text: Review: British Airways Visa Signature® Credit Card | The Ascent
  British Airways Visa Signature® Review: A Big Bonus for Big Spenders
  This offer is unavailable on The Ascent. The information related to British Airways Visa Signature® has been collected by The Ascent and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer.
  The British Airways Visa Signature® offers a generous sign-up bonus that can be redeemed with any Oneworld carrier, including American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Iberia, and more. Unfortunately, extra perks on the card are minimal, and if you don't redeem your Avios miles wisely, you could end up paying hefty surcharge fees. As you'll find out, this can be a super valuable travel credit card, but only for the right cardholder. We'll weigh the pros and cons below in our comprehensive British Airways Visa Signature® review.
  With a large sign-up bonus and big travel perks, this could be a great card for frequent travelers.
  Earn 3 Avios per $1 on purchases with British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Iberia. It also earns 2 Avios per $1 on hotel accommodations booked directly with the hotel. All other spending earns 1 Avios per $1.
  15.99% – 22.99%, variable
  Up to 100,000 Avios points after spending $3,000 within 3 months
  Full British Airways Visa Signature® review
  Up to 100,000-mile sign-up bonus: If you spend $3,000 with your card in the first three months of opening your account, you'll be awarded 50,000 bonus miles. On top of that, you have the chance to earn another 50,000 bonus miles when you spend $20,000 in the first year. While Avios aren't quite as useful as the points you can earn with a few other credit card rewards programs, a 100,000-point bonus is something even the best credit cards rarely have.
  Earn up to 3 Avios per $1: This card earns 3 Avios per $1 on purchases with British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Iberia. It also earns 2 Avios per $1 on hotel accommodations booked directly with the hotel. All other spending earns 1 Avios per $1.
  Up to $600 reward flight statement credits: You can receive statement credits of $100 for economy and premium economy or $200 for business and first-class seats three times per year when you book a reward flight to London on British Airways and pay taxes, fees, and carrier-imposed charges with your British Airways Visa Signature®. Although this is a very specific benefit, it can save you up to $600 per year if you travel to London often.
  Travel Together Ticket: If you spend $30,000 on your British Airways Visa Signature® in a single calendar year, you'll get one Travel Together Ticket. This is a companion voucher that allows you to take a companion on one round-trip award flight you book using Avios with British Airways. The flight must originate and terminate in the U.S., but it can be an international flight. Your companion's seat will be in the same cabin, including if you booked first class.
  No free checked bag: British Airways is one of the very few airlines that don't offer a free checked bag for cardholders. Considering this has become almost a standard feature among airline credit cards, it's disappointing that British Airways doesn't offer it here.
  Minimum spending requirement: In order to get the full 100,000 Avios sign-up bonus, you need to spend $20,000 in a calendar year. This is difficult for many, and for those who do spend that much each year, there may be other credit cards that offer greater value.
  High fees and surcharges: Booking British Airways flights with Avios can incur massive fees and surcharges, especially if you're flying long-haul. Some business class award flights end up costing over $1,000. However, many redemption options with partner airlines don't incur such steep fees.
  A FICO® Score of 670 or above will give you a strong chance of approval for the British Airways Visa Signature®. It's possible to get this card with a lower credit score, but your odds of success will go down if your score is in the low-to-mid 600s.
  Since Chase issues the British Airways Visa Signature®, it's also subject to Chase's 5/24 rule, which means you could be denied if you've opened too many new credit card accounts in recent years.
  British Airways Avios are generally worth about $0.015 each. This does, however, depend heavily on how you use them. Some redemptions can get you as little as $0.005 per Avios, whereas the best redemptions can get you well over $0.02 per Avios.
  The $95 annual fee of the British Airways Visa Signature® card can either be a fantastic deal or a ripoff depending on whether you can max out the card's benefits.
  If you get your $600 in reward flight statement credits, you're already coming out ahead on the annual fee. With a Travel Together Ticket and the miles earned using the card, it's certainly possible to get over $1,000 in value from it per year.
  On the other hand, if you use the card just to earn some miles here and there, you'll be lucky to break even on what it costs.
  If you want more versatile travel rewards: The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns points that you can either transfer to over a dozen airlines and hotels, including British Airways, or redeem at a fixed rate to book travel. You'll have far more options with how you use your points, so it's a better bet if you don't fly on British Airways all the time. It's also the same price as the British Airways Visa Signature®, as it carries a $95 annual fee.
  If you want a no annual fee travel card: Most travel cards charge an annual fee, but the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card is one of the few exceptions. That doesn't mean it lacks benefits as it earns an unlimited 1.5 points per $1 on every purchase and includes a solid sign-up bonus.
  Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
  Bonus: 60,000 points after spending $4,000 within 3 months Bonus: 25,000 points after making at least $1,000 in purchases within 90 days of account opening
  Rewards Program: 2x points on travel and dining, 1x points on all other purchases. 25% more points for travel booked through Chase's portal. Rewards Program: Unlimited 1.5 points per $1 on purchases, 25%-75% more points for Bank of America Preferred Rewards members
  Intro APR: Purchases: N/A Balance Transfers: N/A Intro APR: Purchases: 0%, 12 billing cycles Balance Transfers: N/A
  Regular APR: 15.99% - 22.99% Variable Regular APR: 14.99% - 22.99% Variable
  The British Airways Visa Signature® will serve you well if you fly on British Airways multiple times per year and plan to use one credit card for most or all of your spending.
  While this card does have several benefits, many of those require that you either reach high spending minimums or take multiple flights on British Airways. To max out the sign-up bonus, you need to spend $20,000 in the first year you have the card. To qualify for the Travel Together Ticket, you need to spend $30,000 per calendar year. And you need to take three flights to London to get all your reward flight statement credits, although even just one can outweigh the cost of the card.
  Frequent flyers on British Airways could get substantial value from the British Airways Visa Signature®, especially considering it charges only a $95 annual fee. But everyone else will be better off with a more flexible travel card.