Best Ways to Fly to London on Points and Miles

With the right rewards, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to get across the pond to the largest city in the U.K.

Edited by Ashley Donohoe

Updated Nov. 2, 2024

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London is one of the most visited cities in the world by international travelers. However, it’s also an expensive destination compared to many other places, including some countries in Southeast Asia and Latin America.

Fortunately, you can reduce your expenses by using loyalty program rewards to book your flights. And, from my experience, you can find some fantastic deals if you book with airline programs like the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, American Airlines AAdvantage, and Avianca LifeMiles.

Let’s explore the best ways to fly to London on points and miles so you can more affordably achieve your U.K. trip dream.

Key takeaways

One of the easiest ways to score cheap or nearly free flights to London is to use credit cards to earn valuable points and miles that you can then use to book award flights.
Based on my research, Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines, Avianca, and Air France-KLM provide some of the cheapest award flights to London from the U.S.
It’s important to note that flights coming back to the U.S. from London tend to be more expensive because of steep U.K. taxes and fees.

Best loyalty programs for flights to London

Here’s a quick look at some of the cheapest award flight options available through different airline loyalty programs. Note that some of these airlines don’t have fixed award charts, so pricing can vary depending on your dates.

Airline loyalty program	One-way flight	Roundtrip flight
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club	10,000 points and $153	20,000 points and $489
United Airlines MileagePlus	~33,000 miles and $5.60	~55,000 miles and $193.70
Delta SkyMiles	~31,000 miles and $6	40,000 miles and $194
Avianca LifeMiles	20,000 miles and $27.80	40,000 miles and $119.70
American Airlines AAdvantage	19,000 miles and $5.60	38,000 miles and $199.50
British Airways Executive Club	25,000 Avios and $81.30	50,000 Avios and $200
Air France-KLM Flying Blue	24,000 miles and $32.30	48,000 miles and $242.80
ANA Mileage Club	One-way award flights unavailable	55,000 miles and $193.90

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

Virgin Atlantic is based out of England and is close to London, making it a popular option for trips to the major city.

I’ve flown Virgin multiple times and have always had good experiences. I like how many direct flight options there are to London from the U.S., which helps me avoid extra travel connection time.

Virgin also offers amazingly cheap award flight fares. For example, certain one-way Economy Classic flights from Washington, D.C. (IAD), New York (JFK), and Boston (BOS) to London (LHR) only cost 10,000 Virgin points and around $153 in taxes and fees.

A similar roundtrip fare would run you 20,000 Virgin points and $489 in taxes and fees.

You might notice the taxes and fees go up quite a bit on the return leg, and that’s because of the U.K. Air Passenger Duty (APD) tax. This heavy tax is applied on nearly every flight originating in the U.K. and is based on your fare class and how far away your destination is.

Tip

If you’re already planning to visit other European countries, booking a return flight home from outside the U.K. could potentially save you money by avoiding the U.K. APD tax.

Here are some one-way award flight costs from other U.S. cities to London.

Atlanta (ATL) to London (LHR): 12,000 points plus $170
Las Vegas (LAS) to London (LHR): 15,000 points plus $153
Miami (MIA) to London (LHR): 12,500 points plus $153
San Francisco (SFO) to London (LHR): 15,000 points plus $153
Seattle (SEA) to London (LHR): 15,000 points plus $153

Since Virgin Atlantic has standard and peak season fixed award pricing based on region, it’s fairly easy to figure out how many points you’ll need for a flight.

How to earn Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points

Virgin Atlantic is a widely accessible transfer partner. You can transfer rewards to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club from Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One miles (to Virgin Red), and Marriott Bonvoy.

Here are some good cards for earning Virgin points.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 bonus points after $4,000 in purchases in your first 3 months from account opening (that's worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel). Plus, get up to $300 in statement credits on Chase Travel purchases within your first year	1:1	$95
Citi Strata Premier℠ Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 70,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $700 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com	1:1	$95
The Platinum Card^® from American Express 5.0 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new card in the first 6 months	1:1	$695

Tip

Consider taking advantage of transfer bonuses that increase the points transfer ratio in your favor for a limited time. Virgin Atlantic is known to have frequent transfer bonuses that give you up to 30% more Virgin points during the offer period.

