If you’ve ever spent an evening bouncing between Google Flights, an airline’s award calendar, and three different loyalty program search pages just to answer one simple question — is this flight better on points or cash? — you already understand the friction that award travel has always carried.

The seats.aero Chrome extension for Google Flights quietly erases most of it. Instead of researching cash and award pricing in two separate worlds, you now see both in the same place, at the same time, on the interface you were probably already using. For anyone chasing premium-cabin redemptions and outsized point value, it’s one of the most useful tools to land in the points-and-miles space this year.

Here’s why it belongs in your browser, how to set it up, and — just as importantly — how Canadians can rack up the transferable points that make those award seats bookable in the first place.

What the seats.aero Extension Actually Does

At its core, the extension overlays award pricing directly beneath the cash fares in your normal Google Flights search results. Search a route as you always would, and where award data exists, you’ll see how many points that same flight would cost, which loyalty programs can book it, and how that redemption stacks up against paying cash.

Hover over an award price and you get the details that matter: the specific mileage programs available, the taxes and fees, the cabin, and when that availability was last seen. Click through, and seats.aero opens the deeper booking information so you can move from “that looks good” to actually locking it in.

The extension isn’t limited to Google Flights, either — it also layers pricing into other booking platforms like Chase Travel, with more surfaces planned over time.

Why It’s a Genuine Upgrade

A few reasons this tool is worth the install:

One screen, one decision. The entire value proposition of award travel is knowing when points beat cash. Seeing both numbers side by side turns that from a research project into a glance.

It surfaces options you’d never think to check. The extension can show multiple programs that book the same seat, which is exactly where the value hides — the same flight might cost 60,000 points through one program and 25,000 through a transfer partner you happened to have.

Powerful filtering. You can narrow results by specific airline programs, by the transferable-points currencies you actually hold, and (for Pro members) by maximum points price and maximum taxes and fees. Set it to your world and the noise disappears.

It meets you where you already are. Google Flights remains the best tool for comparing schedules and cash prices. This simply adds award intelligence on top, rather than asking you to learn a new interface.

How to Install the Extension: A Quick Guide

Getting set up takes about two minutes.

1. Open the Chrome Web Store. The extension is published by Travel Data Corporation (seats.aero’s parent). It works on Google Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers, including Microsoft Edge and Brave. Firefox and Safari aren’t supported yet.
2. Review the permissions before you add it. By installing, you’re granting the extension permission to read and modify data on Google, Chase Travel, Amex Travel, and seats.aero. That’s what lets it inject award pricing into those pages — but make the call for yourself before clicking.
3. Click “Add to Chrome” and confirm. Installation is quick and the extension begins working immediately.
4. Pin it to your toolbar. Click the puzzle-piece Extensions icon to the right of your address bar and pin seats.aero so it’s always one click away.
5. (Optional) Sign in for Pro features. You can use the extension without an account to access free features. To unlock live searches and expanded availability, sign in with a seats.aero Pro account.

How to Search for Award Flights: A Quick Guide

Once it’s installed, you barely change your habits.

1. Go to Google Flights and search your route exactly as you normally would — origin, destination, dates, cabin.
2. Read the award pricing beneath each cash fare. Wherever seats.aero has data, the points cost appears right under the dollar price. If a flight shows no award price, it simply means there’s no award data (or availability) for that itinerary.
3. Hover for the full picture. Roll over an award price to reveal the alternative programs, taxes and fees, cabin, and when availability was last confirmed.
4. Apply your filters. A filter panel lets you dial in by program, transfer partner, maximum points, and maximum fees. If the pop-up feels intrusive at first, click the small airplane-window icon in the corner to minimize it.
5. Click through to book. Selecting an award price opens seats.aero’s booking details so you can head to the right program and complete the redemption.

Free vs. Pro: Which Do You Need?

The extension works for everyone, but the depth of data depends on your membership.

• Free users can view cached award results for direct flights up to 60 days out. For spontaneous trips and near-term planning, that’s often plenty.
• Pro members (around $10/month) unlock live searches, connecting itineraries, results beyond 60 days, expanded availability, and the advanced fee/points filters. If you plan travel months ahead or hunt premium cabins across many programs, Pro pays for itself quickly.

A quick honesty note from testing across the community: the extension occasionally logs users out, so you may need to sign back in now and then. A minor annoyance against a genuinely useful tool.

Now for the Other Half of the Equation: Earning the Points

Here’s the truth that separates casual travellers from people who fly business class for a fraction of the cash price: a great award-search tool is only as good as the points balance behind it. seats.aero can find you a spectacular Aeroplan or partner redemption — but you still need the miles to book it.

For Canadians, no card fills a transferable-points balance faster on everyday spending than the American Express Cobalt® Card.

Why the Amex Cobalt Is Canada’s Best Daily-Spend Card

The Cobalt’s genius is that it rewards the categories where Canadians actually spend the most, and it earns Membership Rewards points — the flexible currency that transfers to airline and hotel partners. Here’s the current earn structure:

• 5X points on eligible eats & drinks — restaurants, cafes, bars, food delivery, and stand-alone grocery stores in Canada — up to $2,500 in spend per month. That’s the highest grocery-and-dining multiplier of any mainstream Canadian card.
• 3X points on eligible streaming subscriptions in Canada.
• 2X points on eligible gas, transit, ride share, and travel purchases.
• 1X point on everything else.
• 1 additional point per $1 on eligible hotel and car-rental bookings made through Amex Travel Online.

Run your monthly groceries and dining through the 5X category and the points accumulate remarkably fast — this is a card that can generate tens of thousands of Membership Rewards points a year from ordinary life, before you’ve booked a single flight.

The Benefits That Make It More Than an Earning Machine

• Flexible, transferable points. Membership Rewards transfer 1:1 to Aeroplan and convert to partners like Marriott Bonvoy, British Airways Avios, and Flying Blue — precisely the programs seats.aero helps you search. This is the bridge between everyday spending and that business-class seat.
• Genuinely useful travel insurance. Coverage includes out-of-province/country emergency medical (for those under 65), car rental theft and damage, flight and baggage delay, lost or stolen baggage, and travel accident insurance.
• Everyday protection. Mobile device insurance (up to $1,000), purchase protection, and extended warranty coverage come built in.
• Amex Experiences & Offers. Front Of The Line presale access to concerts and events, plus targeted Amex Offers that can offset a meaningful chunk of the card’s fee.
• A monthly fee structure. At $15.99/month, the fee is billed monthly rather than as one annual hit — easier on cash flow and simple to cancel if your spending patterns change.

Welcome bonuses on the Cobalt change regularly and are typically structured as monthly points for hitting a spend threshold, so check the current live offer before you apply to make sure you’re getting the strongest available deal.

Putting It All Together

The modern points strategy is beautifully simple: earn flexible points on autopilot, then deploy them intelligently. The Amex Cobalt handles the earning, quietly turning your groceries, dinners, and daily life into a growing Membership Rewards balance. The seats.aero Chrome extension handles the deploying, showing you exactly when and where those points unlock outsized value — right inside the Google Flights search you’re already running.

Master both sides, and premium travel stops being an aspiration and starts being a habit.

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