Review: Capital One Venture X
Capital One is one of the newer entrants to the transferable points world and introduced the Venture X in November of 2021. This card is almost too good to be true with great perks and a great return on spending. This is the perfect card to use as a catch all for non bonused spend like shopping where you can earn 2x Capital One miles per dollar spent.
Apply here: Capital One Venture X
Quick Facts
Signup Bonus: 75,000 Miles after spending $4,000 in 3 months.
Miles Earned: Capital One Miles which you can use for 1 cents each toward travel or better yet you can transfer them on a 1:1 basis to their 18 airline and hotel partners. I value Capital One miles at 1.7 cents per point.
Aeromexico
Air Canada
Avianca
British Airways
Cathay Pacific
Emirates
Etihad
EVA
Finnair
Air France/KLM Flying Blue
Qantas
Singapore
TAP Air Portugal
Turkish
Virgin Red (Parent company of Virgin Atlantic)
Accor Live Limitless
Choice Privileges
Wyndham
Earnings Structure:
10x miles on hotels and car rentals booked through the Capital One Travel Portal.
5x miles on flights booked through the Capital One Travel Portal.
2x miles on everything else
Foreign Transaction Fees: None
Annual Fee: $395
Annual Travel Credit: $300 when booked through the Capital One Travel Portal
Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Fee Credit: $100
Anniversary Bonus: Earn 10,000 bonus miles on each cardholder anniversary
10x Miles on Hotels and Car Rentals Booked Through the Capital One Travel Portal
While this may sound enticing, there are some drawbacks to booking this way. There’s an opportunity cost to not booking directly and going through the portal. Not only is it much easier to deal directly with the company who is actually providing that travel but you also will earn points/miles with their loyalty program and have your elite status recognized. Additionally, you’ll generally find prices are better when booking directly. That is not the case when booking through Capital One’s or any other travel portal. If you have to change your plans or need to rebook, you must reach out to Capital One which can be a pain especially when you’re pressed for time. They’re acting as a liaison between you and the travel provider. It’s much easier to go straight to the source.
You will earn 2x miles on all other travel not booked through Capital One so this is still a great card for those purchases and what I would prefer.
$300 Travel Credit
While this card has a big $395 annual fee, it does offer a $300 travel credit which brings the annual fee down to an effective $95. You do have to book through the Capital One Travel Portal to get this credit, but you will earn the full 5x-10x on your purchase.
10,000 Mile Anniversary Bonus
Each year when your card is renewed, you will received 10,000 bonus miles just for keeping the card. I value these bonus miles at $170 (10,000 x 1.7 cents). If you use your $300 travel credit, adding in another $170 worth of miles means you’re coming out ahead when you factor in the annual fee.
Priority Pass Membership
This is another great perk of the Venture X. Priority Pass is a huge global lounge network with over 1,300 lounges worldwide. Some are great and some are just ok. But again, any lounge access is better than sitting in the terminal before a flight. You get to bring two guests with you as well.
The Club at CLT a Priority Pass Lounge
Capital One Venture Lounge Access
In addition to your Priority Pass membership, you also get access to Capital One’s growing network of Capital One Lounges. Currently they have lounges at Denver (DEN), Dallas (DFW), and Washington Dulles (IAD). These lounges are on much nicer than most Priority Pass lounges and are on par with American Express’ Centurion Lounges and Chase’s Sapphire Lounges.
Capital One Lounge
Hertz President’s Circle Status
Capital One also offers all Venture X cardholders complimentary top tier President’s Circle status with Hertz. Typically this requires spending $3,000 on car rentals or renting 15 times. Hertz President’s Circle allows you to go up and choose whatever car you’d like in the President’s Circle aisle and drive right off. They typically have some pretty great upgrades for you to choose from.
TSA PreCheck or Global Entry Fee Credit
TSA PreCheck and Global Entry are easily what I value most when traveling. This credit is worth $85-100 depending on which route you go.
TSA PreCheck is a much less painful security check at airports where you don’t have to take your shoes and belt off, don’t have to remove your laptop, and you don’t have to go through the body scanner while holding your hands above your head.
Now, Global Entry is one of the unsung heroes of travel that a lot of people probably haven’t heard about. Not only does this allow you to skip the immigration line when returning home and just use a self service kiosk, it also comes with TSA PreCheck!
The Capital One Venture X offers a TSA PreCheck or Global Entry fee credit every 5 years which is how long each program is valid for. All you have to do is charge the fee to your card and it will get reimbursed.
Global Entry
Primary Car Rental Insurance
This is another great benefit with the Venture X. Capital One offers primary rental car insurance when booking a rental car with your card. As long as you decline the CDW when you rent Capital One will cover any damage up to the value of the car. Certainly check the exclusions as I’ve seen it won’t cover a rental like a Tesla but it can still be incredibly useful especially if you rent cars regularly.
Travel Protection
The Venture X also offers many great travel and purchase protections which can take the sting out when things go wrong on a trip.
Lost Luggage Insurance: This will reimburse you for a lost or stolen bag.
Trip Delay Reimbursement: If your travel is delayed more than 6 hours or requires an overnight stay, you and your family are covered for unreimbursed expenses, such as meals and lodging, up to $500 per ticket. This is huge and what I’ve used most in the past.
Cell Phone Protection: If you lose or damage your cell phone, Capital One will reimburse you up to $800 twice per year. You do need to make your cell phone payment with your card to qualify and there is a $50 deductible.
Capital One Venture X Authorized User Perks
What really makes the Capital One Venture X stand out is the perks afforded to your authorized users. This card allows you to add up to 4 authorized users for no fee. So what do your authorized users get?
Priority Pass Membership
Capital One Lounge access
Hertz President’s Circle membership
Now they don’t get the $300 travel credit or the 10,000 mile anniversary bonus which is understandable. Getting these additional benefits for your authorized users with no additional fee is another great reason for this card.
What If I Already Have the Capital One Venture?
Good news, if you already have the Capital One Venture, you can apply for this card and get the sign up bonus. Note, you may have the chance to do a product change where you call them and request to change your Venture to the Venture X but you will not be eligible for the 75,000 point sign up bonus.
Is it Worth It?
There are not many cards out there where you can make money just by having the card but the Capital One Venture X is one of them. The great 75,000 point sign up bonus coupled with the $300 travel credit, 10,000 mile anniversary bonus, plus all the other incredible perks make this card a must have. There are certainly better cards out there to put other spending on but this is a great card to fill any gaps in your portfolio and ensure you earn a minimum of 2 miles per dollar on all purchases.
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