13 Top Strategies to Earn Alaska Mileage Plan Miles (Update 2025)
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Alaska Airlines’ Mileage Plan is an attractive loyalty program for frequent fliers, offering a range of ways to earn miles that can take you further. While the traditional method of amassing Mileage Plan miles is by flying on an Alaska Airlines or a partner’s revenue ticket, there are several alternative strategies to increase your Mileage Plan balance. In this article, we will take a closer look at all the ways to earn Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles.
How to Become a Member of the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Program
Enrolling in the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Program is straightforward:
- Visit the Alaska Airlines website: Navigate to the “Mileage Plan” section.
- Register: Fill out the form with the required details, such as name, address, and email.
- Confirmation: Once registered, you will receive a unique Alaska Mileage Plan number. Make sure to keep this number handy, as it will be your primary identifier for transactions.
If you ever find yourself pondering, “How do i find my Alaska Mileage Plan number,” simply log into your account on the Alaska Airlines website. In the Mileage activity tab, this number is displayed in Mileage Plan number.
When flights are credited to Mileage Plan, each traveler must credit miles to their individual accounts. It’s not possible for a family to pool miles from their flights into one member’s Mileage Plan account. Every individual should have their own Mileage Plan account and link their specific Mileage Plan number to their reservation.
To enroll a child in the program, please contact 800-ALASKAAIR (800-252-7522). The representative will assist in generating the Mileage Plan numbers for young members. After obtaining these numbers, you can establish online access for them on AlaskaAir.com.
How To Earn Alaska Airlines Miles
1. Co-branded Alaska Airlines Credit Cards Review
Alaska Airlines Visa Signature consumer credit card
Get 60,000 bonus miles plus Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23) with this offer.
To qualify, make $3,000 or more in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account.
- Earn 3 miles per dollar spent on eligible Alaska Airlines transactions. Plus, expand your mileage earning options through partnerships with oneworld® airlines and Alaska’s global partners.
- Earn 2 miles for every dollar spent on eligible purchases of gas, electric vehicle charging, cable TV, streaming, and local transportation, including ride-sharing.
- Earn 1 mile per dollar for all other transactions. Plus, your miles remain valid as long as your account is active.
Alaska Airlines Visa Business credit card
Receive a bonus of 50,000 miles, a $100 credit on your statement, and an Alaska’s Renowned Companion Fare (with a $99 ticket plus additional charges and taxes starting from $23) once you spend $3,000 or more within the initial 90 days after account creation.
- Earn 3 miles per dollar on eligible Alaska Airlines transactions.
- Earn 2 miles per dollar on eligible gas, shipping, and local travel (including carpools).
- Earn 1 mile per dollar on other spending.
2. Earn miles by Flying Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines
When you fly on Alaska Airlines or Hawaiian Airlines, you’ll generally earn 1 mile per mile flown in the Main Cabin (excluding Basic Economy), with bonuses layered depending on fare class. Premium and First Class fares earn between 1.25× to 2× miles, and elite members continue receiving generous bonuses, up to 150% for MVP Gold 100K. Alaska also maintains a minimum mileage guarantee for short flights, ensuring you earn at least 500 miles on flights under 500 miles.
Flights Booked on alaskaair.com
Flights Booked on hawaiianairlines.com
3. Earn Miles by Partner Airlines
You have the opportunity to accumulate miles with every partner airline. Some of these partners offer extra perks to Mileage Plan members, such as redeeming miles and availing elite status benefits. The table below provides a comprehensive breakdown of these details.
| Partner | Earn miles | Redeem miles | Elite benefits |
|---|---|---|---|
| *Type 1 (oneworld® Alliance) | X | X | X |
| **Type 2 | X | X | |
| ***Type 3 | X |
*Tipe 1 – Alaska Mileage Plan partners in the oneworld Alliance
- American Airlines
- Finnair
- Qantas
- SriLankan Airlines
- British Airways
- Iberia
- Qatar Airways
- Cathay Pacific
- Japan Airlines
- Royal Air Maroc
- Fiji Airways
- Malaysia Airlines
- Royal Jordanian
With these partners, you can earn and redeem miles, as well as enjoy the elite status of the Mileage Plan program, which corresponds to Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald service levels on all oneworld airlines.
*** Type 2 – Other Alaska Mileage Plan partners who earn and redeem miles traveling to 1,000+ destinations
- Aer Lingus
- Ravn Alaska
- Air Tahiti Nui
- Icelandair
- Singapore Airlines
- Condor
- Korean Air
- STARLUX Airlines
- EL AL Israel Airlines
***Type 3 – Other partners who earn miles
On the other hand, flying on partner airlines has become more straightforward and generous for 2025. When you book your trip (even on Oneworld carriers such as American, British Airways, Qatar, and Japan Airlines) directly through Alaska’s website, you now earn a flat rate of 100% of flown miles in economy, with rich premiums of up to 3.5× miles in First Class. This simplifies the previous, often confusing, partner earnings table into a clear, distance-based system—especially beneficial for premium cabin travelers.
