Capital One Venture X review: A premium travel credit card for everyone - CNBC

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The Capital One Venture X card was announced on Nov. 4 and officially opened for applications on Nov. 9. Travel rewards enthusiasts are raving about the new premium credit card for its benefits, including up to $300 in travel credits, 10,000 bonus miles on your account anniversary, access to airport lounges, TSA PreCheck/Global Entry credits and more.

The card comes with a $395 annual fee. However, it can be quickly offset by using the benefits associated with the car. But is the card as great as it first sounds?

Below, Select breaks down the rewards, benefits and fees associated with the Capital One Venture X to help you decide if it's the right card for your needs.

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Capital One Venture X review

Capital One Venture X Card

• Rewards

  Unlimited 2X miles on all eligible purchases, and 5X miles on flights and 10X miles on hotels and rental cars when booked via Capital One Travel portal

• Welcome bonus

  100,000 bonus miles after spending $10,000 on purchases within the first six months of account opening

• Annual fee

• Intro APR

• Regular APR

  16.99-23.99% variable APR

• Balance transfer fee

  Either $10 or 4% of the amount of each transaction, whichever is greater.

• Foreign transaction fees

• Credit needed

  Excellent/Good

Terms apply.

Pros

• Large welcome bonus
• Up to $300 back in statement credits each year for bookings made through Capital One Travel
• No foreign transaction fees
• Up to $100 statement credits for either Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®
• Access to over 1,300 Priority Pass lounges, as well as Capital One Lounges

Cons

• High annual fee
• No introductory 0% APR period

Welcome bonus

The Capital One Venture X card is offering a large welcome bonus to entice new cardholders to sign up. Right now, you can earn 100,000 bonus miles after spending $10,000 on purchases within the first six months of account opening.

If you meet the minimum spend threshold, you will have a minimum of 120,000 miles as the card earns 2X miles for every dollar spent on all eligible purchases. Even at a modest one cent per point value, that is a $1,200 windfall of points.

Plus, for a limited time, you can receive up to $200 back in statement credits for vacation rentals charged to your account within your first year. Eligible vacation rental merchants include Airbnb, Turnkey, Vacasa, and VRBO.

And that doesn't even include the value of any ongoing benefits that come with the card.

Benefits and perks

The benefits of the Capital One Venture X card mainly cater towards travelers, so if you're at least a semi-frequent traveler and want additional perks for your adventures, this may be a great card for you.

The Capital One Venture X offers the following benefits:

• Up to $300 back in statement credits each year for bookings made through Capital One Travel
• A 10,000 mile bonus on each account anniversary, starting on your first card anniversary
• Up to $100 statement credit for either Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®
• Airport lounge access: You will have access to over 1,300 Priority Pass lounges, as well as Capital One Lounges. Venture X cardholders and authorized users will get unlimited access to Capital One and Priority Pass lounges, along with free entry for up to two guests per visit. It's $45 per visit for additional guests.
• Access to the Capital One Travel portal, which includes benefits such as opt-in travel insurance, price drop protection and price match guarantee
• Access to in-person events through the Capital One Experiences program, such as dining and sports events
• Primary cardholders can earn up to 100,000 miles per year for referring friends to the VentureX card (up to four referrals per year; 25,000 miles awarded per referral)
• Complimentary Hertz President's Circle status for primary cardholders, authorized users and account managers. Benefits include: skip the counter and e-return, the widest vehicle selection, guaranteed upgrades, free additional driver, and more.
• Complimentary cell phone insurance, up to $800 in coverage
• No additional annual fee to add authorized users

In the first year, you'll receive $500 in travel credits and 100,000 miles worth at least $1000 in travel from the welcome bonus, which makes this card easier to justify.

In year two, the $300 Capital One Travel credit cancels out 75% of the cost of the annual fee, and when you add the 10,000 miles you get every account anniversary, you come out at least $5 ahead of the $395 fee, since those miles are worth at least $100 (or more if transferred to partners). All the other benefits are just extra gravy at that point.

Select calculated how many points the average American can earn in a year when using their Capital One Venture X card. We worked with the location intelligence firm Esri, who provided us with a sample annual spending budget of $22,126.

