Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card review: A streamlined travel rewards experience
Perfect for streamlined rewards from all of your spending.
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Snapshot
4.9
Bottom line
Even when you’re not traveling, the boosted miles this card earns on all spending carry a 1:1 value with most transfer partners, making this a top pick if you want to pool earn easy-to-manage travel rewards for future travel plans.
Intro offer
Earn 75,000 + $250 in Travel Credit
Rewards rate
2 Miles - 5 Miles
Annual fee
$95
Regular APR
19.99% - 29.99% (Variable)
Bankrate Score
Rewards value
APR
Rewards flexibility
Features
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Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Overview
The Capital One Venture earns an unlimited 2X miles on all purchases, making it a great fit if you’re an occasional traveler who can’t take full advantage of a high rewards rate on travel purchases.
You can redeem miles for any recent travel purchase (such as vacation rentals, flights with any airline, hotels, rental cars, cruises, and more) and you’ll receive a statement credit in the amount of your redemption. This is a standout feature that you won’t find with co-branded travel cards that may restrict you to specific airlines or hotel brands. You’ll have extra time to accumulate the miles you need after your purchase and you won’t need to redeem for the full amount.
But despite its value as a great everyday spending card, the Venture card lacks the extra travel perks available on some competing cards. If you’re a frequent traveler, you may find a card with better travel benefits more valuable.
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Rewards
- Earn 5X miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- Earn 2X miles per dollar on all other purchases
Expert Appraisal: Good
See our expert analysis -
Welcome offer
- (Limited-time offer) Earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening - that’s equal to $1,000 in travel, plus a one-time $250 credit you can redeem on Capital One Travel
Expert Appraisal: Good
See our expert analysis -
Rates and fees
- APR: 19.99 percent to 29.99 percent (variable)
- Annual fee: $95
- Balance transfer fee: $0 at the transfer APR, 4 percent of the amount of each transferred balance that posts to your account at a promotional APR that Capital One may offer to you
- Cash advance fee: The greater of $5 or 5 percent of each cash advance
- Foreign transaction fee: $0
- (See Rates & Fees)
Expert Appraisal: Typical
See our expert analysis -
Other cardholder perks
- MasterRental Insurance*
- Up to $100 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit
- $50 Lifestyle Collection credit
- Lost or Damaged Luggage*
- Capital One Eno assistant
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Coverage*
Expert Appraisal: Good
See our expert analysis
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card pros and cons
Pros
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The card earns unlimited flat-rate travel miles on all purchases, making it a simple option for a standalone card.
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It’s an ideal card for making purchases overseas since it doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees.
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It offers a solid collection of benefits and has flexible redemption options.
Cons
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Unlike the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card's annual fee, you can’t offset the annual fee with annual travel credits or bonus miles.
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Miles are worth 1 cent or less unless you use select airline transfer programs, which can limit your overall earning potential.
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You can earn more rewards from other cards with more varied bonus categories.
Why you might want the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
The Capital One Venture Rewards card offers an outstanding balance of flexibility and rewards value as a general travel card. It’s an ideal pick if you’re an occasional traveler who isn’t dedicated to one airline and you want to use rewards from your everyday spending to fund your next trip.
Rewards rate: Solid, flat-rate miles for every purchase
The Capital One Venture earns flat-rate rewards, meaning it earns unlimited Capital One miles at the same rate for all purchases. It also earns a boosted rewards rate for hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.
Most other travel credit cards earn rewards primarily from travel-related spending, like airfare and hotel purchases. But the Venture card’s flat-rate approach and the Capital One Travel portal make it easy to earn and redeem travel miles without sacrificing top-tier rewards value.
Other cards may offer higher rewards rates in specific categories, but if you frequently make purchases outside of staple rewards categories like groceries, dining, gas or streaming subscriptions, then a flat-rate card like the Capital One Venture can help you get a nice sum of rewards compared to other cards.
