You pay for an Airbnb with a card, then use points to cover the charge afterward. Capital One is the cleanest way to do it: miles erase a qualifying travel charge at one cent each, as long as you do it within 90 days of the charge posting.
Chase and Amex work differently. Chase's pages describe earning on Airbnb and cashing points out, and Amex statement credits have paid the least per point. Here's how each one works and which card to use.
The Short Answer
If you hold a Capital One Venture X or Venture card, book directly on airbnb.com, pay with the card and erase the charge with miles. If you hold a Chase Sapphire Preferred, pay with it to earn 3 points per dollar and keep your points for transfers. If your points are Amex Membership Rewards, pay with a card that earns well and save the points for airline or hotel partners.
Capital One: Erase the Charge With Miles
Capital One lets you use miles to cover travel purchases you made in the last 90 days. Its pages put the redemption at one cent per mile, so a $200 charge takes 20,000 miles. You can cover part of a charge, and the miles come off after the purchase posts, so you decide after you've booked.
Here's the sequence:
- Book the stay directly on airbnb.com and pay with your Capital One card.
- Wait for the charge to post, usually a few days.
- Log in, find the Airbnb charge in the list of eligible purchases and redeem miles against it.
Reports say Airbnb stays code as travel, but coding can be inconsistent, so look for the charge in your eligible list before you count on it. A direct booking also keeps you on Airbnb's own cancellation terms, and you earn miles on the purchase at your card's regular rate.
Chase: Earn on Airbnb, or Cash Out at One Cent
Chase's own Airbnb page for the Sapphire Preferred talks about earning, not redeeming. Airbnb vacation rentals booked with the card earn 3 points per dollar, and charges billed separately from the rental, such as extra fees, may not qualify.
On the redemption side, Chase says Ultimate Rewards points can go to travel, statement credits, cash back, gift cards and more, and that each point is worth one cent as cash back. That makes a statement credit against your Airbnb charge possible, at one cent a point. Points Boost, which Chase describes as worth up to 1.5x on top-booked hotels and flights with select airlines through Chase Travel, is a travel redemption and isn't the way to pay for an Airbnb.
One cent is the floor for Ultimate Rewards points. Transferring to an airline or hotel partner on the right trip can return more, so cashing out on a stay is best when you have no better use for the points.
Amex: Usually the Wrong Currency
We couldn't find an Amex route that books an Airbnb with Membership Rewards points. The option that remains is a statement credit, and those have paid roughly 0.6 cents a point, so check the rate in your account before you use it.
Membership Rewards points tend to return more through transfer partners such as Air France-KLM Flying Blue, Virgin Atlantic and Aeroplan. For an Airbnb, pay with whichever Amex card earns the most and keep the points for a flight.
Which Method to Pick
- Capital One Venture X or Venture: erase the charge with miles. It's the only method here with a fixed rate, a clear window and no extra steps beyond the redemption.
- Chase Sapphire Preferred: pay with the card for the 3x. Cash out points only if you have no better use for them.
- Amex only: pay with the best-earning card and hold the points for transfers.
- More than one: use the card that earns the most on the booking, then cover the charge with whichever currency you value least.
When to Pay Cash and Keep the Points
Skip points when the same balance would do more on a flight or hotel transfer. Skip them too when the stay is cheap enough that the redemption isn't worth the steps, or when a flat cash-back card earns about what a one-cent redemption saves. Our guide to when to pay cash instead of points shows how to set that bar, and our roundup of the best credit cards for Airbnb and Vrbo covers which card earns the most on the booking itself.
Before you book, check one thing: that your card's account lists the Airbnb charge as an eligible purchase once it posts. If it does, erase it with Capital One miles or cash out Chase points. If it doesn't, pay the card in cash and keep the points.
Updated October 17, 2026: redemption methods.
