Alaska Airlines Visa Business Card Review: Earn 70,000 Miles and Companion Fare

The Alaska Airlines Visa® Business The card is an easily overlooked card that earns miles of exceptional value. It has a low annual fee and consistently lucrative perks for Alaska Airlines loyal travelers. Card Rating*:

* Card ratings are based on the opinions of the editors of TPG and are not influenced by the card issuer.

Alaska Airlines has one of the best loyalty programs in the world, which makes the Alaska Airlines Visa Business card a surprisingly valuable credit card to carry.

The Alaska Mileage Plan is one of the few remaining frequent flyer programs that you still earn miles based on flight distance rather than on your fare, and where you can more free stops on award flights, even one-way tickets. So you don’t need to buy expensive first class and business class tickets to add more miles.

On top of that, some of the bonuses to flying airline partners are outstanding, like flights to Asia from 70,000 miles in Cathay Pacific or Japan Airlines First Class.

These factors are why TPG . value Alaska Airlines mileage is higher than you can earn with any other major airline. Alaska Airlines is also a part of Oneworld alliance and have a monopoly cooperation with American Airlineswhich means Alaska miles can be useful for more than just the airline itself.

If you don’t already have an Alaska Airlines co-branded credit card, you can think about picking one up.

And right now, you earn 70,000 bonus miles on this card, plus Alaska Companion Fares from $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23), after spending $4,000 or more for purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account. This is the card’s best offer ever.

Here’s a closer look at this card and why you might want to consider applying for it.

Who is this card for?

This is a good business credit card for anyone who travels a lot to or throughout the West Coast or can take advantage of Alaska’s solid network of partner airlines. I have this card and plan to keep it long term for the valuable ongoing benefits which I will discuss below.

However, if you are looking to earn the most rewards for business expenses, there are many better options.

Another interesting benefit of the Alaska Airlines business card is that it will not limit your ability to be approved for Top Chase credit cards. That’s because, as a business credit card, it won’t add to your account. Chase the number 5/24. You will need a business to qualify for this cardbut you can Eligible to work as a freelancer or independent contractors. That means Drive for Uber/Lyft, take care of pets, or work for a food delivery service can make you eligible. And if you’re a sole proprietor, you can use your name as your business name and Social Security number as your business tax ID.

Related: Join TPG’s community of small business owners and leaders

signup bonus

After spending $4,000 or more in the first 90 days of account opening, you’ll earn 70,000 Alaska miles and Alaska Airlines Companion Fares from $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees). fees from 23 dollars).

This is the highest public offering we’ve ever seen on this card. TPG . latch Alaska miles at 1.8 cents per mile, making these miles worth $1,260.

You can save a few hundred more dollars if you maximize the Companion Fare portion of the referral offer. This companion certificate is valid on all Alaska Airlines flights; you only pay $99 plus taxes and fees for a companion booked on the same round-trip economy class booking as you. When you add that this card has a very reasonable annual fee of $95 ($70 for your company and $25 per card), the rewards and benefits start to get even better.

Related: How My Unused Alaska Companion Ticket Saved My Colleagues Nearly $700 on Summer Travel

The Alaska Airlines airline visa business comes with all the standard perks you would expect from a co-branded airline card and a few additional benefits.

First, cardholders and up to six guests on the same booking will receive one free checked baggage on Alaska Airlines flights when you pay with the card. That’s a savings of $60 per person per return flight. In addition, you will get 20% back on In-flight purchasesincluding food, drinks and Wi-Fi.

The card earns 3 miles per dollar on Alaska Airlines purchases, 2 miles per dollar on gas, local transportation and transit (including carpooling), and 1 mile per dollar on all purchases. all other eligible purchases.

You’ll also get priority boarding when using this card to pay for your flight and $100 off an annual Alaska Lounge+ Membership.

Finally, you’ll earn a 10% bonus on all mileage earned from purchases if your company has a qualifying Bank of America small business account.

