Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Card Assessment

In the event you journey repeatedly, you must have at the very least one journey rewards bank card in your pockets. The extra you journey, the extra specialised — and beneficiant — that card must be.

I’ve had a number of journey bank cards through the years. Most have been general-purpose playing cards just like the Capital One Enterprise X rewards card, which rewards purchases with all journey retailers (airways, hospitality corporations, rental automotive corporations, and so forth) over others. Enterprise X arguably gives the most effective worth of any journey card for brand-agnostic, moderate-frequency vacationers — individuals who take a number of holidays of various lengths annually and spend at the very least $2,000 on flights, lodging, and rental vehicles yearly.

Full disclosure: I’m not a Enterprise X consumer. However the extra I study in regards to the card, the extra tempted I’m so as to add it to my assortment.

What Is the Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Card?

The Capital One Enterprise X Card is a super-premium journey bank card that earns miles on each buy. Particularly, it earns:

• 10 miles per $1 spent (10x miles) on inns and rental vehicles booked by Capital One Journey
• 5x miles on airfare booked by Capital One Journey
• 2x miles on all different eligible purchases, together with journey booked by one thing apart from Capital One Journey

You may redeem miles to offset eligible previous journey purchases or present journey bookings (airfare, inns, rental vehicles, native transportation, and extra) at a worth of $0.01 per mile. You too can switch miles to greater than 15 Capital One journey companions, together with main airways and hospitality households. 

Enterprise X has different probably worthwhile advantages, together with a $300 annual journey credit score, 10,000 bonus miles in your account anniversary, and complimentary entry to greater than 1,400 airport lounges worldwide.

What Units the Capital One Enterprise X Card Aside?

The Capital One Enterprise X has numerous helpful options, however three actually stand out:

• Extraordinarily Straightforward to Offset the Annual Payment. Enterprise X’s $395 annual price sounds steep, however it’s simple for even low-key vacationers to keep away from. The annual journey credit score offsets as much as $300 in bookings by Capital One Journey annually, and the ten,000-mile anniversary bonus is value one other $100 on high of that. That’s $400 in worth with little or no effort required.
• As much as 10x Miles on Eligible Journey Purchases. That’s about pretty much as good as you are able to do with a general-purpose journey bank card. Capital One limits the 10x miles price to resort and automotive rental purchases booked by Capital One Journey, however you can even earn 5x miles on eligible airfare booked by Capital One Journey — not dangerous, both.
• Discounted or Free Journey and Tradition Memberships Unavailable Elsewhere. Enterprise X is the one journey bank card that provides free or discounted memberships to Prior, The Cultivist, and Gravity Haus. These memberships don’t make sense for all vacationers, however for those who can take full benefit of them, you’ll extract a number of hundred {dollars} in worth annually.

Is the Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Card Value It?

Honest query. The Enterprise X card has a $395 annual price that’s not waived through the first yr of membership. So it’s affordable to ask whether or not it’s actually value almost $400 each 12 months?

Sure, it nearly definitely is. You solely have to do two issues yearly to offset Enterprise X’s annual price:

• Make journey bookings value at the very least $300 by Capital One Journey to redeem the cardboard’s annual journey credit score
• Redeem your 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary

Collectively, that’s $400 in potential worth, or $5 greater than the annual price. So long as you make different purchases along with your card and redeem earned miles, you’ll get nonetheless extra worth by Enterprise X’s rewards program. And for those who can benefit from complimentary airport lounge entry, free or discounted journey and tradition memberships, and the various different tangible advantages of Enterprise X, you’ll end up even additional into the black.

Key Options of the Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Card

You’ve already gotten a style of some key Enterprise X options. Discover extra element on them (and a few others not but mentioned).

Early Spend Bonus

Earn 75,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,000 on purchases inside the first three months from account opening. That’s a one-time bonus alternative value $750 while you redeem for eligible journey.

Annual Journey Credit score

Earn as much as $300 in credit score towards eligible Capital One Journey bookings every yr. (Save your self a visit by the tremendous print: “Eligible” is a formality right here, and principally all Capital One Journey bookings are eligible.)

You should make mentioned bookings by the Capital One Journey portal — the credit score can’t be retroactively utilized towards prior bookings outdoors the Capital One ecosystem.

Anniversary Miles Bonus

Get 10,000 bonus miles — value $100 when redeemed for journey — yearly after your account anniversary. There’s no spend requirement to earn this bonus, which you get so long as your account stays open and in good standing.

