Heading into the summer travel season, it should come as no surprise that Americans will be using rewards points to fuel their vacations. Recent data found that the primary use for rewards points is travel, and many consumers don’t just accumulate points to help them travel—having points inspires them to travel more.
Indeed, two-thirds of Americans surveyed by The Points Guy said they have a rewards credit card of some type, and more than a quarter have a travel rewards credit card. The survey also revealed that more than 80% of those rewards cardholders who are planning to travel this summer will use rewards to pay for their trips.
Overall, more than half of respondents (57%) reported using their points for travel-related expenses or cash back, while 36% have used their rewards for non-travel expenses. Just 6% have not used their credit card rewards at all.
Travel redemption is no doubt a significant aspect of rewards-based credit cards. Nearly half of respondents surveyed said that their rewards credit card inspires them to travel more. Almost as many they have opened a credit card specifically to receive the travel rewards. In fact, 42% said they intend to use their cards to book hotels this summer, while slightly fewer (31%) said they plan to use their points for airfare, and nearly as many (29%) said they plan to redeem their points to dine out while traveling.
Generational Divides
There are notable generational differences in how travel rewards points are used, according to The Points Guy research. Millennials and Gen Xers are more likely to use their points for summer travel compared to other generations.
Specifically, 73% of Gen Zers and 69% of millennials have used their credit card rewards for travel-related expenses, compared to 55% of Gen Xers and 47% of Baby Boomers. This indicates a clear trend: younger generations are more inclined to use their rewards for travel, suggesting that credit card rewards resonate more with these age groups.
It also tracks with similar findings from Bankrate, which showed that 44% of Gen Zers and 37% of millennials expect to spend more on travel in 2024 than they did a year ago, while just 34% of Baby Boomers said the same. The study also found that men were more likely than women to use their credit card rewards for travel-related expenses, whereas women were more likely to use rewards for cash back.
Finally, 80% of those with rewards cards prefer to let their credit card rewards accumulate as much as possible before using them. But 40% of all rewards cardholders admit they are often unsure when to use their rewards, which might be why so many points end up accumulating.