Even if you book through the partner airline’s website, you won’t be shut out—but expect reduced credit: depending on fare class and airline, you’ll earn between 0.25× to 1.5× miles.
4. Earn Miles for Staying at Partner Hotels
By choosing from Alaska’s network of hotel partners, you can earn miles on qualifying stays or even transfer hotel loyalty points into your Mileage Plan account.
| Hotel Partners | Earning Rate |
|---|---|
| Best Western | 250 miles per stay. |
| Choice Hotels | 250 miles per stay. |
| Coast Hotels | 500 miles per stay. |
| IHG | • 2 miles per $1 USD at InterContinental Hotels & Resorts and Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants in the U.S. and 500 miles per stay outside the U.S. • 2 miles per $1 USD at all other IHG Hotels & Resorts properties globally with the exception of: • 1 mile per $1 USD at Candlewood Suites and Staybridge Suites |
| Marriott Bonvoy | Earn 1-2 miles per dollar spent (depending on the hotel brand) |
| Rocketmiles | 500 to 10,000 miles per night on every reservation booked through Rocketmiles. |
| Westmark Hotels | 2 miles per $1 spent on stays. |
5. Car Rental Partners & Miles Earnings
Renting a car can be a great way to boost your Alaska Mileage Plan balance. Alaska Airlines partners with several major car rental companies, allowing program members to earn valuable miles on eligible rentals.
The table below summarizes the car rental partners and how many Alaska Mileage Plan miles you can earn.
| Rental Company | Earning Rate |
|---|---|
| Avis / Budget | • Earn 1,250 miles on qualifying rentals—no matter how many days. • Plus, enjoy up to 35% off base rates as a Mileage Plan member |
| Hertz | • 50 miles/day for 1–4 day rentals • 500 miles flat for rentals 5+ days |
| Dollar | Typically 150 miles/day (for 3+ days) |
| Thrifty | • 50 miles/day for 1–2 day rentals • 150 miles/day (for 3+ days) |
| National | 50 miles/day for qualifying rentals |
6. Travel with Lyft
Link your Lyft account to Mileage Plan and earn 1 mile for every $1 spent on rides in the US and Canada.
7. Purchasing Alaska Miles
Alaska offers Mileage Plan miles for sale at a foundational rate of 2.75 cents each, exclusive of taxes and fees. With the compulsory tax recovery fee, the cost rises to roughly 2.96 cents per mile. While this may seem a bit steep, it can be a worthwhile option if you’re short on miles and lack hotel points to convert into Alaska miles.
Since Alaska conducts its miles sales via Points.com, such transactions won’t be classified as travel expenses. If you’re considering a buy miles deal, use your most beneficial general spending card.
It’s common for Alaska to hold promotions related to mile purchases. Although we’ve seen bonuses peak at 60% for Alaska miles purchases (with such a bonus, the effective rate for purchasing Mileage Plan miles drops to 1.85 cents each), a 50% bonus is more typical. It’s advisable to hold off on buying miles until there’s a promotional bonus on offer.
8. Shopping Platforms
The Alaska Mileage Plan Shopping platform allows you to accumulate Alaska miles from over 1,100 online stores. The number of bonus miles can change daily. For optimal use, mark your preferred stores in your favorites to receive notifications about enhanced bonuses.
There are often promotional offers on the Mileage Plan Shopping platform that provide additional points when you hit certain spending limits. For instance, a past deal gave an extra 1,500 Alaska miles when spending a minimum of $550 via the shopping platform.
To ensure you never miss an opportunity to earn through the Alaska shopping platform, consider installing the Mileage Plan Shopping browser extension for either Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge. This tool not only reminds you to activate your miles accumulation when shopping at a participating store but also automatically uses any relevant coupon codes and compares prices for the same product across different mileage-acquisition platforms.
9. Dining Program
You have the opportunity to accumulate miles with Alaska’s Mileage Plan Dining. On average, dining through this program lets you collect three Alaska miles for every dollar you spend. Linking a partnered Alaska card to your account grants you an extra mile for every dollar spent at enrolled restaurants. By dining at these establishments 11 times in a year, you’ll achieve VIP status, increasing your earning rate to five Alaska miles for each dollar, valid until the year’s end.
From time to time, Mileage Plan Dining introduces special sign-up bonuses for newcomers. At the moment, there’s an offer to gain 500 bonus miles if you register and eat at an affiliated restaurant within the first month, given you spend at least $30.
