Link: Learn more about the Capital One Venture Business
The Capital One Venture Business is a rebranded version of the former Capital One Spark Miles, with some very nice improvements. If you’re looking to earn travel rewards and want a card that has a great bonus, reasonable annual fee, useful perks, and solid return on everyday spending, this is the card for you.
In this post, I’d like to share eight reasons you should consider picking up the card. In no particular order…
Bonus of up to 150K Capital One bonus miles
The Capital One Venture Business is offering a limited time welcome bonus of up to 150,000 miles, structured as follows:
- Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $7,500 within the first three months
- Earn an additional 75,000 bonus miles after spending a total of $30,000 within the first six months
Personally I value Capital One miles at 1.7 cents each, so to me this bonus is worth up to $2,550, which is awesome. I’ll talk more below about the general value of and flexibility provided by Capital One miles.
In case you’re worried, applying for this card shouldn’t show up as a new card on your personal credit report, for the purposes of Chase’s 5/24 rule, if that’s something you’re concerned about.
2x Capital One miles on all purchases
The Capital One Venture Business offers unlimited 2x Capital One miles on all purchases, making this one of the best cards for everyday spending. Based on my valuation of Capital One miles, that’s like the equivalent of a 3.4% return on spending, which is very competitive.
No foreign transaction fees
The Capital One Venture Business has no foreign transaction fees, making it a fantastic card for purchases abroad. It’s nice to not only get a very competitive return on spending, but to get that same rate internationally without it costing you extra.
Many non-Capital One cards that earn 2x points per dollar do have foreign transaction fees, so this is a significant competitive advantage.
Capital One miles are valuable & flexible
Capital One miles provide lots of flexibility. For one, you can redeem them after the fact for one cent each toward virtually any travel purchase. That’s not my preferred use of these miles, though.
Rather, my preference is to transfer miles to Capital One’s airline & hotel programs, as you can transfer miles at a 1:1 ratio to a majority of partners. As is the case with all major transferable points currencies, this allows you to get way outsized value, especially when redeeming for first & business class travel.
Rental car coverage
Rental car coverage is an important perk many people look for in credit cards. Fortunately the Capital One Venture Business offers collision damage waiver coverage when renting for business reasons.
Just charge the entire rental to your card and decline the rental company’s collision damage waiver coverage, and you’ll be covered for damage due to collision or theft. Of course you’ll want to consult the cardmember agreement for full details.
$50 annual Capital One Business Travel credit
The Capital One Venture Business offers a $50 credit each anniversary year, valid for a purchase with Capital One Business Travel. As you might have guessed based on the name, this is Capital One’s business travel portal. You can use this toward the cost of a flight, hotel stay, etc., so it shouldn’t be too hard to maximize this (even if it’s just booking a cheap flight with the card).
$50 annual advertising or software credit
The Capital One Venture Business offers a $50 credit each anniversary year, valid for qualifying purchases with advertising or software merchants. Eligibility is based on the Merchant Category Code (MCC) assigned to the merchant, so there shouldn’t be too many hurdles to taking advantage of this.
Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit
The Capital One Venture Business offers a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit once every four years, which can get you up to a $120 statement credit. This is super handy, as TSA PreCheck can save you lots of time at security, while Global Entry can save you lots of time at immigration. They’re among the two innovations that have most improved the airport experience over the years, in my opinion.
What about the Capital One Venture X Business?
When talking about Capital One business cards, much of the focus nowadays is on the Capital One Venture X Business (review). How do the two cards compare? Both offer 2x Capital One miles on a vast majority of purchases, so I’d view the ongoing value proposition for spending to be quite similar.
As I see it, the major difference is that the Venture X Business has a $395 annual fee. However, you get a lot of value in exchange for that:
Personally I think the Venture X Business is the logical choice, assuming you travel with any frequency. The annual travel credit and anniversary bonus miles should more than cover the annual fee on an ongoing basis, and then you get some awesome extra perks, like lounge access.
That being said, understandably some people don’t like paying a big annual fee upfront, and for those people, the Capital One Venture Business is probably a better option.
Bottom line
The Capital One Venture Business is a fantastic business credit card, with a big welcome bonus, great return on everyday spending with no foreign transaction fees, and some surprisingly valuable perks and credits for a card with a reasonable annual fee.
If you’re looking for a business card with great travel rewards for everyday spending, this product is worth considering. If you don’t yet have the Capital One Venture Business and are eligible, I’d recommend considering applying, as the current offer is excellent.
For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
