Air Miles Credit Card Review

Air miles credit cards are the secret weapon of frequent travelers that give people with good credit the option to have a credit card that delivers travel rewards every time they use it. There are now dozens of air miles credit cards. Some are limited to specific airlines, while others are redeemable with all airlines. These cards offer a full range of travel rewards, from miles that you can redeem for airline tickets and hotel rooms to priority boarding, annual airline allowances and rental car insurance.

The best frequent flyer miles credit cards help you accumulate miles easily. These travel rewards include one mile for every dollar spent, double miles for using your card on specified hotels, airlines and rental cars, sign-up bonus miles and other bonuses such as free bag check-in and sky club access. Most airline credit cards let you earn miles on all purchases, which you can redeem to pay for a variety of travel expenses. Airline credit cards commonly charge an annual fee, however, although they generally provide 24-hour customer support.

The air miles credit cards we reviewed provide all the features frequent travelers are looking for. Be sure to check out our articles about air miles credit cards and the best credit cards for airline miles: the United Mileage Plus Explorer Card, the Continental Airlines OnePass Plus Credit Card and the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card.

Air Miles Credit Cards: What to Look For

The air miles credit cards in our review provide the most generous travel rewards programs available. They award miles with every purchase, which you can redeem on travel-related purchases, with no blackout dates, miles that never expire and travel accident insurance.

A great air miles credit card should offer travel rewards with every purchase that you make with your credit card, important key features to make your travels as safe as possible and 24-hour customer support. We used the following criteria to evaluate the top air miles credit cards.

Travel Rewards
Air miles credit cards offer several ways to accrue miles, as well as a variety of other travel rewards. Most of the cards in our review reward card members one mile for every dollar spent on all purchases. The miles (sometimes referred to as points) do not translate into actual air miles, and they can be redeemed on travel-related expenses only. Some of the cards in our review also reward double points if you purchase airline tickets, tickets from a specific airline, hotel rooms or a car rental.

Sign-up miles, miles awarded if you spend a specific amount in your first year, annual bonus miles and bonus miles for adding an authorized user to your card are additional ways to add miles to your account. Other travel rewards include no blackout dates, free bag check-in, annual airline allowances and sky club access.

Key Features
All the cards in our review require a credit check. We also looked to see if there was a miles cap and if the miles expired after a certain amount of time. We also looked to see if travel-related insurances is provided, including travel accident insurance, car rental insurance and lost luggage reimbursement.

APR
The interest rates you'll find for air miles credit cards range from 11% to 22%. We looked to see what the introductory APR rate was for every card (if one existed), the standard APR once first year ended and the cash advance APR.

Fees & Charges
It's important to make note of the fees and charges for an air miles credit card. For this category, we looked to see if they charged an annual fee and if they do, whether it is waived for the first year. We also looked at the late fees, over-limit fees, international fees and cash-advance fees for each card.

Help & Support
Solid customer support is essential for any air miles credit card. We looked to see if 24-hour customer support is available, whether there are FAQs on the card's website and if an emergency replacement card is available.

For providing travel rewards by simply using your card, it's no wonder air miles credit cards have become so popular over the years. Air miles credit cards have become the perfect way for travel lovers to receive everything from free tickets, hotel rooms, and car rentals to exclusive bonuses such as priority boarding and in-flight savings. With travel accident insurance and so much more, the air miles credit cards in our review can't be beat.

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