We are planning a few trips in the upcoming year and being the frugal person that I am, I want to make sure I’m getting the best possible deals, and ALL the savings. Because flights for four are not cheap, I have been looking at ways to reduce airfare costs.
The good news is that there are several ways to earn extra airline miles. One of the easiest ways is to earn airline miles by dining out with airline dining programs.
How to Earn Airline Miles by Dining Out with Airline Dining Programs
Did you know that many airlines have a dining rewards program? You eat out at your favorite restaurants and you earn miles or points for every dollar you spend!
Simply sign up for your favorite airline’s dining program (which is free!) and register your credit card(s) with the program. You then earn points (or miles) whenever you dine at a participating restaurant and pay with your registered credit card.
For EVEN more points, use a credit card that offers it’s own rewards program, and you can “double dip” by getting both your credit card rewards for your dining purchases AND points/miles from your airline dining rewards program.
As an example, my American Express Gold Card earns 4 points for every dollar spent at US restaurants. If I register this card with my preferred airline dining program, I can earn points on both my American Express Membership Rewards account AND through my dining reward program.
Which airlines have dining programs?
The following airlines have dining rewards programs. Note, the information below is valid as of March 5, 2019. Some airline dining programs may adjust their rewards and bonus structure throughout the year.
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- Basic member
- Requirements: Register valid card(s)
- Rewards: 1 mile for every $2 spent
- Select member:
- Requirements: Elect to receive emails from the Mileage Plan Dining program
- Rewards: 3 miles for every $1 spent
- VIP member:
- Requirements: Select requirements + have 12+ dining transitions in calendar year
- Rewards: 5 miles for every $1 spent
- Bonus: 1000 miles by spending $30 dining out in first 30 days signed up for program
American Airlines AAdvantage Dining
- Basic member
- Requirements: Register valid card(s)
- Rewards: 1 mile for every $1 spent
- Select member:
- Requirements: Elect to receive emails from the AAdvantage Dining program
- Rewards: 3 miles for every $1 spent
- VIP member:
- Requirements: Select requirements + have 12+ dining transitions in calendar year
- Rewards: 5 miles for every $1 spent
- Bonus: 1000 miles by spending $25 dining out in first 30 days signed up for program
Delta SkyMiles Dining
- Basic member
- Requirements: Register valid card(s)
- Rewards: 1 mile for every $1 spent
- Online member:
- Requirements: Elect to receive emails from the SkyMiles Dining program
- Rewards: 3 miles for every $1 spent
- VIP member:
- Requirements: Select requirements + have 12+ dining transitions in calendar year
- Rewards: 5 miles for every $1 spent
- Bonus: 500 miles by spending $30 dining out in first 30 days signed up for program and writing an online review; 1000 additional miles by spending $30 dining out at your second restaurant in first 30 days signed up for program and writing an online review; 1500 additional miles by spending $30 dining out at your third restaurant in first 30 days signed up for program and writing an online review.
JetBlue TrueBlue Dining
- Member:
- Requirements: Elect to receive emails from the TrueBlue Dining program
- Rewards: 3 miles for every $1 spent
Southwest Rapid Rewards Dining
- Basic member
- Requirements: Register valid card(s)
- Rewards: 1 mile for every $2 spent
- Online member:
- Requirements: Elect to receive emails from the Rapid Rewards Dining program
- Rewards: 3 miles for every $1 spent
- Initial Bonus: 500 miles by spending $25 dining out in first 30 days signed up for program and writing an online review; 250 additional miles by spending $25 dining out at your second restaurant in first 30 days signed up for program and writing an online review; 250 additional miles by spending $25 dining out at your third restaurant in first 30 days signed up for program and writing an online review.
- Ongoing Bonuses: 500 points the first time you reach 1500 points and reviewing your experiences; 300 additional points every time you add another 1000 points and review your experiences; 10 points every time you complete an online review of your dining experience.
Free Spirit Dining
- Basic member
- Requirements: Register valid card(s)
- Rewards: 1 mile for every $2 spent
- Select member:
- Requirements: Elect to receive emails from the Free Spirit Dining program
- Rewards: 3 miles for every $1 spent
- VIP member:
- Requirements: Select requirements + have 12+ dining transitions in calendar year
- Rewards: 5 miles for every $1 spent
- Bonus: 1000 miles by spending $30 dining out in first 30 days signed up for program and review your dining experience
United MileagePlus Dining
- Basic member
- Requirements: Register valid card(s)
- Rewards: 1 mile for every $2 spent
- Select member:
- Requirements: Elect to receive emails from the MileagePlus Dining program
- Rewards: 3 miles for every $1 spent
- VIP member:
- Requirements: Select requirements + have 12+ dining transitions in calendar year
- Rewards: 5 miles for every $1 spent
- Bonus: 1000 miles by spending $25 dining out in first 30 days signed up for program; 500 for each of your next three visits when you spend $25 or more in the first 30 days signed up for the program.
Note you can only join one rewards program at a time.
How much can you earn through an airline dining program?
The amount varies by program. Most programs have tiers of benefit levels. For example, you may earn 1 mile for every $2 spent at the basic level. The next level may reward you with 3 miles for every $1 if you opt to receiving promotional emails.
The next level up may reward you with 5 miles for every $1 spent if you opt to receive promotional emails and eat out a certain number of times a year. Many programs also offer bonuses, such a 3000 miles for using the program three times in one month.
What restaurants are included?
I was very surprised to see many of my local favorites (in our small town) included in the rewards network.
You can view participants restaurants within each airline dining rewards site.
All of these programs are run through the same company, Rewards Network, so your list of participating restaurants are going to be the same across all programs.
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