There’s no perfect airline credit card, but these two come so close I’ve been struggling to choose between them.
I'm talking about the Atmos Rewards credit cards — which right now are sporting limited-time welcome bonuses that could cover an incredible number of flights.
Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card: Earn up to 80,000 bonus points: You’ll earn 60,000 bonus points and a $99 Companion Fare (plus taxes and fees from $23) after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 90 days from account opening. Then you can earn an additional 20,000 bonus points after spending a total of $5,000 on purchases, also in the first 90 days from account opening.
Let’s talk about the Ascent because it’s pretty epic how far those 80,000 bonus points can take you — especially given the card carries only a $95 annual fee. Some quick math:
Alaska Airlines-operated flights start from just 5,000 points plus $5.60 each way, meaning you could get an incredible 16 one-way flights from that bonus alone.
Or, short American Airlines flights (under 700 miles) can be booked from just 4,500 Atmos points each way (plus taxes and fees).
That means this bonus (plus the points you’d earn in pursuit of it) could cover nine round-trip flights between New York and Chicago, or Los Angeles and Portland, or Denver and Dallas, etc.
Those round-trip routes on American would cost anywhere from $450 to $650, depending on the day and time. But with Atmos Rewards, you’ll often find availability for a clean 4,500 points each way (plus taxes and fees) — regardless of how the cash fare fluctuates.
And it’s not just domestic flights. You’ll find that 4,500-point rate on 700-mile-or-less routes worldwide.
I don’t know about you, but paying a $95 annual fee for a card that can deliver that many award flights right off the bat is easy math for me. Even just earning the first 60,000 points of that bonus would be well worth it.
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Photo Credit: Clint Henderson/The Points Guy.
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