Should you consider the PenFed Premium Travel Rewards American Express Card?

Although I’m a member of the Pentagon Federal credit union, I don’t have any of their credit cards. However the PenFed American Express card really caught my attention because of the benefits it offers.

Let’s take a closer look…

Rewards

With the name PenFed Premium Travel Rewards it better give something good, right? Well here’s what it offers:

• 1 point per dollar on regular purchases
• 5 points per dollar on airline spending
• There are no reward caps

Previously, the card use to offer 3x points on restaurants/hotels and 2x points on everything else but those were limited time promotions which have since expired. Either way, the 5x points on airfare is great! It definitely beats airline affiliated credit cards, which usually give rewards equal to around 2-3% when you buy from their airline.

Annual Fee

When the card first launched it did have a $50 annual fee but it looks like they have since eliminated it, because I carefully read of the PenFed American Express application and it said “Annual Fee: None”

Other Benefits

• If an account has annual spending of $15,000 or more then for the following year, complimentary airport lounge access will be included. It will continue as long as at least $15,000 per account anniversary.
• As with many travel cards, complimentary phone concierge service is included on the PenFed American Express Card.
• Cardholders also will have access to some travel discounts or perks for various hotels, international airfare purchases, cruises, and car rental companies.
• There are the usual travel insurance benefits that cards in this class have. Unfortunately the travel accident insurance is less than typical at $100k, but the others like lost luggage, baggage delay, and trip delay insurance all appear to be comparable to other credit cards.

Verdict?

The PenFed Premium Travel Rewards American Express Card is an excellent value, especially since they eliminated the annual fee. The 1x points on regular purchases is average but the 5x on airfare is definitely a great deal.

Is it the best?

In terms of rewards for airfare spending, there is one card where you might do better and that is the new Citi Thank You Premier card. Yes, I do advertise that card on this site but I could also choose to advertise PenFed cards if I wanted to (but I haven’t yet) so I want to make be clear that’s not why I’m recommending it.

Simply put, the Thank You Premier gives extremely generous rewards on airfare – you get 1 point per mile flown! For example, if your roundtrip flight from NY to LA was 4,800 miles, you would get 4,800 points (that’s about a $48 value!). Believe it or not there is no cap on this, but you do have to spend an equal amount on other purchases to get the flight points (i.e. $500 spent on airfare and $500 on other purchases). Take a look at my review to compare its benefits and rewards…

Compare the new Citi ThankYou Premier