I receive compensation for content and many links on this blog. Citibank is an advertising partner of this site, as is American Express, Chase, Barclays and Capital One. Any opinions expressed in this post are my own, and have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by my advertising partners. I do not write about all credit cards that are available -- instead focusing on miles, points, and cash back (and currencies that can be converted into the same). Terms apply to the offers and benefits listed on this page.

I call signing up for AwardWallet to track your miles and points (and expiration) one of the first two things you should do in this hobby. (The other of course is signing up for a Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.)

The free version of AwardWallet suffices for some. You enter your frequent flyer account numbers and passwords. Then you can update most of your account balances with a single click and see them on one page. You can log into your accounts with a single click.

When I first signed up I realized quickly I was happy to pay the minimum required for their premium membership that included expiration date tracking for many of my accounts.

Not only does it help you manage your points, but it also notifies you of changes to your travel reservations. That’s saved me on several occasions. Sometimes it’s an aircraft change, or a seat assignment change, and I’m able to fix my booking in advance while there are plenty of options rather than finding out at the airport with slim pickings at best.

I also feel more confident that my miles are protected when I track them with AwardWallet. I see changes in my account balances right away, since I hit one button to update my accounts each morning. If someone was stealing my miles, I would know right away and probably before they actually traveled with them. AwardWallet also ensures I know when miles post, which helps in tracking down miles I am owed rather than earning miles and merely hoping they post.

Most benefits are provided free, however there are extras that come with the ‘Plus’ version of AwardWallet, like expiration tracking for the majority of your accounts. Here’s the comparison:

AwardWallet shared with me this morning that they are going to increase the price of AwardWallet Plus to $30 per year on February 1.

However anyone that is signed up for AwardWallet Plus before February 1 (and maintains their subscription) gets to keep the $10 a year pricing indefinitely.

On February 1, 2017, the price of an AwardWallet Plus membership is increasing from $5 for six months to $30 for one year. For many years we’ve avoided any price increase, but it has become necessary to maintain the high quality of AwardWallet website and mobile apps for our increasing member base.

If you already have AwardWallet Plus you’ll want to keep it active. If you’ve never had AwardWallet Plus, you can use my code to get your first 6 months free: ViewFromTheWing.

And if you aren’t yet signed up for AwardWallet at all, you can register with the coupon code already applied with this link.

Update: AwardWallet clarifies that if you haven’t ever paid for AwardWallet Plus — if you’ve only gotten the premium servicev via coupon — that you don’t get grandfathered into the $10 price. You’d still need to pay $10 before February if you want that.

If [they have] NOT paid and only upgraded using coupon codes, then [they] would need to subscribe prior to February 1st. If [they don’t], come Feb 1 [they]’ll be presented with a price of $30 even though [they] currently ha[ve] an account at the AwardWallet Plus level