See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply
Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card
Rewards rate
15 points–5 pointsAnnual fee
$0Intro offer
50,000 pointsRegular APR
15.24%, 19.99% or 24.99%, based on your creditworthiness.Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card review
Why you can trust Bankrate
At Bankrate, we have a mission to demystify the credit cards industry — regardless or where you are in your journey — and make it one you can navigate with confidence. Our team is full of a diverse range of experts from credit card pros to data analysts and, most importantly, people who shop for credit cards just like you. With this combination of expertise and perspectives, we keep close tabs on the credit card industry year-round to:
- Meet you wherever you are in your credit card journey to guide your information search and help you understand your options.
- Consistently provide up-to-date, reliable market information so you\'re well-equipped to make confident decisions.
- Reduce industry jargon so you get the clearest form of information possible, so you can make the right decision for you.
At Bankrate, we focus on the points consumers care about most: rewards, welcome offers and bonuses, APR, and overall customer experience. Any issuers discussed on our site are vetted based on the value they provide to consumers at each of these levels. At each step of the way, we fact-check ourselves to prioritize accuracy so we can continue to be here for your every next.
Editorial Integrity
Bankrate follows a strict editorial policy, so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions.
Key Principles
We value your trust. Our mission is to provide readers with accurate and unbiased information, and we have editorial standards in place to ensure that happens. Our editors and reporters thoroughly fact-check editorial content to ensure the information you’re reading is accurate. We maintain a firewall between our advertisers and our editorial team. Our editorial team does not receive direct compensation from our advertisers.
Editorial Independence
Bankrate’s editorial team writes on behalf of YOU – the reader. Our goal is to give you the best advice to help you make smart personal finance decisions. We follow strict guidelines to ensure that our editorial content is not influenced by advertisers. Our editorial team receives no direct compensation from advertisers, and our content is thoroughly fact-checked to ensure accuracy. So, whether you’re reading an article or a review, you can trust that you’re getting credible and dependable information.
How We Make Money
You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for over four decades. We continually strive to provide consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life’s financial journey.
Bankrate follows a strict editorial policy, so you can trust that our content is honest and accurate. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers.
We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money.
Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and, services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service.
Insurance Disclosure
This content is powered by HomeInsurance.com, a licensed insurance producer (NPN: 8781838) and a corporate affiliate of Bankrate.com. HomeInsurance.com LLC services are only available in states were it is licensed and insurance coverage through HomeInsurance.com may not be available in all states. All insurance products are governed by the terms in the applicable insurance policy, and all related decisions (such as approval for coverage, premiums, commissions and fees) and policy obligations are the sole responsibility of the underwriting insurer. The information on this site does not modify any insurance policy terms in any way.
ON THIS PAGE
ON THIS PAGE
Snapshot
3.8
Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card Overview
The Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card is a great option for anyone who loves to travel and prefers to stay at Choice Hotels. The 15-point-per-dollar rewards rate is very high, so if you’re booking with Choice hotels often, you stand to earn generous rewards. However, the general rewards rate on all other purchases is pretty standard. If you prefer to stay at other hotels, you can likely get more value from another travel rewards credit card.
What are the advantages and disadvantages?
Pros
- High rewards rate on Choice Hotel stays
- No annual fee
- Intro APR on balance transfers is rare among hotel cards
Cons
- No cash back rewards option
- Charges foreign transaction fees
- Not the best value if you don’t stay at Choice Hotels
A deeper look at the current card offer
Quick highlights
- Rewards rate: 15X points at eligible Choice Hotel locations and 2X points on all other purchases
- Welcome offer: 32,000 bonus points if you spend $1,000 in the first 90 days.
- Annual fee: None
- Purchase intro APR: N/A
- Balance transfer intro APR: 0 percent intro APR for the first 15 months on transfers made within 45 days of opening your account
- Regular APR: 15.74 percent to 24.99 percent (variable)
Current sign-up bonus
The current welcome offer from the Choice Privileges credit card is 32,000 bonus points after you make $1,000 worth of purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account. Free nights start at 8,000 points at participating Choice Hotel locations, so if you’re able to reach the $1,000 spending requirement, you could earn enough points to enjoy up to six free.
Rewards
Each dollar spent using the Choice Privileges Visa Signature Card earns you points. These points can be redeemed for free nights in Choice Hotels and more. Rewards are easy to cash in and can help you save money.
