Nectar to Avios, and back: how to convert, the rate and when it's worth it
Douglas26 Mar 2026
Last Updated: 10 Nov 2026
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DouglasLast Updated: 10 Nov 2026
Your weekly shop at Sainsbury's, a tank of fuel at Esso and the odd Argos order all quietly add Nectar points to your account. Left alone, they knock a few pounds off the next shop. Moved across to Avios, the same points can help pay for a reward flight, and some families fund a city break this way without really noticing.
Here's exactly how the two-way link between Nectar and The British Airways Club works, what you get in each direction, how long it takes, and how to tell whether a conversion is a good idea for you. When your balance is ready, Reward Flight Finder shows you where those Avios can take you.
| Direction | Rate | Converts in | How fast | What each point is worth after |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nectar to Avios | 400 Nectar points = 250 Avios | Multiples of 400 Nectar points | Instant | Each Avios costs you 0.8p of Nectar value |
| Avios to Nectar | 400 Avios = 400 Nectar points | Multiples of 400 Avios | Up to 12 days | Each Avios becomes 0.5p to spend with Nectar |
Rates and timings as of November 2026, from Nectar's British Airways page, Nectar's conversion rate FAQ and BA's Nectar page. A Nectar point is worth 0.5p when you spend it, because 500 points are worth £2.50 at Sainsbury's.
The two rates aren't the same, so the route is one way in practice. Send 400 Avios to Nectar and bring the points straight back and you'll end up with 250 Avios. Only convert when you're sure which side you want the value on.
You need to be 18 or over and a member of both programmes. If you don't have a BA Club account yet, it's free to join on ba.com, and you'll need your membership number when you book a reward flight.
Each Nectar account can link to one BA Club account at a time, and you can change which accounts are linked up to four times a year, according to the Avios Nectar page. Each person in a BA Household Account can link their own Nectar account, as Nectar's BA FAQs explain. Those FAQs also say you can link to a friend's or family member's account, but the Avios site says personal details must match for a transfer to go through, so linking accounts in your own name is the safe route.
The steps are the same, just in reverse. Once your accounts are linked, choose to convert Avios into Nectar points on the same exchange page.
The rate in this direction has been cut twice. At launch in 2021, 250 Avios bought 400 Nectar points. That became 300 Avios in November 2022 and 400 Avios from 11 March 2024, as MoneySavingExpert reported at the time.
Before you convert Nectar to Avios, divide your balance by 400, ignore anything after the decimal point, and multiply by 250. Here's how that works out for some common balances, with what the same points would be worth if you spent them as Nectar.
| Nectar points | Avios you get | Worth as Nectar at Sainsbury's | What those Avios could cover |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4,000 | 2,500 | £20 | A start towards a short-haul reward flight |
| 10,000 | 6,250 | £50 | Around a third of an off-peak Economy return to Amsterdam |
| 20,000 | 12,500 | £100 | The full Nectar American Express welcome bonus, converted |
| 32,000 | 20,000 | £160 | An off-peak Economy return, London to Amsterdam (20,000 Avios plus taxes) |
| 88,000 | 55,000 | £440 | An off-peak Economy return, London to New York (55,000 Avios plus £150) |
Avios prices are per person, return, from London, checked on our Avios Calculator in November 2026. Peak dates cost more: New York rises to 66,000 Avios in Economy, and Amsterdam to 21,500. Taxes and fees are always paid in cash on top of the Avios, and they vary by airport and date. On most BA reward bookings, Reward Flight Saver caps that cash part, which is a big reason short-haul redemptions can be such good value.
Find available reward seats with British Airways and Iberia.
Usually, yes, if you're going to use the Avios on a reward flight. Every 250 Avios cost you 400 Nectar points, which you could otherwise spend as £2 at the till. That means each Avios costs you 0.8p. If the flight you book saves you more than 0.8p for every Avios you spend, after the taxes you pay, the conversion has paid off.
To check a specific trip, take the cash price of the seat you'd otherwise buy, subtract the taxes and fees you'll pay on the reward booking, and divide by the Avios needed. Our Avios Calculator gives you the Avios and the taxes for any BA route in seconds.
| Convert to Avios if | Keep your Nectar points if |
|---|---|
| You're saving for a specific reward flight and are short of the Avios you need | You'd use the Avios on hotels, car hire or paying part of a cash fare, which tend to give less per Avios |
| You can book off-peak dates, where you need fewer Avios for the same seat | You've no trip in mind, since Nectar to Avios is instant and you can convert later |
| You want a premium cabin, where each Avios often does the most work | Your household budget would genuinely benefit from the money off at Sainsbury's |
One tip: because the transfer is instant, there's no need to convert speculatively. Leave your points in Nectar, find the seat first, then move exactly what you need. Converting the other way can't be undone at the same rate, so a balance parked in Avios is committed.
Rarely. At 400 Avios for 400 Nectar points, each Avios becomes 0.5p to spend at Sainsbury's, Argos or Esso. That's well below what the same Avios typically achieve on a reward flight.
There are two cases where it makes sense:
If neither applies, it's usually better to hold on and look for a seat. Our guide to how BA reward flights work is a good place to start if you've never booked one.
Nectar's biggest strength for Avios collectors is how ordinary the spending is. You collect 1 point per £1 at Sainsbury's as standard, in store and online, plus points at Argos, Esso, eBay and hundreds of online retailers through the Nectar app and website. Personalised offers in the app can add bonus points on things you'd buy anyway, so it's worth checking them before a big shop.
About a quarter of the paying members who answered our 2026 Member Survey (523 of 2,059) said converting Nectar points is one of the ways they collect Avios, so you'd be in good company.
If you want to speed things up, the American Express Nectar Credit Card earns Nectar points on everyday card spending. As of November 2026, American Express lists:
Representative example: purchase rate 29.1% p.a. (variable), annual fee £30 (£0 in your first year), Representative APR 35.8% variable, based on an assumed credit limit of £1,200. 18+, subject to status, terms apply. Our full review asks whether the Nectar Amex beats a pure Avios card.
If you hold a card that earns Membership Rewards, such as the Gold or Platinum card, send those points straight to Avios rather than via Nectar. They transfer to the BA Club at 1 Membership Rewards point for 1 Avios, and routing them through Nectar first would lose value on the Nectar to Avios step. Our guide to where to send your American Express points walks through the transfer.
For more everyday routes into Avios, from shopping portals to household accounts, see our secret ways to collect Avios.
The hardest part of saving Avios through your shopping usually isn't the collecting. It's finding a seat on the dates you want once the balance is there. BA releases reward seats about a year ahead, and the best ones on popular routes go quickly.
That's where Reward Flight Finder helps. Search BA and Iberia reward availability across a whole month, then set Availability Alerts so we email you the moment a seat opens on your route. Convert your Nectar points when the alert lands, and book while the seat's still there. Our guide to the smartest way to find BA reward seats shows the method step by step.
6,250 Avios. That's 25 blocks of 400 Nectar points at 250 Avios each.
Up to 12 days, according to Nectar. Nectar to Avios is instant.
You can, but you'll lose out. 400 Nectar points become 250 Avios, and those 250 Avios can't make a full block of 400 to send back. Decide which side you want the value on before you move anything.
No. Neither BA nor Nectar charges a fee. The cost is in the rate: you get 250 Avios for 400 Nectar points.
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