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Best Alaska Airlines Credit Cards

Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Review

Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Credit Card

Rating: 5 Stars

Bottom Line:
Western US Travel Card

Apply Now
Card DetailsThe OfferIs it Worth It?
Pros and ConsWhy 5 Stars?Fees
Benefits

Card Details

Regular APR:17.99 – 25.99% (Variable)
Intro APR (Purchases):None
Intro APR (Balance transfers):None
Rewards Rate:3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases

1 mile for every $1 spent on all other purchases
Credit Needed:(670 – 850) Excellent/Good
Annual Fee:$75
Card Brand:Visa?

*See online credit card application for details on the terms and conditions.

Offer Highlights

  • Click APPLY NOW to apply online
  • Now – 40,000 Bonus Mile + Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare Offer.
  • Get 40,000 bonus miles and Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare from $121 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $22) with this offer. To qualify, make purchases of $2,000 or more within the first 90 days of opening your account.
  • Save with a free checked bag on Alaska flights for you and up to six other guests on the same reservation.
  • Get Alaska?s Famous Companion Fare every year! Each year on your account anniversary get a companion fare from $121 ($99 plus taxes and fees from $22). Valid on all Alaska flights booked on alaskaair.com with no blackout dates.
  • Earn unlimited 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases and 1 mile for every $1 spent on all other purchases. And, your miles don’t expire on active accounts.
  • New! Enjoy 50% off day passes at the Alaska Lounge and 20% back on all Alaska Airlines inflight purchases when you pay with your new card.
  • Redeem miles with no blackout dates on any of Alaska’s 1,200 daily flights or choose from over 900+ destinations with more than a dozen global airline partners. Plus, get exclusive access to discounted redemption levels when you redeem miles for hotel stays at over 400,000 properties using Alaska Airlines Hotels.
  • Plus, no foreign transaction fees and a low $75 annual fee.

Is Alaska Airlines Visa Signature worth it?

Alaska Airlines Visa Signature is a great travel card for travelers in the 30 states that the airline offers flights from. Travelers in the western U.S., where there are the largest number of routes, are the most natural fit for this card. In 2016, Alaska acquired Virgin America, making it the fifth largest airline in the US by passengers carried, so this card is in no way restricted to people interested in the state of Alaska.

For most people who redeem it on most flights, the annual $121 companion fare will more than pay for the $75 annual fee, especially if they redeem it on an expensive flight. The only downside of the companion fare is that it may require multiple bookings if you are booking for more than two people, leaving open the possibility of being seated separately. 

The earning rate is high: 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases, but some consumers have reported that it is difficult to redeem miles for a reasonable airfare redemption value, while other consumers have found this not to be the case. It’s important to mention that on Alaska Airlines’ award chart a one-way coast-to-coast trip across the U.S. in the Main Cabin, not First Class, could cost as much as 50,000 miles.

In the flight booking system, we found that most of the options for a roundtrip flight from New York to San Diego would cost 50,000 miles each way; however, there were a number of 20k mile each way options as well, and even 12.5k mile each way options that often included American Airlines as one connecting flight. Unfortunately, American Airlines flights will not be available in the portal in the future, and currently only a few of the partner airlines are available in the portal.

For this particular search, the mile value varied from about less than one half cent per mile to almost two cents depending on the route you book. While the end of the American Airlines partnership will be the end of redeeming Alaska miles on American and will make earning Alaska miles on American harder, in general earning miles is flexible, and you can even earn miles by entering your frequent flyer, called your Mileage Plan, number on Alaska Airlines? website after flying a partner.

There are also promotions that can boost your miles. For example, we opened our Alaska Mileage Plan account and found a promo that allowed earning double miles on certain one-way flights, effectively halving the cost of award flights when you go to redeem your double miles. Even if the Alaska Airlines awards program isn?t the easiest to navigate, the 40,000 point signup bonus makes it worth it.

If you live in the western U.S. and plan to fly the airline, this is a great card for you.

Pros

  • Intro bonus of 40,000 miles and one $121 companion fare in coach after spending $2,000 in first 90 days after account opening
  • Book travel with American Airlines, British Airways, and and more than 10 others

Cons

  • No priority boarding

Why 5 Stars?

Regular APR


4 Stars

Intro APR


4 Stars

Fees


5 Stars

Perks


5 Stars

Overall


5 Stars

Fees

Foreign Transaction Feenone
Balance Transfer Fee3% of transaction amount or $10, whichever is greater
Cash Advance Fee3% of transaction amount or $10, whichever is greater
Penalty APRUp to 29.99% APR

Benefits

$0 Fraud Liability
Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver
Concierge Service
Lost Luggage Reimbursement
Purchase Protection
Get Started with Alaska Airlines Visa Signature

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinion, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed on this page are those of the author?s alone, and may not have been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.

