Atmos Rewards Choose How to Earn (2027): Distance vs Price Paid vs Segments, Plus Every Alaska Change from Sept 29, 2026

From October 1, 2026, Atmos Rewards members choose how Alaska and Hawaiian flights earn points and status points. Which option earns the most, what the 2027 Bank of America points transfer is worth, and every other Alaska change announced Sept 29.

Checked September 29, 2026, against the four announcements Alaska Air Group published that day, Alaska's "Choose how you earn" fact sheet, and the Atmos Rewards earning chart and FAQ on alaskaair.com. Alaska says more details are coming later in 2026, so treat this as what Alaska had published on September 29.

TL;DR

Starting October 1, 2026, you pick how your Alaska and Hawaiian flights earn points and status points for flights on or after January 1, 2027: 1 point per mile flown, 5 points per $1 of fare before taxes, or a flat 500 points per flight. You can change your pick once a year.
If you don't pick, you stay on distance, and distance loses today's fare bonuses. A First Class J ticket that earns twice the miles in status points today will earn the miles only.
The quick rule: flights under 500 miles on cheap fares earn most per flight. Long trips on sale fares earn most by distance. Fares above 20 cents a mile and above $100 a flight earn most by price paid.
Bank of America points will move into Atmos in 2027. Alaska hasn't said which cards or at what rate, and the rate decides whether it beats taking the points as cash.
Also coming: Atmos Communities grow from two to six on October 1; from November 2, Platinum and Titanium members can bring eligible children and one companion into Premium Class for free when seats are open; and in 2028, Alaska's first lie-flat seats on domestic planes, 12 Aurora Suites on at least 25 new 737-10s for select coast-to-coast flights.

The three ways to earn, in Alaska's words

Alaska's FAQ describes the choices like this:

Method	What you earn	What counts
Distance	"A mile flown is a point earned"	Miles flown "in the Main Cabin and above"
Price paid	"5 points earned per $1 spent on flights"	"base fare, premium class upgrades, preferred seating and First Class as add on purchases, excluding taxes and fees"
Segments	"a flat 500 points per segment flown"	Each flight (Alaska calls one flight a segment)

The rules that decide how much this matters:

It covers status points too. Alaska's fact sheet says members choose how they "earn points and status points on flights in 2027."
Distance changes. Today, a First Class J fare earns 200% of the miles flown and a full-fare economy Y or B fare earns 150%. Asked whether those class-of-service bonuses still apply on the distance option, Alaska's FAQ answers "No." Distance becomes one point per mile, whatever you paid.
Your status bonus still applies to points, not status points. Silver members get 25% extra points, Gold 50%, Platinum 100% and Titanium 150%, and Alaska says these bonuses "will be applied on top of base points earned from any of the earning methods." So a Gold member on price paid earns 7.5 points per $1, but still 5 status points per $1.
Where you book matters. The choice applies to "all Alaska, Hawaiian, codeshare and partner tickets booked via AlaskaAir.com and HawaiianAir.com." A partner flight booked on the partner's own site keeps earning a share of the miles flown on distance or price paid, or 500 points on segments.
Your credit card earning doesn't change. The choice only covers flights.
Saver fares: Saver fares booked on or after June 11, 2026 and flown on or after August 1, 2026 earn no points or status points today. Alaska hasn't said any of the three options changes that.

The timing: you can choose from October 1, 2026, the choice applies to flights departing on or after January 1, 2027, and you can change it "once per calendar year for future trips." If you already have an account and don't choose, you stay on distance. If you join on or after January 1, 2027, you start on price paid.

Which one earns the most?

Three comparisons decide it, one flight at a time:

Segments beat distance when the flight is shorter than 500 miles.
Price paid beats segments when your fare before taxes is more than $100.
Price paid beats distance when your fare before taxes is more than 20 cents per mile flown. A 1,000-mile flight has to cost more than $200 before taxes.

Here's how that plays out. The fares are examples, not quotes; the same math works for any trip.

Flight	Miles	Fare before taxes	Distance	Price paid	Segments	Most status points
Honolulu to Maui	100	$80	100	400	500	Segments
Seattle to Portland	129	$90	129	450	500	Segments
Seattle to Los Angeles	954	$150	954	750	500	Distance
Seattle to Los Angeles, First Class	954	$400	954	2,000	500	Price paid
Seattle to New York	2,421	$250	2,421	1,250	500	Distance
Seattle to New York, booked last minute	2,421	$600	2,421	3,000	500	Price paid
Seattle to London, business class	4,787	$3,000	4,787	15,000	500	Price paid

The First Class line shows the change. Today, that Seattle to Los Angeles J fare earns 1,908 status points. If you stay on distance, it earns 954 from January. On price paid, it earns 2,000.

What the math says, by how you fly:

Mostly island hops in Hawaii or short West Coast flights on low fares: segments earns the most. A 100-mile island hop earns five times as much as it does by distance.
Long trips in economy on sale fares: distance earns the most, as long as the fare stays under 20 cents a mile. A $250 coast-to-coast fare is about 10 cents a mile.
First Class, full fare, bookings close to departure, or business class abroad: price paid earns the most whenever the fare is over 20 cents a mile, and it's the only option that still rewards the premium seat once the cabin bonuses go.
A mix of all three: adding up last year's Alaska flights each way shows which total is biggest. The choice can be changed once a year.

