Award Briefing
Tools-first award travel

Reach your next level.

Everyone tells you what's "worth it". At AwardLevel you check it yourself in 60 seconds — with honest tools for miles, status and point transfers across airlines and hotels.

Check an award in 60 seconds Open the radar
By Marco — frequent flyer & globetrotter
Lufthansa Senator & Marriott Lifetime Platinum for years
Real trips, real numbers

What are you planning?

15 free tools · no account needed
01 / AWARDThe whole award trip

Include surcharges, positioning and overnight stays.

Open calculator 02 / HOTELHotel points or cash?

Compare the complete stay and remaining fees.

Open calculator 03 / SEARCHFind an award flight

Verify availability before transferring points.

Build a search plan
Premium-card renewal due?Compare the annual fee with value you actually used.
Award intelligence

Reach your next level.

Calculate, compare, read up, benefit — all in one place.

23Programs checked 15Decision tools 100%Sources linked
–honest guides
15free calculators
100 %yours to verify
FreeCore tools stay free
Explore AwardLevel

Your cockpit for miles & points

Calculate, compare, read up, benefit — all in one place.

Tools & calculators

Point value, status, transfers and a devaluation radar — answers in under a minute.

Lounges

Independent, evidence-based lounge guides — current access rules and when the detour pays off.

Guides

In-depth, honest deep-dives: sweet spots, status guides, programs, hotels & more.

Recommendations

How to earn miles, points & rewards yourself — always clearly labelled.

Just landed

Latest guides

Deep guides, not clickbait — researched, sourced and honestly calculated.

See all guides →

The Award Briefing — straight to your inbox

Devaluation warnings first, the best sweet spots, every genuinely good deal — regularly and spam-free. Free.

Free, unsubscribe anytime. You'll receive a confirmation email (double opt-in). Our privacy policy applies.

Sweet-spot calculator

Is this award redemption worth it? Work out the value you get per mile.

Pre-filled: real-world example Munich–Bangkok return, LH Business via Miles & More.

Honesty rule: Use the price you would genuinely pay — not the list price you would never have booked in cash.

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AwardLevel benchmarks are editorial comparison values, not official cash values or a promise of future redemption value.

Status calculator

How far are you from the next status tier? Pick your programme and plan your flights.

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Transfer optimizer

Where should your Amex Membership Rewards go? Compare what actually lands with each partner.

Golden rule: Never transfer speculatively. Lock in award availability first, then move your points — there's no way back.

Avios (British Airways, Iberia, Qatar) move freely between programmes — pick the one with the best award.

ProgrammeRatioYou get

Official transfer ratios for German Amex cards (verified in August 2026). "You get" = miles/points with the respective partner. Verify in your Amex account before transferring; mind minimum transfers and increments.

Devaluation radar

Announced programme changes with dates — devaluations are redemption deadlines.

The radar lists officially announced changes. Completeness not guaranteed — Award Briefing subscribers get every new announcement first.

Passenger rights calculator

Are you owed compensation under EU Regulation 261/2004? A first orientation in 20 seconds.

A claim exists from 3 h of arrival delay (long-haul sometimes from 4 h). For extraordinary circumstances the compensation falls away — but you are still entitled to care (food, hotel).

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Important — not legal advice: This calculator only gives a first orientation under EU 261/2004 (verified in August 2026). The reform was adopted on 13 July 2026 but does not apply yet; the existing rules remain decisive until the transition period has ended. The individual case is what counts. Always file your claim directly & free of charge with the airline first — you'll find the official links in the passenger-rights guide.

Loyalty intelligence

23 programs. One honest comparison.

Search the airline, hotel and transfer ecosystems that matter worldwide — including what each does well and what deserves caution.

23 programs checkedReviewed
Transfer ratios are country-specific and should be checked again immediately before transferring.
Guides

Latest guides

Deep guides, not clickbait — researched, sourced and honestly calculated.

Lounge guides

Lounges

Independent, evidence-based lounge guides — current access rules and when the detour pays off.

Which offer fits you? The 60-second finder

Three honest questions — no email, nothing stored. Calculated locally in your browser, based on your selected region.

What's your main goal?
How often do you fly?
Monthly card spend?

Honest by design: the ranking only sorts the programmes listed below — it is not financial advice, and links are labelled as ads. Always compare the provider's current terms.

Recommendations

Earn miles, points & rewards yourself

Many programmes reward referrals — for you and the person you refer. Here are the best "refer a friend" offers for frequent travellers right now. All clearly labelled.

Transparency: No paid referral links are active at present. If we activate a suitable partner, the link will be clearly labelled. It will cost you no more, but terms and reward amounts can change. Check the provider before signing up.
Travel & booking

Book — and support us along the way

If you're booking anyway, feel free to use these links: same price for you, a small commission for AwardLevel. Always labelled as advertising, always honestly recommended.

awardlevel REACH YOUR NEXT LEVEL.
Lufthansa Senator Lifetime Platinum
About AwardLevel

Hi, I'm Marco.

A frequent flyer and globetrotter at heart — on the road around the world for years, always chasing the best value for miles and points. Lufthansa Senator status and Marriott Lifetime Platinum weren't handed to me; I earned them over countless flights and nights. That's exactly where the insights here come from: what actually works, where the marketing glosses things over, and when a redemption is genuinely worth it.

I build AwardLevel the way I always wished a miles site existed: tools over theory, honest math over sales lists. The calculators will tell you "not worth it" when that's the truth.

Lufthansa Senator, earned in the air

I know the full Miles & More status stack, from Frequent Traveller to Senator, because I flew for it myself — not from press releases.

Marriott Lifetime Platinum

Lifetime status only comes after hundreds of nights — I judge hotel programmes from real, frequent-traveller experience.

DACH roots, every region covered

Flights, hotels and car rentals from one source — rooted in the German-speaking market, but covering every region in depth, from Europe and the Gulf to the Americas and Asia, because I travel them myself.

Transparency: We plan to fund part of AwardLevel through clearly labelled referral and affiliate links. None are currently active. The tools always calculate independently. How we make money →