Exciting update: You can now transfer Hawaiian miles (and, by extension, Amex points) to Alaska Airlines.

A significant milestone has occurred in the merger of Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines, as both airlines have introduced the ability to transfer miles between their loyalty programs. While future plans include a unified loyalty program, this is a crucial first step that provides a new, valuable option for holders of American Express Membership Rewards points.

This is because Amex points convert to Hawaiian miles at a 1:1 ratio (with a federal excise tax offset fee of 120 points or 60 cents per 1,000 points transferred). Consequently, you can now convert Amex points to Hawaiian miles and then transfer them to Alaska miles, which is one of the most valuable airline currencies available.

What’s even better? These transfers are processed instantly, despite the FAQs suggesting they may take up to 72 hours.

Here’s what you should know about this new feature.

Steps to transfer miles between Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines

If you have a balance of Hawaiian miles (or have recently transferred Amex points to Hawaiian) and wish to convert them to Alaska miles, begin by visiting this Points.com page. First, choose the program to which you’d like to transfer miles, which for me was Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan.

After that, simply follow the instructions to log in to both your Alaska and Hawaiian accounts.

You will then see a confirmation screen where you can specify the number of miles you wish to transfer. There’s a convenient slider available, but keep in mind that transfers need to be made in increments of 50 miles.

I chose to transfer my full balance of 1,200 Hawaiian miles, and after clicking Continue, I was prompted to verify the transfer amount.

Next, you will encounter a confirmation page confirming that the transfer was completed successfully.

As mentioned earlier, these transfers are processed instantly, as I was able to see the 1,200 miles reflected in my Alaska Mileage Plan account right away.

Just remember that your profile details in both accounts need to match, so make sure to verify this if you encounter any issues.

This is a thrilling new opportunity for members, occurring just after the U.S. Department of Transportation established key consumer protections as part of the merger. Alaska Mileage Plan features a wealth of great sweet spots, and until now, the only transferable currency that allowed transfers to Alaska Airlines was Bilt Rewards. Now, owners of select American Express cards can effectively earn Alaska miles by first transferring to Hawaiian Airlines and then to Mileage Plan.

This also enhances the attractiveness of Hawaiian's cobranded cards, as the welcome bonuses on these cards are now essentially Alaska miles. Additionally, cardmembers can transfer (and receive) Hawaiian miles from any other program member without any limits or fees, providing valuable flexibility for sharing miles among friends and family.

In summary

You can now transfer miles between Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, effectively allowing you to convert American Express Membership Rewards points into Alaska Mileage Plan miles. As a full member of the Oneworld alliance, Alaska provides some excellent redemption options at competitive rates — particularly considering the recent adjustments to British Airways award rates (a long-time Amex transfer partner).

Although we typically advise against making speculative transfers from credit card programs to airline currencies, this new opportunity might justify such actions.