Capital One Venture Rewards review (new! up to $1,000 bonus )

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Redeem Miles for Travel Statement Credits

Redeeming your Venture miles is easy. But, other flexible travel credit cards have more valuable redemption options if you are willing to make some tradeoffs in terms of smaller purchase rewards.

With the Capital One Venture, each mile is worth 1 cent each (10,000 miles=$100) and can be redeemed for travel statement credits to reimburse the cost of your travel purchases. This is the standard redemption rate for most travel credit cards.

Capital One has added 1:1 transfer partners and even has airline lounges. But, the airlines might not work well for you and only a few are 1:1 transfer partners.

Check out our post on everything you need to know about Capital One transfer partners to learn more.

Why Other Redemption Programs Can Be Better

If you also want to have the option of transferring your miles to other airline and hotel loyalty programs, including United, Southwest Airlines, British Airways Avios, Hyatt, or Marriott on a 1:1 basis, you might also consider the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred review includes showing how it is a travel card that has 1:1 point transfers and a 25% point redemption bonus when using the Chase Travel℠ portal. It has a $95 annual fee and no foreign transaction fee, similar to the Venture card.

The Venture Card’s primary competitor is the Chase Sapphire Preferred. You can see our detailed comparison of the Chase Sapphire Preferred vs Capital One Venture Rewards credit card to learn more.

Additional Ways to Redeem Miles

Cardholders can also redeem their miles to shop online with PayPal. Cardholders can use rewards earned with select cards on purchases at eligible online retailers. To use this benefit, simply checkout using PayPal Pay with Rewards after linking your eligible Capital One card to your PayPal account.

You can also use your Capital One Venture Rewards miles at Amazon.com. Similar to PayPal, you’ll need to link your eligible Capital One card to your Amazon account. When you go to checkout, you should have the option to pay with rewards.

$1,000 in travel offer: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Capital One Venture Card Benefits

Capital One Venture card benefits vary from travel perks to additional benefits like car collision coverage. The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is a Mastercard® product.

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is made of metal. In the ultra-competitive credit card arena, high-end cards are now being made out of metal. They still work the same as the classic plastic credit cards you might carry, but this metal card can be a great way to turn some heads.

Related: Best Metal Credit Cards

Is The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Worth $95 A Year?

Like similar travel credit cards, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has a $95 annual fee. You will never pay a foreign transaction fee. Plus, there’s no additional fee for adding an authorized user.

Is the Capital One Venture Rewards card worth its $95 annual fee?

You have to be the judge of that, as it depends on how you want to earn and redeem your miles.

Your Credit History Also Matters

It might also depend on your credit history.

You need a good to excellent credit score (700+) on the Capital One Venture to maximize your approval odds. But Capital One is more lenient in approving credit card applications if you regularly apply for cards.

To help make your decision a little easier, we will look at the pros and cons of the Capital One Venture Credit Card reviews.

Pros of Capital One Venture Credit Card

• Earn at least 2x miles per $1 on purchases, with no limit on how much you can earn
• 5x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
• You can transfer miles to leading travel programs
• The redemption minimum is 2,500 miles ($25) for a travel purchase
• Rewards don’t expire

Cons

• No mile redemption bonuses
• Limited airline transfer partners

Related: The Best Credit Cards for Online Shopping

Capital One Venture Card Review

This Capital One Venture Card review hopefully shows how this is a solid travel rewards card. It gives you the maximum number of miles on each purchase. If you want an airline miles credit card that makes it easy to earn or redeem miles, this can be a good option. Simplicity is a key advantage of this card.

$1,000 in travel offer: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Review: Capital One Venture Credit Card and Transferable Miles

If you’re in the market for one of the best travel cards, there’s one major decision that will help narrow down your choices: do you want to redeem your miles as a statement credit, or transfer them to a loyalty program? The answer depends on how you earn miles and how you travel.

In this article, we’ll compare the value of miles earned on the Venture Card with the value of the transferable miles offered by some other travel rewards credit cards.

$1,000 in travel offer: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

How Do the Capital One Venture Card Benefits Work?

The Capital One Venture Card benefits include earning 2x miles on all purchases. However, earn 5x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

You now have three options to redeem Capital One miles for award travel:

• Transfer miles to travel partners
• Redeem for travel statement credits
• Book upcoming travel on the Capital One travel portal

Your miles are worth 1 cent each for travel statement credits and the travel portal.

For a limited time, new Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card cardholders can earn 75,000 miles once they spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening, plus they’ll receive a one-time $250 Capital One Travel credit their first cardholder year. Earning the entire bonus is equal to $1,000 in travel!

The redemption value for mile transfers is more open-ended as each airline values miles differently. What you can expect is that most airline partners have a 2 Capital One miles to 1.5 air miles transfer ratio. For instance, transferring 50,000 miles means you will most likely have 37,500 air miles. Because of this, Capital One shows the actual conversion amount before you start the transfer.

