The Venture Rewards Card is the Best Low-Annual-Fee Card for Travelers

One of our FAVORITE low-annual-fee cards is the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

It’s become an increasingly popular option for those who are new to the miles and points world, but also for seasoned travelers who are looking for an additional card to add to their wallet that will bring outsized value.

But what makes this card so special??

After reading through some of our favorite perks, I think we’ll have you convinced 🤗

1. The generous welcome offer

It’s actually wild that the Venture card has consistently had a 75,000-mile welcome offer for… years…

Many cards in this similar mid-tier range often hang out closer to that 60k mark. So to score 75,000 miles right off the bat?

EPIC.

If it wasn’t already clear, that is a TON of miles that could be used for a variety of travel redemptions (more on that later 😉).

And, RIGHT NOW, the Venture is boasting this welcome offer: Earn 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. 🎉

2. Double miles earned on EVERYTHING

For me, cards that give you solid earning rates on everyday purchases are some of the most valuable.

I think the majority of us will find our spending habits fitting into normal, daily purchase categories such as food, clothes, gym memberships, and other miscellaneous things (ahem, Amazon).

That’s why the Venture Card is an excellent “catch-all” card because of its 2x miles per dollar earned on everyday purchases.

Yes, you will be earning DOUBLE the miles on everything—no matter what.

Plus, you’re also able to earn 5x miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

So when you do want to make a travel purchase, the Venture Card also has you covered 😎

3. Up to $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck

Even if you travel just once a year, being able to skip the long lines at security AND customs is a game-changer.

Having a $120 credit to cover the cost of either application is such a lucrative travel perk—especially for a card whose annual fee doesn’t even cost that 👀

4. Two free lounge visits per year

I have to caveat this by saying that the lounge perk is being removed on December 31, 2024, BUT you still have many months to use this if you’re planning a trip or two before the end of the year.

Currently, you’re granted two free visits per year to Capital One Lounges or Plaza Premium Lounges.

Fancy a nice drink, free food, fast wi-fi, and a comfy place to sit? The Venture card has you covered through 2024.

5. Offset ANY travel purchase

If your main priority is to keep things simple, then redeeming your miles for travel at a fixed value of 1 cent each is the way to go.

Though this isn’t always the best way to get the most value out of your miles, it still serves as a good option.

When you do want to redeem your miles at a fixed value for travel, you can cover any eligible travel purchase within the last 90 days!

Maybe you bought a train ticket for $100. You could simply use 10,000 of your miles to cover this cost retroactively as long as you used your Venture Card to make that initial purchase.

You also have the option to book travel directly through the Capital One travel portal and select miles as your payment right then and then!

6. Access to some of the best transfer partners

This is where it gets good—and where you’ll get the most value for your miles.

We always strive to get at least 2 cents per point when transferring to an airline or hotel.

Sometimes, you might get a little less, but sometimes, you might also find a redemption that gets you 3X, 5X, or even 10X miles per point in value!

And lucky for you, Capital One has one of the most extensive lists of transfer partners in the biz 👇

For example, check out the points value and cash value for this route from Vancouver to New York’s JFK 👇

You could either pay $568 CAD for the flight or use 14,800 miles that you transferred from your Venture card to Air Canada’s Aeroplan program.

We determine the value by subtracting the taxes and fees ($100 CAD) from the total cash price ($568 CAD) and then dividing by the number of miles.

So $568 - $100 / 14,800 = .032 or 3.2 cents per mile

That’s a pretty good valuation considering it’s above the 2 cent-per-mile mark!

If you want a step-by-step walkthrough on how to actually transfer your miles, you can reference our guide here.

7. The low annual fee

And finally…

Aside from literally $0, a $95 annual fee is about as low as it gets in the credit card world.

And even if you chose to redeem all your miles within the Capital One portal for just 1 cent a piece, that’s a value of $750 you’re getting out of a $95 card.

Honestly, we see a handful of cards whose annual fees are much higher than this but offer far fewer points and miles as part of their welcome offer.

The combination of the low annual fee with the extremely generous welcome offer reinforces just how great this card truly is.

The bottom line

So… are you convinced? It’s a pretty great card! 🤗

I can promise that even long after you’ve earned and redeemed your miles from the welcome offer, you’ll continue to use the Venture Card on a daily basis.

Trust me, the miles you earn will continue to yield thousands of dollars in value over time, and with that, all I have left to say is…

Go get the card! You know you want to!