How Credit Card Points Actually Work for Advertisers
Cashback math is simple: 2% of $10K is $200. Points math is harder, because a single point can be worth anywhere from 0.6 cents to 5+ cents depending on how you redeem it. This is exactly why points beat cashback for high-volume advertisers — but only if you know what you're doing.
By Editorial Team · Media buyer research desk
Published May 24, 2026 · 7 min read · How we review
The three transferable currencies
American Express Membership Rewards (MR), Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR), and Capital One Miles. All three transfer 1:1 (or close) to airline and hotel loyalty programs. They are flexible currencies — you don't pick the airline at earn time, only at redemption time.
What 'cents per point' means
A baseline: statement credit = 1 cent/point (sometimes less). Cash back redemption: 0.6 cents. Transfer to hotels/airlines for cash equivalent fares: 1.2-1.5 cents. Transfer for premium-cabin or high-tier hotel awards: 2-5+ cents. Sophisticated points buyers redeem at 2-3 cents on average.
The classic sweet spots
Hyatt 1.7 cents/point ceiling on all hotels. ANA Round-the-World awards from 75K MR one-way. Air Canada Aeroplan transcon business class from 75K-90K. Virgin Atlantic to ANA First from 110K-140K. These are the redemptions that turn 4x Amex Gold into a 10%+ effective ad-spend return.
Why advertisers care
At $15K/month of Meta spend on Amex Business Gold, you earn 720K MR points per year. At 2 cents/point of realized value, that's $14,400 a year. At cashback equivalent (~1 cent), only $7,200. The redemption strategy doubles the return.
When cashback IS better
If you'll never use points for travel, or you don't have the time to research redemptions, take a flat 2% cashback card and call it a day. Bad redemptions are worse than predictable cashback.
Takeaway
Points are leverage — they pay back 1.5-3x more than cashback if you learn one or two sweet spots. If you won't learn the redemptions, take cashback.