✈️ Frequent Flyer Miles

Frequent Flyer Miles Expiration
Don't Lose What You Already Earned

Most airline programs quietly expire your miles after 18 to 36 months of inactivity. Set a reminder for the date your balance is at risk, and get an email in time to do something about it.

Create a Reminder

Done in seconds. No sign-up required.

Expired miles are real money, quietly disappearing

A 50,000-mile balance is closer to a savings account than a points score.

1.0–1.7¢

average value of one U.S. airline mile, depending on the program

The Points Guy and NerdWallet 2024 valuations

$500–$850

typical flight value sitting inside a 50,000-mile account balance

based on the same cents-per-mile valuations

$30+

reinstatement fees once miles have already expired, scaling up by amount

American Airlines, British Airways, and others

Why frequent flyer miles slip through the cracks

The expiration date is far away, the consequence is invisible, and the airline does not ring an alarm bell on the day it happens. Your miles do not bounce a payment or send a late notice. They simply zero out the next time you log in.

The other problem is that the clock resets every time you take a flight or run a card purchase, so most active travelers never see it tick. Then something changes. You switch cards, you stop traveling for work, the family does a road trip year, and the inactivity window starts running without you noticing. By the time you remember the account exists, the balance is already gone.

Airlines also tend to bury expiration warnings inside marketing emails. If you have learned to ignore those, the warning lands in the same blind spot the rest of the promotional mail does.

Which programs expire miles, in one line each

Some programs run an inactivity clock. Others stopped expiring miles entirely. Knowing which one you are dealing with is the difference between needing a reminder and not needing one.

  • American Airlines AAdvantage: 24 months of inactivity
  • British Airways Avios: 36 months of inactivity
  • Lufthansa Miles & More: 36 months from earning
  • Air France/KLM Flying Blue: 24 months of inactivity
  • Delta, United, Southwest, JetBlue, Alaska, Hawaiian: no expiration

For the full chart with international carriers and credit card programs, see airline miles expiration policies by airline.

Traveler at the airport

How a miles expiration reminder works

Find your expiration date inside your airline account, then set a reminder for 60 to 90 days before that date. The lead time matters more than people think: most ways to extend miles take a few days to actually post to the account.

1

Find your date

Log into your airline account and check the activity or expiration line. Programs without expiration will say so directly.

2

Set the reminder 60-90 days early

That window is enough time to book an award flight, run a card purchase, or transfer points from a flexible program.

3

Follow-ups until you've acted

If you don't mark it done, BoldRemind sends a few follow-up emails so the warning doesn't just disappear into your inbox.

What slips when an expiration reminder doesn't fire

Three things tend to go wrong, and all three are avoidable.

💸

A balance you'd valued in dollars

100,000 expired miles is roughly $1,000-$1,700 in flight value walking out the door. The reminder costs nothing.

See what's actually at stake →
🔁

A 30-second action you forgot to take

A single small card purchase or shopping portal click would have reset the clock. The reminder is the only piece you were missing.

Ways to keep miles alive →
🔍

A date you never looked up

Most people have never checked when their miles expire. It takes 60 seconds and lives in two clicks inside the airline account.

How to find your expiration date →

Frequent flyer miles guides

Every angle covered, one page each.

📋
Airline miles expiration policies, by airline
Every major U.S. and international program in one chart, including credit card miles
→ 🛡️
How to keep frequent flyer miles from expiring
Seven ways to reset the inactivity clock without paying for a reinstatement
→ 🔍
How to check when your miles expire
Step-by-step for AA, Delta, United, Southwest, Alaska, Avios, and Miles & More
→ 💰
The cost of letting miles expire
What 50,000 forgotten miles are actually worth, plus reinstatement fees and lost flights
→

Common questions about miles expiration reminders

Do frequent flyer miles really expire?

Most do. American Airlines AAdvantage, British Airways Avios, Lufthansa Miles & More, and many others expire miles after a stretch of inactivity, usually 18 to 36 months. A handful of programs no longer expire miles at all, including Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, Southwest Rapid Rewards, JetBlue TrueBlue, Alaska Mileage Plan, and Hawaiian HawaiianMiles. The rules differ by program, so check yours before you assume your balance is safe.

How far in advance should I be reminded that my miles are expiring?

Set a reminder for about 60 to 90 days before the expiration date. That gives you time to book an award flight, run a co-branded card purchase, or move points from a transferable program like Chase or Amex. If you wait until the week before, your only realistic option is a small shopping portal purchase, and even that takes a few days to post.

What counts as activity to keep my miles from expiring?

Most programs accept earning or redeeming any amount of miles as qualifying activity. That includes flying, using a co-branded credit card, buying through the airline shopping portal, dining program purchases, and transfers from hotel or credit card programs. A single small purchase usually resets the inactivity clock for another 18 to 24 months, depending on the airline.

Can I get expired miles back?

Sometimes, for a fee. American Airlines, British Airways, and several others let you reinstate expired miles within a window after expiration, typically 12 to 24 months. Reinstatement fees scale with how many miles you want back and run from about $30 to several hundred dollars. The reminder is cheaper.

Why does BoldRemind work better than the airline's own expiration alert?

Airlines do send expiration warnings, but they often arrive in the same promotional inbox folder you ignore, and they fire close to the actual deadline. BoldRemind is a calendar reminder you control: you pick the date, you pick how far in advance you want to know, and the email keeps following up if you don't mark it done. It does not depend on a marketing email actually getting opened.

How much are frequent flyer miles actually worth?

Independent valuations from The Points Guy and NerdWallet put most U.S. airline miles between 1.0 and 1.7 cents each. That makes 50,000 miles worth roughly $500 to $850 in flight value, and 100,000 miles worth $1,000 to $1,700. Whatever number is sitting in your account is closer to a savings balance than a video game score.

Don't Lose What You've Already Earned

Free reminder before your miles expire. No account needed. Pick the date, pick how far in advance you want to know, and a follow-up sequence makes sure the email actually gets noticed.

Set My Miles Expiration Reminder

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