British Airways Visa Signature bank card assessment: Full particulars

The British Airways Visa Signature® Card (see charges and charges) may not be your best choice for utilizing one in all your invaluable 5/24 slots with Chase. Nevertheless, its low annual payment, robust incomes potential and credit to cowl gas surcharges make it a compelling choice for a lot of British Airways loyalists. Card Ranking*: ⭐⭐⭐

*Card Ranking is predicated on the opinion of TPG’s editors and isn’t influenced by the cardboard issuer.

Some profitable bank card choices from overseas airways are sometimes ignored, and the British Airways Visa Signature Card — the one cobranded bank card that British Airways presents within the U.S. — is amongst them.

It includes a $95 annual payment and we suggest candidates have a credit score rating of 670 or increased to extend their possibilities of approval.

It would not include frequent airline advantages resembling a free checked bag or precedence boarding. However, it is one of many extra invaluable airline playing cards available on the market due to its large welcome bonus and money-saving perks.

Let’s look at whether or not the cardboard deserves a spot in your pockets.

The British Airways Visa is at the moment providing 85,000 Avios after spending $5,000 on purchases inside the first three months of account opening.

In response to TPG’s April 2025 valuations, Avios are value 1.4 cents apiece, so incomes 85,000 Avios is value a wholesome $1,190. The present supply is barely increased than earlier presents and is value making the most of if you happen to’ve had this card in your radar.

One essential word: Like different Chase-issued client playing cards, the British Airways Visa falls underneath Chase’s 5/24 rule. For those who’ve opened greater than 5 bank cards prior to now 24 months (from all banks, not simply Chase), your software will seemingly be rejected.

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Associated: Playing cards at the moment providing welcome bonuses of 100,000 factors or extra

Though the British Airways Visa lacks most of the common cobranded airline card perks, resembling a free checked bag and precedence boarding, those it does supply can nonetheless save British Airways flyers a major quantity on money and award tickets.

• Reward flight assertion credit score: Obtain a press release credit score 3 times a yr of $100 for Economic system (World Traveller) and Premium Economic system (World Traveller Plus) seats — or $200 for Enterprise (Membership World) and first-class seats (as much as $600 per calendar yr) — whenever you e book a reward flight to London touring on British Airways and pay taxes, charges and fees along with your British Airways Visa Signature Card. This may also help you fight British Airways’ notoriously excessive gas surcharges.
• Journey Collectively Ticket: Spend $30,000 on the cardboard every calendar yr and earn a Journey Collectively Ticket, which lets you add a companion to a Reward Flight for no further price or save 50% on the Avios required if touring solo. That is on any round-trip British Airways, Iberia or Aer Lingus redemption in any class.
• 10% flight low cost: Ebook via the web site supplied in your welcome supplies and get 10% off eligible British Airways flights.
• Visa Signature perks: As a result of it is a Visa Signature card, you may get perks like misplaced/delayed baggage safety, buy safety, secondary automobile rental insurance coverage and entry to the Visa Signature Luxurious Lodge Assortment.
• No overseas transaction charges: You will not be charged further charges whenever you use your card overseas.

Once more, these are completely different advantages than you may discover on many cobranded airline playing cards, however they will present vital worth to those that often e book award flights utilizing Avios.

Associated: British Airways Membership: Information to Avios, elite standing and switch companions

The British Airways Visa outdoes most different cobranded airline playing cards on the earnings facet. With the British Airways card, you may earn:

• 3 Avios per greenback spent on purchases with British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia and Stage
• 2 Avios per greenback spent on resort bookings made straight with the resort
• 1 Avios per greenback spent on all different purchases

Whereas these aren’t spectacular incomes charges, the bonus classes and the worth cardholders can get from the cardboard’s further advantages make this a great card choice for a lot of British Airways frequent flyers.

Associated: The most effective methods to earn British Airways Avios

The obvious method to redeem the Avios you earn with the British Airways Visa is to e book award tickets with British Airways. Due to British Airways’ distance-based award chart, one of many greatest candy spots in this system is for short-haul awards.

This system fees a mere 6.500 miles for award flights which are 651 miles to 1,151 miles lengthy throughout off-peak season and 12,750 miles for enterprise class throughout off-peak season. To place that in perspective, a flight from London to Rome matches into that band.

Nonetheless, British Airways imposes hefty taxes and surcharges on a few of its personal worldwide award tickets.

Due to this fact, the greatest makes use of for Avios are generally for accomplice awards. You possibly can redeem your factors on greater than a dozen Oneworld alliance airways, resembling American Airways, Alaska Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qatar Airways.

Associated: Methods to maximize the British Airways distance-based award chart

You may switch Avios on the British Airways Visa to different Avios-earning airways like Aer Lingus, Finnair, Iberia and Qatar Airways. This lets you journey to many Oneworld locations and e book them with these Avios.

Because the mileage forex of British Airways and these 4 companions, you possibly can switch Avios between the 5 airways.

Iberia tends to cost considerably decrease taxes and surcharges than British Airways. Moreover, Iberia fees primarily based on whole miles flown as a substitute of per section, making it the winner for some connecting itineraries.

I’ve gotten good worth from my Avios by utilizing them to e book via Iberia to fly from O’Hare Worldwide Airport (ORD) and San Francisco Worldwide Airport (SFO) to Madrid in enterprise class for underneath 34,000 Avios every time.

Associated: Methods to e book Iberia flights to Spain (and past) utilizing Avios

• In case you are not over the 5/24 rule: The Chase Sapphire Most well-liked® Card (see charges and charges) additionally comes with a $95 annual payment and earns 5 factors per greenback spent on journey when booked via the Chase Journey℠ portal and a pair of factors per greenback spent on all different journey. It additionally earns bonus factors on eating and choose streaming providers. For extra data, learn our full assessment of the Chase Sapphire Most well-liked.
• In case you are over the 5/24 rule. The American Categorical® Gold Card has the next annual payment of $325 (see charges and charges) but additionally presents increased incomes charges and comes with many invaluable perks that offset the annual payment, together with a wide range of assertion credit (enrollment required). The Membership Rewards factors earned by this card might be transferred at a 1:1 ratio to British Airways. For extra data, learn our full assessment of the Amex Gold.
• If you wish to earn Avios with a distinct card: The Iberia Visa Signature® Card has the identical incomes construction because the British Airways Visa. Nevertheless, it has extra Iberia-specific perks, like a 10% low cost when reserving choose Iberia flights.

The knowledge for the Iberia Visa Signature Card has been collected independently by The Factors Man. The cardboard particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or supplied by the cardboard issuer.

For added choices, take a look at our full listing of the greatest airline bank cards.

Associated: 5 the explanation why it’s best to care about British Airways Avios

The British Airways Visa is effectively value it if you wish to earn invaluable Avios. Its advantages, like the ten% flight low cost and the as much as $600 annual reward flight assertion credit score, can simply make it easier to recoup the annual payment price. Nevertheless, you may seemingly favor a distinct card if you happen to’re over Chase 5/24 or do not journey on airways that use Avios.

Diversifying your portfolio of loyalty currencies is crucial on the planet of journey rewards, and the British Airways Visa represents a improbable method to just do that. With a invaluable welcome supply, a low annual payment and the chance to get a few of your taxes and charges credited again, this card is a superb selection for British Airways loyalists.

Apply right here: British Airways Visa Signature Card

For charges and charges of the Amex Gold card, click on right here.