Complimentary Airport Lounge Entry

Get pleasure from complimentary entry to greater than 1,400 airport lounges all over the world, together with:

• A handful of Capital One Lounges in main U.S. airports, together with Denver and Washington-Dulles — hopefully the community expands within the coming years as a result of it’s nearly not value mentioning proper now
• Greater than 1,000 Precedence Go lounges worldwide — you may get a complimentary Precedence Go Choose membership while you register your Enterprise X card on the Precedence Go web site
• Greater than 100 Plaza Premium lounges worldwide, together with choose Virgin Atlantic Clubhouses

See Capital One’s partner lounge network guide for exclusions, restrictions, and a full listing of eligible lounges. Friends largely get in free as properly.

TSA PreCheck or World Entry Payment Credit score

Rise up to $100 off the price of your TSA PreCheck or World Entry utility price. You solely want to use for these memberships each 4 years, so it isn’t a massively worthwhile perk, however each little bit helps.

Finest Value Assure on Journey Reserving With Capital One Journey

This isn’t a very open-ended assure, however it’s fairly helpful (and probably beneficiant) for attentive, savvy travel-bookers. The important thing factors:

1. Capital One sends worth drop alerts on flights you’re watching and recommends when to purchase.
2. In the event you guide airfare by Capital One Journey when Capital One recommends you accomplish that and the value drops inside 10 days, you’ll get a journey credit score for the distinction (as much as $50).
3. In the event you discover a higher worth inside 24 hours of reserving any kind of journey by Capital One Journey, Capital One will match it and refund you the distinction.
4. Capital One Journey’s resort costs match the most effective of opponents like Expedia and Travelocity in near-real time.

To make sure you get probably the most out of Nos. 2 and three, set worth alerts on different widespread journey reserving engines (together with Google Flights and Priceline) and watch like a hawk within the hours and days after you guide by Capital One Journey.

Transferring Miles to Journey Companions

Capital One has greater than 15 travel transfer partners, together with:

• Aeromexico Membership Premier
• Aeroplan (Air Canada)
• British Airways Government Membership
• Alternative Privileges (a serious U.S. resort household and doubtless the most effective worth for home U.S. vacationers)
• Flying Blue (Air France)

You may switch your miles in 1,000-mile increments, often at a 1-to-1 ratio (a number of have less-generous 1.5-to-1 or 2-to-1 ratios). 

The benefit of transferring is that associate loyalty forex tends to be extra worthwhile than Capital One miles, that are all the time value $0.01 apiece when redeemed towards prior or present journey purchases in your Enterprise X card. Generally, the distinction is important: The proper redemption may worth associate factors or miles at $0.03 apiece or extra.

The catch is that companions don’t all the time supply the most effective deal on flights or inns. And it’s not sure your travels will take you someplace served by a associate that does supply a terrific deal. Most are worldwide airways that associate with U.S. airways solely on worldwide flights. So it’s extra work to make it work — although the trouble definitely can (and steadily will) repay.

Complimentary or Discounted Tradition & Journey Subscriptions

I hadn’t heard of any of those subscriptions earlier than diving into the main points of this card. I wouldn’t use any, however that’s largely right down to way of life and journey patterns. I’m satisfied loads of frequent vacationers — Enterprise X’s core viewers — might get their cash’s value out of every. 

• Prior. Half journey journal, half small-group excursion-and-experience firm. Instance experiences embody an eco-lodge within the Himalayas and the Day of the Useless Competition in Oaxaca, Mexico. Enterprise X cardholders get the $149 annual subscription waived. It’s important to pay additional for excursions, after all.
• The Cultivist. Mainly a membership for artwork snobs However tremendous artwork is cool, and free entry to greater than 100 world-class museums is even cooler. Enterprise X cardholders get six months of membership on the Fanatic degree without spending a dime, then common membership charges apply ($440 per yr).
• Gravity Haus. A social membership and lodging community for out of doors adventurers who love the mountains. Members get full entry to lodging and facilities at a number of areas within the Colorado Rockies and Sierra Nevada mountains. Enterprise X cardholders get $300 per yr towards an annual membership, which prices at the very least $1,200 per yr for people (extra relying in your bundle). Gravity Haus is dear, however (possibly) value it.

Right here’s extra element on Gravity Haus pricing and entry. You may see that it’s fairly costly, even for Enterprise X cardholders. It could possibly be value the price for those who love the mountains although.

