Blog - Luggage Guru

by Daniel | Last Updated September 14th, 2021 We may earn a commission for purchases using our links, at no cost to you. If you're looking for a credit card that has an affordable annual fee and offers some decent travel-related perks, then either of the following cards are worth considering, The Citi Premier Card, and the Capital One Venture Rewards Card. Both of these cards offer some really good points-earning potential and also have a variety of benefits and user perks that make these cards quite valuable. So let’s take a more detailed look at each card and see what differences there are and which one offers the most value. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnwef9Jypuk Who Are These Cards Good For? Both cards are good for anybody who travels at least a few times a year, although each card varies a bit in terms of its benefits and user perks, they both provide some great value. Each card gives you the ability to either transfer points to over 16 different frequent flier programs, or you can use your rewards points through either PayPal with the Capital One Venture Rewards credit card, or you can use the Citi Premier card’s Thank-you points through either Amazon.com or BestBuy.com.So let’s continue on and look at the annual fee of each card. Annual Fee So starting with the Annual fee, both of these cards cost the same on an annual basis which is currently $95, and considering the benefits that come with this card, I think this is a pretty reasonable price.Next up, let’s take a look at what each card offers in terms of a sign-up bonus. Sign-up Bonus So starting with the Citi Premier card you can earn up to 80,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 within the first 3 months of opening an account, and according to the citi.com website, these points are worth up to $800 depending on what you redeem them for.And these points are worth more than 8 times the cost of the annual fee, which I think is really good value. Next up, the Capital One Venture Rewards card is currently offering 60,000 bonus miles after you spend $3,000 within the first 3 months of opening the account, and these points are worth approximately 1 cent per point, so the 60,000 bonus miles are worth approximately $600. So this is worth more than 6x the cost of the annual fee, which is still really good, even though it's not quite as much value as the Citi Premier card, it is worth noting that the spend requirement to receive the points with the Capital One Venture Rewards card is $1,000 less than the Citi Premier card. Earning Points Next up, let’s take a look at how each card compares in terms of earning points. Starting with the Citi Premier card you will have the opportunity to earn 3x points on purchases from Restaurants, Supermarkets Gas Stations, Air travel, and Hotels.And all other purchases will earn 1 point per dollar spent. So now let’s take a look at what the Capital One Venture Rewards card offers in terms of earning points. And this is very straightforward, basically, you will earn unlimited 2x points on all purchases.So if you tend to spend more money at businesses that are not covered by the 3x points earnings on the Citi Premier card, then this card may well be best suited to you as you will be able to earn more points from a wider variety of places. Benefits and User Perks So from here let’s look at the benefits and user perks that are offered with each card. Starting with the Citi Premier card you will receive a $100 hotel credit for single-stay hotel bookings that are made through the thankyou.com website and cost $500 or more (excluding taxes and fees), and this is offered once per calendar year.Along with this, you will also receive World Elite Mastercard Benefits which include quite a few nice perks.If you take 3 Lyft rides in a month you will receive a $5 credit.You will also get 3 free months of membership with Doordash, and as a DashPass member, you will also get $5 of the first 2 orders per month.There is also a free ShopRunner membership which offers free 2-day shipping and free returns at over 100 stores across the US.If you spend $20 on movie tickets at Fandango or on their home streaming service, you will receive a $5 credit towards your next movie. And finally, there are no foreign transaction fees associated with this card. Now let’s take a look at what the Capital One Venture Rewards card offers. First of all, you will receive a $100 credit that can be used on either Global entry or TSA-PreCheck. And finally, there are no foreign transaction fees with this card. So when it comes to user perks the Citi Premier card does offer more value than the Capital One Venture Rewards card, I guess the deciding factor for this section if you are considering one of these cards would be if these perks are actually useful to you.The most useful perks in my opinion are quite similar, with the Citi Premier card offering a $100 hotel credit and no foreign transaction fees, and the Capital One Venture Rewards card offers a $100 credit for TSA PreCheck or Global entry and no foreign transaction fees.Now let’s move on to what each card offers in terms of insurance-related benefits. Insurance-Related Benefits Starting with the Citi Premier card you will get cell phone protection for up to $1,000 per year, with the ability to make 2 claims each year with a maximum of $800 for a single claim, and this covers stolen or damaged phones. You will also receive extended warranty protection that gives you 2 years on top of the manufacturer's warranty.And finally, you will receive damage and theft protection that gives you 90 days from that date you make a purchase, and covers both damaged or stolen items, with a limit of $10,000 per item and $50,000 per year. So next let’s take a look at what the Capital One Venture Rewards card offers, and just to note this is classified as a Visa Signature card. First of all, you will receive an auto rental collision damage waiver that will cover you if your rental car is damaged due to theft or a collision. There is also lost luggage reimbursement which covers you and an immediate family member for up to $3,000 if your checked or carry-on luggage is lost by the carrier. You will also get purchase security that provides you with 90 days of coverage from the purchase date if the item is damaged or lost, and covers up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per cardholder per year.There is travel accident insurance that covers you the cardholder, your spouse, and unmarried dependent children up to a total of $250,000 in the case of accidental loss of life, limb, sight, speech, or hearing whilst riding as a passenger with a carrier, and you must pay for the entire fare with your card for this to be valid. So as you can see, the Capital One Venture Rewards card does offer a bit more in terms of travel-related insurance, so if you do travel a lot, this might be something to consider, and the deciding factor in your choice of which card you choose. Final Thoughts So what are my thoughts about each of these cards? As with most credit cards, it often comes down to personal preference as to which card you want. With the Citi Premier card, you will need to spend $4,000 within the first 3 months to receive the 80,000 points that are worth up to $800.And with the Capital One Venture Rewards card, you will need to spend a bit less, $3,000 in the first 3 months to receive the 60,000 bonus miles that are worth up to $600. So if you have a limited amount of money you can spend on your card, specifically in the first 3 months, the Capital One Venture Rewards card would make the most sense for you.But if you know you will be able to spend at least $4,000 in the first 3 months, the Citi Premier card rewards you with more value. Both of these cards also offer a reasonable ability to earn quite a lot of reward points if your spending habits match up with the right card.If you tend to spend a lot at Restaurants, Supermarkets Gas Stations, Air travel, and Hotels, then the Citi Premier card will reward you with more points.If you don’t spend as much money at these locations and spend more on different purchases, then the unlimited 2x points on all purchases from the Capital One Venture Rewards card will be a better choice for you. And finally, if you like your credit card to have a lot of insurance-related benefits, specifically when you travel, then the Capital One Venture Rewards card is the obvious choice as it does offer more than the Citi Premier card.