The Ground Miler Roadmap 2026 — Earn 100,000 Miles/Year via Point Activity

What Is a "Land Miler"? — Earning Miles Without Flying

A "land miler" (riku-mailer) is someone who accumulates large amounts of airline miles through everyday point-site activity — without boarding a single flight — and then uses award tickets to travel at near-zero cost. While flight miles add up slowly, high-value point-site tasks like credit card applications, FX account openings, and service trials can yield thousands to tens of thousands of points in a single shot. That gap is the land miler's edge.

Simply "giving it a try" won't get you far, though. Real results come from building a clear annual blueprint that covers each phase: earn → convert → use → adapt to rule changes. This article is your full roadmap, structured phase by phase from scratch. It also serves as the entry point to dedicated articles on JAL Miles, ANA Miles, Exchange Route Optimization, and JAL vs. ANA Comparison.

Phase 1: Lay the Foundation — Sign Up and Pick Your Airline

Before you start earning, settle two key decisions: which airline's miles to target, and which point site to use as your hub. Without these anchors, your points scatter and never reach the balance needed for an award ticket.

① JAL or ANA? Focus on one first.

JAL and ANA differ in exchange route complexity, route networks, and award availability. Rather than asking which is "better," choose based on which routes you actually want to fly and how straightforward the exchange process is for you. Beginners who chase both at once often find the management overwhelming — start with one, build momentum, then consider running both later.

※ Exchange rates and conditions change with campaigns and seasons. Always verify current details on each point site's official pages.

② Register with a point site

Point sites are the land miler's primary battlefield. Major platforms like Moppy and Hapitas are popular choices, valued for their task variety, direct mile exchange routes, and reliability. Most active land milers use more than one, switching based on which offers the best deal for a given task. See the dedicated guides: Moppy Guide and Hapitas Guide.

After registering, resist the urge to jump into tasks right away. Confirming your mile exchange route first prevents the frustrating situation of accumulating points that can't actually reach your target airline.

"Which point site to make your main axis" is the heart of a Land Miler's foundation. Weighing the breadth of cases, the directness of mile-exchange routes, and the operator's reliability, narrow your main to one or two sites and cross-compare per case while also using subs — this two-layer structure reduces missed rewards. Centering on a site strong in miles is the standard move, but the perspectives on choosing a site in general and the thinking on combinations are organized in our how-to-choose a point site guide, so looking it over before deciding your main axis spares you confusion when switching later.

Phase 2: Stack Points Through Tasks — Building Your War Chest

Point sources broadly fall into two types: high-value tasks and everyday tasks. Sustainable annual accumulation requires planning high-value tasks deliberately while also capturing everyday spend through the right payment channels.

High-value tasks: the land miler's engine

Credit card applications, brokerage account openings, FX account openings, and insurance quote requests all tend to yield large point amounts per task. FX tasks in particular can be lucrative — the common approach is completing the required trade volume quickly to minimise forex exposure. Understanding the risks involved is non-negotiable before participating.

Credit card application tasks reward a planned, year-round pace of new card applications. Opening too many cards in a short window can affect your credit profile, so managing your application schedule carefully is essential.

Everyday tasks: the steady drip

Shopping referrals, surveys, app downloads, and video views each yield modest points, but consistent habits compound over time. Simply routing your regular online shopping through a point site generates a reliable monthly baseline — especially useful if you already buy frequently online.

1. ① Map out high-value tasks for the yearFX, card applications, brokerage accounts — estimate how many you can realistically complete at your own pace.
2. ② Set up everyday shopping referralsMake point-site routing a habit for regular online purchases. Small amounts add up month after month.
3. ③ Fill gaps with surveys and micro-tasksGood for spare moments — and useful for keeping point balances active to prevent expiry.
4. ④ Know each task's approval timelineSome tasks take weeks or months to credit. Work backwards from your target exchange date to avoid timing mismatches.

