/transfer-partners

name: transfer-partners
description: Credit card to loyalty program transfer ratios. Cross-references seats.aero award prices with transfer ratios to find the cheapest path from UR, MR, TYP, Capital One, or Bilt to any mileage program.
category: loyalty
summary: Cheapest transfer path from credit card points to mileage programs.
api_key: None (local data)

Transfer Partner Optimizer

Given award flight prices (from seats.aero or manual input) and your transferable point balances, find the cheapest path to book.

**No API key needed.** Uses local JSON data files.

Data Files

| File | Purpose | |------|---------| | `data/transfer-partners.json` | Credit card → loyalty program transfer ratios | | `data/points-valuations.json` | CPP valuations per program (floor/ceiling from TPG, UP, OMAAT, VFTW) | | `data/partner-awards.json` | Which programs can book which airlines |

When to Use

• User has award availability (from seats.aero cached search, live search, or manual input)
• User wants to know "which of my points should I use?"
• User wants to compare the effective cost across their transferable currencies
• User asks about transfer partners for a specific airline or program

Workflow

Step 0: Check Current Transfer Bonuses (Always)

Before recommending any transfer, load the `transfer-bonuses` skill and check `data/transfer-bonuses.json` for active bonuses on the relevant currency-to-program pair. A 30% bonus turns a 1:1 ratio into 1:1.3, which can flip the cheapest-currency calculation in Step 3 entirely. Bonuses also have expiration dates that affect timing decisions.

Step 1: Get Award Availability

Use seats.aero (API or web) to search for award flights. Each result includes:

• `Source` (the loyalty program: "united", "aeroplan", "flyingblue", etc.)
• Points cost per cabin (e.g., 55,000 business)

Step 2: Map Seats.aero Sources to Transfer Partners

Seats.aero source names map to `transfer-partners.json` keys:

| Seats.aero Source | Transfer Partner Key | Programs That Transfer In | |-------------------|---------------------|---------------------------| | `united` | `united` | Chase UR (1:1), Bilt (1:1) | | `aeroplan` | `aeroplan` | Chase UR (1:1), Amex MR (1:1), Bilt (1:1), Capital One (1:1) | | `flyingblue` | `flying_blue` | Chase UR (1:1), Amex MR (1:1), Bilt (1:1), Capital One (1:1), Citi TY (1:1), Wells Fargo (1:1) | | `american` | `american` | Citi TY (1:1) | | `alaska` | `alaska_hawaiian` | Bilt (1:1) | | `virginatlantic` | `virgin_atlantic` | Chase UR (1:1), Amex MR (1:1), Bilt (1:1), Citi TY (1:1), Wells Fargo (1:1 via Virgin Red) | | `delta` | `delta` | Amex MR (1:1) | | `emirates` | `emirates` | Bilt (1:1), Amex MR (5:4), Capital One (4:3), Citi TY (5:4) | | `etihad` | `etihad` | Bilt (1:1), Capital One (1:1), Citi TY (1:1) | | `singapore` | `singapore` | Chase UR (1:1), Amex MR (1:1), Capital One (1:1), Citi TY (1:1) | | `jetblue` | `jetblue` | Chase UR (1:1), Citi TY (1:1), Wells Fargo (1:1), Amex MR (250:200), Capital One (5:3) | | `qatar` | `qatar` | Amex MR (1:1), Bilt (1:1), Capital One (1:1), Citi TY (1:1) | | `turkish` | `turkish` | Bilt (1:1), Capital One (1:1), Citi TY (1:1) | | `eurobonus` | (no direct transfer) | N/A | | `aeromexico` | `aeromexico` | Amex MR (1:1.6), Capital One (1:1), Citi TY (1:1) | | `smiles` | (no direct transfer) | N/A | | `finnair` | `finnair` | Capital One (1:1) | | `lufthansa` | (no direct transfer) | N/A | | `ethiopian` | (no direct transfer) | N/A | | `saudia` | (no direct transfer) | N/A |

Programs with "no direct transfer" can only be booked by earning miles directly or through alliance partner bookings.

Step 3: Calculate Effective Cost

For each award option, calculate the cost in each transferable currency:

effective_cost = award_miles / transfer_ratio

Example: Aeroplan business at 55,000 miles

• Chase UR: 55,000 / 1.0 = **55,000 UR points**
• Amex MR: 55,000 / 1.0 = **55,000 MR points**
• Capital One: 55,000 / 1.0 = **55,000 Cap One miles**

Example: Emirates business at 72,500 miles

• Bilt: 72,500 / 1.0 = **72,500 Bilt points**
• Amex MR: 72,500 / 0.8 = **90,625 MR points** (worse ratio)
• Capital One: 72,500 / 0.75 = **96,667 Cap One miles** (worst ratio)

Step 4: Calculate Opportunity Cost (CPP)

Use `points-valuations.json` to assess what each currency is "worth":

opportunity_cost = effective_cost × point_value_cpp / 100

This tells you the "cash equivalent" you're giving up. Lower is better.

Step 5: Present Results

**Always use markdown tables.**

| Program | Miles Needed | Best Currency | Points Needed | CPP Value | Cash Equivalent | |---------|-------------|---------------|---------------|-----------|-----------------| | Aeroplan | 55,000 | Chase UR | 55,000 | 1.7¢ | $935 | | United | 55,000 | Chase UR | 55,000 | 1.7¢ | $935 | | Alaska | 37,500 | Bilt | 37,500 | 1.7¢ | $638 | | Flying Blue | 57,000 | Any 1:1 | 57,000 | 1.7¢ | $969 |

After the table:

• **Recommendation:** "Book via Alaska using Bilt points. 37,500 Bilt = $638 opportunity cost vs next best United/Aeroplan at $935."
• **Check balance:** Verify the user has enough points in the recommended currency.
• **Transfer bonus?** Check if any current transfer bonuses apply (Roame.travel or TPG bonus tracker).

jq Recipes

Find all currencies that transfer to a program

jq -r '
  to_entries | .[] | select(.key != "_meta") |
  .key as $currency | .value.display_name as $name |
  (.value.airlines // {}) + (.value.hotels // {}) |
  to_entries[] | select(.key == "PROGRAM_KEY") |
  "\($name): \(.value.ratio):1 → \(.value.program)"
' data/transfer-partners.json

Replace `PROGRAM_KEY` with the key (e.g., `united`, `aeroplan`, `flying_blue`).

Calculate effective costs for an award

# Given: 55000 miles via aeroplan
PROGRAM="aeroplan"
MILES=55000
jq -r --arg prog "$PROGRAM" --argjson miles $MILES '
  to_entries | .[] | select(.key != "_meta") |
  .key as $currency | .value.display_na