How can I turn Avios points into cash? Can I sell my Avios?

With the economic situation looking difficult, we are getting an increasing number of emails asking:

• Can you turn Avios points into money?

• Can you sell Avios points?

• Can you turn Avios points into pounds?

Surprisingly, the answer is (sort of) ‘Yes’.

How do you turn your Avios points into cash?

You can cash in your Avios for (sort of) money if you transfer your points into the Nectar loyalty scheme. This only works if you live in the UK.

In January 2021, Sainsbury’s became the official Avios supermarket partner. That means you can now convert your Nectar points into Avios and Avios into Nectar points.

If you transfer your Avios points into Nectar points, you get 0.5p per Avios to spend at Sainsburys, eBay.co.uk, Argos etc.

This isn’t great – we aim to get 1p per Avios when redeeming for a premium cabin flight – but it’s the best you can get.

Whilst Nectar points are, obviously, not the same as cash, they are pretty close to it. There isn’t much that you can’t buy at Sainsburys, Argos or eBay.co.uk.

What is the conversion rate between Avios and Nectar points?

The conversion rate is:

• 400 Avios = 400 Nectar points
• 400 Nectar points = 250 Avios

As you see, you will lose a lot of value if you move your Avios into Nectar points but later decide to move them back.

How to convert Avios points into Nectar points

You can convert Nectar points to Avios via the British Airways website here.

You must convert a minimum of 400 Avios which will get you 400 Nectar points.

If you are transferring FROM Avios, there is a 10 day delay. This is deliberate due to previous issues with hackers accessing British Airways accounts and emptying the Avios onto untraceable Nectar cards.

The transfer is INSTANT if you are transferring TO Avios from Nectar.

How do you spend your Nectar points?

Once your points are in your Nectar account, it is very easy to spend them.

• Sainsburys – you can scan your Nectar card at the till and choose to pay with points. The only ‘catch’ is that, for security reasons, you must previously have earned Nectar points for shopping in the same branch of Sainsburys.

• Argos – we wrote this article about how to spend Nectar points at Argos. You can redeem up to £500 (62,500 Nectar points) per transaction.

• eBay.co.uk – you need to convert your Nectar points into eBay vouchers online, and then pay with these vouchers when you make your next purchase. This article explains how to spend Nectar points at eBay.

What value do you get for ‘selling’ your Avios like this?

Let’s look at the maths here.

400 Nectar points, if spent at Sainsburys, eBay.co.uk, Argos etc would get you £2 off your shopping. As you are giving up 400 Avios, you are getting 0.5p per Avios.

I find that I do a LOT better than that redeeming for premium cabin flights. I have a spreadsheet of all the Avios I have redeemed for the last 11 years, and I have got 1.2p of value per Avios based on my own valuation of the flights I took.

However, if you would prefer to turn your Avios into cash, converting your Avios points into Nectar points is the easiest way to do it.

(This article is part of our ‘BA Q&A’ series which explains how British Airways Club works.  You can see all of our ‘BA Q&A’ articles here. )

(Head for Points is the UK’s biggest frequent flyer website with 2.6 million monthly page views.  Want to learn more about earning and spending Avios?  Click here to read our latest news stories and click here to sign up for our free weekly or daily email newsletters.)

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.