IHG’s latest points sale was scheduled to wrap up on November 5. It now runs through 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, which buys you a few extra days to decide whether to buy IHG points at the best price this promotion offers: half a cent apiece.
That price lives only in the top tier. A single order of 40,000 points or more gets a 100% bonus, while smaller orders earn 80% or 90%. Whether any of it makes sense has less to do with the bonus and more to do with whether you already have a specific stay in mind.
What you get when you buy IHG points this week
IHG figures the bonus one transaction at a time, so how you size each order matters more than your total for the week. Anything under 5,000 points in one go earns nothing extra.
| Points in one order | Bonus | Rough cost per point |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 to 4,000 | None | No discount |
| 5,000 to 10,000 | 80% | 0.75 cents |
| 11,000 to 39,000 | 90% | 0.53 to 0.61 cents |
| 40,000 and up | 100% | 0.5 cents |
The yearly ceiling is 200,000 purchased points, and earlier 2026 purchases eat into it. Someone who picked up 50,000 points in a previous sale has room for only 150,000 more. Use the full 200,000 at the top tier and you pay $2,000 for 400,000 points once the bonus lands.
Your own offer may look different. The percentage and the tier cutoffs can vary by member, and you only see yours after signing in to your IHG One Rewards account. Confirm that screen before counting on the 100% figure.
The real cost at half a cent per point
At the 100% tier, each block of 10,000 points costs $50. Order 40,000 and you walk away with 80,000 points for roughly $400.
The cleanest way to judge the deal is a quick side-by-side. Pull up the cash rate and the points rate for the exact nights you want, then multiply the points rate by 0.005. If the result sits well under the cash price with taxes, it makes sense to buy IHG points for that stay. If the two numbers are close, paying cash keeps your money flexible instead of locking it into one hotel currency.
That math only works with a real booking in front of you. A generic cents-per-point target tells you little about a specific hotel on specific dates.
Who comes out ahead
- Members a little short of an award. If you have already priced a stay and need a few thousand more points, a small top-off can close the gap. Just aim for at least 5,000 points so a bonus applies.
- Buyers who can place one order of 40,000 or more. That is the only route to 0.5 cents. Breaking the same total into smaller orders pushes you down a tier.
- Travelers with firm dates in the next year. Points earmarked for a near-term trip carry little risk of sitting idle.
If you hold more than one hotel currency, it is worth comparing this offer with the recent Hilton points purchase bonus before deciding where your cash goes.
Who should skip it
- Status chasers. Purchased points, bonus included, earn nothing toward IHG One Rewards Elite status. Our guide to how IHG credit card elite status works covers routes that do count.
- Just-in-case buyers. When you buy IHG points for nights you have not planned, you are fronting cash for value you may never use.
- Anyone expecting hotel-category earning. The sale is processed by points.com, so the charge does not code as IHG hotel spending or as travel. Bonus categories on an IHG co-branded card will not kick in.
The IHG points sale 2026 pattern
Sales like this one have been routine all year. Between January 15 and September 15, IHG ran several 100% offers priced at 0.5 cents, plus one 80% offer at about 0.56 cents. The October 10 to 13 promotion went a bit further, adding 3,500 extra points on top of a 100% bonus for a rate as low as 0.48 cents.
That track record is the strongest reason not to stockpile. With another discount likely around the corner, there is little upside if you buy IHG points months before you know where you are going.
Before you buy IHG points, check these details
- Sign in and confirm your personal bonus tier before you enter card details.
- Keep each order at 40,000 points or more if you want the 0.5-cent price.
- Subtract anything you already purchased in 2026 from the 200,000-point limit.
- Allow up to 72 hours for the points to appear, so do not count on grabbing a tight award the same afternoon.
- If points.com will not take your IHG login, start from an IHG sale email or the IHG app instead.
- Charge it to a card that earns well on general spending, or one where you still need to hit a welcome bonus spending requirement.
Frequently asked questions about buying IHG points
Does buying IHG points count towards status?
No. Bought points and their bonus earn no credit toward Elite status in IHG One Rewards.
Can you buy IHG points with an IHG credit card?
You can pay with one, but the purchase runs through points.com and does not code as an IHG hotel charge. A card with a higher rate on general purchases usually returns more.
How does buying IHG points work?
You sign in to your IHG One Rewards account, choose an amount in 1,000-point steps and pay through points.com. The bonus is set per transaction by the tier that single order reaches.
Should you buy IHG points before November 10?
Go ahead if you can name the hotel and dates and the 0.5-cent math beats the cash rate for that stay. Status seekers and anyone buying on a hunch can let this round pass, since IHG has repeated it all year. Half a cent is cheap for points with a destination and expensive for points without one.