United Airlines MileagePlus

United doesn’t have a fixed award chart, so the pricing can vary depending on the date you travel. In general, you can expect to pay around 30,000 to 34,000 miles for a one-way United Saver Award flight to London from cities that have nonstop United flights. That includes Denver (DEN), Los Angeles (LAX), Houston (IAH), among others.

The nice thing about United is that you don’t have to pay exorbitant surcharges on award flights, as noted by the low $5.60 taxes and fees you can see on this flight from Newark (EWR) to London (LHR).

Flights from Newark (EWR) to London (LHR).

For a similar roundtrip award flight, you’ll pay around 55,000 miles and $193.70 in taxes and fees. The way back from the U.K. almost always has higher taxes because of the U.K. ADP tax.

Note that you might also be able to find Star Alliance partner award space using United miles.

How to earn United Airlines MileagePlus miles

You can transfer rewards to United MileagePlus with Chase Ultimate Rewards, Bilt Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy.

Here are some of my favorite card picks for earning United miles.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 bonus points after $4,000 in purchases in your first 3 months from account opening (that's worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel). Plus, get up to $300 in statement credits on Chase Travel purchases within your first year	1:1	$95
United℠ Explorer Card 4.5 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 50,000 bonus miles after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open	N/A (directly earns United miles)	$95 (waived first year)
United Club℠ Infinite Card 4.8 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 80,000 bonus miles after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening	N/A (directly earns United miles)	$525

Delta SkyMiles

Delta doesn’t publish an award chart, but my research shows that around 35,000 SkyMiles is often enough (depending on the time of year) for a one-way Basic Economy award flight to London from different U.S. cities. In some cases, you might find slightly cheaper options, including this flight out of Boston (BOS) for 31,000 miles and $6.

Interestingly, a similar roundtrip flight out of Boston (BOS) might only cost you 40,000 miles. The kicker is that you would have to pay $194 in taxes and fees.

Here are some of the lowest one-way award prices I found while researching different U.S. cities.

New York (JFK) to London (LHR): 35,000 miles and $6
Atlanta (ATL) to London (LHR): 45,000 miles and $6
Detroit (DTW) to London (LHR): 68,000 miles and $6
Salt Lake City (SLC) to London (LHR): 78,000 miles and $6
Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR): 42,000 miles and $6

Tip

Most Delta credit cards have a TakeOff 15 benefit that discounts award flights by 15% when you book them on Delta.com or the Fly Delta app. That would make a flight for 40,000 miles only cost 34,000.

How to earn Delta SkyMiles

You can transfer rewards to Delta SkyMiles with Amex Membership Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.

Here are some of my favorite cards for earning Delta SkyMiles.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
Delta SkyMiles^® Gold American Express Card 4.6 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $2,000 in eligible purchases in the first 6 months	N/A (directly earns Delta miles)	$0 intro annual fee for the first year, $150 per year thereafter
American Express^® Gold Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases within the first 6 months of card membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. (Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.)	1:1	$325
Delta SkyMiles^® Reserve American Express Card 4.8 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 70,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in eligible purchases in the first 6 months	N/A (directly earns Delta miles)	$650

Avianca LifeMiles

Avianca is a Colombian airline, which means it doesn’t have useful itineraries to London from the U.S. – or so you would think. As a Star Alliance member, you can book partner awards with LifeMiles, including United flights. That gives you access to wonderfully cheap award flights to London (LHR) priced at 20,000 LifeMiles and $27.80.

If you were to book this exact same flight from Newark (EWR) using United miles, it would cost 40,000 miles and $5.60.

A roundtrip flight with LifeMiles could cost you as little as 40,000 miles and $119.70. That's not too shabby at all.

