Alaska Airlines card by Bank of America

back Alaska Airlines

compare

Apply Now

intro purchase APR no intro offer	regular APR12.74 - 19.74% (V)
intro BT APR no intro offer	3% min $10
rewards 1 or 3 miles per $1	+ 30,000 bonus miles

• earn 1 mile per $1 an all purchases
• earn 3 miles per $1 on Alaska Airlines purchases
• earn up to 5 miles per $1 on Mileage Plan Dining
• get 30,000 bonus up on the card approval
• get Companion Fare Certificate (worth $121)

 

excellent required

Terms and Conditions

Editors Review

Card comes in Signature ($75 annual fee, 12.74% regular APR), Platinum Plus ($50 annual fee, 12.74% APR) 

Pros

• 30,000 miles sign up bonus upon approval
• 1 mile per $1 on all purchases
• 3 miles per $1 on Alaska Airlines tickets, vacation packages, and cargo purchases, $5 on Mileage Plan Dining
• Miles redeemable at more than 10 partner airlines, Alaska Airlines miles worth about 2 cents each
• EMV chip card – good for travel and security

Cons

• Annual fee ranging from $50 to $75
• 3% foreign transaction fee – bad for a travel card

Verdict

Airline credit cards shine when you travel one particular airline often. For other situations, it is usually better to have a travel rewards card. For example, BankAmericard Travel Rewards card with 1.5% rewards rate or Barclaycard Arrival + with 2.2% rewards rate.

However, in this particular case, you should consider that Alaska Airlines miles are the ones most valuable among U.S. air carrier reward programs. Experts say currently in 2014 one Alaska Airlines mile costs about 2 cents. That changes the parts of the equation, and an Alaska card makes more sense with its 2 cents per $1 spent rate (with up to 6 cents on Alaska Airlines travel spending).