However, there are a few airlines that offer 1:1 point transfers. It can make sense to transfer miles when you can get more than 1 cent of value per mile. It can also make sense when you don’t want to pay cash for a ticket or hotel stay.

Capital One Travel Transfer Partners

Here is the current list of Capital One airline transfer partners:

• Aeromexico (1:1 ratio)
• Aeroplan (Air Canada) (1:1 ratio)
• Air France/KLM (1:1 ratio)
• Avianca (1:1 ratio)
• British Airways (1:1 ratio)
• Cathay Pacific (1:1 ratio)
• Emirates (1:1 ratio)
• Etihad (1:1 ratio)
• EVA Air (2:1.5 ratio)
• Finnair (1:1 ratio)
• Qantas (1:1 ratio)
• Singapore Airlines (1:1 ratio)
• TAP Air Portugal (1:1 ratio)
• Turkish Airlines (1:1 ratio)

Capital One also has ALL Accor (2:1 ratio), Choice Privileges (1:1 ratio), and Wyndham Rewards (1:1 ratio) as hotel transfer partners.

Related: The Best Credit Cards For International Travel In 2024

Credit Cards with Transferable Rewards

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is not the only card that lets you transfer your miles to another points or miles program. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, American Express® Gold Card, and Citi Premier® Card all offer extra rewards on travel purchases, carry similar annual fees, and let you transfer your points to a partner airline, hotel, and retail loyalty program.

You’ll usually get the best value out of transferring your rewards to an airline transfer partner, but your exact redemption rate will depend on how good of a deal you find on an award flight. To understand how to maximize your rewards on an award flight, let’s take a closer look at each of those three cards.

Also, be sure to note how long it takes to transfer Capital One miles or any other mile transfers.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

You can use your Preferred rewards to book travel through Chase Travel℠ (for 1 cent each) or you can transfer them at a 1:1 ratio to one of the card’s airline and hotel transfer partners, including Air France/KLM Flying Blue, British Airways, United Airlines, Hyatt, and Marriott Bonvoy.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred, one of the best Chase credit cards, earns unlimited:

• 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠ (excluding hotel purchases that qualify for the $50 Anniversary Hotel Credit)
• 3x points on dining (including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out)
• 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target®, Walmart®, and wholesale clubs)
• Also 3x points on select streaming services
• 2x points on all other travel purchases
• 1x point per $1 spent on all non-bonus purchases 

There is a $50 annual Hotel Credit. It comes in the form of a statement credit that will automatically be applied to your account when your card is used for hotel accommodation purchases made through the Chase Travel℠ program, up to an annual maximum accumulation of $50.

Plus, on each account anniversary, you’ll earn bonus points equal to 10% of your total purchases made the previous year. So, if you spend $25,000 on purchases, you’ll get 2,500 bonus points.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits and perks don’t stop at being able to transfer points. The card also comes with insurance protection, access to Chase exclusive events, and no foreign transaction fees.

New Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card cardholders can earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel℠.

American Express Gold Card

The American Express® Gold Card earns:

• 4x Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide (on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1x points for the rest of the year)
• 4x Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1x points for the rest of the year)
• 3x Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com
• 2x Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com
• 1x Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases

Plus, you can redeem your American Express points for statement credits or gift cards (at 1 cent each) or transfer them to an airline, hotel, or retail partner—usually at a 1:1 ratio.

Another perk is the ability to earn up to $10 in statement credits on a monthly basis when you use your Gold Card to pay at the following dining establishments (enrollment is required):

• Grubhub
• The Cheesecake Factory
• Goldbelly
• Wine.com
• Five Guys

This Amex Gold perk can save you up to $120 annually.

New American Express® Gold Card cardholders can earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® points after spending $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.

Plus, get the American Express® Gold Card in either the Gold, Rose Gold, or Limited-Edition White Gold metal design. White Gold design is only available while supplies last.

The annual fee is $325 (See Rates & Fees).

Citi Premier Card

The information for the Citi Premier® Card has been collected independently by Johnny Jet. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

The Citi Premier® Card earns 3x points on air travel, hotels, restaurants, gas stations, and supermarkets and 1x points on all other purchases. This card lets you transfer your points to their airline or retail partners. Cardholders also get an annual $100 hotel benefit for single stays of $500 or more (excluding taxes and fees) purchased through thankyou.com.

New Citi Premier® Card cardmembers can earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after spending $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. This bonus is redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards when redeemed at thankyou.com.

Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 ThankYou® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through June 30, 2024.

There are no foreign transaction fees, but there is a $95 annual fee.

