Transfer Amex MR to Etihad Guest — ratio, bonuses, sweet spots

How to transfer

The deal

1:1

Amex MR → Etihad Guest

Instant

Open Amex MR →Open Etihad Guest →

Cents per Etihad Guest point

Economy

1.1¢

Business

1.5¢

First

1.7¢

Approx value per point on average bookings. Sweet-spot redemptions can hit 3.5¢+ per point.

Do this first

Confirm award space on Etihad Guest BEFORE you transfer

Transfers are final and cannot be reversed. Open Etihad Guest's site in another tab, sign in, and load the exact flight you want at the points price you expect. Come back only when you're ready to redeem.

Open Etihad Guest award search →

What you should know

You need a free Etihad Guest account

Amex MR asks for your Etihad Guest member number during the transfer. Sign up takes a minute and costs nothing.

Create Etihad Guest account →

Minimum transfer: 1,000 Amex MR points

You can't transfer less than 1,000, and transfers must be in increments of 1,000.

Instant — usually under a minute

This transfer pair is marked instant and typically posts within seconds to a few minutes. Even so, occasional system delays happen — wait until you see the points in your destination account before doing anything else. These are typical times, not guarantees — always confirm award space first because transfers can't be reversed.

Cancellation: cancellation has a fee

Most restrictive in the industry. Value awards can’t be cancelled. Comfort awards forfeit 25% of miles. Nothing cancellable within 72h of departure.

Fee: NoneWindow: Until 72h beforeTaxes: Refunded as miles

Points expiration

Amex MR: Membership Rewards points never expire as long as you have at least one Amex card open and in good standing.
Etihad Guest: Etihad Guest miles expire 18 months after earning. Status holders get longer windows.
Heads up: your Amex MR points don't expire, but Etihad Guest points (after transfer) do.

Step by step

1
Log in to American Express
Go to americanexpress.com and click Log In in the top right.
2
Navigate to Transfer Points → View All
Under Membership Rewards, find the Transfer Points tile and click View All to see every partner.
3
Pick Etihad Guest from the partner list
Scroll the airline partners and click Etihad Guest. The ratio shown should be 1:1.
4
Link your Etihad Guest account
Enter the name on your Etihad Guest account exactly as it appears there, plus your card ID, security code, and Etihad Guest member number. Click Link Account.
5
Confirm the account is linked
Amex shows a confirmation page with your Etihad Guest number. Click Continue to Transfer Points.
6
Open your linked Etihad Guest card and click Transfer Points
On the Transfer Points screen you should now see Etihad Guest as a linked program. Click Transfer Points on its card.
7
Enter the amount and confirm
Type the number of Membership Rewards points to transfer (1,000-point increments). Tick the terms box and click Confirm & Transfer Points. Transfers to Etihad Guest usually post instantly — but always confirm award availability on Etihad Guest.com first.