As I outlined in a previous article, the process to transfer points from Starwood Preferred Guest to an airline program is very simple. But a common question is how long does it take? We will answer that question and a few others in this post.

There are several ways to transfer points into an airline program. One of the quickest ways is to transfer American Express Membership Rewards points into your airline of choice with points you’ve earned from cards like the Business Platinum Card from American Express.

This option allows you to transfer points to 16 airlines and is usually instant.

But what if your airline isn’t a transfer partner? That is where Starwood Preferred Guest points are really valuable.

Using Starwood Preferred Guest points, you can transfer to ~30 airlines. Choice is great, and when you have an award booking you are trying to book, time of the essence. So knowing how long points take to transfer between programs can help you understand if your points will make it to your account in time.

How Long To Transfer SPG Points – Step By Step Process

Step 1: Log-In To SPG Account

Select the “redemption options” from the quick links drop down.

Step 2: Select Transfer To Miles

Next, scroll down and select the “transfer to miles” option. DO NOT redeem with partners for merchandise unless you want a really low value for your points. The only option I would consider there is a $50 gift certificate to Avis or Sixt car rental for 3,500 points which would give a value of about $0.014 per point.

Step 3: Select Transfer Now

You can confirm the transfer ratio on this page. Once you are certain you want to transfer points to a specific airline, select “transfer now” option.

Step 4: Select Your Airline

In this step you’ll have the option to select from a previous airline transfer partner or add a new frequent flyer number for the airline you’d like to transfer points into miles.

Step 5: Enter Number Of Starpoints

This is where the value of Starpoints and spending on your Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express can really kick in. If you transfer 20,000 points, you’ll receive a 25% bonus of 5,000 extra miles. So you’ll have 25,000 miles in your airline account for only 20,000 Starpoints.

After you enter the points to transfer, select continue and you’ll have a chance to review the point transfer request before receiving a confirmation.

Step 6: Verify Point Reduction And Mile Transfer

The last step is to verify the points left your Starwood account and then wait for your transfer to appear into your airline account. In a recent transfer, I exchanged 6,000 Starpoints for 6,000 US Airways miles. Normally I wouldn’t do this because you can generally purchase US Airways miles with a 100% bonus, but the current 100% purchase promotion wasn’t yet going on. Plus I had a great redemption option waiting for enough miles to book the tickets. So I went ahead and transferred the miles out of my Starwood account.

The points came out of my account instantly.

Then I waited 24 hours and was able to verify the miles were in my US Airways account.

Bottom Line

Transferring Starpoints to an airline program is generally pretty quick. In the case of US Airways, the points transferred into my US Airways account in less than 24 hours.

I like to keep a healthy balance of Starwood Preferred guest points due to the no black out dates, the ability to book hotels using Cash & Points redemption option as well as the fifth night free award option and the ability to transfer points to airlines quickly. It is easy to rack up Starpoints if you have the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express, plus each of the cards comes with a healthy signup bonus offer to start you off with a nice point balance in the program.

Link: Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express

Link: Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express

Related Posts

• Starwood Nights & Flights Plus Airline Transfer Award Redemption Option
• Starwood’s Cash + Points Option Plus Hotel Award Chart
• How To Transfer American Express Membership Rewards To Travel Programs
• How To Link Travel Programs To American Express Membership Rewards Program
• AMAZING US Airways First Class Availability…If You Are Afraid Of Flying Alone
• American Airlines Transcontinental Flat-Bed First Class For Only ~$940 With US Airways 100% Bonus On Purchased Miles

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