Free interactive tool

Points vs Cash Calculator

The points-vs-cash calculator computes the value per point of a specific award booking: the cash fare you avoid, minus the award’s taxes and fees, divided by the points the award consumes — including, optionally, the points you would have earned by paying cash. The result is expressed in cents per point and compared against your own baseline for that currency, giving a use-points, pay-cash, or too-close-to-call verdict for the booking in front of you.

The formula

cpp = (cash price − award taxes & fees)
      ÷ (points required + points forgone by not paying cash)
      × 100

The “points forgone” term is optional but honest: paying cash would have earned miles, so redeeming gives those up too. Leave it at zero for the simple version of the formula.

Run your numbers

Cash price of the ticket

The fare you would actually pay, all-in.

Award taxes and fees

The cash due at award checkout.

Points required for the award

Points you'd earn by paying cash (optional)

Redeeming forgoes these, so they add to the award's real points cost.

Your baseline value for this currency

What you reliably get from these points elsewhere. 1.4¢ is a placeholder example, not a valuation.

Cash saved by using points: $408.80
Real points cost (required + forgone): 25,000 pts
Value per point: 1.64¢

Verdict1.64¢ per point clears your 1.40¢ baseline — points win for this booking.

The pre-filled numbers are a hypothetical example, not a quote. Pull today’s cash fare and award price from the actual checkout screens before deciding.

Worked example (hypothetical numbers)

A flight costs $420 cash, or 25,000 points + $11.20 in taxes (hypothetical numbers, not a quote). cpp = (420 − 11.20) ÷ 25,000 × 100 = 1.64¢ per point. Against a 1.4¢ baseline, points win; against a 1.8¢ baseline, pay cash and spend the points where they do better.