5 Things to Know About the Booking.com Credit Card
It offers generous — if slightly complex — rewards for loyalists, but you can redeem them only toward future bookings with the platform.
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The Booking.com Genius Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card — issued by First Electronic Bank — gets you generous rewards on travel that you purchase through the platform, as well as on some everyday spending. It has no annual fee.
It also features a unique rewards category among travel credit cards, allowing you to snag bonus travel credit on essentially anything you buy during a stay booked through Booking.com, up to a cap and with some applicable terms. That means meals, souvenirs, transit, rentals and other expenses you'd expect to incur on vacation could qualify for bonus rewards.
You'll have to juggle multiple bonus rates and categories, and you can only use your rewards within the Booking.com platform. But if you already do most of your travel planning and purchasing with the brand, it could be a valuable tool.
1. Reward rates are generous, if you can keep track of them
Image courtesy of Booking.com
The rewards you earn with the Booking.com credit card come in the form of travel credit with the platform. The card offers:
6% back in travel credit on stays booked in the Booking.com app.
5% back on flights, stays, car rentals, attractions, cruises and airport taxis on Booking.com.
3% back on everything you purchase during a stay booked on Booking.com, on up to $10,000 spent each anniversary year, within a 50-mile radius.
3% back on dining, gas and groceries.
2% back on everything else.
One dollar in travel credit amounts to $1 to use on Booking.com toward eligible stays, flights, car rentals, airport taxis and attractions.
As of this writing, there's also a welcome bonus: $150 in travel credit after spending $1,500 in the first 90 days. You can earn $100 more in travel credit each year when you spend $15,000 or more with the card. In addition, it comes with travel protections, including trip cancellation and interruption insurance, travel accident insurance and rental car insurance, to name a few.
Those are rich rewards and solid perks for a $0-annual-fee card. The 2% base rewards rate, especially, can help you rack up rewards quickly. And unlike brand–specific travel credit cards for airlines or hotels, you don’t have to worry about blackout dates.
But with multiple reward rates and categories — including differing rates between the Booking.com app and website — it's not the easiest rewards structure to remember. And while purchases through the app earn you the highest rate, not everyone will be comfortable booking travel on a small screen.
If you're seeking more simplicity, a general-purpose rewards card like the $0-annual-fee Citi Double Cash® Card might be a better pick. It earns 2% back on all purchases: 1% when you buy, and 1% when you pay it off. And while it lacks the higher rates of the Booking.com card, it offers more flexibility in terms of redemption: You can redeem your rewards for cash back at a penny per point, use them to book travel via Citi's travel portal, or transfer them to Citi's multiple travel partners. You'll also get a 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months, and then the ongoing APR of 17.99%-27.99% Variable APR. The Booking.com credit card doesn't feature an intro APR promotion.
2. Redemption options are limited
As noted above, the rewards you earn with the Booking.com credit card tie you to whatever travel-related offers happen to be on that platform. Plus, unlike many other travel credit cards, you'll be on the clock for redemption: Rewards expire two years from the date they're awarded.
If you want more flexibility, you could consider the aforementioned Citi Double Cash® Card. Or if you're seeking higher reward rates, take a look at the $0-annual fee Citi Strata℠ Card. It earns 5 ThankYou points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked via Citi's travel portal; 3 points per $1 spent at supermarkets, on select transit purchases and at gas and EV charging stations; 3 points per $1 spent on an eligible "self-select" category of your choice (including fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores/barbershops/hair salons, or pet supply stores); 2 points per $1 spent at restaurants; and 1 point per $1 on all other purchases.
The card features a 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months, and then the ongoing APR of 18.99%-28.99% Variable APR, too. That could be helpful if you're looking to finance a vacation over time. In addition, there's a generous welcome offer: For a limited time, earn 30,000 bonus Points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of account opening.
3. 'Genius Level 3' perks offer more value
The Booking.com platform features three tiers of status — aka "Genius Levels," ranging from 1 to 3 — that offer discounts and other perks on select bookings through the site. Holders of the Booking.com credit card gain access to Genius Level 3 (the highest level), which includes:
10–20% discounts on stays.
10–15% discounts on select rental cars.
Free breakfasts on select stays.
Free room upgrades on select stays.
Priority support on all stays.
Typically, to earn this status level without the card, you would have to make 15 bookings with Booking.com in two years.
4. You can see your odds of approval ahead of time
The card’s pre-qualification process allows you to understand the likelihood of getting approved. There’s no initial impact to your credit scores, but if you are approved and officially accept the offer, a formal credit check will be conducted, which may cause your credit scores to temporarily dip.
5. It's a good travel companion abroad
The Booking.com credit card runs on the Visa payment network, so it will be widely accepted globally. It also doesn't charge foreign transaction fees, meaning it can save you money on your international trips.
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