Bank of America points to Atmos: the one number that decides it

Here is everything Alaska said: "In 2027, Alaska also plans to deepen its Bank of America relationship by enabling customers with eligible Bank of America card products to transfer points into Atmos Rewards." Over time, it also plans "points-transfer opportunities with other select global financial institutions."

What Alaska hasn't said: which cards count, how many Bank of America points make one Atmos point, or when in 2027 it starts. Bank of America's personal cards that earn points rather than cash back include Premium Rewards, Premium Rewards Elite and Travel Rewards. Alaska hasn't said whether any of them will qualify.

The rate is the whole story. Today, a Bank of America Premium Rewards point is worth 1 cent: the card's own page calls its 60,000-point bonus "a $600 value." We value an Atmos point at 1.55 cents. So:

If it takes this many Bank of America points	Each Bank of America point becomes worth	Compared with 1 cent in cash
1 for 1 Atmos point	1.55 cents	55% more
1.5 for 1 Atmos point	about 1.03 cents	About the same
2 for 1 Atmos point	about 0.78 cents	Less than cash

What that means: at one for one, Bank of America points moved to Atmos would be worth about 55% more than the same points taken as cash, for anyone who flies Alaska or its partners. At two for one, cash is worth more. If the transfer is part of how you weigh a Bank of America card, the rate is the number to check when Alaska publishes it.

Everything else Alaska announced, and what we think of it

Change	When	What it means
Choose how you earn	Choose from Oct 1, 2026; counts from Jan 1, 2027	The only change with a deadline soon: whichever method is on your account applies from your first 2027 flight.
Platinum and Titanium bring eligible children and one companion into Premium Class free, when space is available	Nov 2, 2026	Useful for families with top status.
Atmos Communities grow from two to six: Global Locals, Families on the Go, Culinary Journeys, Active Escapes, Club 49 and Huakaʻi by Hawaiian	Oct 1, 2026	You stay in the Community you pick until you change it, once a year. Global Locals is only for members living outside the US, Club 49 for Alaska residents and Huakaʻi for Hawaii residents. Alaska hasn't listed each Community's perks in full; its list includes award-flight discounts for children, and Families on the Go is the Community built around travel with children.
Atmos Rewards debit card	Early 2027; pre-registration open at atmosrewards.com/debit	No earning rates yet, so there's nothing to judge until Alaska publishes them.
Bank of America cardholders can move points into Atmos Rewards	2027	Its value depends on the transfer rate; see the section above.
Atmos Rewards Visa Business Card refresh: 10x points through Atmos Rewards for Business, lounge passes, free same-day confirmed changes	Late 2026	Full details "later this fall."
Members Day, with offers on the first Wednesday of each month	Next one: Wednesday, Oct 7, 2026	New offers each month.
New partners: Alterra Mountain Company, Nordstrom and Pebble Beach Resorts	Described as "upcoming"	No earning details yet.
Lie-flat Aurora Suites: 34 on every 787-9, 40 on the 787-10, and 12 on at least 25 737-10s for select coast-to-coast flights	2028 for the 737-10	The first lie-flat seats on Alaska's domestic planes, with a 19-inch screen and direct aisle access. Nothing to book yet.
Premium Reserve, a new premium economy cabin with 38 inches of pitch and a leg and calf rest	On sale next summer; flying from 2028	35 seats on the 787s, 28 on Hawaiian's A330s and 12 on the 737-10.
Hawaiian A330s rebuilt with 22 lie-flat Leihōkū Suites and new seats throughout	From 2028	Good news for Hawaii and Asia flyers, later.
New lounges: about 41,000 square feet in Seattle's C Concourse, about 13,000 in Honolulu, 14,000 in San Diego	Seattle late 2027, Honolulu early 2028, San Diego 2028	The Seattle Aurora Lounge is for Aurora Suites guests on intercontinental flights. The 500-seat Alaska Lounge side keeps today's access rules.
Alaska plans to join American's Atlantic and Pacific joint businesses (with British Airways, Iberia, Finnair, Aer Lingus, LEVEL and Japan Airlines)	Filing for approval "in the coming months"	Needs government approval first. Nothing changes for you yet.

Dates to know

October 1, 2026: the choice opens. Adding up your 2026 Alaska flights by distance, by price paid and by segments shows which one earns the most for the way you fly.
Before your first 2027 flight: if no choice is made, an existing account stays on distance, which no longer includes the First Class and full-fare bonuses.
November 2, 2026: Platinum and Titanium members can bring eligible children and one companion into Premium Class free, when seats are open.
Sometime in 2027: Bank of America transfers start. The table above shows what each possible rate would be worth.
2028: the lie-flat Aurora Suites and Premium Reserve seats start flying. They can't be booked yet.

If you're using Atmos points for a trip now, here's how we flew two people to Paris for 30,000 points.

Cover photo: an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 MAX by 4300streetcar, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Do this with your own numbers

Transfer partners — every program, ratio and live transfer bonus, checked daily
Purchase optimizer — run your own spending through the same numbers this article used