The budget includes six main categories: groceries ($5,174), gas ($2,218), dining out ($3,675), travel ($2,244), utilities ($4,862) and general purchases ($3,953). Here's what the average consumer would earn using this card:

• Groceries: 10,348 Capital One miles
• Gas: 4,436 Capital One miles
• Dining out: 7,350 Capital One miles
• Travel: 11,220 Capital One miles (Assuming all travel earns 5X miles for every dollar spent on flights through Capital One Travel)
• Utilities: 9,724 Capital One miles
• General purchases: 7,906 Capital One miles

With all spending considered, this would give a cardholder 50,984 Capital One miles in the first year, and if you include the 100,000 miles welcome bonus, 150,984 miles. Over a five year period, cardholders could earn 254,920 Capital One miles. Cardholders could earn more (or less) miles depending on their annual spending habits.

But arguably the best part of the card is earning Capital One miles that can be redeemed in a number of ways.

How to earn and redeem Capital One miles

Earning Capital One miles

Earning Capital One miles is simple as Capital One offers several travel credit cards, including the Capital One Venture X card, with excellent spending categories.

With the Venture X card, you will earn:

• 2X miles for every dollar spent on all eligible purchases
• When booking travel through the Capital One Travel portal, you will earn 5X miles for every dollar spent on flights and 10X miles for every dollar spent on hotels and rental cars

This means that all purchases outside of Capital One Travel bookings will earn you a minimum of 2% back in value, which is a respectable return. And if you prefer to book through Capital One Travel you'll be rewarded handsomely.

If you enjoy earning Capital One miles, but don't want to pay a large annual fee upfront, be sure to also consider the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

Redeeming Capital One miles

Capital One miles can be redeemed in several ways, including:

• Booking travel directly through Capital One Travel
• Transferring them to 17 different airline and hotel partners (like Air France-KLM Flying Blue and Air Canada Aeroplan)
• Use them to "erase" any recent travel purchases on your credit card statement
• Redeem them for gift cards
• Redeem for cash back (note: this is the least valuable option. If you want to earn cash back, consider a cash-back credit card)

The most valuable way to redeem Capital One miles is to transfer them to the various travel partners and book business or first-class award flights. The 17 partners include: Aeromexico, Air Canada, Air France-KLM, ALL Accor Live Limitless, Avianca, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Choice Privileges, Emirates, Etihad, EVA Air, Finnair, Qantas, Singapore Airlines, TAP Air Portugal, Turkish Airlines and Wyndham Hotels.

While the majority of these are international programs, they're still great to book U.S. based flights. For example, you can send your miles to Turkish Airlines and book one-way United Airlines flights to Hawaii for 7,500 miles in economy and 12,500 miles in first class.

By transferring them, you're able to have more control over the value of your miles. This is different than redeeming them through Capital One Travel or erasing travel purchases, which gives Capital One miles a fixed value of one cent per point.

Rates and fees

The card has a $395 annual fee. It does not have any foreign transaction fees.

If you plan on carrying a balance month to month, this card may not be the best. It has a high interest rate range of 16.99-23.99% variable APR. If you want to avoid accruing interest, consider a credit card with a 0% introductory APR offer like the Wells Fargo Reflect℠ Card (0% intro APR for up to 21 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers; 12.99% to 24.99% variable APR thereafter). However, the Wells Fargo Reflect does not offer rewards on your purchase.

The balance transfer fee is 3%, and late payment fees can be up to $40.

Card comparison

The Capital One Venture X can provide great value for consumers who enjoy traveling and want perks to make their experience even better. But, is the Venture X the best travel-rewards credit card for you?

Select analyzed two other premium travel credit cards to see how they match up with one another.

Capital One Venture X vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve®

The Chase Sapphire Reserve is a great premium travel credit card, but how does it match up to the Venture X?

It has a $550 annual fee, but it comes with a long list of benefits, including being able to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points. As you spend on the card, you will earn:

• 5X points per dollar spent on flights when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards^® after the $300 travel credit is spent on travel purchases annually.
• 10X points per dollar spent on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards^® after the $300 travel credit is spent on travel purchases annually.
• 3X points per dollar spent on other travel worldwide after the $300 travel credit is spent on travel purchases annually.
• 10X points per dollar spent on Chase Dining purchases with Ultimate Rewards^®.
• 3X points per dollar spent on other dining at restaurants, including eligible delivery services, takeout and dining out.
• 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases.

The benefits of the card are very similar to the Capital One Venture X, as both include travel insurance, a $300 travel credit, airport lounge access through Priority Pass, Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit and rental car insurance.

