Capital One Venture Card vs. Capital One VentureOne Card [Detailed Comparison]

Capital One has done a good job of advertising its credit card products. Many people are familiar with those commercials featuring a celebrity spokesperson where you’re promised the ability to earn “unlimited double miles on every purchase, everywhere, every day.”

Then you hear that your Capital One miles are not like other airlines’ miles and that you’ll be able to redeem them for “any flight, on any airline, at any time, with no blackout periods.” Then, in closing, you hear the popular Capital One slogan “What’s in your wallet?”

While you won’t find all the bells and whistles of airport lounge access, elite status, or shopping statement credits with most of Capital One’s travel cards, you will find a solid, straightforward collection of rewards-earning cards that are great for everyday spending.

Let’s look at 2 of the issuer’s most popular rewards cards, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card.

Don’t be fooled by their similar names as these 2 cards have significant differences. We’ll explain how each card earns rewards, look at redemption options available, and check out any benefits that come complimentary with the cards.

So, hold on, as we’re about to find out if either of these Capital One cards should be in your wallet.

Capital One Venture Card vs. Capital One VentureOne Card — Summary

While these 2 cards are similar overall, they do have distinct differences when it comes to earnings, travel benefits, and the annual fee.

Let’s take a side-by-side look at what the 2 cards have to offer.

Welcome Offers

Welcome bonuses vary but you can expect to receive a valuable bonus. It is possible to receive even greater value for your welcome bonus miles by transferring to travel partners.

In general, you can expect the welcome bonus on the Capital One Venture card to be significantly larger than the welcome bonus on the Capital One VentureOne card.

Here is a snapshot of current welcome offers:

Capital One Venture Card

Capital One VentureOne Card

Earning Rewards

We mentioned earlier that Capital One cards are known for their simplicity. This statement holds true when it comes to earning rewards on our 2 featured cards — unless you’re booking specific travel using your card, you’ll be focusing on earning a fixed number of Capital One miles for every dollar you spend on either card.

With this simple earning structure, you can just use your card, earn Capital One miles, and not worry about keeping track of any complicated bonus-earning categories.

Here’s how earnings compare between the 2 cards:

Bottom Line: Earning rewards on our featured cards is pretty straightforward. The Capital One Venture card earns at least 2x miles on every purchase and the Capital One VentureOne card earns at least 1.25x miles. 

Redeeming Rewards

You’ll have several options for redeeming Capital One miles earned on either card. Both cards have the exact same redemption options.

Transfer to Travel Partners

One of the best potential redemption options is to transfer your Capital One miles to one of the many travel partner loyalty programs. Once your Capital One miles are turned into frequent flyer miles or hotel loyalty points you can then use those miles and points to purchase flights or hotel nights.

Capital One has more than 15 airline and hotel transfer partners, making it a versatile currency to possess if your objective is to book award travel. For this reason, we value Capital One miles at around 1.8 cents per mile.

When you transfer Capital One miles to travel partners like Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer or Emirates Skywards, you can book luxury first class plane tickets that’ll get you upwards of 10 cents per mile worth of value!

Statement Credits for Travel Purchases

Use your Capital One miles to get reimbursed (as a statement credit) for past travel purchases made with your Capital One Venture card or Capital One VentureOne card at a rate of 1 cent per mile. For example, if you paid for an Uber or booked a night directly with a hotel, you can effectively wipe away these travel charges from your balance.

Travel via Capital One Travel

Another redemption option that yields 1 cent in value for each Capital One mile is purchasing travel through the Capital One Travel booking portal in your online account. However, be sure to check prices elsewhere as Capital One Travel may not always have the best prices.

Additional Redemption Options

• Redeem for Gift Cards — redeem for gift cards for up to 1 cent in value per mile
• Shop at Amazon — using your miles to shop at Amazon is generally not good value at 0.8 cents per mile
• Redeem for Statement Credits — also not good value at 0.5 cents per mile

Hot Tip: The best potential value for your Capital One miles may be transferring those miles to frequent flyer or hotel loyalty programs. 

Annual Fees and Adding Additional Users

The annual fee on the Capital One Venture card is $95 per year.

The Capital One VentureOne card does not charge an annual fee.

Neither card charges a fee to add additional authorized users.

Travel Benefits and Protections

The following benefits are available on both cards:

• Travel assistance services
• Roadside dispatch

The following benefits are only available on the Capital One Venture card:

• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Credit — Receive up to $100 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck fee reimbursement
• Capital One Lounge and Plaza Premium Lounge Access — Receive 2 complimentary one-time passes annually
• Lost luggage reimbursement

Shopping Benefits and Protections

Both the Capital One Venture card and Capital One VentureOne card offer:

• Purchase security
• Extended warranty
• Search through available Capital One Offers to earn a fixed amount or percentage of your online shopping trip back in the form of a statement credit
• No foreign transaction fees

Which Card Is Better for You?

So which card is the better card for you? The answer will really depend on your level of spending. If you spend an average of $1,056 or more each month, you’ll fare better with the Capital One Venture card. By spending at least this much you’ll earn enough rewards to outweigh the $95 annual fee, and any spending beyond that beats out the Capital One VentureOne card.

Here’s a breakdown of the math:

• Capital One Venture card — $1,056 x 12 = $12,672 x 2 miles = $253.44 – the $95 annual fee = $158.44
• Capital One VentureOne card — $1,056 x 12 = $12,672 x 1.25 miles = $158.40

You’ll also want to include the size of the welcome offers in your calculations, as the Capital One Venture will have a much more valuable bonus than the Capital One VentureOne. Plus, consider that the Capital One Venture offers more perks, like the Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit, which can also help offset the annual fee.

For even more about these cards, explore the Capital One Venture card’s benefits, Capital One Venture card’s FAQs, and VentureOne’s benefits.

Risk-free Capital One Card Offers

Capital One offers a way to find out if you have an offer for a Capital One credit card available to you before you apply for a card. Its pre-qualification inquiry tool is not a credit card application so there is no hard pull on your credit report.

The tool is not a guarantee that you will be approved for a card but it does give you an idea of which cards you’re most likely to be approved for.

You can also use the CardMatch tool without any inquiry on your credit report for a risk-free way to find out if you have any pending Capital One credit card offers.

Learn more about finding pre-qualified and pre-approved card offers.

Final Thoughts

The Capital One Venture card and Capital One VentureOne card both make earning rewards simple, plus the cards offer flexible redemption options that allow you to leverage your miles with travel partners for much greater value.

Which card is best for you will depend on your spending level and what perks you desire. If your spending exceeds $12,672 a year, the Capital One Venture card will suit you well, even with the annual fee. However, it’s also important to take the size of a card’s welcome offer into consideration when making your final decision.

If you’re a frequent traveler, you may also benefit from a travel rewards credit card. You can learn more about the best travel rewards cards and our recommendations in our comprehensive article.