With LifeMiles, you can find similarly-priced award flights from different U.S. cities.

Denver (DEN) to London (LHR): 21,000 miles and $27.80
Houston (IAH) to London (LHR): 30,000 miles and $27.80
Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR): 28,500 miles and $27.80
San Francisco (SFO) to London (LHR): 30,000 miles and $27.80

How to earn Avianca LifeMiles

You can transfer rewards to Avianca LifeMiles with Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Capital One miles, Bilt Rewards, Brex Rewards, Wells Fargo Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy.

Here are some of the best cards for earning LifeMiles.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card 4.7 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening	1:1	$95
Citi Strata Premier℠ Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 70,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $700 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com	1:1	$95
American Express^® Gold Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases within the first 6 months of card membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. (Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.)	1:1	$325

American Airlines AAdvantage

With American Airlines’ dynamic award pricing, your best bet for cheap flights to London is to book during off-peak periods, including certain dates from January to March and November to December.

On American Airlines itself, the cheapest one-way award flights cost about 19,000 miles plus $5.60 in taxes and fees. If you book a British Airways flight with American miles, you’ll pay around 22,500 miles and $237.30 in taxes and fees.

American Airlines flight options to London.

For a similar roundtrip flight, you’ll pay 38,000 miles and $199.50 on American and 41,500 miles and $456.40 on British Airways. If cost is your only concern, booking on American is a much better option in this scenario.

How to earn American Airlines AAdvantage miles

You can transfer rewards to American Airlines AAdvantage with Marriott Bonvoy.

Since there aren’t many options for transferring rewards to American Airlines, I recommend using these credit cards to earn American miles.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
Citi^® / AAdvantage^® Platinum Select^® World Elite Mastercard^® 4.3 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $2,500 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening	N/A (directly earns American miles)	$99 (waived first year)
AAdvantage^® Aviator^® Red World Elite Mastercard^® 4.6 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 bonus miles after you make your first purchase and pay the annual fee in the first 90 days	N/A (directly earns American miles)	$99
Citi^® / AAdvantage^® Executive World Elite Mastercard^® 4.8 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 70,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $7,000 within the first 3 months of account opening	N/A (directly earns American miles)	$595

British Airways Executive Club

British Airways has plenty of flights to London from different U.S. cities. A one-way award flight during off-peak periods typically costs around 25,000 Avios plus $81.30 in taxes and fees.

A similar roundtrip itinerary would cost around 50,000 Avios plus $200.

Keep in mind that you can also use Avios to book award flights with Aer Lingus AerClub, Iberia Plus, and Qatar Airways Privilege Club. This can open up opportunities to fly to London from cities like Dublin, Madrid, and Doha.

For example, a one-way off-peak award flight from Dublin (DUB) to London (LHR) only costs 4,000 Avios plus $14.50.

How to earn British Airways Executive Club Avios

You can transfer rewards to British Airways Executive Club from Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards (from Qatar Airways Privilege Club), Marriott Bonvoy, Bilt Rewards, Wells Fargo Rewards, and Capital One miles.

Here are some of the best cards for earning Avios.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 bonus points after $4,000 in purchases in your first 3 months from account opening (that's worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel). Plus, get up to $300 in statement credits on Chase Travel purchases within your first year	1:1	$95
Citi Strata Premier℠ Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 70,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $700 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com	1:1	$95
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card 4.7 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening	1:1	$95

Tip

You can’t directly transfer rewards to British Airways Executive Club from Citi ThankYou Rewards. However, you can transfer them to Qatar Airways Privilege Club and then combine Avios between your Privilege Club and Executive Club accounts.

Air France-KLM Flying Blue

Some of the cheapest award flights to London using Flying Blue miles come on partner flights with Virgin Atlantic and Delta. For example, similar flights on these carriers would run 23,000 miles plus $85.60 (Virgin) or 24,000 miles plus $32.30 (Delta) out of New York (JFK).