If this sounds like a good choice for you, check out the CardMatch™ tool, which is a free resource for finding personalized offers that best serve you. It can help you determine if the Citi Premier is a card you can get. Additionally, you may be offered a higher targeted signup bonus that isn’t available to the general public.

Capital One Venture: How to Redeem Your Miles

With the Venture Card, you’re capped out at a maximum redemption rate of 2 cents per dollar, or 2%. However, with transferable miles, that math gets a little trickier.

You’ll generally get the best value out of transferable miles by transferring them to an airline partner. Maximizing your value is then determining which airline offers the best award flight for your route.

To give you a few examples, let’s look at an airline that partners with Chase, AMEX, and Citi: Singapore Airlines.

Singapore Airlines is known for offering excellent award value on first-class international flights and has a straightforward awards chart. Let’s say we want to fly round-trip on Singapore Airlines between San Francisco (SFO) and Bangkok (BKK). How much would that cost in miles?

I’ve found a flight that fits my schedule, and it will cost either $785 (plus taxes and fees) or, according to the awards chart, 76,000 miles.

How much spending would it take to save up for that flight? Here’s the math:

Capital One Venture Card: $39,250

You would have to book this flight through Singapore and redeem your Venture miles for a statement credit. At a 2% rewards rate, you would need to spend $39,250 to be able to redeem 78500 miles for a statement credit toward that round-trip ticket—not including taxes and fees.

Chase Sapphire Preferred: $38,000

Let’s take a closer look at this popular card. For instance, let’s say you only used the Chase Sapphire Preferred for its 2x bonus categories. You then transferred your points to Singapore Krisflyer and booked the flight online with points. You would need to spend $38,000 to earn the 76,000 points for this flight. That comes to a redemption rate of 2.1%.

American Express Gold Card: $37,250

This is a little trickier because the American Express Gold Card has a few bonus spending categories. There are 4x points at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets. Additionally, you can earn 3x points on flights bought directly from an airline. For instance, let’s say you charge one $500 flight to your card (for 1,500 points). In that case, you would need to spend $37,250 to reach 76,000 points, for a redemption rate of 2.1%.

Citi ThankYou Premier: $37,250

Like with the AMEX Gold, your overall redemption rate with the ThankYou Premier depends on how much of your spending falls into the card’s bonus categories. Suppose you spend $500 in the travel category (for 3x points, coming to 1,500 points). You also come up with the rest of your points by making changes in the card’s 2x spending categories. The math is then the same as with the AMEX Gold. You’d have to spend $37,250, for a redemption rate of 2.1%.

The math above shows that in the Capital One Venture Card vs transferable points debate, the other cards are only slightly cheaper for an economy flight. BUT, transferable points are more valuable when you’re looking to redeem your miles for a business or first-class flight. That’s because those flights generally cost $5,000 – $15,000.

It would take a considerable amount of fixed value points to make those redemptions. However, miles in an airline program will stretch much farther which really makes your transferable points more valuable.

Capital One Venture Card vs Transferable Miles

In this example, the transferable miles from Chase, AMEX, and Citi are only slightly more valuable. But they are still close to the statement credit redemption option from the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. Those numbers can still fluctuate though.

However, depending on how well you take advantage of each card’s bonus spending categories, what kind of deals you can find on award flights, and whether or not you take advantage of your card’s welcome bonus, these may change.

If you’re deciding between signing up for the Capital One Venture Card vs transferable miles credit cards, there are a few main factors to look at. Will you be able to earn their welcome bonuses? Will you be able to take full advantage of their bonus spending categories? Which transfer partner offers the best award flight for your trip?

In summary, ask yourself these questions and analyze your spending. This will help you make the right choice.

$1,000 in travel offer: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Is the Capital One Venture Credit Card the Best Credit Card for Hotels?

Hotel stays are a big part of travel, and they can really add up, especially for those who travel often outside of business travel rewards credit cards. Loyalty programs aside, it makes sense to find a credit card that gets you the most bang for your buck, especially when you’re paying for hotel stays. That’s where the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card comes in.

Benefits of the Capital One Venture Credit Card For Hotels

First of all, let’s break down the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card for hotel purchases.

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card already offers 2x miles per dollar spent on all purchases. However, earn 5x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

Each mile equals 1 cent when redeemed for a statement credit on just about any and all travel-related purchases. This can range from Airbnb bookings to flights to river cruises, which works out to a 2% reward rate.

The Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card earns unlimited 1.25x miles per dollar spent, totaling a 1.25% rate. Plus, cardholders can transfer miles to leading travel loyalty programs, including Capital One travel partners.

New Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card cardholders can earn 20,000 bonus miles after spending $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $200 in travel.

It’s easy to redeem the miles you accumulate. Miles can be used your miles to cover travel purchases.

On top of that, the sign-up bonuses are great. 

