ALAIN'S METHOD · NOTE 03
10,000 miles may be worth less than 8,000
A mileage calculator can rank how much a flight may earn. It cannot know whether the winning account is useful to you.
Suppose one flight could place 10,000 miles in Account A or 8,000 in Account B. A ranking table puts A first. That is mathematically correct and still incomplete. If Account A begins at zero and has no likely use, while Account B is close to an award you actually intend to book, the smaller number can do more work.
The point is not that 8,000 is secretly larger. It is that two mileage balances are not cash balances in the same currency. Each program sets its own award rules, access, fees, expiry or activity policy, partner network and account restrictions. Adding miles from two unrelated programs together is like adding eight units of one currency to ten units of another and keeping only the number.
Program miles are different currencies
A mileage balance normally has value only through the ways its program lets a member use it. The same flight may generate different quantities in several programs, but quantity is one column. A useful comparison also asks whether the account is near a reachable redemption, whether more miles can be earned without waste, and whether suitable awards can be found when travel is possible.
Published cents-per-mile estimates can be useful editorial shorthand for comparing broad patterns. They are not a promise that your balance can be exchanged for cash at that rate. A redemption that looks excellent on paper may require dates, routes or fees that do not fit you. A modest redemption you can actually book may be the more honest use of the balance.
First count the miles. Then ask what job those miles can finish.
A deliberately simple comparison
Consider this hypothetical situation. The numbers are invented to show the method; they do not describe any real program or award chart.
| ACCOUNT A | ACCOUNT B | |
|---|---|---|
| Balance before flight | 0 | 22,000 |
| Possible earning | 10,000 | 8,000 |
| Balance after flight | 10,000 | 30,000 |
| Personal plan | No identified use | A realistic trip needs 30,000 |
Account A wins the earning contest. Account B completes the stated plan. If the intended trip is truly available under the assumed conditions, B has the clearer personal use. Change any condition—existing balances, award access, travel dates, fees or the ability to earn more—and the decision may change with it.
This is why a universal answer such as “always credit to the highest percentage” fails. It compares the arithmetic and discards the traveller's existing accounts. The opposite slogan, “always consolidate,” also fails: concentrating in a program with poor access for your routes can make a tidy balance less useful.
Five questions before choosing an account
1. What specific trip might this balance help book?
Name a route or a type of trip, even if the date is not fixed. “A future premium-cabin holiday somewhere” is too vague to judge. A likely origin, destination region and number of travellers exposes whether the program's awards are relevant.
2. What is already in the account?
New miles can complete an existing balance or create another orphan. Record the current balance before comparing the next flight. If two people are travelling, also check whether the program permits the type of household use, pooling or account interaction you expect; never assume those features are universal.
3. Can the balance be topped up sensibly?
Look at the ways you can realistically earn more: future flying, eligible partners or other sources you already use. Buying points merely to rescue a small balance can erase the value you thought you had gained. Do not count a transfer source until you have confirmed that it is available to your account and region.
4. What friction sits between the balance and the seat?
Award availability, surcharges, booking fees, change rules, call-centre requirements and partner access can all matter. The list differs by program and changes over time. The useful question is practical: could you find and book the trip under conditions you would accept?
5. How long can the plan wait?
Check the official expiry or activity policy, then put a review date in your calendar. Even where miles do not expire under ordinary conditions, award prices and program rules can move. A balance is not a savings account with a guaranteed future purchasing power.
Keep a small personal ledger
A spreadsheet is optional. One note per program is enough:
- current balance and the date checked;
- one plausible use, with the official page or search date;
- how you could earn the remaining amount;
- expiry or activity rule and the next review date;
- fees, restrictions or unanswered questions that could block the plan.
Delete uses you would not actually book. Do not copy a valuation simply because it appears precise. The ledger should reveal which balance has a job and which one is only a number you are reluctant to abandon.
What FlyerFolio's ranking does—and does not do
The mileage tool ranks estimated base-member earning quantity from the rules it can support. It excludes archived programs by default and marks uncertain restrictions. That ranking answers “How many might post?” It does not answer “Which result is most valuable to Alain?” or to any other reader.
Start the calculation with accurate ticket fields—the method in Read one ticket and the explanation of booking classes cover that part. Then take the top few eligible results back to your ledger. The final choice belongs there, beside the trip you may really take.
Verification note · checked 9 August 2026. The example balances and award target in this article are hypothetical. No current redemption price, expiry rule, transfer relationship or fee is asserted for any named program. Before moving points, crediting a flight or planning an award, check the program's official terms and a live award search. Personal value is a decision under those current conditions, not a fixed universal rate.