If you’re a frequent traveler, having a premium credit card can improve your travel experience immensely. This type of card offers valuable perks like airport lounge access, annual travel credits and high rewards on your purchases.
There are a variety of premium credit cards to choose from, so how do you decide which one to pick, especially if you’re not looking for a card co-branded with your favorite airline or hotel? This article compares three of the best premium credit cards to help you decide which one is the right fit for your lifestyle: The Platinum Card from American Express, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve card.
Premium credit cards go beyond the basics of extra points on travel purchases and travel protections in case your flight is delayed or canceled. These luxury credit cards offer an array of travel benefits, annual credits and bonus perks that are worthy of their high annual fees. With annual fees up to $700, these perks must align with the way you spend and travel, otherwise, you’re wasting your money.
There are two types of premium credit cards: co-branded cards and general cards. A co-branded card earns points redeemable through a single airline or hotel. General cards earn points in the issuer’s points ecosystem, which are redeemable through the issuer’s travel portal or through transfer partners. The Platinum Card from American Express, the Capital One Venture X Rewards card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve card are three general cards in the premium credit card category, so it makes sense to compare them against each other.
While the Sapphire Reserve and the Platinum Card have been around for many years, the Venture X is a newcomer. Capital One debuted the card in November 2021 as a premium version of the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card to compete in the luxury travel category.
Shawn Coomer, founder and credit card expert at Miles to Memories, says, “The proliferation of premium credit cards has been a good development for consumers. We now have a wider variety of products and benefits compared to ever before.” So which one should you choose?
