Great Card If
- You’re looking for an easy way to start earning travel rewards
- You have status in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program
Don’t Get If
- You want a card that earns transferable rewards
- You want a card that offers more benefits
Bank of America Travel Rewards Card — Is It Worth It?
If you are new to the world of travel rewards cards, and you’re looking for a card that offers a simple earning structure and uncomplicated redemptions, along with no annual fee or foreign transaction fees, then the Bank of America Travel Rewards card would likely be worth it for you.
Further, if you’re someone who has status in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program, then the card would be very worthwhile to you thanks to the 25% to 75% rewards points boost you can earn.
Bank of America Preferred Rewards Boost
As a no-annual-fee card, the Bank of America Travel Rewards card doesn’t offer much in the way of benefits.
But one benefit it does offer that can be quite lucrative to cardholders is the ability to boost your rewards rate through the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program.
If you’re not already familiar, the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program is the bank’s loyalty program that offers added rewards and benefits for those who hold a certain level of assets in their Bank of America deposit accounts and/or Merrill Edge and Merrill Lynch investment balances.
There are quite a few benefits you receive at each elite status tier, but for this post, we will be exclusively focusing on the credit card rewards boost you receive:
Status Level | Assets Required | Rewards Bonus | Increased Earnings |
Gold | $20,000+ in assets | 25% rewards bonus | 1.875x points per $1 spent |
Platinum | $50,000+ in assets | 50% rewards bonus | 2.25x points per $1 spent |
Platinum Honors and above | $100,000+ in assets | 75% rewards bonus | 2.625x per $1 spent |
The ability to earn up to 2.625x points per $1 on every purchase that you make is quite exceptional, and quite a bit higher than what you would earn with many other non-bonused cards.
Best Ways To Earn and Redeem Your Bank of America Points
When it comes to earning more points, the best way to do so is by using your card for as many purchases as you can. Further, if you have the ability to achieve a status level in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program, this is a great way to boost the number of points you will earn by 25% to 75%.
The Bank of America travel portal allows you to redeem your points for any travel-related purchase you can think of, at a set rate of 1 cent per point. This includes flights, hotels, rental cars, and cruises, but also excursions like amusement parks, zoos, and more.
Alternative Card to the Bank of America Travel Rewards Card
Chase Freedom Unlimited®
An obvious alternative to the Bank of America Travel Rewards card is the Freedom Unlimited card, as it also earns 1.5% all purchases with no annual fee.
However, the Freedom Unlimited card also offers 5% on travel purchased through the Chase travel portal and 3% on dining and at drugstores.
The card also offers flexible redemption options at 1 cent per point towards the Chase travel portal, cash-back, and more. Plus, those with a premium Ultimate Rewards card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card can pool their points together to redeem through one of the Chase transfer partners.
We’ve also compared the Bank of America Travel Rewards card to other popular credit cards:
The information regarding the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Chase Freedom Unlimited® was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
Disclaimer: Any comments listed below are not from the bank advertiser, nor have they been reviewed or approved by them. No responsibility will be taken by the bank advertiser for these comments.
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