Earning rewards
Earn a hefty 15 points for every dollar you spend at Choice Hotel locations. Eligible Choice brands include:
- Ascend Hotel Collection
- Cambria Hotel
- Clarion
- Clarion Point
- Comfort Inn
- Comfort Suites
- Econo Lodge
- MainStay Suites
- Quality
- Rodeway Inn
- Sleep Inn
- Suburban Extended Stay Hotel
Cardholders can also earn 2 points for each dollar spent on all other purchases. Members that spend at least $10,000 per year will also earn 8,000 bonus points that calendar year, equivalent to a free night in a Choice Hotel.
Redeeming rewards
When you’re ready to redeem your points, simply head over to the Choice Privileges website. Log into your membership account and decide how you want to spend your rewards. If you are booking a hotel stay, enter your destination and travel dates, and you’ll be asked if you want to use your points or cash to pay. The site also has links to purchase gift cards, book luxury resorts and even donate back to your community.
Additionally, you can trade-in your Choice Privileges points for rewards with other programs. For example, choose from a lineup of airline partners to swap your points for miles or convert them into Amtrak rewards to earn rail fares.
How much are points worth?
The value of your points will vary based on how you use them, but 8,000 points should be enough to book one night in over 1,000 Choice Hotels. Other luxury hotels, including BlueGreen properties, can cost up to 16,000 points per night.
Other cardholder perks
This card also offers a few benefits that could be useful for those who often find themselves on the road.
Elite Gold Membership Status
Choice Privileges credit cardholders enjoy the perks of an Elite Gold Membership Status without having to meet the 10-stay requirement per year. Perks include 10 percent more points each time you stay at eligible Choice Hotels as well as dedicated phone lines for reservations and customer service and a free snack and drink at check-in.
Discount with ChoiceHotels.com
Over 7,000 properties are included in the Choice Hotels reward program. While using points to book these properties on ChoiceHotels.com or the mobile app, you’ll get exclusive discounts.
Points don’t expire
Members don’t ever have to worry about their points expiring. As long your credit account is in good standing, your points will be valid.
Fraud liability protection
If charges appear on your card that you didn’t authorize, you will not be held responsible.
Rates and fees
Choice Privileges Visa Signature Card has no annual fee, which means you can start reaping rewards without a price of entry. The low-end APR of 15.74 percent variable is competitive with other cards. However, depending on your creditworthiness, you could be assigned a rate as high as 24.99 percent variable.
Other fees include a 3 percent foreign transaction fee, a late fee of up to $40 and a returned payment fee, also up to $40. Additionally, If you take out a cash advance, you will incur either $10 or 5 percent of the transaction amount (whichever is greater) and a variable APR of 25.24 percent. Lastly, balance transfers will cost $5 or 3 percent of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
How the Choice Privileges Visa Signature Card compares to other travel rewards cards
The Choice Privileges Card offers a solid 15-point-per-dollar rewards rate and a $0 annual fee. However, non-Choice purchases earn 2 points per dollar, which is more in line with other offerings.
For example, the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card also has no annual fee and offers 1.25 miles for every dollar you spend, without caps. New cardholders can also earn a bonus of 20,000 miles if they spend $500 on purchases within the first three months of opening their account.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is another popular option, offering 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3X points on dining and 2X points on all other travel purchases, plus more. It does come with an annual fee of $95; however, you can earn a sizable 80,000-point bonus if you spend $4,000 within the first three months of opening your account.
Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card
See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply
Annual fee
$0Intro offer
50,000 pointsRewards rate
15 points–5 pointsRecommended credit
Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
Apply now
on Capital One's secure site
Annual fee
$0Intro offer
20,000 milesRewards rate
1.25X–5XRecommended credit
Good to Excellent(670 - 850)
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Apply now
on Chase's secure site
Annual fee
$95Intro offer
80,000 pointsRewards rate
2x–5xRecommended credit
Good to Excellent(670 - 850)Best cards to pair the Choice Privileges Visa Signature Card with
The Choice Privileges Visa Signature Card offers many redemption options but no cash back, so a good card type to pair it with is a cash back card like the Chase Freedom Unlimited®. The Freedom Unlimited charges no annual fee and offers attractive reward rates. You can get 5 percent cash back on Chase Ultimate Rewards travel purchases, 3 percent back on dining and at drugstores and 1.5 percent back on general purchases.
Bankrate’s Take—Is the Choice Privileges Visa Signature Card worth it?
The Choice Privileges Card is a great choice if you travel frequently and stay in Choice Hotels. Choice Hotels offers over 7,000 hotel options all over the world, making finding a great hotel in your destination city easy. However, if you’d like to have the option to stay elsewhere and still earn rewards, or if you want more flexibility with how you redeem your rewards, you can likely find another travel credit card that’s a better fit.
The information about the Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.
Share