The Best Chase Ultimate Rewards Transfer Partners in 2026
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The short version
Chase Ultimate Rewards has 14 transfer partners and most of them aren't worth using. Three are: World of Hyatt, United MileagePlus, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. Two more — British Airways Avios and Air France/KLM Flying Blue — are situational but excellent when the situation arises. The rest range from "fine, if you have to" to "actively bad."
The universal answer for most people is World of Hyatt. Hyatt's award chart is fixed, capped at 45,000 points/night for top-tier properties, and a category 1-4 hotel at 5,000-15,000 points often costs $250-$700 in cash. That's 3-5 cents per Ultimate Rewards point — the best fixed-rate redemption in the major US points programs.
Below: the full partner list with sweet spots, the four redemptions that regularly return 4¢+ per point, and the three mistakes that turn UR transfers into 1¢ Amex-Travel-equivalent value.
Why Ultimate Rewards beats Amex MR and Citi ThankYou (for most people)
All three of the major flexible-points programs — Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, and Citi ThankYou — transfer 1:1 to most of their airline partners. The difference isn't the ratio, it's the partner list. Chase's list is the most useful for North American travelers for three reasons:
- World of Hyatt. Hyatt isn't an Amex or Citi partner. UR is the only flexible currency that transfers to Hyatt at 1:1, and Hyatt is the most valuable single redemption in the US points landscape.
- United MileagePlus. United is also a Chase exclusive (not an Amex or Citi partner). Saver-level United awards from the US to Europe (60,000 miles round-trip economy, 120,000 in business) remain one of the most accessible transatlantic redemptions.
- Coverage of both major hotel chains AND the Star Alliance flight network. Amex skews heavily SkyTeam (Delta, Air France/KLM, Aeromexico). Citi skews to niche partners (Turkish, Avianca). Chase covers Star Alliance through United and Hyatt — the two most useful loyalty programs for typical US travelers.
None of this means UR is "better than" MR or ThankYou in the abstract — it depends on what you actually book. But if you're choosing one flexible currency to anchor your wallet, UR is the most defensible default.
Every UR transfer partner, ranked by practical value
| Partner | Ratio | Practical value |
|---|---|---|
| World of Hyatt | 1 : 1 | The universal answer. Category 1-4 hotels at 5,000-15,000 points regularly cost $250-$700/night in cash. Effective value: 3-5¢/UR. The single biggest reason to have Chase UR. |
| United MileagePlus | 1 : 1 | Saver economy awards (US-Europe 60k RT, US-South America 35k RT, intra-Europe 17.5k each way on Star Alliance partners). Use the Excursionist Perk for free segments on multi-city itineraries. |
| Virgin Atlantic (Flying Club) | 1 : 1 | ANA First Class JFK-NRT round-trip for 110,000 Virgin Atlantic miles is one of the most valuable redemptions in the entire points landscape (cash equivalent: $18,000+). Delta One business class via Virgin Atlantic partner awards when Delta releases space. |
| British Airways (Avios) | 1 : 1 | Distance-based pricing makes short-haul Oneworld redemptions cheap (7,500 Avios for sub-650 mile flights on American or Iberia). Avios pool with Iberia and Aer Lingus — same currency, different surcharge structures. |
| Air France/KLM (Flying Blue) | 1 : 1 | Monthly Promo Awards (25-50% off select routes) and reasonable standard transatlantic pricing. Particularly strong if your home airport has direct AF or KLM service. |
| Singapore (KrisFlyer) | 1 : 1 | The only practical way to fly Singapore Suites and Singapore First. Niche, but the redemption is unforgettable. Also useful for Star Alliance partner awards. |
| Aer Lingus (AerClub) | 1 : 1 | Specific sweet spot: business class US to Ireland on Aer Lingus's own metal at 60,000 Avios each way — often with lower carrier surcharges than BA-operated routes. Use it if you're going to or through Dublin. |
| Iberia (Iberia Plus) | 1 : 1 | Avios under a different brand. Iberia direct flights from Madrid to the US East Coast have lower carrier surcharges than BA-operated transatlantics. 34,000 Avios each way in business off-peak. |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 1 : 1 | Fine in principle, but Marriott points are worth roughly 0.7-0.8¢ each — so you're transferring 1¢ UR to get 0.8¢ Marriott. You'd need a specific Travel Package or extreme Bonvoy redemption to justify it. |
| IHG One Rewards | 1 : 1 | IHG points are worth 0.5-0.6¢ each. You're effectively destroying value transferring UR here unless you've identified a specific Intercontinental redemption that costs less than 1¢/UR equivalent. |
| JetBlue (TrueBlue) | 1 : 1 | TrueBlue points are worth ~1.3¢ each on average, so this is a slight upgrade over Amex Travel's 1¢ floor. Acceptable if you fly JetBlue regularly. Not a sweet spot for anyone else. |
| Southwest (Rapid Rewards) | 1 : 1 | Southwest awards are priced as a fixed percentage of cash fares. You're effectively redeeming at 1.4-1.5¢/point — basically the same as Chase Travel portal value. No sweet spot here. |
| Emirates (Skywards) | 1 : 1 | Emirates' own award chart has dramatic carrier surcharges on premium cabin redemptions (sometimes $1,000+ on top of the points). Only useful for very specific routes during occasional sweet-spot promos. |
The five UR redemptions that regularly return 4¢+ per point
1. Hyatt category 4 hotels at 15,000 points/night
Category 4 in Hyatt's chart is the top of the "reasonable points cost" tier — 15,000 points/night for hotels that often cost $500-$800+ in cash. Recent examples that fit this category: Park Hyatt Vienna, Andaz Costa Rica Peninsula Papagayo, Park Hyatt Saigon, Hyatt Regency Sydney.