When making everyday online-shopping routing a habit, the often-overlooked pitfall is the "I routed but got no points" miss. If the browser's Cookie routing information is cut off by launching an app, switching tabs, or an ad blocker, your hard-won accumulation drops to zero. For a Land Miler building up seed funds little by little, these misses add up to a big loss. The mechanism by which routing breaks and how to route so points are awarded are gathered in our Cookie and routing-tracking guide, so grasping it once before running your daily routing gives peace of mind.

Phase 3: Convert Through Relay Services — Moving Points to the Exit

Turning point-site balances into airline miles usually requires passing through one or more "relay services." Direct exchange, relay-via-intermediary, and dedicated-card-via routes each offer different effective conversion rates — choosing wisely matters.

Main paths to JAL Miles

Direct exchange from Moppy is a popular JAL mile route because of its minimal steps. During periodic bonus campaigns like the "Dream Campaign," the same number of points yields significantly more miles. Campaign timing, conditions, and frequency shift from year to year — always check Moppy's official campaign page for current details. For a full breakdown, see the JAL Miles guide.

Main paths to ANA Miles

As of 2026, the primary ANA mile exchange options are the V-Point route and the nimoca route. The V-Point route is entirely smartphone-friendly with fewer steps; the nimoca route offers a higher conversion rate but requires in-person procedures in supported regions. Which suits you depends on your lifestyle and where you live. See the ANA Miles guide and Exchange Route Optimization guide for details.

The role of relay services

Intermediaries like PeX, G-Point, and dot money let you consolidate points from multiple sites or bridge routes that don't connect directly. Each relay step can reduce the effective conversion rate, so calculate the total conversion across all steps before moving any points. The relay service guide goes deeper on this.

※ Route details and conditions change. Check Pointnavi's comparison tool and each official site for the latest.

Phase 4: Time Your Conversion — "Charging" and "Harvesting" Miles

When you convert points to miles can affect how many miles you actually receive. That's what bonus campaigns are about. Since the same point balance yields more during a campaign than at standard rates, the smart play is to "charge" points steadily, then "harvest" them during a bonus window — a cycle worth building into your annual schedule.

That said, campaign timing is never guaranteed in advance. History suggests they run periodically, but conditions, timing, and frequency all shift. The most important practical habit is to subscribe to site newsletters and watch for announcements so you never miss a window.

How to maximise efficiency during bonus windows

• Read the campaign conditions first: Campaigns often require a minimum member tier, a minimum exchange amount, or a specific eligible site. Exchanging without confirming conditions risks missing the bonus entirely.
• Separate "charging" from "harvesting": Build up points through high-value and everyday tasks, then convert in a concentrated batch during bonus periods. This cycle improves annual efficiency.
• Work backwards from mile expiry: Both JAL and ANA miles expire within a set period from the award date. First decide when you want to travel, then work backwards to determine the latest safe time to convert. Converting too early risks expiry before your trip.

Phase 5: Redeem Award Tickets — Maximising Your Miles' Value

How you spend your miles determines their real-world value per mile. While cash-back and merchandise redemptions are options, award tickets consistently deliver the highest value — a widely shared view among land milers.

How cabin class affects mile value

Even on the same route, the miles required differ substantially between economy and business class. But business class cash fares can be several times — sometimes over ten times — higher than economy, meaning the effective value per mile used on business or first class tends to be significantly higher. Check ANA's and JAL's official sites for current mileage charts by route, class, and season — these change with route changes and programme revisions.

Tips for securing award seats

Award inventory is managed separately from paid seats, and popular routes fill up fast during peak travel periods. Off-peak seasons (rainy season, early autumn) and acting on the first day bookings open (each airline publishes its advance booking window) dramatically improve your odds.

• Mark booking-open dates in your calendar: ANA and JAL both open award bookings a fixed number of days before departure (check their official sites). Logging in on that first day is the single most important action for popular routes.
• Hunt for cancellation seats during peak periods: Golden Week, Obon, and New Year's periods have thin availability, but cancellations do appear — especially in the hours before departure. Don't give up; keep checking.
• Design travel plans around low-demand seasons: January–February, June (rainy season), and September–October tend to have more award space. If your schedule is flexible, shifting travel dates to these windows is a significant advantage.
• One-way ticketing: ANA introduced one-way international award ticketing in 2026, adding routing flexibility. Check the official site for current rules.

