Compare the Features and Benefits of Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card and
Capital One Venture X Credit Card

Air Canada debuted a one-of-a-kind airline credit card, available for applicants for its most loyal U.S. flyers. By opening an Aeroplan credit card account, you can get access to extensive benefits when you fly Air Canada, travel and purchase protections and more. Additionally, the Air Canada card is one of the only cards that reimburse your application fee for NEXUS (or you have the flexibility to choose Global Entry ot TSA PreCheck instead).

The rewards rate on the Aeroplan credit card is pretty stellar: earn 3x points per dollar spent on restaurants, groceries and Air Canada directly and 1x point on other eligible purchases. You can redeem points for Air Canada operated flights and its partner airlines, which demonstrates the flexibility of this valuable rewards currency. For instance, you can book domestic economy flights on United starting at 6,500 points one-way, or a business class ticket to Asia for 60,000 points one-way on award-winning carriers like ANA or Singapore Airlines.

The Aeroplan card continues to show off its versatility beyond Air Canada-exclusive perks, as you can redeem your points to cover any travel purchase through Chase’s Pay Yourself Back program for 1.25 cents apiece. That means 100,000 Aeroplan points redeemed is worth $1,250 in travel value.

And if you do fly with Air Canada, you can get your first checked bag free, which can be a huge money-saving benefit. Finally, reap the rewards of automatic 25K elite status for up to two years of card membership, getting you two Air Canada lounge passes, annual upgrade credits to enjoy an elevated inflight experience and more.

The Capital One Venture X rewards credit card is an incredibly well rounded travel credit card that is easy to recommend to almost anyone. The first objection is always the annual fee, but once you see that the $300 annual travel credit and 10,000 miles anniversary bonus (worth $100 or more) nets out the annual fee, it’s much easier to go and focus on the benefits.

If you consider the annual fee to effectively be -$5 as I do based on the above though process, then you are looking a a TON of benefits for a card where you aren’t out a ton on the annual fee with nothing in return.

You’re getting Priority Pass, Plaza Premium, Capital One Lounges, and Virgin Clubhouse airport lounge access, free authorized users that get that get the same (even when not traveling with you), top tier car rental status, Global Entry (or PreCheck) fee reimbursement, the ability to earn up to 10X miles on travel booked via Capital One, primary car rental CDW, cell phone protection, Extended Warranty, Purchase Protection, and travel benefits like trip delay or trip cancellation.

See, that’s a mouthful! You would expect to be paying a massive annual fee for all of that (without credits that net it out) and in this case, you’re just not. Of course, you’ll still have to pay the $395 fee upfront, but you’ll also be able to get that early spend bonus of 75,000 miles worth at least $750. I think that offsets it nicely!

In my opinion, this card is simply one of the best travel cards around in terms of both benefits and value for money.