Best Airline Travel Rewards Cards
Airline reward cards fall into one of two categories.
- Branded airline card - offers the perks of working with one airline
- General travel card - allows you to collect travel reward points on all spending
Always, read the fine print. Sometimes points aren't valid if you book through a discount broker - make sure you check. If you need to travel at a certain time of year, look fort blackout dates that prevent you from using rewards mileage to travel during that time.
Here are ConsumerFu's top picks for general travel cards. We also give a full rundown of branded cards in the table below.
Card | Annual Fee | Interest Rates | Reward Rates | Other Perks |
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Capital One® Venture℠ Rewards Credit Card |
$0 first year, $59 after that | 13.9%-20.9% variable APR | Earns 2 miles for every $1 spent |
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$0 first year, $95 after that | 15.24% APR | Earns 2 miles for every $1 spent on travel and dining and 1 for $1 on all other spending |
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$0 | 0% 12 months, 11.9% - 19.9% thereafter | Earns 1.25 miles for every $1 spent on any purchase | 10,000 mile signup bonus when you spend $1000 in the first 3 months |
The following is a rundown of other U.S. based airline specific reward cards.
U.S. Based Airline Cards |
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Card | Annual Fee | Bonus Miles | Rewards Rate | VIP Perks |
|
$95 | 30,000 Delta Miles |
2 miles per $1 on Delta, 1 mile per $1 on other airlines |
Priority Boarding 20% off in-flight purchases First checked bag free |
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$40 | 10,000 JetBlue Miles |
As many as 8 points per $1 on jetBlue, 1 mile per $1 all other airlines |
None |
Bank of Hawaii |
$79 |
35,000 |
2 miles per $1 on Hawaiian, |
One-time $25 discount on two full price round trip coach fares |
Chase The Southwest |
$99 | 25,000 Bonus Points After $1000 spent |
2 points per $1 spent directly on Southwest or AIRTRAN, 1 for $1 on all other purchases |
Up to 15,000 tier qualifying points annually, |
Citi Platinum |
$95 | 30,000 American Airlines Miles |
1 miles per $1 | Priority Boarding First checked bag free 25% discount on eligible in-flight purchases $100 AA flight discount annually |
|
$50 | 25,000 American Airlines Miles |
1 miles per $1 | Priority Boarding 25% off in-flight purchases First checked bag free |
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$59 |
35,000 |
2 miles per $1 on Frontier, |
None |
Frontier Airlines |
$0 | 5,000 Frontier Miles |
1 mile per $1 on Frontier, 0.5 miles per $1 on other airlines |
None |
Hawaiian Airlines |
$50 | 10,000 Hawaiian Airlines Miles |
2 miles per $1 on Hawaiian, 1 mile per $1 on other airlines |
25% discount on Mainland to Hawaii flights |
|
$49 | 10,000 US Airways Miles |
1 mile per $1 | 5,000 mile discount on reward redemptions, $149 companion ticket annually |