How to Use Points for Car Rentals
Your options
Three paths exist. Book the car through your issuer travel portal and pay with points at a fixed rate; transfer points to a hotel or airline partner that includes car bookings; or pay with a card that lets you erase travel charges (some Capital One products) at a set value. All work, but none unlock the outsized value you get from premium-cabin flight redemptions.
Why the value is usually modest
Rental cars redeem at roughly a cent per point in most programs, the same as cash back, so you rarely beat simply paying cash. And paying with a rewards card earns points and may add rental car coverage, which a points booking can forfeit. Run the cents-per-point math before redeeming.
When it makes sense
Use points for a rental when you want to burn a small balance, when you have no better redemption planned, or when the portal price in points genuinely beats the cash rate. Otherwise pay cash on a card that covers rentals and save the points for flights or hotels. See cash vs points.
Stop guessing at point values. Look up the real award price and live availability for a specific trip before you transfer.
Search award flights on seats.aero →Frequently asked questions
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