For most US travelers, this is the single highest-return UR redemption you can plan for in advance. A 4-night stay at a category 4 costs 60,000 UR and typically displaces $2,000-$3,000 in cash. Effective value: 3.3-5¢/UR.
2. Hyatt Globalist suite upgrades + category 1-3 stays
Category 1-3 Hyatts (5,000-12,000 points/night) include surprisingly good properties — Hyatt Regency Krakow, Hyatt House properties in expensive cities, Hyatt Place in Maui. If you're traveling somewhere a chain hotel makes sense, category 1-3 redemptions routinely hit 4-6¢/UR because the cash rates at these properties have inflated faster than the award chart since 2024.
3. United Excursionist Perk on multi-city Star Alliance trips
The Excursionist Perk lets you add a free segment to certain multi-city award itineraries. Example: a US → Europe → Africa → Europe → US round-trip where the Europe-Africa-Europe segment is free. Total cost: 60,000 UR transferred to United MileagePlus. Cash equivalent of the trip: $2,500-$4,000. Effective value: 4-7¢/UR.
The rules are quirky (the bonus segment has to start and end in a different region than your origin) but if you're planning a complex international trip, this is one of the best uses of UR. United's web search supports this directly — try a multi-city award search before transferring.
4. Virgin Atlantic → ANA First Class JFK to Tokyo
Transfer 110,000 UR to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, book round-trip ANA First Class on ANA's own metal between JFK and Tokyo (NRT). Cash equivalent: $18,000-$22,000. Effective value: 16-20¢/UR.
This is the legendary "best redemption" in the points community. ANA releases First Class award space sporadically, usually opening 6-11 months out. Search via the Virgin Atlantic award engine after transferring. Tax/fee charges on the redemption are typically $1,300-$1,800 — high in absolute terms but tiny relative to the cash equivalent.
5. Iberia business class to Madrid at 34,000 Avios off-peak
Iberia's award chart has off-peak pricing for direct Madrid flights from US East Coast (JFK, BOS, ORD) and West Coast (LAX, SFO). Off-peak business class costs 34,000 Avios each way (or 17,000 in economy), with significantly lower carrier surcharges than BA-operated transatlantic awards. Cash equivalent of a Madrid business class flight: $2,500-$3,500. Effective value at off-peak: 4-5¢/UR.
Three mistakes that destroy UR value
1. Using the Chase Travel portal as a default
Chase Travel portal redeems your points at 1.25¢/UR (Sapphire Preferred) or 1.5¢/UR (Sapphire Reserve). The Reserve's 1.5¢ portal rate sounds reasonable. But every redemption in the table above returns 2-5x more value per point. Using the portal "because it's easy" turns a 4¢ redemption into a 1.5¢ redemption — you're leaving 60-70% of the value on the table for the sake of convenience.
2. Transferring to Marriott or IHG
Both Marriott Bonvoy and IHG One Rewards transfer at 1:1, but their points are worth dramatically less per point than UR's 1.25¢-2¢ baseline. Transferring UR to Marriott is mathematically equivalent to redeeming at 0.7-0.8¢/point. To IHG, it's 0.5-0.6¢/point — actually worse than the Chase Travel portal.
The only time these transfers make sense is if you've already identified a specific Marriott "travel package" or IHG sweet spot and confirmed the math beats the alternatives. Don't transfer speculatively.
3. Transferring without an award seat or hotel night identified
Same rule as Amex MR: once you transfer UR to a partner, the points are stuck in that partner's program. If the seat or room you wanted is gone — or never existed — you're stuck. Always confirm bookability in the partner's award engine before hitting transfer in your Chase Travel app.
How to actually decide what to do with your UR balance
- What are you actually booking? A hotel? An international flight? A short hop? The right partner is determined by the booking, not the other way around.
- Hotel? Almost certainly Hyatt. Check Hyatt.com for award availability at the property and category you want.
- Star Alliance flight? United MileagePlus. Use United's award search to confirm Saver-level space (which is what your UR will book).
- Short-haul flight on American or Iberia? British Airways Avios. The distance-based chart is your friend.
- Transatlantic on AF/KLM? Air France/KLM Flying Blue, especially during the monthly Promo Award refresh.
- ANA First Class or Singapore Suites? Virgin Atlantic or Singapore KrisFlyer respectively. Bucket-list redemptions; plan 6-11 months out.
- Confirm bookability, then transfer, then book immediately. Don't let an award seat slip while points are mid-transfer.
Disclosures and limitations
Transfer ratios and award chart prices above reflect publicly published terms from Chase and the partner programs as of June 2026. Loyalty programs change pricing and partner relationships periodically — verify directly on the partner's award engine before transferring. Point valuations are approximate; your actual redemption value will vary depending on the specific booking.
PointSmart is a product of MFlash, Inc. We earn commissions on some card applications referred from this page, which doesn't change which strategy or partner we recommend. Strategies are derived from publicly available program terms and standard redemption math used in the award-travel community.