Earn up to 100,000 bonus miles with the Capital One Venture cards

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is a fan-favorite starter travel credit card, and it’s easy to see why. With a flat, 2-miles-per-dollar rate on all purchases, racking up plenty of rewards is simple. And you’ll have a ton of flexibility when it comes time to redeem your miles, too, as you can use rewards to cover any eligible travel purchase on any site from the past 90 days without losing any value.

The sign-up bonus on the Venture card is nothing to frown at, either. Right now, it’s offering new cardholders 60,000 miles after they spend $3,000 in their first three months of account opening. This isn’t the most eye-catching offer the Venture card has ever had – it used to offer up to 100,000 miles – but it is the highest you can achieve with such a low spending threshold. If you’re a moderate spender, this might be one of the best bonuses the card can have for you.

Still hoping to snag a 100,000-mile offer? You’re in luck. Capital One just launched the brand new Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. This new luxury travel card offering has a $395 annual fee, but it is also packed with perks that can make up the cost. One of those is a generous welcome offer of 100,000 miles after spending 10,000 in the first six months of account opening.

Venture card bonus changes

Miles for every purchase

Along with a generous sign-up bonus, the Venture card lets cardholders earn 5 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked in the Capital One portal, along with 2 miles per dollar on all other purchases. We value Capital One miles at 1 cent per mile when redeemed for travel – making the sign-up bonus worth approximately $600.

Another big perk: There is no limit on the number of miles you can earn, and your rewards won’t expire for the life of your account.

Meanwhile, the Venture X also offers 2 miles per dollar on every purchase, but ups the ante when it comes to certain travel purchases. Cardholders can earn 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One, as well as 5 miles per dollar on flights booked in the portal. With the same average value of 1 cent per mile, the Venture X sign-up bonus is worth at least $1,000 in travel.

Venture X vs. Venture vs. VentureOne

Because they have such similar card names, you may be wondering what differentiates the cards in the Venture family. Take a look at our chart below to see how the cards compare side-by-side.

As you can see, while the Venture and VentureOne cards provide almost identical card benefits, the Venture card offers a considerably higher sign-up bonus and rewards rate than that of the VentureOne card.

Indeed, even with its annual fee factored in, you’ll likely earn more per year in ongoing rewards with the Venture card, thanks to its 2-mile-per-dollar rewards rate on all purchases.

Let’s crunch the numbers: Based on the average person’s spending habits, you stand to earn around $223 in rewards in your second year as a Venture cardholder (2 miles per dollar earned on a $15,900 per year spend, minus the annual fee). With the VentureOne, you’d only earn about $198 on the same spend.

On the other hand, the Venture card does not offer an introductory APR on purchases. Because of this, the VentureOne card may be a better option if you plan to carry a card balance on purchases during the first 12 months.

See related: Capital One transfer partners

The Venture X, on the other hand, is more suited to luxury travelers, thanks to added benefits like Priority Pass and Capital One lounge access. You can also take advantage of up to $300 back each year on Capital One Travel purchases and a 10,000-mile anniversary bonus to help offset the card’s hefty $395 annual fee. Still, those who don’t travel as often might be better off opting for a less-expensive counterpart.

Should you sign-up for a Capital One Venture card?

While the bonus on the Capital One Venture card is not the highest it has ever been, now is still a great time to sign up for any of the three Venture products. The newly launched Venture X is offering an incredibly generous 100,000-mile bonus after you spend $10,000 in the first six months, and it is unclear if this will be around forever.

Meanwhile, even the more modest bonuses on the Venture and VentureOne cards serve to offer quite a bit of value to new cardholders thanks to the flexibility of Capital One miles.