I don’t write about a lot of mileage purchase offers, because they usually aren’t a good deal. Even with a bonus of 85% or 100% the points still frequently cost more than they’re worth.

Avianca LifeMiles is known for selling miles cheaply, with bonuses not infrequently up to 145%. At 1.35 cents per mile I’d consider it (they have a reasonable award chart, no fuel surcharges, and access to Star Alliance award space) but always with the caveat that LifeMiles is great when everything goes smoothly but if your itinerary has schedule changes prior to day of travel customer service can be a nightmare.

One exception to the rule on why I don’t cover too many airline mileage sales is this one from Air Canada Aeroplan: up to 110% bonus on purchased miles, no tax for U.S. residents, and a favorable exchange rate. That brings the mileage cost down to $0.0124 per point. I value Aeroplan miles at 1.4 cents apiece.

• Reasonable redemption prices with no fuel surcharges
  
• Star Alliance and indeed more partner airlines than any other frequent flyer program
  
• Allowable stopovers on awards

Until May 22, 2023, they’re offering a bonus as follows (on May 23 the top bonus reduces to 95%):

• 60% bonus: purchases of 4,000 – 29,000 points
  
• 75% bonus: purchases of 30,000 – 55,000 points
  
• 110% bonus: purchases of 60,000 or more points

You can buy up to 500,000 points in a single transaction, yielding 1,050,000 miles for a total of CAD$17,500. You can purchase up to one million points per year, exclusive of bonuses.

When considering what credit card to use if you take advantage of this offer, Aeroplan points purchases are processed by points.com, which means they do not code on credit cards as travel or airfare.

Buying miles isn’t for everyone but this is a really great offer as far as these things go.