Airline Miles: How to Claim Them (Including Past Flights)

Key takeaways

• Airline miles are earned through loyalty programs by flying, using airline credit cards, or partner services, and can be redeemed for flights, upgrades, and other perks.
• If you forget to add your loyalty number before booking or weren’t a member when flying, most airlines let you retroactively claim miles within a specific time frame, usually from 6 to 12 months after the flight.
• Each major US airline has different rules for claiming missed miles, with required info like ticket numbers and loyalty IDs, and varying windows to submit requests, so checking the airline’s policy is essential.
• With Going membership plans, you can get real-time flight deals as soon as prices drop for domestic and international flights. That way, you know you're getting some of the cheapest flights every time.

In all of the excitement (and sometimes stress) of booking a trip, it can be easy to overlook the details. Take, for instance, claiming your airline miles. Maybe you completely forgot to add your loyalty number before clicking “Purchase Flight”—or worse, you weren’t even a member at the time of purchase. Luckily, most airlines recognize that if you’re going to stick around as a loyal customer, it’s in their best interest to let you claim those miles retroactively (yes, even people who were not yet members before they bought the flight). 

So what exactly are airline miles, how do they work, and what are airlines’ policies when it comes to requesting old or missing miles? 

How do airline miles work? 

Airlines offer loyalty programs that enable you to accrue miles—sometimes called frequent flyer miles—on qualifying purchases, like when you take a flight with that airline. Some loyalty programs even allow you to earn miles when you pay for qualifying purchases using the airline’s credit card, dine at partner restaurants, or fly through partner airlines. 

Airline partnerships are often called alliances. The biggest ones are Star Alliance, SkyTeam, and Oneworld.  

Miles can be redeemed for free or discounted flights in the future, hotel stays, and upgrades, like a better seat. Members of these programs usually also receive additional benefits, such as priority boarding, additional free checked baggage, or the ability to earn more miles on more purchases or bookings. 

Some of the most popular airline loyalty programs in the US include: 

• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan 
• American Airlines AAdvantage
• Delta SkyMiles 
• JetBlue TrueBlue 
• Southwest Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus

How to earn airline miles

Earning airline miles is usually as simple as signing up for the airline’s loyalty program. For American Airlines, it’s AAdvantage. For United, it’s MileagePlus. And so on.

When you sign up, the airline will give you a personal identification number, which you can add during the checkout process in order to earn miles for flights. Understanding the value of airline miles helps you make the most of these rewards, as you can use them for upgrades, free flights, or other valuable benefits.

How to claim miles after your flight

If you forgot to input your loyalty number during checkout—or if you weren’t even a member at the time of your flight—you can retroactively claim those miles, or request a mileage credit. You can usually do this from within your account, through the airline’s website, or by contacting the airline’s customer service number. 

Here’s what you need to know about requesting miles from six popular US airlines. 

Ready to earn rewards? Learn about points and miles, now!

Alaska Airlines

• Loyalty program: Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
• Alliance: Oneworld
• When to request: At least 7 days after Alaska flight date, or at least 14 days after partner flight date
• Submit request by: 12 months after flight (may be within 6 months depending on partner airline)
• Member status: Alaska states that you need to have been a member at the time of travel to collect miles. If you’d like to try to claim miles if you weren’t a member at the time of travel, contact Alaska customer service. 
• Request your miles

You’ll need your Mileage Plan number and 13-digit ticket number, which you can find in your confirmation email or in the description field of your credit card statement if you paid by credit card. If you don’t have your Mileage Plan number, a customer service representative can help you add your miles using the confirmation code on your purchase receipt. 

Don’t have your Mileage Plan number? Don’t worry. A customer service representative can help you add your miles with the confirmation code on your purchase receipt.

American Airlines

• Loyalty program: American Airlines AAdvantage
• Alliance: Oneworld
• When to request: At least 3 days after flight
• Submit request by: 12 months after flight. According to American’s terms and conditions, flights taken more than 30 days prior to you becoming a loyalty member are not eligible for retroactive miles.
• Member status: You do not need to be a member at the time of travel to claim miles, but you may be denied the miles if you were not a member within 30 days of the flight. 
• Request your miles

To request flight miles, you’ll need your AAdvantage number and 13-digit ticket number. You can find your ticket number in your confirmation email and receipt, on your airport receipt, or in your credit card statement. If you don’t have an AAdvantage number, you should sign up for the program first and then use your new number to request your miles. You can also request miles through American Airlines partners here. 

