{"id":35088,"date":"2025-08-11T10:49:19","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T10:49:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=35088"},"modified":"2025-08-11T10:49:19","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T10:49:19","slug":"how-to-know-if-a-travel-credit-card-with-an-annual-fee-is-worth-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=35088","title":{"rendered":"How to know if a travel credit card with an annual fee is worth it"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> \n<\/p>\n<div id=\"RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5\" data-module=\"ArticleBody\" data-test=\"articleBody-2\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2\"><span class=\"HighlightShare-hidden\" style=\"top:0;left:0\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbed\" id=\"ArticleBody-InlineImage-107314714\" data-test=\"InlineImage\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-wrapper\">\n<div>\n<p>Oleksandra Yagello | Moment | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>As some popular travel credit cards boost annual fees and amend benefits, experts say it\u2019s time to reassess which cards \u2014 if any \u2014 merit a spot in your wallet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnnual fees are not inherently bad; you just need to make sure that you\u2019re getting value from [the card],\u201d said Ted Rossman, an industry analyst at Bankrate. \u201cIt\u2019s getting harder to maximize, though.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In <a href=\"https:\/\/media.chase.com\/news\/the-most-rewarding-cards-are-here\" target=\"_blank\">June<\/a>, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card raised the annual fee to $795. That\u2019s a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/06\/17\/chase-sapphire-reserve-credit-card-new-perks-fee.html\">45% jump<\/a> from $550, its previous annual cost.<\/p>\n<p><strong>More from Personal Finance:<\/strong><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/08\/06\/paying-for-college-gets-increasingly-difficult-as-tuition-rises.html\">Paying for college gets increasingly difficult as tuition rises<\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/08\/05\/trump-big-beautiful-bill-charitable-deduction.html\">Trump\u2019s \u2018big beautiful bill\u2019 slashes this tax break for high earners in 2026<\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/08\/05\/ny-fed-credit-card-debt-second-quarter-2025.html\">Credit card debt reaches $1.21 trillion\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Other credit cards have been changing terms to access perks like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/06\/07\/capital-one-airport-lounges.html\">airport lounges<\/a>. Earlier this summer,<span class=\"QuoteInBody-quoteNameContainer\" data-test=\"QuoteInBody\" id=\"RegularArticle-QuoteInBody-7\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/quotes\/COF\/\"> Capital One<\/a><span class=\"QuoteInBody-inlineButton\"><span class=\"AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistContainer\" id=\"-WatchlistDropdown\" data-analytics-id=\"-WatchlistDropdown\"><button class=\"AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistButton\" aria-label=\"Add To Watchlist\" data-testid=\"dropdown-btn\"><span class=\"AddToWatchlistButton-addWatchListFromTag\"\/><\/button><\/span><\/span><\/span> announced that, starting in February, customers using its Venture X Rewards and Venture X Business cards \u2014 each of which have $395 annual fees \u2014 will no longer be able to bring guests to the lounges free of charge.<\/p>\n<p>That follows news from American Express that travelers who have an American Express Platinum card \u2014 which<a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanexpress.com\/us\/credit-cards\/business\/business-credit-cards\/american-express-business-platinum-credit-card-amex\/\" target=\"_blank\"> costs $695 a year<\/a> \u2014<a href=\"https:\/\/global.americanexpress.com\/card-benefits\/detail\/lounge-guest-access-pass\/business-platinum\" target=\"_blank\"> must spend $75,000 in eligible purchases<\/a> before they can bring up to two guests to an airport lounge. Previously, there was no minimum spend and cardholders could <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nerdwallet.com\/article\/travel\/centurion-lounge-guest-policy\" target=\"_blank\">bring up to two guests<\/a> for free, according to NerdWallet.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how to decide if a travel credit card is worth the investment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"one-habit-will-easily-diminish-travel-card-value\" class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline0\"\/>One habit will \u2018easily diminish\u2019 travel card value<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>A travel rewards card isn\u2019t likely to be a good value if you\u2019re carrying a balance from month to month, experts say.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAny interest that you owe will easily diminish the value of any of these benefits,\u201d said Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>It may also be harder to pay down debt. While the average annual percentage <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bankrate.com\/credit-cards\/advice\/current-interest-rates\/\" target=\"_blank\">rate for credit cards<\/a> is about 20.13%, the typical rate on premium travel cards can be closer to 25% to 30%, according to Rossman.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGenerally speaking, rewards cards charge higher rates,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"decide-broad-travel-card-or-brand-specific\" class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline1\"\/>Decide: Broad travel card, or brand specific?