage broker, including us
You should be able to answer a short list of questions before sending anything to anyone. Who runs the business, and can you find them? Where is it based, and does that match what the website and registrations say? Does the broker tell you about the program-terms risk, or does it wave it away? Is the payment order clear in writing before you start? Who sends first? Are there independent reviews, and do they look like real customers?
We also tell you where we fall short of an ideal. We are not a bank, we do not offer protection against a program closing your account, and we cannot make the legal and terms risk disappear. Because customers transfer first, a new customer has to extend us some trust, and independent reviews are the best way to check whether that trust is earned.
How we make money, and what we do not do
We make money on the difference between what we pay for miles and points and what we sell them for. We do not use affiliate links or referral links on this site. If that ever changes, we will update our How We Make Money and Affiliate Disclosure pages first. Our standards for writing and corrections are on the Editorial Policy page.
Frequently asked questions
Is it legal to sell miles?
Selling is almost always a breach of the program’s terms. Whether it is also unlawful depends on the program, the facts, and where you live. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice; speak with a lawyer if the amount is significant to you.
Can I lose my miles or my account?
Yes. Programs can remove miles and close accounts for terms violations, and nobody can promise you a different outcome.
Who sends first, you or me?
You do. The customer transfers the miles or points, we confirm they are there, and then we pay.
How fast will I be paid?
Most customers are paid within 15 minutes, as long as the customer completes the transfer promptly. Delays on the transfer side delay payment.
How will I be paid?
By PayPal.
Do you get paid when you send me to another company?
No. We do not use affiliate or referral links.
Read the full research paper
We published the program rules, the risks and a broker checklist as a citable white paper, with the exact clauses from seven loyalty programs and the dates we checked them: Selling Airline Miles and Loyalty Points in the United States (Joseph Hellman-Benjamin, Zenodo, version 1.0, October 2026, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.23197958).
About the author
Joseph Hellman-Benjamin, Founder and CEO, based in Miami, Florida. Joseph writes or personally reviews every guide, program update, and valuation published on this site before it goes live. He draws on years of hands-on experience buying and selling miles and points across more than 25 airline and hotel loyalty programs, plus a background in marketing and brand communication.
This page is general information, not legal or financial advice. Program terms and our own processes can change; the date at the top shows when this page was last updated.
Update log
- October 7, 2026: Payment method updated to PayPal only.
- October 7, 2026: Added a link to the white paper on Zenodo.
- October 3, 2026: First published.