Unlike cash back, which has a value that will never change, points and miles have different monetary values depending on which loyalty program they belong to and how you use them.  For example, Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth 1 to 1.5 cents apiece, depending on what card you have, when you use them to book travel through Chase's site. If you transfer Chase points to its travel partners such as Hyatt and Southwest, on the other hand, your points' value will depend on what you book. If you used 5,000 points to book a $200 hotel stay, for example, your points would be worth 4 cents apiece — which would be considered a very solid value.