Here is how Honest Points gets from your trip to a single answer. We follow one example trip through five steps. Every figure comes from the same engine and the same dated data as the trip planner.
Baseline source date June 8, 2026. Award prices are planning estimates.
Example. New York to London, economy, round trip, one traveler. Select a numbered line to highlight its part of the arithmetic. The complete answer stays visible.
The sample fare is the cash alternative. Enter your own fare to compare a trip you found.
Planning range: 25,000 to 70,000 points. This does not confirm a bookable award.
Chase Ultimate Rewards. Source date June 8, 2026. A planning value, not a promised redemption rate.
Points at baseline: 40,000 × 1¢ ÷ 100 = $400. Award cash fees are omitted.
Hypothetical holding: 50,000 points. This is a planning comparison. Availability and actual award fees still need checking.
Highlighted: Displayed verdict. Use points.
Open the complete trip in the planner →Example. New York to London, economy, round trip, one traveler. The fare you see is $650. You hold 50,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points. This is a made-up trip, not a live fare.
Step 1
You give us a route, a cabin, and the cash fare you see on an airline or booking site. The fare is the number points have to beat. We do not look up fares ourselves, so the answer is only as current as the fare you enter.
Leave the fare out and we can only estimate. The answer says so, and it asks you to add the fare.
Step 2
Next we estimate the award price, the number of points the trip would cost. We sort routes by distance and cabin. New York to London is about 3,443 miles each way, which our estimate treats as medium-haul.
For a round trip in economy, that comes to about 40,000 points, in a range of 25,000 to 70,000. This is a planning estimate, not a live price. Airlines change award prices often, so check the airline before you count on it.
Step 3
Now we ask what each point is worth on this trip. First, the planning baseline. For Chase Ultimate Rewards, our baseline is 1¢ per point, source date June 8, 2026. We keep it conservative on purpose. It is a planning estimate, not a promise of what a redemption will give you.
Then the trip's own number. The engine divides the cash fare by the points the trip needs, then multiplies by 100.
A worked example, in cents per point
$650 ÷ 40,000 points × 100 = 1.6¢ per point
The marker is this trip. The dark tick is the baseline.
At 1.6¢ per point, this trip is above the 1¢ baseline. At the baseline, those 40,000 points are worth $400.
Step 4
Last, we set the two ways to pay on one scale that starts at zero. Cash is what you would pay, $650. Points are what you would spend, shown at what they are worth at the baseline, $400. Here the points side is the shorter bar, so the answer is Use points.
Cash vs. points, to scale
Cash you'd actually pay for the whole trip
What your 40,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth at our baselineOur conservative planning estimate for a point. A redemption at or above that estimate meets our model baseline; actual value depends on the booking.. You spend the points, not this cash
Example. Baseline 1¢ per point, source date June 8, 2026.
Step 5
Three cutoffs shape the answer: $200 of total cash cost, 80% of the baseline, and 70% of the trip's points. The methodology page lists them too.
The first two checks need a fare. Without one, the engine can only estimate, and the answer says so.
Four example trips, each run through the engine and shown at the same size. A card whose terms are still under re-review shows only the line Card terms under re-review. It has no card name and no card figure. A card with verified terms can be named, with its figures.
Example
New York to London
Economy, round trip, holding 50,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points
Baseline source date June 8, 2026
Run this trip yourselfExample
Los Angeles to Tokyo
Economy, round trip, holding 100,000 Amex Membership Rewards points
Baseline source date June 8, 2026
Run this trip yourselfExample
Boston to London
Economy, round trip, holding 20,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points
Baseline source date June 8, 2026
Run this trip yourselfExample
Chicago to Paris
Economy, round trip, holding 80,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points
Baseline source date June 8, 2026
Run this trip yourselfEvery answer rests on choices. Here are six, each with the fix.
Where it can be wrongWe cannot see open seats or today's award price. The points figure is a planning estimate.
The fixCheck the airline or a live award search before you move any points.
Where it can be wrongThe estimate counts points only. Some awards carry cash fees that are not in our comparison.
The fixAdd those fees to the points side before you decide.
Where it can be wrongWe do not assume them. If one is running, your points may go further than the answer shows.
The fixRead the current offer on the program's own page and weigh it yourself.
Where it can be wrongIt is our own estimate. Another method can give another number.
The fixThe baseline and its source date print beside every value. Read how we value points, then compare.
Where it can be wrongA card whose terms are still under re-review does not lead an answer. Only a card with verified terms can.
The fixRead the issuer's current terms before you apply for anything.
Where it can be wrongFares move. If your fare is old, the answer is old.
The fixRun the trip again with today's fare, or slide the fare on the break-even page.
Enter a route, a cabin and the fare you see. You get one answer and the math behind it.