Redemptions: Miles are flexible and valuable for bookings or transfers
Capital One offers more redemption options than many competitors, including a comprehensive list of 1:1 transfer partners and the option to use miles to cover outside travel purchases. Your miles don’t expire for the life of your account, and there are no blackout dates, so you’d be better off saving them for a rainy day rather than cashing them in for a half-sized check. You can also combine miles with other Capital One cards or transfer them to a friend or family member, offering even more flexibility.
Based on Bankrate's latest credit card point valuations, Capital One miles could be worth around 1.7 cents each on average when you transfer to a top airline or hotel travel partner, making it a potentially more lucrative option. However, if the transfer partner list or travel portal doesn’t meet your needs, you can shop externally and cover the cost with miles you redeem as a statement credit. You can apply any amount of miles to recent travel purchases, giving you time to accumulate more rewards to cover the purchase and flexibility if you can’t cover the entire purchase. Miles redeemed this way are worth 1 cent a piece each, however.
Why you might want a different travel card
The Capital One Venture Rewards credit card offers a nice blend of value and convenience for cardholders, but it has some shortcomings compared to other rewards cards.
Welcome offer: Steep spending requirement
For a limited time, new cardholders can enjoy $250 to use on Capital One Travel in their first cardholder year, plus earn a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within three months of account opening. This bonus is worth up to $1,000 in travel redemptions when you book travel through the Capital One Travel portal. However, according to Bankrate's estimations which values Capital One miles at about 1.7 cents each, the total bonus value with the $250 credit could be around $1,525.
The new limited-time offer adds a $250 credit to the previous 75,000-mile bonus with no additional spending requirement, but the original spending requirement can still be high for some cardholders. Also, the new bonus still does not match the card’s highest offer (100,000 miles after spending $20,000 in your first year). However, there's no telling if or when Capital One will offer such a high bonus again, so the $250 credit makes now a great time to apply.
Yearly perks: Lacks annual bonus miles
The Venture Rewards card carries consistent purchase value with its flat-rate rewards but fails to deliver on yearly perks and credits that bring additional value.
For instance, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has an up to $50 annual hotel stay credit through the Chase Travel portal and a 10 percent anniversary point bonus. With this benefit, Chase rewards you on each account anniversary with 10 percent of the points you redeemed in the previous year. Other travel cards like the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card also have annual benefits that can help offset their respective annual fees.
These cards could be better options for you if you are looking for a reliable way to offset the fees that usually accompany traveling. However, you’ll want to review those cards’ details before deciding what works best for you.
First-year value vs. ongoing value
Given its small list of perks, it’s clear this card’s key value comes from its travel rewards program. If you’re more of a “show me the money” type, the only ongoing Venture card features with clear monetary value are the $50 Lifestyle Collection hotel stay experience credit and the up to $100 application fee credit you’ll receive every four years for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry.
That means you’ll have to rely primarily on rewards spending each year to make up for the $ annual fee. Here’s a look at what you’d have to spend in a given category each year to offset the annual fee:
- 2X miles flat-rate spending: at least $4,752 per year if you get a 1-cent-per-mile redemption value ($2,794 if transferring miles, assuming an average mile value of 1.7 cents per mile)
- 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel: at least $1,900 per year ($1,117 if transferring miles, assuming an average mile value of 1.7 cents per mile)
Some competing cards in the Venture’s class provide more benefit value to offset annual fees. But depending on your spending habits, the annual fee may not be a concern, especially if you plan to transfer miles for an average of 1.7 cents per mile (Bankrate’s current valuation). And the 75,000-mile sign-up bonus (earned after spending $4,000 during the first three months) is enough to help offset the annual fee for several years, even if you only receive 1 cent per mile in redemption value.
Here’s a look at the first-year and ongoing value you should expect based on a 1-cent-per-mile redemption value:
| Benefits and Costs | First-year value | Ongoing value (no welcome offers) |
|---|---|---|
| Yearly rewards* | +$327 | +$327 |
| Welcome offers | +$1,000 value ($250 credit; 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 during the first three months) | — |
| Perks (of monetary value) |
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|
| Annual fee | -$95 (See Rates & Fees) | -$95 (See Rates & Fees) |
| Total value | $1,307 | $307 |
*Based on our formula used to calculate each card’s average rewards rates and average ongoing rewards value, using Bureau of Labor Statistics spending data and an assumed $15,900 yearly spend over three years ($1,325 per month).
