Do Nectar points expire?
Nectar points have no expiry date — but an account with no activity for 12 months can be closed, and the points go with it. Here's what counts as activity, and how to never lose a balance.
Not on a date, but you can still lose them. Nectar points carry no expiry date, yet Nectar may close an account with no points earned or spent for 12 months in a row — and the points are lost with it. Scanning your Nectar card or app at Sainsbury's, Argos or eBay once a year keeps the balance safe.
- Nectar points have no expiry date, but they are lost if the account is closed, and there is nothing to recover afterwards.
- Nectar may close any account with no points earned or redeemed for a continuous 12 months. A scan at Sainsbury's, Argos or eBay counts, and so does spending points or converting them to Avios.
- Can't remember your last scan? Use your Nectar card or app on your next shop.
No date on them. Still worth watching.
Nectar never prints an expiry date, which is exactly why balances get lost: nothing reminds you that a quiet year puts the account at risk. Nanvero keeps your Nectar balance in view, tracks when it last saw activity, and warns you before 12 months pass.
Inactivity clock per program
On this page
No expiry date, but a 12-month closure rule
Not on a date, but you can still lose them. Nectar's Collector Rules say points have no expiry date, but are lost if the account is closed — and Nectar may close any account on which no points have been earned or redeemed for a continuous 12 months. So the practical rule is the same as a 12-month expiry: earn or spend at least once a year. Any scan of your Nectar card or app at Sainsbury's, Argos or eBay does it, as does spending points or converting them to Avios.
Pick the month your account last saw activity — a stay, a flight, a card purchase that earned points, or any redemption.
Your Nectar points lapse around September 2027 — about 12 months away. One qualifying earn or redemption before then resets the whole 12-month clock.
An estimate from the published 12-month rule and the month you gave, not a reading of your account. Confirm the date with the program before relying on it. Calculated as September 2026 plus 12 months, giving 2027-09.
Nectar beside the airline and hotel programs
The windows are not the same across programs, and several of the biggest have no window at all. Where a rule below differs from the one you remember, it is because the program changed it: Hilton doubled its window, and Alaska, Southwest and United each dropped theirs outright.
| Program | Expires after | Exceptions |
|---|---|---|
| Avios | 36 months of inactivity | — |
| Amex Membership Rewards | Never | points are forfeited if you close your last Membership Rewards-earning Card, or for an unpaid billing period |
| American AAdvantage | 24 months of inactivity | AAdvantage credit-card holders and members under 21 |
| Delta SkyMiles | Never | — |
| United MileagePlus | Never | — |
| Southwest Rapid Rewards | Never | points are only lost if you close your Rapid Rewards account |
| Alaska Atmos Rewards | Never | — |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 24 months of inactivity | — |
| Hilton Honors | 24 months of inactivity | — |
| World of Hyatt | 24 months of inactivity | — |
| IHG One Rewards | 12 months of inactivity | IHG Elite members, and IHG One Rewards Premier cardholders (who hold Platinum Elite) |
| Chase Ultimate Rewards | Never | points are forfeited if you close the Chase card they sit in |
| Nectar | 12 months of inactivity | — |
One scan a year at Sainsbury's, Argos or eBay
Nectar never prints an expiry date, which is exactly why balances get lost: nothing reminds you that a quiet year puts the account at risk. Nanvero keeps your Nectar balance in view, tracks when it last saw activity, and warns you before 12 months pass.
- Nectar balance kept in view
- Warned before 12 months without activity
- No password, no logging in as you
Nectar points expiry — common questions
Not on a date. Nectar's rules say points have no expiry date — but they are lost if the account is closed, and Nectar may close any account with no points earned or redeemed for a continuous 12 months. In practice, a year of doing nothing can cost you the balance.
Earn or spend at least once every 12 months. Scanning your Nectar card or app at Sainsbury's, Argos or eBay, or collecting through any Nectar partner, counts — so does spending points.
Converting spends Nectar points, which is redemption activity on the account. The Avios then sit in your British Airways Club account under Avios's own 36-month rule.
They are lost. Nectar's rules say that if an account is closed, the right to redeem the points in it is lost too — so there is nothing to recover afterwards.
Nanvero keeps your Nectar balance in view alongside your Avios and every other program, and warns you before 12 months pass without activity — so one scan at the till resets it in time. It's free to track up to five programs.
Every window on this page is read from the program’s own published terms, or from a source that quotes them, and recorded in one file with the date it was checked — so a figure here and a figure anywhere else on Nanvero are the same figure. Where a program has changed its rule the old value is not quietly overwritten, as with Hilton’s move from twelve months to twenty-four. The whole expiry cluster works from the same table.
Where these numbers come from: Nectar “Points have no expiry date but are lost if the relevant Nectar Account is closed”; “We may close any Nectar Account on which no points have been earned or redeemed for a continuous period of at least 12 months” (December 2023); Mrs Pinch points are lost “only if you do not earn or spend any points for 12 months” (15 September 2025). Programs change these rules, so we re-check them and date what we find. Confirm against your own account before relying on a deadline.
Nectar to Avios converter
Nectar and Avios convert in fixed blocks: 400 Nectar points become 250 Avios, and 250 Avios become 300 Nectar. The rate is not symmetrical, so converting back and forth loses value each time. The converter runs both directions in those set blocks and shows what any balance becomes.
Do Avios expire?
Yes. Avios lapse after 36 months with no activity on your British Airways Club account, not on a fixed calendar date. Any single earn or spend, however small, resets the clock on your entire balance. Other Avios programs, including Iberia, Aer Lingus and Qatar, set their own inactivity windows.
Do Marriott points expire?
Yes. Marriott Bonvoy points expire after 24 consecutive months of account inactivity. Any qualifying activity — a stay, a card purchase that earns points, or a points transfer — resets the 24-month clock on the whole balance. There is no fixed expiry date, so an active account never loses points to time.
Never lose points to a quiet year.
Nanvero tracks your Nectar balance and warns you before 12 months pass without activity — next to every other program you hold. Free to track up to five programs.
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