The Capital One Venture X's welcome offer of 100,000 miles is double that of the 50,000 points offered by the Sapphire Reserve. While Chase points are worth 1.5 cents each when redeemed through the Chase Travel portal with the Sapphire Reserve, the flexibility of Capital One miles with the purchase eraser feature to eliminate travel related costs may be a more valuable feature to some consumers. However, Capital One miles are worth only 1 cent each when redeemed this way.

Capital One has more transfer partners than Chase, but Chase's partners include more hotel and domestic airline options. You'll want to evaluate how you'll redeem points to decide which program is more useful to you.

Overall, the Sapphire Reserve offers a few more benefits, like Lyft Pink and Peloton and DoorDash statement credits. But these are more so considered "lifestyle benefits". If you're specifically focused on travel-related benefits, the Capital One Venture X travel perk's more easily offset the annual fee compared the Sapphire Reserve.

Capital One Venture X vs. The Platinum Card® from American Express

The Amex Platinum Card is another premium travel credit card available to consumers, but how does it stack up against the Venture X?

The card has a $695 annual fee (see rates and fees), which is the one of the highest annual fees around.

To get started with the card, you can earn 100,000 Membership Rewards points after after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first six months.

As you spend on the card, you will earn:

• 5X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent with airlines directly or with Amex Travel, up to $500,000 per calendar year
• 5X points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels with AmexTravel.com
• 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases

The card also comes with a long list of lifestyle and travel benefits, including:

• Up to $200 Uber Cash credit
• Up to $200 airline fee credit
• Up to $100 Saks in statement credits annually
• $100 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
• $240 annual digital entertainment credit
• Up to $300 equinox credit
• $155 Walmart+ credit
• Up to $179 CLEAR credit
• Access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection, including Centurion lounges and Delta SkyClubs when flying Delta on the same day
• Complimentary gold status at Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors
• Comprehensive travel insurance
• Rental car loyalty program benefits
• Access to American Express concierge service

Compared to the Venture X, the Platinum card presents a better welcome offer as you don't need to spend nearly as much to earn the welcome bonus. However, the Amex Platinum has now rebranded itself as a lifestyle card, rather than purely a travel card. In this case, one is not necessarily better than the other, as both cards target slightly different audiences.

If your goal is to grab a travel credit card purely for travel, the Capital One Venture X is likely the better choice. However, the Platinum has more travel perks than the Venture X, including better airport lounge access and complimentary hotel elite status with Hilton and Marriott. Most will have an easier time recouping the cost of the annual fee with the Venture X's simple travel credit and anniversary miles, but the Amex Platinum does offer a whopping $1,500 in credits a year.

Who the Capital One Venture X card is best for

The Capital One Venture X is a great addition to the credit card portfolio of someone who enjoys to travel and is not brand loyal. The points you earn can erase any travel purchase, so this card is really best for someone who isn't focus on earning status with either a hotel or airline.

This card is a solid option for someone who values simplicity when it comes to earning back the value of their annual fee. By simply using the travel credit, earning the 10,000 miles anniversary bonus and earning 2X points on every dollar spent on eligible purchases — cardholders will quickly make up for the cost of the $395 annual fee.

Additionally, if you have upcoming travel that you've not planned yet, this card would be a great addition for multiple reasons. You'd be able to take advantage of the credits for travel and vacation rentals immediately after receiving the card, and the associated spending would get you even closer to meeting the minimum spend threshold to reach the 100,000-point welcome bonus.

Also, if you've trusted family members or friends, this card is great as there are no additional fees for authorized users. They will have equal access to airport lounges, and help you earn even more Capital One miles along the way.

Lastly, if you have an iPhone or another smartphone that is worth a decent chunk of change, this card is great as it comes with cell phone insurance. All you need to do is pay your monthly bill with the card, and it is automatically covered in case of damage or theft.

Bottom line

The Capital One Venture X is arguably one of the best premium credit cards on the market right now. It has a modest annual fee (for a premium card) and delivers value quickly in the form of travel and vacation rental credits. And the welcome offer makes this card incredibly valuable in its first year.

However, before applying for this card, be sure that you have an excellent credit score as well as the ability to earn the welcome offer without overspending. But if you're an avid traveler and are able to meet the criteria for the card, this one is worth strongly considering.

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For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.

Information about the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of the card prior to publication.

Editorial Note: Opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Select editorial staff's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any third party.