You could also fly Air France or KLM, but you would connect through Paris (CDG) or Amsterdam (AMS). However, the price is reasonable at 20,000 miles and $102.70 in taxes and fees.

A roundtrip flight would cost you around:

Virgin Atlantic: 46,000 miles and $349.40
Delta: 48,000 miles and $242.80
Air France/KLM: 40,000 miles and $359.90

How to earn Flying Blue miles

You can transfer rewards to Air France-KLM Flying Blue from Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy, Bilt Rewards, Capital One miles, Wells Fargo Rewards, and Brex Rewards.

Here are some of my favorite cards for earning Flying Blue miles.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card 4.0 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn a bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening	1:1	$0
American Express^® Gold Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases within the first 6 months of card membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. (Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.)	1:1	$325
Chase Sapphire Reserve^® 5.0 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening	1:1	$550

Tip

Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Capital One miles, and Citi ThankYou Rewards have all offered transfer bonuses to Flying Blue in the past. Some of these have ranged from 20% to 25%. Bilt Rewards has also offered 75% to 150% transfer bonuses.

ANA Mileage Club

Using ANA miles to get to London from the U.S. doesn’t typically provide more than average value unless you fly in business class. A roundtrip economy flight (you can’t book one-way trip awards with ANA) will run you 55,000 miles and $193.90.

ANA miles shown for a round trip from New York to London.

The cash price for this flight would be about $900, giving you about 1.3 cents per mile after factoring in the taxes and fees you have to pay on the award flight. So that’s the cash price ($900 - $193.90 = $706.10) divided by the total number of miles (55,000), which nets you around 1.3 cents per mile.

Compare that to a roundtrip business flight that costs 100,000 miles and $326. If you were to pay in cash, the same flight would cost $4,614.90 on the United site. That gives you about 4.3 cents per mile.

A round trip flight shown from JFK to London.

Overall, booking in business class gives you a lot more value for your miles. However, not everyone would pay that cash price, so the actual value varies by person.

How to earn ANA Mileage Club miles

You can transfer rewards to ANA Mileage Club from Amex Membership Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.

Here are some good cards for earning ANA Mileage Club miles.

Card	Welcome offer	Transfer ratio	Annual fee
American Express^® Green Card 4.6 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 40,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 6 months	1:1	$150
American Express^® Gold Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases within the first 6 months of card membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. (Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.)	1:1	$325
The Platinum Card^® from American Express 5.0 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new card in the first 6 months	1:1	$695

FAQ

What is the cheapest way to get to London from the U.S.?

The cheapest way is to use points and miles from popular credit card and airline loyalty programs. Here’s about how much a cheap one-way award flight to London from the U.S. costs with popular airlines.

American Airlines: 19,000 miles plus $5.60
Avianca: 20,000 LifeMiles plus $27.80
British Airways: 25,000 Avios plus $81.30
Delta: ~31,000 miles plus $6
Air France-KLM: 24,000 miles plus $32.30
United Airlines: ~33,000 miles plus $5.60
Virgin Atlantic: 10,000 Virgin points plus $153

How many points does it cost to fly to London?

You can fly to London for as little as 10,000 Virgin Atlantic points from cities along the U.S. East Coast, including New York and Washington, D.C. Keep in mind that you’ll still be on the hook for taxes and fees, which total $153 for those particular one-way itineraries.

What is the cheapest month to travel to London?

November to March is the typical off-season for London and the U.K. in general. Rates for flights and hotels are often lower because the weather is colder, which many travelers try to avoid. That means you could score some cheap flights and lodging during the holiday season or the beginning of the year.

Bottom line

Trips to London and the U.K. aren’t cheap, but you can help lower your airfare costs by booking award flights with certain airlines. I recommend Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines, Avianca, and Air France-KLM if you want to stretch your credit card rewards on economy flights. You can also experiment with different trip dates, if your plans are flexible, to find the best deal.

To start building your rewards bank for your dream trip, check out some of the best travel credit cards.

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