Capital One VentureOne Card Review: Is The No Annual Fee Card Worth It?

The Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card is an intriguing no annual fee travel rewards credit card. The card offers a solid return on spending, has no foreign transaction fees, and even offers rewards that can directly be converted into airline miles or hotel points. This post is my in-depth Capital One VentureOne Card review. Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about the card, and also discuss how it compares to the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (learn more) and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (learn more). Is it best to stick to the no annual fee Venture product, or is it worth paying an annual fee for better rewards? Link: Learn more about the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card Capital One VentureOne Card summary & key detailsCapital One VentureOne Card bonus, eligibility, & feesVentureOne Card 20K miles welcome bonusVentureOne Card eligibility rules & application restrictionsVentureOne Card downgrade rules & policiesVentureOne Card no annual fee & no authorized user feesCapital One VentureOne Card rewards structureVentureOne Card 5x miles with Capital One TravelVentureOne Card 1.25x miles on everyday spendingVentureOne Card no foreign transaction fees on spendingIs the Capital One VentureOne Card worth it?Capital One VentureOne vs. Venture comparisonCapital One VentureOne vs. Venture X comparisonWhat other no annual fee cards should you consider?Capital One VentureOne Card FAQsBottom line Capital One VentureOne Card summary & key details Before I get into my Capital One VentureOne Card review, let me briefly summarize the key details of the card: Capital One VentureOne Card annual fee: $0 Capital One VentureOne Card welcome offer: 20K miles after spending $500 within the first three months Capital One VentureOne Card rewards: 5x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, and 1.25x miles on all other eligible purchases Capital One VentureOne Card foreign transaction fees: None Beyond that, here are what I consider to be some of the major pros and cons of the Capital One VentureOne Card: Capital One VentureOne Card pros include the lack of an annual fee or foreign transaction fees, plus being able to earn transferable rewards on a card that doesn’t cost you anything to hold on to Capital One VentureOne Card cons include the lack of bonus categories on spending, plus the superior value proposition of the more premium versions of the card The VentureOne Card has no annual fee & no foreign transaction fees Capital One VentureOne Card bonus, eligibility, & fees A couple of the key selling points of the Capital One VentureOne Card include the lack of an annual fee, plus the welcome bonus. After all, those are factors that are important to consumers, so let’s start by taking a closer look at those things, including who is eligible for the card. VentureOne Card 20K miles welcome bonus The Capital One VentureOne Card has a welcome bonus of 20,000 Capital One miles after spending $500 within the first three months. Admittedly that’s not a massive bonus, but for a card with no annual fee, and for such a reasonable spending requirement, it’s actually quite competitive. Personally I value Capital One miles at 1.7 cents each, so to me those 20,000 miles are worth $340. For a spending requirement of just $500 that’s quite good, though admittedly it pales in comparison to the best welcome offers out there. Redeem Capital One miles for business class travel VentureOne Card eligibility rules & application restrictions When you look at the bonus terms on the Capital One VentureOne Card, you’ll find the following language: You are not eligible for this product if you have received a new cardmember bonus for the Capital One VentureOne card, the Capital One Venture card, or the Capital One Venture X card in the past 48 months. As you can see, the card follows a 48-month rule, so you’re not eligible for the welcome bonus on this card if you’ve received a new cardmember bonus on this exact card or on the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (learn more) or Capital One Venture X Card (learn more) in the past 48 months. One thing worth understanding is that Venture X eligibility is only related to whether you’ve had the Venture X, Venture eligibility is only related to whether you’ve had the Venture X or Venture, and VentureOne eligibility takes into account all three cards. So if you were to eventually apply for multiple Venture cards, you’d want to first get the no annual fee Capital One VentureOne Card. VentureOne Card downgrade rules & policies Generally speaking, Capital One will let you downgrade to another card within the same card “family,” assuming you’ve had the product for at least 12 months. Why do I mention this? Well, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (learn more) and Capital One Venture X Card (learn more) are both lucrative cards with annual fees. Many people may give those cards a try, and then decide at some point that it’s no longer the best option for them. In that situation you could typically downgrade to the VentureOne, so that’s an option worth being aware of. Let me emphasize that if you downgrade to a card rather than applying outright, you don’t earn the typical sign-up bonus. Still, it’s a valuable option to have, especially to preserve your credit line and account age. The Capital One VentureOne Card has no annual fee for the primary cardmember or for any authorized users. So that’s a major incentive to pick up this card. Also keep in mind that holding onto credit cards for a long time can help your credit score, as it boosts your average age of accounts. So there’s value to getting some cards that you might want to hold onto in the long run, like this one, given the overall positive impact it can have. Capital One VentureOne Card rewards structure The Capital One VentureOne Card has a rather straightforward rewards structure. You get the same return on spending in all categories, except Capital One Travel purchases. VentureOne Card 5x miles with Capital One Travel The Capital One VentureOne Card offers 5x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through the Capital One Travel portal. As you may have guessed based on the name, this is Capital One’s portal that allows you to make travel arrangements. Perhaps in some situations there could be merit to booking this way, but often this kind of spending comes at an opportunity cost. After all, if you book hotels through a travel portal, you typically don’t receive elite perks or earn points with another loyalty program on those purchases. So