Different Card Advantages

Enterprise X comes with some nontravel advantages value writing residence about:

• Cellphone safety as much as $800 per incident while you pay your cellphone invoice in full with the cardboard
• As much as 100,000 bonus miles while you refer associates to Enterprise X (they need to apply and be accepted so that you can earn the bonus)
• Capital One Eating, which options hard-to-get reservations at high eating places and tickets to unique culinary experiences (although you continue to need to pay)
• Capital One Leisure, that includes presale and VIP tickets to widespread reveals and sporting occasions

Necessary Charges

Enterprise X has a $395 annual price from the primary yr. You may absolutely offset this price for those who take full benefit of the $300 annual journey credit score and 10,000-point annual anniversary bonus although.

Enterprise X has no overseas transaction price, a pleasant plus for worldwide vacationers.

Credit score Required

Enterprise X requires wonderful credit score to use. If in case you have any important blemishes in your credit score report, you may not qualify.

Benefits of the Capital One Enterprise X Card

In the event you’ve learn this far, it ought to already be clear that the Enterprise X Card has a ton of doubtless worthwhile advantages. Right here’s an in depth recap.

• $300 Journey Credit score Practically Offsets the Annual Payment. Enterprise X has a $395 annual price. That seems like an excessive amount of till you bear in mind it additionally credit the primary $300 in eligible Capital One Journey purchases yearly and delivers a ten,000-mile bonus ($100 worth) yearly too. Take full benefit and also you’ll greater than break even.
• Nice Return on Capital One Journey Purchases. You may most likely break even after the credit by reserving your regular journey by Capital One Journey. You’ll earn 10x miles on eligible resort and automotive rental bookings, or $100 for each $1,000 spent.
• Complimentary Entry to 1,400+ Airport Lounges Worldwide. Your Enterprise X card will get you free entry to greater than 1,400 airport lounges in three networks. Precedence Go Choose is the behemoth. Most main U.S. airports and plenty of worldwide airports have at the very least one Precedence Go lounge.
• Glorious Early Spend Bonus. Enterprise X has one of many higher early spend bonuses of any journey rewards bank card. Simply thoughts the spending requirement, otherwise you’ll get nothing.
• Annual Miles Bonus for Doing Mainly Nothing. Talking of nothing: That’s what you must do to get 10,000 bonus miles yearly with Enterprise X. Effectively, nearly nothing. It’s important to preserve your account open and pay your invoice on time, however that ought to go with out saying.
• Stable Lineup of Journey Switch Companions for Worldwide Vacationers. Capital One’s journey switch associate lineup leans closely worldwide. That’s superior for those who repeatedly journey overseas (which on this case consists of Canada and Mexico).
• Complimentary and Discounted Tradition Memberships Not Out there With Comparable Playing cards. In the event you’d heard of Prior, The Cultivist, or Gravity Haus earlier than studying this overview, congratulations: You’re cooler than I’m. And your Enterprise X card can internet you almost $700 in worth throughout your first yr for those who be part of all of them (however be sure you’re a great match earlier than doing so).
• No Overseas Transaction Charges. Enterprise X doesn’t cost worldwide transaction charges. Most premium journey playing cards don’t, however that is nonetheless notable in case your travels take you overseas usually.

Disadvantages of the Capital One Enterprise X Card

Does the Enterprise X Card have any drawbacks? Effectively, sure — all bank cards do. These downsides give me probably the most pause.

• No Mile Redemption Bonuses. In contrast to another superpremium journey playing cards, together with the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, you get no bonus from Enterprise X while you redeem for journey purchases. In contrast, each Sapphire Reserve journey redemption is value 50% greater than commonplace redemptions.
• No Main U.S. Airways Amongst Switch Companions. Enterprise X additionally compares unfavorably to Sapphire Reserve on the switch associate entrance. Sure, it has extra companions than the Chase card, however there are not any main home U.S. airways amongst them (and only one home U.S. resort household). So it’s not as helpful for home vacationers.
• Journey Credit score Restricted to Capital One Journey Bookings. The Enterprise X journey credit score solely applies to Capital One Journey bookings moderately than bookings made with different on-line journey companies or straight with the journey vendor. However that’s an inconvenience, most likely not a deal-breaker.

How the Capital One Enterprise X Card Stacks Up

The Capital One Enterprise X Card bears a more-than-passing resemblance to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, one other superpremium journey rewards bank card. Which is a greater match for you? See how they evaluate, then determine for your self.

Different Options to Think about

If neither Enterprise X nor Sapphire Reserve converse to your internal traveler, one in every of these options may. I’d personally suggest all of them, however do take note of the core use circumstances we’ve known as out in the appropriate column — they’re not all acceptable for all vacationers.