Related: How to avoid checked baggage fees on major domestic airlines

However, what really makes this card shine is Companion ticket price (yes, you get one card per year when you renew the card and pay the annual fee, not just part of the signup bonus). You get one bonus as part of your current sign-up bonus and another every year after spending $6,000 or more on purchases during your anniversary year.

With Companion Fare, you can bring a guest on any Alaska Airlines coach fare for just $99 plus taxes and fees (from $23). The cardholder does not need to be one of the travelers, but the flights must pay with your Alaska Airlines card. Both visitors will earn Alaska miles for the flight and eligible for an upgrade, great if you have Alaska Airlines Elite Status.

The fact that you’ll earn an annual companion certificate without having to meet overwhelming minimum spending requirements, and both passengers still eligible to earn miles and upgrades, makes this a great deal. into one of the better airline card companion ticket. If you travel internationally, it will be helpful to have this card charge a fee No foreign transaction fees.

Because Alaska miles are so valuable, that’s like getting a 5.4% return on purchases in Alaska, 3.6% on those specific categories, and 1.8% everywhere else, based on our valuation. That’s a decent percentage, but you can do better on buy plane tickets And daily expenses with other cards.

For most flights on Alaska Airlines, you’ll pay 5,000-12,500 miles each way in economy. This may be a good value, but you really can maximize your Mileage Plan mileage by exchanging them for flights on Alaskan partners.

The Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan is a great option if you’re booking award tickets to Asia or the South Pacific (including Australia and New Zealand).

You can fly from the US to/from Asia for just 50,000 miles each way in business class with Cathay Pacific and you can add a free stop (in a hub city) on that ticket. For example, I flew Cathay Pacific business class from Japan to the US and added a free stop in Hong Kong for a few days.

Related: Australia has reopened: How to book a trip to Sydney in points and miles

There are also plenty of ways to use Alaska miles to book some of the hardest to find prizes: premium cabin flights to Australia or New Zealand. You can fly non-stop with American Airlines or Qantas (to Australia) or you can fly across Asia with another partner. You can even book a Fiji Airways business class ticket from 55,000 miles one way to New Zealand or Australia and add a free ticket. stopover in Fiji.

Finally, Singapore Airlines is one of the airline’s non-Oneworld partners. The premium award space is hard to come by, but the economy class prizes are plentiful.

You can also earn Alaska miles with individuals Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card. If you are not eligible for business cards, personal version could be a good alternative.

If you’re determined to earn Alaska miles, your options are limited outside of two co-branded cards. The only flexible spots that move to Alaska at a reasonable speed are Marriott Bonvoy points, and even then a 3:1 transfer rate with a 5,000-mile bonus when you transfer 60,000 Marriott points at once. Therefore Marriott credit card can be a good backup option if you want to accumulate Alaska miles, but they may not be your primary tool for doing so.

For travel card not exclusive to Alaska Airlines to help you maximize your business spending, there are better options. The American Express® Business Gold Carde.g. earn 4 Membership Rewards Points for every dollar (worth 2 cents each at TPG . valuation) on two of the following categories (which category do you spend the most on each month):

• Air tickets are purchased directly from airlines.
• United States buys advertising in select media (online, TV, radio).
• U.S. purchases are made directly from select technology providers of computer hardware, software, and cloud solutions.
• American gas station.
• American restaurant.
• US shipping.
• Terms and Limits Apply

The 4-point-per-dollar bonus is capped at $150,000 on combined purchases from the two categories per calendar year (then 1 point per dollar).

If the majority of your business expenses fall outside of those specific spending categories, a card such as Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card (1.5% cashback on all purchases) or Blue Business® Plus credit card from American Express (2 Membership Rewards points per dollar on the first $50,000 purchase each calendar year, then 1 point per dollar) are popular choices.

Official app link: The Alaska Airlines airline visa business card with 70,000 bonus miles, plus Alaska Companion Fare from $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23) after spending $4,000 or more on purchases within the first 90 days first since opening your account.

Additional reporting by Ryan Wilcox, Chris Dong and Christina Ly.