TravelStrategies: *Flexperks travel card

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Annual Fee

$49, waived first year

Typical Signup Offer

25,000 FlexPoints ($375) with $2,000 initial spend

($350 net value, .18/$)

Signup Bonus Chart

Bonus Categories

2x Charitable Donations (3%)

2x Cell Phone Providers (3%)

2x Whichever of Groceries, Gas, or Airfare you purchase the most of each month (3%)

1x Everything Else (1.5%)

No Foreign Transaction Fee

The FlexPerks Travel card has some unique benefits: it is one of the only cards that offers bonus rewards on charitable contributions and cell phone coverage, and it is the cheapest card that comes free Gogo inflight wi-fi passes. The free passes alone are probably worth the card's $49 annual fee.

Jump to

• Signup Bonus
• Other Notable Benefits
• Bonus Categories

Collecting the Signup Bonus

FlexPoints

FlexPoints are worth 1.5 cents each on travel purchases. With the Amex-based cards, you need to purchase your travel through the U.S. Bank travel portal. With the other cards, you can use the portal, or you can activate the card to send you text messages whenever you make a travel purchase elsewhere. You can then respond to the message to use points to offset the charges for your purchase.

There are other redemption options, but they give you less value from your points. TravelStrategies:*Flexperks travel card/Box

• U.S. Bank offers better signup offers on other cards. For example, you can get 50,000 points from the Altitude Reserve Card, and 30,000 points from the Flexperks Gold Card. If you are just looking for a signup bonus, they are better options. However, if you are interested in the card for its other benefits, the signup bonus is a nice side benefit.
• If you can't get the Altitude Reserve, or you want to hold onto both the FlexPerks Gold and Altitude Reserve card for their ongoing benefits, the signup bonus is more interesting. There aren't other U.S. Bank cards that have better signup offers.
• It is possible to earn the same signup bonus multiple times. U.S. bank has no technical limit on the number of times you can get the bonus. However, it can be hard to get them to approve you for an account.

Other Notable Benefits

• 12 Gogo passes per year. Each one is good for a free inflight Wi-Fi session. This is the least expensive credit card that provides this benefit, although the effective annual fee on the Altitude Reserve is only a little more, and it comes with a bunch of other benefits.
• $25 airline incidental credit (with every FlexPerks flight redemption). Every time you use your FlexPoints to book a round trip airline ticket, you get an additional $25 credit you can use for incidental expenses on that flight (like baggage fees or inflight food and beverage purchases). The credit is not automatic; you need to call in within 90 days of travel to apply the credit to any qualifying purchases.
• Access to the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection. As with all Visa Signature cards, you'll get access to Visa's luxury hotel program. Whenever you book one of the 900+ participating hotels, you'll receive a set of valuable benefits, including free breakfast, late check-out, and a $25 food and beverage credit. The Visa program has slightly weaker benefits than the other luxury hotel programs, but includes a larger number of more affordable hotel options and a best price guarantee. Take Advantage of Luxury Hotel Programs for Valuable Extra Perks.
• Access to Visa Signature Offers. Your card entitles you to a set of special offers available from Visa.

Bonus Categories

• The FlexPerks Travel card earns is one of the few credit cards that earns bonus points on charitable donations. You'l earn 2x FlexPoints, worth 3 cents per dollar. The VantageWest Connect Credit Card also offers bonus rewards on charity contributions, but only if that is your choice from among a set of other valuable categories.
• The FlexPerks Travel card is one of the only (personal) cards that offers bonus rewards on cell phone service. However, you might be better off using a credit card that includes free cell phone protection. Get Free Cell Protection from these Credit Cards. Credit Cards that Offer Bonus Rewards on Less Common Categories.
• There are better options for your grocery, gas, and airline purchases. The bonus category rewards from FlexPerks Travel are more valuable than what you would earn from a good general-purpose reward card, but you can earn even more valuable rewards from other cards. Best Credit Cards for Grocery Spending. Best Credit Cards for Travel Spending. Best Credit Cards for Gas Spending.
• You don't want to use this card for your everyday spending. You'll earn higher rewards from a good general-purpose reward card. Get a Great General Purpose Reward Card and Use It for All of Your Spending.

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