I wouldn’t view this as being any reason you should get this card. VentureOne Card 1.25x miles on everyday spending The Capital One VentureOne Card offers unlimited 1.25x miles on everyday spending globally, with no caps. Based on my valuation of Capital One miles, that’s like a 2.125% return on everyday spending, which is decent Capital One miles can be redeemed in a variety of ways, including for one cent each toward the cost of a travel purchase, or they can be transferred at a 1:1 ratio to a variety of airline and hotel partners. Capital One transfer partners include programs like Air Canada Aeroplan, Air France-KLM Flying Blue, Avianca Lifemiles, British Airways Club, JetBlue TrueBlue, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, and more. VentureOne Card no foreign transaction fees on spending It’s worth emphasizing that the Capital One VentureOne Card has no foreign transaction fees, so it’s an ideal card to use abroad. When you combine earning 1.25x miles with no fees, this is among the better no annual fee cards to use for foreign purchases. The VentureOne Card has no foreign transaction fees There are three versions of the Capital One Venture Card, so is the Capital One VentureOne Card the right card for you? If you look at the card individually, it has some things going for it. It’s rare to have a no annual fee card that has no foreign transaction fees and earns more than one transferable mile per dollar spent. Furthermore, the card has an excellent bonus for a no annual fee card. So if (for whatever reason) you’re absolutely committed to not paying an annual fee and want a “one size fits all” travel rewards card, this should probably be it. It’s also worth comparing this card to the other cards in the Venture lineup, as well as some competing products, so let’s take a look at that… Capital One VentureOne vs. Venture comparison I think there’s a case to be made for applying for the $95 annual fee Capital One Venture Card instead of the Capital One VentureOne Card. Why? Most significantly: The Venture Card has a much bigger welcome bonus, so there’s huge value in the first year to picking up this card instead The Venture Card offers a minimum of 2x miles per dollar spent, rather than a minimum of 1.25x miles per dollar spent; that difference of 0.75x miles will quickly help you recoup the annual fee Generally speaking it’s possible to downgrade a credit card if you’ve had it for a year and decide you don’t want it; so you could apply for the better card with the bigger bonus, and then down the road it should be possible to downgrade it to the no annual fee version, giving you the best of both worlds Capital One VentureOne vs. Venture X comparison Personally I think the best play is to apply for the Capital One Venture X Card. Now, the card has a $395 annual fee, so I think a lot of people otherwise considering a no annual fee card would be put off by that price point. But let me just say that the card offers endless perks, like a $300 annual travel credit, 10,000 anniversary bonus miles, a Priority Pass™ membership, access to Capital One Lounges, and much more. This is the premium card with the annual fee that’s easiest to justify, in my opinion. Access Capital One Lounges with the Venture X What other no annual fee cards should you consider? If you’re committed to getting a no annual fee card, what other cards should you consider? A few come to mind: The Citi Double Cash® Card (learn more) offers a minimum of 1x points when you make a purchase and 1x points when you pay for that purchase; the catch is that the card has foreign transaction fees, and efficient points transfers require having another card The Chase Freedom Unlimited® (learn more) offers 3x points on dining and drugstores and a minimum of 1.5x points on everyday spending; the catch is that the card has foreign transaction fees, and efficient points transfers require having another card The Bilt Blue Card (learn more) offers a minimum of 1x points; the good news is that the card doesn’t have foreign transaction fees, and points can directly be converted into partner airline miles and hotel points Capital One VentureOne Card FAQs What is the Capital One VentureOne Card? The Capital One VentureOne Card is a travel rewards credit card with no annual fee. It earns Capital One miles on purchases and allows cardholders to use those miles for travel or transfer them to participating airline and hotel loyalty programs. Does the Capital One VentureOne Card have an annual fee? No, the Capital One VentureOne Card has a $0 annual fee, which is one of its primary advantages. What is the Capital One VentureOne Card welcome bonus? The Capital One VentureOne Card offers 20,000 Capital One miles after spending $500 within the first three months of account opening. How many miles does the Capital One VentureOne Card earn? The Capital One VentureOne Card earns unlimited 1.25x miles per dollar on every purchase. You can also earn up to 5x miles on Capital One Travel purchases. Does the Capital One VentureOne charge foreign transaction fees? No, the Capital One VentureOne Card has no foreign transaction fees, making it potentially useful for purchases while traveling internationally. Can Capital One VentureOne Card miles be transferred to airline and hotel partners? Yes, one of the more valuable features of the Capital One VentureOne Card is that its Capital One miles can be transferred to participating airline and hotel loyalty programs. Can I use Capital One VentureOne Card miles to pay for travel? Yes, Capital One miles can be used to reimburse eligible travel purchases at one cent per mile. Can the VentureOne be downgraded from another Capital One card? Yes, if you’ve had the Venture or Venture X for at least 12 months, it’s generally possible to downgrade it to the VentureOne. Does the Capital One VentureOne Card provide airport lounge access? No, the Capital One VentureOne Card doesn’t provide airport lounge access. If you want airport lounge access, consider the Venture X instead. Bottom line The Capital One VentureOne Card is a solid no annual fee card that offers a decent bonus of 20K Capital One miles, has no foreign transaction fees, and offers a minimum of 1.25x transferable miles on all purchases. While that’s a well-rounded card, I think the much better play is to consider the Capital One Venture Card. The card has a much bigger welcome bonus, a better rewards structure, and more perks. Meanwhile if you value airport lounge access, the Capital One Venture X Card is really one of the easiest to justify premium cards on the market. Do any OMAAT readers have the no annual fee Capital One VentureOne Card, and if so, what has your experience been?