It’s worth noting that the success of dining programs can vary based on location. Some places might not have any associated restaurants. But, in contrast, most major cities or populated areas tend to have a substantial list of participating dining venues.
10. Transfer of miles between accounts
Alaska Airlines offers the option to shift miles among its members. There’s a charge of $10 for every 1,000 miles transferred. Given this fee, directly buying miles is often a more cost-effective approach than transferring them.
11. Convert to Alaska Miles
Although Alaska does not partner with typical bank rewards programs such as Chase Ultimate Rewards or American Express Membership Rewards, there is a silver lining. You can transfer points to the Alaska Mileage Plan from at least three Alaska Airlines hotel partners (Marriott Bonvoy, IHG One Rewards, Choice Privileges). In addition, a recently launched partnership with the popular Bilt Rewards banking program expands your options for earning miles.
How Marriott Bonvoy points are transferred to Alaska Airlines miles
Conversion Rate: Marriott Bonvoy points transfer to Alaska Airlines miles at a 3:1 ratio. Transferring in multiples of 60,000 Bonvoy points is ideal, as this garners a bonus of 5,000 miles, giving you a total of 25,000 Alaska miles.
You can find information on Marriott Bonvoy co-branded credit cards in our article The Marriott Bonvoy Program, All You Need to Know.
Bilt Rewards to to Alaska miles
In 2025, Bilt Rewards transfers were added. Bilt Rewards are now transferable at a 1:1 ratio to the Alaska Mileage Plan—a new and often more rewarding option.
IHG One Rewards to Alaska miles
Redeem 10,000 IHG One Rewards points for 2,000 miles. Here are the contact numbers: in the U.S. and Canada: 888-211-9874, in Mexico: 001 800-272-9273.
Miles will be deposited in up to 6 weeks.
Choice Privileges Rewards
Transfer 5,000 Choice Privileges points for 1,000 Alaska Airline miles (to make a transfer, please contact customer support).
12. Milestone Threshold Bonuses (On the Way to Status)
As you earn Elite-Qualifying Miles (EQMs), you unlock Milestone Perks starting at just 10,000 EQMs—even before reaching elite status. Some of these milestone options include:
- 750 to 15,000 bonus redeemable miles
- Upgrade certificates, Wi‑Fi passes, and lounge access
- The higher the EQM tier (e.g., 30K, 55K, 85K, 100K), the larger the bonus miles you can choose
You choose from a list of rewards each time you reach certain EQM thresholds.
13. Elite Status Bonus on Flight Earnings
Once you earn elite status (MVP and above), you receive a bonus multiplier on redeemable miles for every Alaska or partner flight:
| MVP | MVP Gold | MVP Gold 75K | MVP Gold 100K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earning Bonus Miles | 50% | 100% | 125% | 150% |
So if you fly 1,000 miles on Alaska Airlines:
- An MVP earns 1,500 miles
- MVP Gold earns 2,000 miles
- MVP Gold 100K earns 2,500 miles
These bonuses apply only to redeemable miles, not EQMs.
Learn more about the benefits of elite status in the article Alaska Airlines Elite Status Challenge.
Do Alaska Miles Expire?
Alaska miles do not have an expiration date, they are always active, which is beneficial for both regular travelers and those who travel from time to time.
However, while Alaska Airlines miles themselves don’t expire, your account may be limited. If you have not made any activity for more than two years, your account may be suspended.
Conclusion
The Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan offers an impressive blend of rewards and opportunities for its loyal customers. From the straightforward process of membership registration to the myriad of ways to earn miles – be it through credit cards, transfer partners, or flying – there’s no shortage of strategies to maximize your mile balance. Furthermore, Alaska’s elite status program is notably one of the most generous and attainable, providing unmatched benefits for frequent fliers.
The merger with Hawaiian Airlines, partnerships with a wide range of airlines, and the flexibility of the Mileage Plan further enhance its appeal. With integrated shopping platforms and regular promotions, the program ensures that even infrequent flyers have opportunities to earn and use miles.
How to cancel an Alaska Airlines credit card?
The Alaska Airlines card is issued by Bank of America, so you'll need to contact your bank's customer service. There are 3 ways to do this:
- Call Bank of America Credit Card Customer Service at (800) 732-9194 to speak to a customer service agent. And let the representative know that you intend to cancel your Alaska Airlines credit card.
- Visit your local financial center to speak with a personal banker
- Send your request in writing to:
Bank of America
P.O. Box 982234
El Paso, TX 79998-2234
What is elite status on Alaska Airlines?
Elite status on Alaska Airlines is part of their Mileage Plan loyalty program, designed to reward frequent flyers with various benefits and privileges. The program consists of several tiers, each offering progressively more perks and rewards. See all about Alaska Airlines status levels here
