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CPP Calculator

Calculate the exact cents-per-point value for any award redemption. Enter points cost and cash price to get a letter grade and verdict.

Loyalty Program
Cabin Class

Enter your award details

Fill in the program, points cost, and cash price to see your exact CPP value and grade.

How it works

  1. Start from the cash fareThe price you would genuinely have paid for the same seat, in the same cabin, on the same day.
  2. Take off what you still payTaxes and carrier charges come out of your pocket on an award, so they are not value the points bought.
  3. Divide by the points spentWhat is left, over the points it cost, is the return on each one. The scale beside this grades it.

The number assumes the seat was available on your dates and that you already held the points. Buying points to reach a redemption, or taking a worse routing to chase a higher figure, can undo the gain it shows.

Example Redemptions, CPP Reference

Illustrative redemptions on the programmes Milescanner searches. Click any row to pre-load values.

Route / RedemptionProgramCabinPointsCash Equiv.FeesCPPGrade
JetBlue Mint JFK→LAXTrueBlueBusiness Class60,000$2,400−$603.90¢A
JetBlue Economy JFK→LAXTrueBlueEconomy14,000$210−$61.46¢C
Alaska Economy SEA→HNLAtmos RewardsEconomy12,500$320−$62.51¢A
Alaska First SEA→JFKAtmos RewardsFirst Class / Suite50,000$1,150−$62.29¢A
SAS Business CPH→ORDEuroBonusBusiness Class70,000$2,900−$1903.87¢A
SAS Economy ARN→LHREuroBonusEconomy20,000$260−$451.07¢C
Etihad Business AUH→LHREtihad GuestBusiness Class88,000$3,400−$2203.61¢A
Etihad Economy AUH→DELEtihad GuestEconomy32,000$520−$1301.22¢C
Ethiopian Business ADD→LHRShebaMilesBusiness Class95,000$2,600−$1752.55¢A
Aeromexico Economy MEX→JFKAeromexico RewardsEconomy26,000$340−$701.04¢C
Azul Economy GRU→FLLTudoAzulEconomy18,000$190−$300.89¢D
FAQ

What a point
is really worth

It is the cash value you got back for each point you spent. At 2.0¢ a point, a 60,000-point seat returned $1,200 of travel you would otherwise have paid for. It is a way of comparing two very different prices, one in points and one in money, on the same scale.

Because you still pay them. An award is rarely free: carrier charges and government taxes come out of your pocket on top of the points. Only the difference between the cash fare and what you actually hand over is what the points bought, so that is the figure the sum uses.

On the scale this tool uses, 2.0¢ and above is exceptional and 1.5¢ is a strong redemption. Between 1.0¢ and 1.5¢ is reasonable. Below 0.7¢ you are usually better off paying cash and keeping the points for something else.

The one you would genuinely have booked. Pricing an economy award against a fully flexible business fare inflates the result into a number you were never going to pay. Use the fare you would have bought on the day, in the cabin you are actually flying.

Some still publish a fixed award chart, so a long expensive route costs the same as a short cheap one, which is where the outsized redemptions come from. Others price awards against the cash fare, which keeps cents per point close to flat no matter what you book.

Yes. A strong figure assumes the seat exists on your dates, that the surcharges are ones you accept, and that you had the points already. Buying points to reach a redemption, or taking a worse routing to chase the number, can undo the gain the calculation shows.