Thread: Torn between Citi Premier Card and Capital One Venture

Been happy customer of Discover and Amex for a long while now. Nothing wrong with their cards.
But I am planning on traveling more abroad (2 trips per year with wife) and about 3-4 domestic.
My needs are:

* Card that does not charge me 3% transaction fee.
* Gives me some travel benefits like insurance (auto especially) and frequent flyer miles
* Since I usually fly Jet Blue, Finnair, and American, I would like miles to be racked up there.

I was considering Amex Platinum, but I don't see value in paying $450 +$175 for additional card for my wife. I can get airport lounge access for $200 per year for what I need and Amex Platinum does not provide car insurance for right hand countries (to which I am going to soon for a big trip).

So I have narrowed down between:
Capital One Venture and Citi Premier Card

My concern with Capital One - customer service. I heard bad stories. But Citi is not any better either.

What would you suggest?

I have a Capital1 venture card and I love it. I get a concierge, 0% foreign transaction fee, you get room upgrades, I believe you get baggage insurance, you also get frequent flyer miles. But when you redeem, do it on your own because capital1 charges 30 dollars through them.

I'm not 100% percent familiar with the Citi card I believe you get a year end summary, not sure about foreign transaction fees, 1 free ticket when you purchase 1 domestic flight. I do believe you get a concierge, I think the annual fee is 125 dollars if it's the card I'm thinking of.

So the Thank You Premier or Premier Pass? I do not believe Premier Pass is avaialble any longer.

Venture is rated the top reward card for airline miles and they can be used for any airline. I believe the annual fee is less than the Thank You Premier.

As far as customer service, I have not had any trouble with either bank. You will likley get a foreign call center from both banks. When I get that at Citibank I ask for an American rep and they transfer me with no trouble. Citibank will likley give you a higher credit line with regular credit line increases; but overall if you are looking for no foreign trans fee and the best airline miles, the Venture card looks to be the best. To redeem the points at Citibank you would have to book the travel through the Thank You travel center....

While reading about the Venture Card I ran across the following on the FAQ:
"5.What types of purchases qualify for miles?
Rewards will be earned on annual net purchases (not including purchase checks, purchase credits, travelers' check purchases, cash advances, access checks and cash equivalent transactions)."

Does "annual net purchases" mean you get rewards once a year?

I think you can redeem whenever you want, depending upon how many miles you have.

any type of purchase counts, including gift cards.