What’s the Value of Avianca LifeMiles?

Avianca's LifeMiles are airline miles you should know about if you're looking to score cheap award flights. The Colombia-based airline is a member of the Star Alliance and offers some great redemptions on partners like United Airlines.

The airline is also a transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou points and Capital One miles, so LifeMiles are easy to earn with the right travel credit card.

How much are Avianca LifeMiles worth?

Based on our analysis, the short answer is: 1.2 cents each.

This is a baseline value, drawn from real-world data on hundreds of economy routes, not a maximized value. In other words, you should aim for award redemptions that offer 1.2 cents or more in value from your Avianca LifeMiles.

What does this value mean?

Our estimated value of 1.2 cents per Avianca LifeMile provides a lower-end value you can use to determine the relative value of your own redemptions. It is based on comparing main cabin fares using both cash and miles, across several dates and destinations.

In other words, this is the value you can expect to get from your Avianca LifeMiles without seeking particularly high-value redemptions. This means you can get more value by looking for sweet spots and using more advanced award techniques. It also means you can end up getting lower value than this if you’re not careful.

» Learn more: How to make the most of flying in Avianca's economy class

Avianca LifeMiles calculator

How much are Avianca LifeMiles worth in dollars? With the Lifemiles-to-dollars calculator below, you can figure out how much your Avianca LifeMiles are worth based on our estimated value.

When is the best time to use Avianca LifeMiles?

Avianca LifeMiles are a bit more valuable when you book in advance. We looked at redemption rates for awards booked 15 days before departure, 180 days before departure and award flights during peak winter holiday times.

For economy redemptions, the valuation was 0.7 cent each for close-in bookings 15 days before departure. Meanwhile, advanced purchase bookings offer an above-baseline redemption rate — 1.4 cents per LifeMile. However, for holiday economy award flights, we found a pretty low redemption rate of 0.7 cents per LifeMile.

How flexible are Avianca LifeMiles?

As a member of the Star Alliance, you can redeem Avianca LifeMiles for award flights on alliance members like United, Air Canada or ANA.

Avianca has an award chart for its Star Alliance partners that includes several sweet spots, including 39,000 miles for an economy class seat (or 78,000 in business class) from the U.S. to Southeast Asia.

» Learn more: The beginner's guide to points and miles

How did we determine the Avianca LifeMiles points value?

We collected hundreds of data points comparing the cash value with award (LifeMiles) value for the same routes and dates. That is, we compared the cost of a given ticket in either cash or LifeMiles, across many tickets.

This method differs from others in that it looks at actual redemptions rather than hypothetical, maximized redemptions. The advantage of this approach is that it provides a real-world indication of how much these LifeMiles are worth, on average. That said, it doesn’t take into account the high-value redemptions that points enthusiasts seek.

Wondering what you can do with those LifeMiles? Check out our point collector's guide to Avianca LifeMiles (including some of the best ways to use Avianca LifeMiles), what to expect when you fly Avianca business class and learn which credit card is best for international award travel.

Featured photo courtesy of Avianca.