The 2026 Guide to Maximizing Chase Ultimate Rewards

Chase Ultimate Rewards are one of the most versatile travel currencies. With 11 airline and 3 hotel transfer partners, the potential for outsized value is massive — if you know where to look.

The Transfer Partners

Chase transfers to airlines at a 1:1 ratio (1,000 UR = 1,000 miles) with these key partners:

• United MileagePlus — Best for domestic flights and Star Alliance awards
• Hyatt — Consistently 2+ cents per point for hotel stays
• British Airways Avios — Short-haul sweet spots under 10,000 miles
• Virgin Atlantic — ANA first class for 120K points round-trip to Japan
• Air France/KLM Flying Blue — Monthly promo awards at 50% off
• Singapore KrisFlyer — Suites class availability on SQ

Top Sweet Spots in 2026

Virgin Atlantic → ANA First Class (Japan): Transfer 60,000 UR to Virgin Atlantic, book ANA first class one-way to Tokyo. The same ticket costs $15,000+ in cash. That's 25 cents per point.

British Airways → Short-Haul Flights: Flights under 1,150 miles cost just 7,500 Avios one-way in economy. NYC to Miami, LA to San Francisco, Chicago to Nashville — all under 8K points.

Air France Promo Awards: Flying Blue runs monthly promotions with 25-50% off award prices. Paris for 15,000 miles one-way? Sign up for their alerts.

When to Transfer

Golden rule: never transfer speculatively. Only transfer when you've confirmed award availability on the airline's website first. Transfers are instant for most Chase partners (United, Hyatt, BA) but can take 24-48 hours for others.

Use Pointify's Points Optimizer to compare transfer values across all your programs before committing.