Phase 6: Prepare for Programme Changes — Building Long-Term Resilience

Devaluations and programme changes (degradation) are an unavoidable feature of the land miler's world — point-site tasks disappearing, exchange routes closing, mileage requirements increasing, expiry rules tightening. The key is designing your approach from the start so it can absorb and recover from these shocks.

Where changes tend to hit and how to think about them

• Exchange route closures: Depending too heavily on a single route means a closure or rate cut hits hard. Simply being aware of backup routes reduces both the practical and psychological impact of any change.
• Mileage requirement increases: Increases are sometimes announced after you've committed to a travel plan. A useful heuristic: book routes where the mileage requirement is already locked in before chasing speculative future bookings.
• Stricter campaign conditions: Bonus campaign rules can tighten year over year. Don't assume "the same campaign will run on the same terms" — verify each time.
• Expiry rule changes: Both miles and points have expiry dates that can shift. Deciding when you'll travel first, then working backwards to your conversion date, keeps expiry risk low.
• Task termination and value changes: High-value tasks can disappear or change at any time. A mobile mindset — act on good tasks when you find them — beats waiting. Use Pointnavi to compare, confirm conditions and timing, then proceed.

The preparations against downgrades around exchange routes and miles discussed here are continuous with the stumbles of point-earning in general — forgetting to route, forgetting to cancel a free trial, and letting earned points expire. Because Land Milers who work cases year-round have a high transaction count, these basic misses become painful when they pile up. If you want to know the common failure patterns and how to avoid them ahead of time, reading our point-earning failure-patterns guide as well lets you reduce misses on both fronts alongside downgrade measures.

Build a Repeatable Annual Schedule

Land milers who plan the year in advance — a calendar-driven approach — consistently outperform those who act only when inspiration strikes. Here are the key elements to bake into your yearly framework.

1. ① Q1 (Jan–Mar): Card applications and task accumulationThe New Year often brings a wave of attractive signup campaigns. Begin accumulating while managing your application pace. It's also tax season — a good time to document your point income.
2. ② Q2 (Apr–Jun): High-value tasks and balance reviewA season when FX and other high-value tasks tend to concentrate. Review point balances and expiry dates; manage any expiry risk.
3. ③ Q3 (Jul–Sep): Travel planning and booking-date prepIf you're targeting next year's Golden Week or summer travel, work backwards from the award booking-open date to have your mileage in place. Use any bonus campaigns that appear.
4. ④ Q4 (Oct–Dec): Final accumulation and conversionYear-end shopping creates opportunities to build points through referrals. Do a final check on remaining miles and expiry dates; adjust to avoid waste.

This framework is a skeleton, not a rigid script. Bonus campaigns appear at unexpected times; targeted tasks can vanish overnight. Having a framework while staying flexible is what separates seasoned land milers from beginners.

Dive Deeper — Specialist Articles for Each Phase

This article covers the full land-miler roadmap at a high level. For deeper dives into each phase, explore the dedicated articles below.

Mini Glossary — Key Terms for Land Milers

Knowing the vocabulary of "earn → convert → use → prepare for changes" makes annual planning much easier. Learn each term alongside its practical watch-out.

These are the building blocks of the land-miler mindset. The core principle is to sketch the annual blueprint — earn → convert → use → adapt to devaluations — before you start. Focus on JAL or ANA first, build your war chest through high-value tasks and everyday spend, convert in bulk during bonus windows, and maximise value with award tickets (especially in premium cabins). Treat devaluations as inevitable and maintain multiple route options; always decide where you want to travel, then work backwards to your conversion date to avoid expiry. Rates and campaigns change — verify with official sources and Pointnavi as you go.

Frequently Asked Questions