IHG One Rewards has launched a sale dropping the price of its points to half a cent each, the lowest price the program generally offers. Starting today (October 21) through November 5, 2026, you can buy points with up to a 100% bonus. As always with buy-points sales, this is only a deal if you have a redemption in mind, because IHG regularly runs these promos.
In this post:
The Deal Math
The bonus is tiered by how much you buy in a single transaction:
- Buy 5,000 to 10,000 points: 80% bonus, about 0.75 cents per point
- Buy 11,000 to 39,000 points: 90% bonus, about 0.53 to 0.61 cents per point
- Buy 40,000 or more: 100% bonus, 0.5 cents per point
Without a promo, IHG charges $13.50 per 1,000 points, or 1.35 cents each, so the top tier cuts the price by almost two-thirds. At the maximum, 40,000 points cost $540 and the 100% bonus turns them into 80,000 points.
A few mechanics worth knowing before you buy:
- The offer is targeted, so log into your IHG account to see the bonus you were given. Your tiers may differ from the ones above.
- You can buy up to 200,000 points per calendar year before the bonus, which means a maximum of 400,000 points for $2,000 at the top tier.
- Purchased points and bonus points do not count toward IHG elite status.
- IHG sells points through Points.com, so the purchase will not code as hotel spending on your credit card. Use your best everyday-spend card instead.
When Buying IHG Points Makes Sense
Buying points only pays off when the points price beats the cash rate on a stay you have already priced. At 0.5 cents each, the points cost roughly what they are worth, so this is fair value, not a discount.
The clearest wins come at hotels where cash rates are inflated but award prices are flat. For co-branded cardholders who get a fourth night free on award stays, this stretches every point further. If you have that redemption priced out, this is a sale to use. If you are stockpiling speculatively, skip it. The next sale is probably not too far away.
One side benefit: buying points counts as account activity, which resets the 12-month points expiry clock for entry-level Club members. If your balance has been sitting untouched, a small purchase keeps it alive.
Bottom Line
A 100% bonus is the best price IHG offers on purchased points, and the November 5 deadline gives you two weeks to decide. Stay disciplined: price the stay first, only buy the IHG points needed for aredemption, and ignore the rest.
