[Larrikin]

Regularly converting some credit card points is a good idea if you need the cash and it's a terrible system when they don't let you convert for cash. I consider any card that doesn't value points at 1:1 cent as junk.

But if you can use them within the system it's almost always a better deal. When used for airlines there's a large percentage increase in their value when buying tickets. When booking a hotel the cash price can sometimes be twice as much as the points price when I transfer credit card points in for example. Chase offers pay yourself back which increases their value on purchases in certain categories, although the categories haven't been all that great lately.

I used to convert nearly all my points to cash immediately but now I sit on enough for a small vacation before considering changing them out.