We tried it: Here’s what our experts say
Frequent Bankrate contributor Jacqueline DeMarco loves the Capital One Venture card for its streamlined rewards experience and has been collecting miles with it for the past seven years.
“I don’t enjoy figuring out which spending categories will generate the most credit card rewards. With the Capital One Venture, I was attracted to the simplicity of earning unlimited 2X miles on all purchases. For this reason, I use my Capital One Venture for most major purchases over $100, whether it’s to upgrade a phone, buy clothes or do some holiday shopping. If I charge $1,500 in a month, I know that I’ll earn 3,000 Capital One miles. It’s an uncomplicated calculation.”
“In the end, even with a $95 annual fee, my Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is a bargain. This card gives me options, including flat-rate rewards, flexible flights and numerous protections.”
— Jacqueline DeMarco
Personal finance writer
How the Capital One Venture compares to other travel cards
The Venture card is popular thanks to its ease of use and simple reward structure. However, if you like to maximize your credit card rewards through strategic spending, you may be better off with another card.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Earn 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening, plus receive a one-time $250 Capital One Travel credit in your first cardholder year – that’s equal to $1,000 in travel
Rewards rate
5 Miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. 2 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.
Rewards rate
5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠. 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries. 2x on all other travel purchases. 1x on all other purchases.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Earn a bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $200 in travel
Rewards rate
5 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. 1.25 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
If you’ve discovered that the Venture card is worth its annual fee, you should also consider the Capital One Venture X card. Although its annual fee may seem more intimidating, its yearly statement credits on Capital One Travel purchases and account anniversary bonus may completely offset the annual fee.
Best cards to pair with the Capital One Venture
Flat-rate rewards cards pair best with category rewards cards that align with your biggest expenses. Here are a few good options.
Who is the Capital One Venture right for?
The Capital One Venture offers plenty to love if you’re looking for a simple travel rewards card. Consider the card if you’d label yourself one of the following.
Bankrate’s Take — Is the Capital One Venture worth it?
The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is convenient if you prefer simple flat-rate rewards or don’t spend enough on travel to justify a bonus category card or a high annual fee premium travel card.
But the rewards and benefits aren’t as great as the specialized features of a card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred, and if you spend more than $300 on Capital One travel bookings each year, it may be worth upgrading to the Venture X due to its extra benefits and rewards potential, which can make it easy to offset the higher annual fee.
*For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the benefits may be provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
How we rated this card
We rate credit cards using a proprietary card scoring system that ranks each card’s estimated average rewards rate, estimated annual earnings, welcome bonus value, APR, fees, perks and more against those of other cards in its primary category.
Each card feature is assigned a weighting based on how important it is to people looking for a card in a given category. These features are then scored based on how they rank relative to the features on other cards in the category. Based on these calculations, each card receives an overall rating of 1-5 stars (with 5 being the highest possible score and 1 being the lowest).
We analyzed over 150 of the most popular rewards and cash back cards to determine where each stacked up based on their value, cost, benefits and more. Here are some of the key factors that influenced this card’s overall score and how the score influenced our review:
Frequently asked questions
What cardholders think
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
In May 2024, Bankrate collaborated with third-party SliceMR to survey 6160 cardholders nationwide. Bankrate and Slice MR collected, averaged and presented website analytics and cardholder responses to six questions on a 5-point scale. Responses are based on individual cardholder’s product details, and therefore cannot be verified for accuracy. User ratings are unedited and have not been reviewed or approved by credit card issuers, nor do these ratings reflect Bankrate’s own reviews of these cards.
Community Reviews
* See the online application for details about terms and conditions for these offers. Every reasonable effort has been made to maintain accurate information. However all credit card information is presented without warranty. After you click on the offer you desire you will be directed to the credit card issuer's web site where you can review the terms and conditions for your selected offer.
Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. The information, including card rates and fees, is accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank’s website for the most current information.