Note that, while American terms and conditions state that you are not eligible to claim retroactive miles if you took a flight more than 30 days before becoming a loyalty member, you should contact customer service to see whether a human agent can help you get the miles added to your account. It may not be possible (or it may require you calling back a second or third time to speak with a different agent), but it’s worth a shot. 

Looking to save on travel? Discover how to earn and redeem points and miles with credit cards for your next big trip.

Delta Air Lines

• Loyalty program: Delta SkyMiles
• Alliance: SkyTeam
• When to request: At least 7 days after flight 
• Submit request by: 9 months after flight
• Member status: You do not need to be a member at the time of travel to claim miles; retroactive miles are given for flights taken 9 months prior to enrollment in the SkyMiles program.
• Request your miles

Delta’s SkyMiles program is slightly stricter than the loyalty programs of other airlines—you only have nine months after your flight to request miles whether you are a member at the time of  your flight or not. But even if you are not a member at the time of your flight, you can still sign up for the program after the fact and request your miles retroactively. 

In order to request miles, you’ll need your SkyMiles number and ticket number. You can also request miles through eligible Delta partners by selecting My SkyMiles → scrolling to All Other Miles Requests → and selecting Delta Partner Flights. 

JetBlue

• Loyalty program: JetBlue TrueBlue
• Alliance: None, but it has TrueBlue partnerships with several airlines. For which airlines you can earn with, redeem with, or both, see below. 
• When to request: At least 14 days after flight
• Submit request by: 12 months after flight
• Member status: JetBlue doesn’t specify whether you need to be a member at the time of travel to claim miles. JetBlue’s FAQs state that you can request miles up to 12 months after you’ve taken the flight—though it does not say whether you need to have been a member or not—so you should contact customer service if you’re experiencing issues. 
• Log into your TrueBlue account to request miles, or learn more about the program here

You’ll need to log into your TrueBlue account and input your ticket number to request missing miles from a JetBlue flight or TrueBlue partner. 

While JetBlue is not part of an alliance, it has TrueBlue partnerships with nearly a dozen airlines, enabling you to earn miles when you fly with them, redeem miles with them, or both. Here’s the breakdown: 

• Earn and redeem TrueBlue points: Cape Air, Etihad Airways, Hawaiian Airlines, Icelandair, Qatar Airways, TAP Air Portugal
• Earn TrueBlue points: JSX, Silver Airways, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways
• Redeem TrueBlue points: Japan Airlines

Southwest Airlines

• Loyalty program: Southwest Rapid Rewards
• Alliance: None, however loyalty members who book an itinerary through Icelandair that includes a Southwest Airlines operated segment can earn points, as well as other perks
• When to request: About 5 days after flight (this is the amount of time Southwest says it takes for points to post to your account)
• Submit request by: 12 months after flight
• Member status: You do not need to be a member at the time of travel to claim miles.
• Request your miles

Log into your account, select “Rapid Rewards”, and request past flight miles using your flight confirmation number for past Southwest flights or purchases through Southwest partners. 

Thanks to Southwest’s partnership with Icelandair, announced in 2024, you can earn points on Southwest even if you booked your ticket through Icelandair. However, note that you will only receive miles for the portion of your itinerary that is operated by a Southwest flight. 

United Airlines

• Loyalty program: United MileagePlus
• Alliance: Star Alliance
• When to request: United says points are usually posted to your account within 48 hours, but it’s advised you wait about a week after your flight before requesting missing miles.
• Submit request by: 12 months after flight
• Member status: United states in its MileagePlus rules that mileage can only be accrued after you’ve officially enrolled in the loyalty program unless expressly permitted by United. Therefore, if you’d like to request miles from before you became a loyalty member, you should contact United customer service. They may not approve your request, but it’s worth a shot. 
• Request your miles

For United and eligible partner flights, you’ll need to add your 13-digit ticket number. Some partner flights may require additional flight information in order to complete your request. 

Thinking about a mileage run to get more miles in a certain period of time? Here's what you should know about when mileage run are worth it. 

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