<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>You\u2019ll come across two kinds of travel credit cards. Co-branded credit cards are usually tied to specific airlines, hotels or even cruise chains, and provide benefits that are more valuable at that brand, French said.<\/p>\n<p>If you frequently use a specific airline or tend to stay with a certain hotel chain, a co-branded credit card may be worth it, experts say.<\/p>\n<p>An airline credit card, for instance, might have benefits like free checked bags, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/08\/02\/early-boarding-upgrade-value.html\">priority boarding<\/a>, premium status tiers and sometimes discounts or points for spending at that airline.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s only free check [checked?] bags on that airline,\u201d said French. \u201cYour Southwest credit card won\u2019t get you anything on United.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/07\/29\/jetblue-united-partnership-gets-go-ahead-from-dot.html\">Some airlines<\/a> belong to partnership networks such as Star Alliance, Oneworld or SkyTeam. If you\u2019re looking at a brand-specific card, see if the company has partnerships that allow you to transfer points or miles to allied brands.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>On the other hand, general travel credit cards are \u201creally good for people who don\u2019t want to be married to a specific brand,\u201d as you can earn and use rewards more broadly, French said.<\/p>\n<p>Some travel credit cards do not charge annual fees; for those that do, the cost can range from $95 to upwards of $500 a year, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nerdwallet.com\/article\/travel\/are-airline-credit-cards-worth-it\" target=\"_blank\">per <\/a>NerdWallet. Keep in mind that travel credit cards with little to no fees may not offer the same level of benefits and rewards as paid cards.<\/p>\n<p>Both kinds of travel cards tend to have a set of similar perks, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tsa.gov\/precheck\/credit-cards-offer\" target=\"_blank\">credits<\/a> for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/07\/28\/tsa-precheck-value-airport-screening-changes.html\">TSA PreCheck<\/a> and other pre-screening memberships, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/07\/26\/using-credit-cards-to-pay-for-your-wedding.html\">big sign-on bonuses<\/a> when you spend a certain amount of money on the card within a short period of opening it. As a frequent traveler, such benefits can help make the card fee worth the cost, experts say.<\/p>\n<p>To assess the benefits of the card, look at a detailed list of the perks on the issuer\u2019s website, said French. A card might charge an annual fee, but say it includes one free checked bag for you and a certain amount of guests. With just that perk, the card could pay for itself within a trip or two for a family.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"how-to-know-what-card-is-best-for-you\" class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline2\"\/>How to know what card is best for you<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>While some of the perks and rewards can seem enticing, it\u2019s important to consider your travel habits and lifestyle, said Rossman. Also consider what your credit habits are like, experts say.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For those who do not travel often, a travel credit card without an annual fee is probably going to be the best option, said French.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t want to be paying an annual fee on a credit card that has benefits that you might not use,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div role=\"region\" aria-labelledby=\"Placeholder-ArticleBody-Video-108148270\">\n<div role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" id=\"Placeholder-ArticleBody-Video-108148270\" class=\"PlaceHolder-wrapper\" data-vilynx-id=\"7000376855\" data-test=\"VideoPlaceHolder\">\n<div class=\"InlineVideo-videoEmbed\" id=\"InlineVideo-0\" data-test=\"InlineVideo\">\n<div class=\"InlineVideo-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"InlineVideo-inlineThumbnailContainer\"><span class=\"InlineVideo-videoButton\"\/><span\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>If you travel frequently in a given year and typically with a specific airline, a co-branded credit card can make sense, French said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If you currently hold a card with a high annual fee, but realize you\u2019re not getting the most use out of it, you may be able to downgrade to a less expensive or free card offered by the issuer, Rossman said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Doing so will be better for your credit rather than closing out the card altogether, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/08\/11\/travel-credit-card-annual-fee.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Oleksandra Yagello | Moment | Getty Images As some popular travel credit cards boost annual fees and amend&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":35089,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35088","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-investing","cs-entry","cs-video-wrap"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=35088"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35088\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/35089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=35088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=35088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=35088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}