How to Combine Miles from Different Programs to Book a Trip

One of the biggest challenges in the world of airline rewards is fragmentation. Travelers often earn miles across multiple loyalty programs — sometimes without realizing it — and end up with scattered balances that seem too small to redeem. Fortunately, with the right approach, it is possible to combine miles from different programs to book a trip — or at least use them more effectively in tandem.

This guide will teach you how to maximize your miles across various airlines, banks, and loyalty systems to unlock full redemptions, avoid leaving points idle, and get closer to your next flight.

Why Miles Are Scattered Across Programs

Most travelers end up with miles in multiple programs because:

• Flights are booked with different airlines
• Credit card points are transferred to various partners
• Travel packages or promotions reward miles in specific programs
• Hotel, car rental, and dining partners each use different loyalty integrations

As a result, you may have:

• 8,000 miles with Smiles
• 15,000 with LATAM Pass
• 12,000 with United MileagePlus
• 5,000 with Avianca LifeMiles

Individually, these balances may seem useless — but together, they could be enough for a full domestic or international flight if managed correctly.

Can You Literally Combine Miles Across Programs?

In most cases, no — you cannot directly transfer miles between different airline programs. For example, you can’t move miles from LATAM Pass to Smiles or from Delta SkyMiles to United MileagePlus.

However, there are strategies to use different programs together, and in some cases, pool points before converting to miles, allowing you to effectively combine balances.

Let’s explore how to do it.

Strategy 1: Use Points from Flexible Programs to Top Off Balances

One of the smartest ways to consolidate is by earning flexible points first, then transferring them to the airline program where you have a partial balance.

Examples of Flexible Programs

• Amex Membership Rewards
• Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Citi ThankYou Points
• Capital One Miles
• Livelo, Esfera, Iupp (Brazil)

How It Works

Let’s say you have:

• 22,000 miles with TAP Miles&Go (not enough for a Europe flight)
• 18,000 Livelo points

If Livelo is running a 100% transfer bonus to TAP, your 18,000 points = 36,000 miles. Add that to your existing 22,000, and now you have 58,000 — enough to book.

This indirect method allows you to “top off” a program and combine balances efficiently.

Strategy 2: Book One-Way Flights Separately

If you have miles in two different programs that don’t transfer to each other, consider booking two separate one-way flights instead of a round-trip.

Example

• 12,000 miles with United
• 15,000 miles with American Airlines

Book the outbound with one program and the return with the other. You still complete a round-trip, just using two different award tickets.

This strategy is especially useful for domestic and short-haul international travel.

Strategy 3: Use Airline Alliances to Access Shared Award Inventory

Many airlines are part of alliances, which means you can use miles from one program to book flights operated by a partner airline.

Major Alliances

• Star Alliance (United, Lufthansa, TAP, Avianca, etc.)
• Oneworld (American Airlines, British Airways, LATAM*)
• SkyTeam (Delta, Air France, KLM, Aeroméxico)

How to Use This

Let’s say you have:

• 25,000 miles with United
• 15,000 miles with Avianca

You can book one leg of the journey through United using its Star Alliance partners (e.g., Lufthansa), and the other leg through Avianca, which also accesses the same alliance.

You’re not transferring miles — but you’re combining access to the same flight networks.

Strategy 4: Use Bank Travel Portals to Pay Part in Points, Part in Cash

Some bank programs let you use partial redemptions for flights.

Example

• Chase Travel Portal: Use 12,000 points = $150
• Total flight cost: $320
• Pay the remaining $170 with a credit card

You don’t need to redeem a full ticket with miles — this option lets you use whatever balance you have, then pay the rest.

Useful when miles in one program aren’t enough for a full redemption.

Strategy 5: Pool Miles Within the Same Program

Some programs allow family pooling or combining balances within the same loyalty account.

Examples

• British Airways Avios: Create a Household Account
• Aeroplan (Air Canada): Family sharing allowed
• JetBlue TrueBlue: Points pooling
• Smiles: Clube Smiles members can gift miles
• LATAM Pass: Occasionally runs promotions allowing point transfers

If your spouse, child, or friend also has miles in the same program, you can consolidate those into one redemption.

This is ideal for group trips or when someone else’s balance is too small to redeem alone.

Strategy 6: Combine Award Redemptions with Companion Tickets or Cash Upgrades

Let’s say you have just enough miles for one round-trip, but you’re traveling with a companion.

You can:

• Use miles to book your own ticket
• Use a companion certificate (from a credit card or promotion)
• Pay for the second ticket with cash
• Use miles to upgrade a paid economy ticket to business class

This way, you stretch your miles and bring someone with you, or fly more comfortably, even with a limited balance.

Strategy 7: Focus on Programs with Shared Currency (Avios Example)

Some loyalty programs share the same rewards currency, allowing you to freely move miles between them.

Example: Avios

• British Airways, Aer Lingus, Qatar Airways, and Iberia all use Avios
• You can move Avios between accounts for free

If you have:

• 7,000 Avios in British Airways
• 18,000 in Iberia
• 10,000 in Qatar Airways

You can combine them into one program and book a full award.

This is one of the most flexible structures in loyalty today.

Practical Case: Booking an International Trip with Multiple Accounts

Let’s say you want to fly from São Paulo to Lisbon.

• You have 30,000 Smiles miles
• 20,000 Livelo points
• 15,000 TAP miles
• 10,000 Amex Membership Rewards

Here’s how you could combine those resources:

1. Transfer Livelo to Smiles during a 100% bonus → 20,000 becomes 40,000
2. Now you have 70,000 Smiles — enough to book one-way in business
3. Use TAP miles + Amex points (transferred to TAP) to book the return
4. You just booked round-trip business using 4 different accounts

This strategy requires planning but avoids wasted balances.

Common Mistakes When Trying to Combine Miles

• Transferring without checking availability
  Never move points unless you’re sure the flight is available — most transfers are irreversible
• Ignoring expiration dates
  Points in small accounts might expire if ignored too long
• Overpaying in miles
  Don’t use miles for poor-value redemptions just to “empty” an account — combine creatively instead
• Booking one-way flights too far apart
  Make sure both halves of your trip are confirmed before booking either

Tools That Help You Track and Combine Miles

To keep your multi-program strategy efficient, use:

• AwardWallet: Track balances and expirations
• Point.me or Seats.aero: Find award availability across programs
• Excel or Google Sheets: Manually track transfer rates, bonus promotions, and balances

Being organized helps you act quickly when a good opportunity appears.

Final Thoughts: Strategy Over Quantity

You don’t need a huge balance in one loyalty program to take amazing trips.
With a little creativity and flexibility, you can combine multiple smaller balances to unlock full redemptions, upgrade your flight, or at least save money on one leg of your journey.

Learning how to combine miles from different programs to book a trip is one of the most powerful skills in the loyalty world — and it puts you ahead of 90% of casual travelers.

Use every point with intention, and no balance will ever go to waste.