Any current or potential Bank of America customer should have this card on their radar because it offers boosted rewards for purchases in two popular spending categories, a competitive welcome offer and valuable perks to offset the annual fee.
Welcome offer: Competitive value for initial spending
Bank of America currently offers new cardholders 60,000 online bonus points for spending $4,000 on new purchases in the first 90 days of opening their card account. According to our valuations, this bonus is worth around $600, or 1.0 cents per point — which is decent considering the card’s low annual fee, but less valuable than what competing cards offer.
You’ll need to spend an average of $1,340 a month for the first 90 days to receive the Premium Rewards card bonus, a modest spending requirement for a welcome bonus of this size. This welcome offer is comparable to other cards. For instance, the Chase Sapphire Preferred offers 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months — a value of up to $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel℠.
Preferred Rewards: Boosted rewards rates for loyalty
The Preferred Rewards Program is the only unique feature available on Bank of America rewards cards that makes them worth considering. If you don’t qualify for boosted rewards rates, this card is easy to pass up.
However, eligible Preferred Rewards members have the chance to earn rewards at the highest flat rate available on any credit card: up to 2.62X points for all purchases outside of travel and dining, which can earn up to 3.5X points.
Depending on your Preferred Rewards status, the Premium Rewards card offers the following rewards rates:
- Preferred Rewards Gold (at least a $20,000 balance): 25 percent boost for 2.5X points on travel and dining with 1.87X points on all other purchases
- Preferred Rewards Platinum (at least a $50,000 balance): 50 percent boost for 3X points on travel and dining with 2.25X points on all other purchases
- Preferred Rewards Platinum Honors (at least a $100,000 balance): 75 percent boost for 3.5X points on travel and dining with 2.62X points on all other purchases
Even at its lowest tier, the Preferred Rewards program helps this card compete with the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, which cardholders often want for its 25 percent redemption boost in the Chase Travel portal. A 25 percent boost to your rate isn’t much different than a 25 percent boost upon redemption. But the Premium Rewards card has more potential. You can boost your rates by up to 75 percent, which is even better than the 50 percent redemption bonus on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card in the Chase Travel portal.
Perks: Provides annual value with statement credits
Bank of America cardholders receive access to the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection and all its perks (when available), including automatic room upgrades, late checkout, complimentary Wi-Fi and breakfast, VIP Guest status and a $25 food and beverage credit. If you’re interested in this card it’s likely because you want a way to earn travel rewards, and hotels are a major expense when traveling.
Cardholders also receive up to $100 in yearly statement credits for incidental airline expenses to cover eligible costs like seating upgrades, baggage fees, in-flight entertainment and ticket cancellation fees. This perk is suitable for occasional flyers who aren’t worried about frills like airport lounges or seat upgrades, but still want to cover some extra expenses.
The Premium Rewards card also comes with an up to $100 application fee credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® every four years, amounting to a yearly value of $25.