Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card Review | Bankrate (2024)

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If you’re an occasional traveler who wants a low-maintenance, low-cost travel rewards card, the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card may be the right choice.

This no-annual-fee card (See Rates & Fees) earns a solid unlimited flat rate on all purchases, but it stands apart from other no-annual-fee travel cards by also earning elevated rewards on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Plus, the solid sign-up bonus and intro APR offers on purchases and balance transfers add up to a first-year value on par with that of several top travel cards for beginners.

The VentureOne is also one of the few no-annual-fee travel cards that earns rewards transferable to partner loyalty programs. This gives its flat-rate rewards an edge over competitors if you want easy-to-earn miles that can be worth more than 1 cent each with a little effort.

• Rewards

  • 5X miles on hotels and rental cars when you book through Capital One Travel
  • 1.25X miles on all purchases

  Expert Appraisal: Unimpressive
  See our expert analysis

• Welcome offer

  • 20,000 bonus miles if you spend $500 within the first three months

  Expert Appraisal: Good
  See our expert analysis

• 0% Intro APR offer

  • 0 percent intro APR on purchases for the first 15 months
  • 0 percent intro APR on balance transfers for the first 15 months (balance transfer fee applies)
  • 19.99 percent to 29.99 percent variable APR
  • 3 percent balance transfer fee for the first 15 months; 4 percent at a promotional APR that Capital One may offer you at any other time
  • (See Rates & Fees)

  Expert Appraisal: Good
  See our expert analysis

• Rates and fees

  • No annual fee
  • No foreign transaction fee
  • (See Rates & Fees)

  Expert Appraisal: Good
  See our expert analysis

• Other cardholder perks

  • Travel Assistance Services* - Available 24/7 to help connect you with local emergency and assistance resources when you're away from home
  • Concierge* - Enjoy 24/7 assistance booking travel, getting hard-to-get reservations at a favorite restaurant, finding that perfect gift, and more
  • Extended Warranty* - Doubles the original manufacturer's warranty, up to a maximum of twenty-four (24) months, for eligible items purchased with your card
  • Auto Rental Insurance* - Use your card to rent an eligible vehicle

  Expert Appraisal: Typical
  See our expert analysis

Transfer value: Transfer partners can greatly boost value

One of the VentureOne card’s biggest advantages over its competition is its transfer partner redemptions. According to Bankrate’s latest points and miles valuations, your rewards can be worth about 1.7 cents with the right Capital One transfer partner.

You can use Capital One miles to book travel with the following airlines or transfer miles to loyalty programs (with no blackout dates):

• Aeromexico
• Air Canada
• Avianca Airlines
• British Airways
• Cathay Pacific Asia Airways
• Emirates Airline
• Etihad Airways
• EVA Air
• Finnair
• Flying Blue
• Qantas Airways
• Singapore Airlines
• TAP Air Portugal
• Turkish Airlines
• Virgin Red

In addition, you can book travel with and transfer points to the Accord Live Limitless, Choice Privileges Hotels and Wyndham Rewards hotel rewards programs.

Welcome offer: Reasonable spending requirement for solid rewards

You only have to spend $500 in the first three months with the card to earn 20,000 bonus miles. The 20,000 miles are worth $200 at 1 cent per mile when you redeem them for travel booked through the Capital One portal, or approximately $340 when transferred to the right travel partner, based on Bankrate’s estimated value of 1.7 cents cents per mile.

A $200 bonus is solid compared to the typical welcome offer that no-annual-fee travel cards carry. You could earn more than $200 in rewards with the welcome offers from the Discover it® Miles card or the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card, but the VentureOne card’s offer could be one of the most valuableif you’re up for transferring your points to travel partners.

Intro APR offer: Generous for a travel credit card

Premium travel credit cards aren’t known for lengthy intro APR offers. While the intro offer on the VentureOne isn’t the longest available, it’s still very competitive, especially for a travel card. Paired with a $0 annual fee (See Rates & Fees), the intro offers on the VentureOne elevate this card’s status as a budget-friendly travel credit card.

Just keep in mind that there’s a 4 percent balance transfer fee after the intro APR period (See Rates & Fees), which could be higher than the 3 percent transfer fee some competitors charge.

Rates and fees: One of the most affordable travel credit cards

Many of the top travel credit cards on the market charge annual fees as high as $600, and even some of the best travel cards for beginners have annual fees close to $100. If you don’t travel enough to offset these annual fees, the VentureOne is a much more cost-effective alternative. Capital One also won’t charge any foreign transaction fees (See Rates & Fees), which is a boon on any good travel credit card.

With fewer costs come fewer perks, benefits and other premium features. Outside of basic Capital One benefits, this card doesn't offer many additional perks. If you’re a frequent traveler looking for the most luxurious, high-end experiences, you might want to explore other options.

Rewards rate: Low earning rate and poor value outside of travel

You can use the VentureOne to earn travel rewards on everyday purchases like groceries and gas, but the unlimited rewards rate is one of the lowest flat rates for a travel card at 1.25X miles. Other flat-rate rewards cards with no annual fee (See Rates & Fees) offer at least 1.5X miles (or 1.5 percent cash back) on all purchases, and some cards could even earn up to 2X miles as a base rate without adding an annual fee.

Aside from the low flat rate, the value of miles earned is reduced by half when you redeem them for cash back in the form of statement credits or a check, with each mile valued at 0.5 cents rather than the initial 1 cent.

Bankrate editor India Davis chose the Capital One VentureOne as her first credit card. She maximized the card’s value during her international travels, but she’s traveled infrequently since. The card’s affordability and emphasis on everyday spending to earn travel miles work well for her lifestyle.

“The Capital One VentureOne is the first credit card I’ve ever had, and I still use it regularly a decade later. I took advantage of the introductory APR offer on purchases, which was very helpful in giving me time to pay off plane tickets. I also appreciated the lack of foreign transaction fees, as I was living abroad at the time.

Now that I’m living back in the States and don’t travel as much, I’ve switched to using the card for everyday purchases and I still get the same rate of rewards. It has definitely maintained its value for me over the years and is a great card for purchases that usually wouldn’t be rewarded, like Target purchases and travel upgrades.”

— India Davis, Editor, Bankrate

The Capital One VentureOne Rewards credit card may be the right fit for you if you want a low-cost card to earn occasional miles. With no annual fee to pay (See Rates & Fees), you don’t have to invest anything to start earning 1.25X miles on every dollar you spend, and you can get a decent welcome bonus too.

However, its biggest asset is the ability to transfer miles to Capital One’s partner travel programs, potentially increasing the value of your earned rewards. This is a common feature among premium travel cards, and it can make the VentureOne’s lower flat rewards rate much more lucrative if you are willing to put in the effort.

But if you don’t mind spending more to earn more and have good credit, a higher-tier Capital One card or another one of the best travel rewards cards can potentially offer you better value.

Dig deeper:Is the Capital One VentureOne worth it?

*Benefit available to accounts approved for the World Elite Mastercard product, subject to terms, conditions, and exclusions in the World Elite Mastercard Guide to Benefits. See Account Terms or Application Terms for more details.

*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.

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:

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