The allure of travel rewards cards makes it easy to forget that there are tons of good reasons to also hold a cash-back card in your wallet. Cash-back cards generally have a simple earning and redeeming structure, and you can’t beat the flexibility of cash rewards.
If you have a card that earns Capital One miles, consider adding a Capital One cash-back card to your wallet. With the right card pairing, you can turn your Capital One cash-back rewards into transferable miles, making them even more valuable.
Here’s what you need to know to fully maximize your Capital One rewards.
Which Capital One cash-back cards can convert to miles?
To convert Capital One cash back to miles, you’ll need to hold both a Capital One cash-back card and a miles-earning card. That way, you can combine your rewards so your cash back becomes fully transferable Capital One miles.
To be eligible to turn your cash back into miles, you’ll need one of these miles-earning cards:
| Card | Welcome offer | Earning rates | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card | Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. |
|
$395 |
| Capital One Venture X Business | Earn 150,000 bonus miles after spending $30,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. |
|
$395 |
| Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card | Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. |
|
$95 |
| Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card | Earn 20,000 bonus miles after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. |
|
$0 |
| Capital One Spark Miles for Business | Earn 50,000 miles after spending $4,500 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. |
|
$0 introductory annual fee for first year, then $95 |
Then, if you have one of the cards listed above, you can turn cash-back rewards from any of the following cards into miles at a 1:1 ratio:
| Card | Welcome offer | Earning rates | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card | Earn $200 cash back after spending $500 on purchases within three months from account opening. |
|
$0 |
| Capital One Savor Student Cash Rewards Credit Card | Earn $100 cash back after spending $300 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. |
|
$0 |
| Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card | Earn a one-time $200 cash bonus after spending $500 on purchases within three months from account opening. |
|
$0 |
| Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card | N/A. |
|
$39 |
| Capital One Quicksilver Student Cash Rewards Credit Card | Earn $100 after spending $300 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. |
|
$0 |
| Capital One Quicksilver Secured Cash Rewards Credit Card | N/A. |
|
$0 |
| Capital One Spark Cash Plus | Earn $2,000 cash back after spending $30,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Plus, earn an additional $2,000 cash bonus for every $500,000 spent during the first year. |
|
$150 |
| Capital One Spark Cash Select | Earn $500 cash back after spending $4,500 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. |
|
$0 |
With a card from each list, you can combine your rewards at a rate of 1 cent of cash back to one Capital One mile, which TPG’s July 2025 valuations peg at 1.85 cents apiece. This is thanks to the ability to transfer to Capital One’s full range of 15-plus hotel and airline partners.
It’s important to note that while you can turn your cash-back rewards into miles, Capital One does not give you the option to transfer your miles to cash back at the same rate.
Related: Cashing in Capital One miles? How to get the maximum value when redeeming miles
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How to convert cash back to miles
Follow these steps to convert your cash back to miles:
- Log in to your Capital One account and navigate to “View Rewards.”
- Select the card you want to convert cash back to miles from.
- Scroll down until you see the “Combine Rewards” section, then select that.
- Choose the card account you want to send rewards to.
- Select how much cash back you want to convert, and select confirm.
Related: Best Capital One credit cards
How to maximize your Capital One card pairing
If, for example, you have the Capital One Venture Rewards card, you earn a solid 2 miles per dollar spent on all your purchases. If you also have the Capital One Savor Cash card, you can earn an impressive 3% back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and grocery store purchases.
The magic of this card pairing is that it allows you to effectively earn 3 miles per dollar spent on these bonus purchases.
Additionally, if you want more premium perks like lounge access and an annual $300 Capital One Travel portal credit, consider pairing the Venture X with the Savor Cash.
Related: Better together: The ultimate guide to the best credit card combinations
The best Capital One no-annual-fee pair
One of the best aspects of this ability to turn cash back into miles is that you can do so without paying any annual fees.
With the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card, you’ll earn 1.25 miles per dollar spent on every purchase and have access to the same redemption options as the Venture Rewards and the Venture X for no annual fee.
The Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card offers 3% cash back on dining, entertainment and popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart and Target), plus 1% cash back on all other purchases, also for no annual fee.
So, with this duo, you could essentially earn 3 miles per dollar spent on dining, entertainment and streaming services and at grocery stores — without paying any annual fees.
Related: The complete guide to credit card annual fees
Bottom line
If you have a miles-earning Capital One card and a cash-back Capital One card, you can maximize the number of Capital One miles you earn. In doing so, you’ll be able to combine your rewards and unlock the ability to transfer those rewards to Capital One’s extensive roster of transfer partners.
If you play your cards right, your cash-back card just might become your wallet’s secret rewards weapon.
Related: The best Capital One credit cards to add to your wallet
