NerdWallet rating
The Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card offers several ways to maximize your rewards — including earning double points when you book travel through the Bank of America® Travel Center. But the most significant boost comes from having one or more investment accounts with Merrill. And the more money you have in those accounts, the bigger your rewards.
Here's how to make the most of the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card.
Get the loyalty bonus
With the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card, everyone gets 1.5 points for every $1 spent. Enroll in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards® program, and the bonuses increase to 25%, 50% or 75%, depending on your combined balances at Bank of America® and Merrill:
Program tier | Required balance | Relationship bonus |
|---|---|---|
Gold | $20,000 to $49,999. | 25%. |
Platinum | $50,000 to $99,999. | 50%. |
Platinum Honors | $100,000 to $999,999. | 75%. |
Diamond | $1,000,000 to $9,999,999. | 75%. |
Diamond Honors | $10 million or more. | 75%. |
Say you spend $1,000 a month on the card, or $12,000 a year. At 1.5 points per dollar, you'd earn $180 in rewards. Bonuses really start to climb when you have Preferred Rewards status:
Preferred Rewards level | Rewards boost | Points per $1 spent | Annual points ($12,000 in spending) |
|---|---|---|---|
None | — | 1.5 | 18,000 |
Gold | 25% | 1.875 | 22,500 |
Platinum | 50% | 2.25 | 27,000 |
Platinum Honors,Diamond orDiamond Honors | 75% | 2.625 | 31,500 |
Getting the loyalty bonus is a simple way to boost your rewards, but, of course, simple isn't the same as easy. Having $20,000, $50,000 or $100,000 in combined accounts is easy to say, hard to do.
Use the Travel Center
The Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card boosts your rewards to 3 points per $1 spent on travel booked through the Bank of America® Travel Center. That includes flights, hotel nights, rental cars — everything except insurance. There's no limit on the extra points you can earn this way.
The card also comes with a solid sign-up promotion, so make sure you spend enough to qualify for it: 25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening - that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases.. Other travel cards offer bigger sign-up bonuses, but those cards typically come with an annual fee. You can't beat the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card's annual fee of $0. Like most travel credit cards, this card doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee.
Take an interest rate break
New cardholders get an interest rate break: 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days. After the Intro APR offer ends, a Variable APR that’s currently 19.24% - 29.24% will apply. You'll be able to rack up points without worrying about the interest piling up, too.
You should be aware, though, that balance transfers will incur a fee: 3% for 60 days from account opening, then 4%.
How to redeem rewards on the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
It's just as easy to redeem points as it is to earn them. Simply make a restaurant or travel-related purchase with your card, then redeem your points for statement credit to offset the purchase. Points are worth 1 cent apiece when redeemed for travel. And when you think "travel" purchases, think outside the box. The Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card's definition of travel is wider than many other cards', including amusem*nt parks, art galleries, circuses, aquariums, zoos and many other things as travel expenses.
The ability to redeem for credit against restaurant and travel purchases offers tremendous flexibility. You can book travel any way you want, fly on any airline, stay at any hotel. There are no blackout dates or restrictions.
You can also redeem points for gift cards or to make a cash deposit into one of your Bank of America®, Merrill Edge® or Merrill Lynch accounts®, but you'll get a much lower redemption value per point. Still, with the bonus percentages, you can earn almost as much as a card that pays a higher reward rate.
Pay more, earn more
A key element of the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card's appeal is the $0 annual fee. If you're willing to pay an annual fee, you can get a higher rewards rate even without loyalty bonuses. Take the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. Here's what it offers:
Annual fee: $95.
Sign-up bonus: Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.
APR: The ongoing APR is 19.99%-29.99% Variable APR.
Rewards: Earn 2 miles for every $1 spent with no limit on how much you can earn. Miles can be redeemed for travel and restaurant purchases at a rate of 1 cent per point.
But if you don't want to pay an annual fee, and you want rewards that are easy to earn and redeem, the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card is a smooth ride.