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Best Alaska Airlines Credit Cards, Best Bank of America Credit Cards

Alaska Airlines Visa Business Review

Alaska-Airlines-Visa-Business

Rating: 5 Stars

Bottom Line:
Western US Business Travel Card

Apply Now
Card DetailsThe OfferIs it Worth It?
Pros and ConsWhy 5 Stars?Fees
Benefits

Card Details

Regular APR:17.74% – 25.74% (Variable)
Intro APR (Purchases):None
Intro APR (Balance transfers):None
Rewards Rate:Earn 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases.

Earn 1 mile for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
Credit Needed:(740 – 850) Excellent
Annual Fee:$75
Card Brand:Visa

*See online credit card application for details on the terms and conditions.

Offer Highlights

  • Click APPLY NOW to apply online
  • Now: 40,000 Bonus Mile + Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare Offer.
  • Get 40,000 bonus miles and Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare from $121 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $22) with this offer. To qualify, make purchases of $2,000 or more within the first 90 days of opening your account.
  • Save with a free checked bag on Alaska flights for you and up to six other guests on the same reservation.
  • Get Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare every year! Each year on your account anniversary get a companion fare from $121 ($99 plus taxes and fees from $22). Valid on all Alaska flights booked on alaskaair.com with no blackout dates.
  • Earn unlimited 3 miles for every $1 spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases and 1 mile for every $1 spent on all other purchases. And, your miles don’t expire on active accounts.
  • New! Enjoy 50% off day passes at the Alaska Lounge and 20% back on all Alaska Airlines inflight purchases when you pay with your new card.
  • Redeem miles with no blackout dates on any of Alaska’s 1,200 daily flights or choose from over 900+ destinations with more than a dozen global airline partners. Plus, get exclusive access to discounted redemption levels when you redeem miles for hotel stays at over 400,000 properties using Alaska Airlines Hotels.
  • Plus, no foreign transaction fees and a low $75 annual fee.

Is Alaska Airlines Visa Business worth it?

Alaska Airlines Visa Business is a solid travel card for business travelers in the 30 states that the airline offers flights from. Travelers in the western U.S., where there are the largest number of routes, are the most natural fit for this card. The 40,000 bonus miles you get for signing up are worth almost a free roundtrip flight across the country.

We checked a roundtrip flight from New York to Los Angeles and found it cost $50,000 miles, so if you normally value this flight at $500, the points are worth about one cent. This is the normal rate for points for all cards. There are some other domestic flights through alaskaair.com you can get with fewer points, but to be conservative, one cent is a good value to keep in mind.

Pros

  • Intro bonus of 40,000 miles and one $121 companion fare in coach after spending $2,000 in first 90 days after account opening
  • Book travel with American Airlines, British Airways, and and more than 10 others

Cons

  • 1x rewards rate on all other purchases is not a competitive rate

Why 5 Stars?

Regular APR

The interest rate is 17.74% – 25.74%, which is pretty normal for a credit card aimed at people with excellent credit, including business owners. It’s not a reason to get the card though.
4 Stars

Intro APR

There’s no Intro 0% rate on balance transfers or purchases. Some business cards offer an intro period on purchases, but not this one. Perhaps the lack of an annual fee made it hard to offer no interest when it’s already offering rich travel rewards.
4 Stars

Fees

No foreign transaction fee is a nice to have, but not a necessity for a domestic airline like Alaska’s travel card. With transfer partners that include Aer Lingus, American Airlines, British Airways, Emirates, Korean Airlines, Singapore Airlines, and more than 5 more, it’s nice to know you could carry this card as your primary card wherever you go.

There’s a penalty APR, but the balance transfer and cash advance fees are average at 3%. Same goes for the $75 annual fee, which is cheap for a business card, so overall the fees are low.
5 Stars

Perks

Alaska?s Famous Companion Fare is unreal value. After paying your $75 annual fee, you get a companion fare of $121 on alaskaair.com flights with no blackout dates on any flight. Pretty simple, use the pass, and you more than make up for the fee. The 40,000 bonus miles you get for signing up are just icing on the cake.
5 Stars

Overall

Alaska Airlines Visa? Business doesn’t disappoint. It is what it sounds like, a travel card for flying and earning points through Alaska Airlines. 50% off day passes at the Alaska Lounge is a nice perk for business travelers too.
5 Stars

Fees

Foreign Transaction FeeNone
Balance Transfer Fee3% of the amount of each transaction or $10, whichever is greater
Cash Advance Fee3% of the amount of each transaction or $10, whichever is greater
Penalty APRUp to 29.99%

Benefits

$0 Fraud Liability
Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver
Emergency ticket replacement
Travel Accident Insurance
Lost Luggage Assistance
Get Started with Aer Lingus Visa Signature

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinion, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed on this page are those of the author?s alone, and may not have been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.

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Best Alaska Airlines Credit Cards, Best Bank of America Credit Cards, Best Business Credit Cards, Best Credit Cards For Excellent Credit, Best Credit Cards For Rental Car Insurance, Best Credit Cards For Travel Insurance, Best Credit Cards To Book Flights, Best No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards, Best Travel Credit Cards, Best Visa Credit Cards

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