Capital One makes it easy to figure out which card will net you the most miles. An interactive sliding scale explains that if you spend $1,056 or more per month, you’ll get more rewards value annually with Venture Rewards than with the VentureOne.

If you aren’t too convinced though, below are a few options that might be more relevant to you.

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card is a popular choice for travelers.

Cardholders earn 6 Marriott Bonvoy points for each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy program, 3 points at restaurants worldwide, 3 points on flights booked directly with airlines, and 2 points on all other eligible purchases.

Each card renewal year, get up to $300 in statement credits per calendar year (up to $25 per month) for eligible purchases at restaurants worldwide.

The number of points required to book a room depends on the property and season. They can range from 7,500 to 85,000 and can be used at over 7,000 locations. Cardholders can redeem points for flights or car rentals. Or, they can transfer points for rewards with over 40 airline partners.

You do have to stay at Marriott brand hotels (check out the best Marriott credit cards if you are married to Marriott) in order to reap many of the benefits and earn the most points. This may make it a more suitable card for those who prefer to remain loyal to a single family of hotels.

Perks

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card is one of the most valuable options. Other featured benefits include 1 Free Night Award (redemption level at or under 85,000 points) annually after your card renewal month at participating Marriott Bonvoy properties (some hotels have resort fees), up to $100 property credit for qualifying charges at The Ritz-Carlton® or St. Regis® when you book direct using a special rate for a two-night minimum stay using your Card, and complimentary Priority Pass Select airport lounge access.

Additionally, cardholders can enjoy a fee credit for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry, up to $800 in cellphone protection, and 25 Elite Night Credits toward the next level of Marriott Bonvoy Elite status (terms apply).

Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite members earn 50% more points on eligible purchases at participating hotels for each U.S. dollar (or the currency equivalent) that is incurred and paid for by the member.

Each calendar year after spending $60,000 on eligible purchases, Card Members are eligible to select an Earned Choice Award benefit. You can only earn one Earned Choice Award per calendar year. See https://www.choice-benefit.marriott.com/brilliant for Award options.

Welcome Bonus

New Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card cardholders earn 185,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after spending $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership.

The annual fee is $650 (See Rates & Fees).

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card

The information for the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card has been collected independently by Johnny Jet. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card also has a great sign-up bonus. 

New limited-time offer! New Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card cardholders can earn 5 Free Night Awards (each night valued up to 50,000 points) after spending $5,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card.

There are no foreign transaction fees, and the annual fee is $95. Your points don’t expire as long as you make purchases on your card every 24 months.

You also get one free night (up to 35,000 points) every year after your account anniversary. 

Cardmembers can earn up to 17x total Bonvoy points per $1 spent at over 7,000 hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy® with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Card.

You can also earn 3x Bonvoy points per $1 on the first $6,000 spent in combined purchases each year on grocery stores, gas stations, and dining.

This card also earns 2x points per $1 spent on everything else. Plus, you get 15 elite night credits annually.

But like the Bonvoy Brilliant card, award stays can only be redeemed at certain hotels, which limits options for those not committed to one brand.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is another viable option. Chase partners with IHG, Marriott, and Hyatt brand hotels. That means you can use your points to get more out of the Chase Travel℠ portal.

Rewards include earning 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x points on dining, and 2x points on all other travel purchases, plus more. However, if you use the Chase portal to book airfare, hotels, car rentals, and cruises, points are worth 25% more. This works out to a pretty good deal.

Is the Capital One Venture Credit Card For Hotel Purchases the Best Option?

For travelers looking for the best hotel credit card offers who also want the widest selection of hotels to choose from and the most flexible options, The Capital One Venture Cards is likely the best for flexibility. Otherwise, if you’re loyal to a hotel, choose that hotel’s credit card or a credit card that partners with them.

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Review

One of my favorite cards to use for travel is the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

For a limited time, new Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card cardholders can earn 75,000 miles once they spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening, plus they’ll receive a one-time $250 Capital One Travel credit their first cardholder year. Earning the entire bonus is equal to $1,000 in travel!

All purchases earn 2x miles per dollar spent. However, earn 5x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

One of the reasons this card is so popular is that you can transfer miles to several travel partners, making your miles even more valuable. There are no blackout dates and your miles won’t expire, as long as you have your account open and active. There’s also no limit on how many miles you can earn.

This flexible rewards card also comes with a $100 credit to apply towards your application fee for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓®. You won’t need to worry about foreign transaction fees with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. However, there is a $95 annual fee.

$1,000 in travel offer: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Related Posts: 

• Capital One Venture vs Chase Sapphire Preferred
• Capital One Venture Credit Score Needed
• You Can Now Get TSA Precheck with the Capital One Venture

For rates and fees of The American Express® Gold Card, please click here.

For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card, please click here.

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