5 Things to Know About the Hawaiian Airlines Business Mastercard

Issued by Barclays, the Hawaiian Airlines® Business Mastercard® offers elevated rewards on flights booked through Hawaiian Airlines. Cardmembers will enjoy savings on business travel, a robust sign-up bonus and an opportunity to earn annual bonus miles.

However, owning the $99-annual-fee card really only makes sense if you make a lot of business trips to and from the islands. If you don't, you might want to look into other card options.

Here are five things to know about the Hawaiian Airlines® Business Mastercard®.

» MORE: NerdWallet’s best airline credit cards

1. Ongoing rewards are decent, but you’re tied to Hawaiian Airlines

With the Hawaiian Airlines® Business Mastercard®, you'll earn heightened rewards on airline purchases, as well as some everyday spending categories.

What you can expect:

• 3 HawaiianMiles per $1 spent on qualifying Hawaiian Airlines purchases.

• 2 miles per $1 spent on gas, dining and office supply store purchases.

• 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases.

NerdWallet values HawaiianMiles at 1 cent each. Miles can be redeemed for seats on Hawaiian Airlines flights, hotel stays and car rentals, among other options. You can also use your miles on Hawaiian Airlines partners, including JetBlue and Virgin Atlantic.

That said, if your business trips aren't sending you to and from the Aloha State, you might want to consider a more flexible card option that doesn’t tie you to Hawaiian Airlines. For example, the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card allows you to earn travel rewards on business spending and won’t restrict you to a particular airline. It earns 3 points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent yearly on travel and select business categories, plus 1 point per $1 on all other purchases.

Chase Ultimate Rewards® points are usually worth around 1 cent each, but the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card's points are worth 1.25 cents each (when you book travel through Chase). You can also transfer points at a 1:1 ratio to partners' frequent travel programs. This means you’ll have a wide variety of cost-effective options when it comes to cashing in your rewards for business travel.

» MORE: Airline and hotel rewards loyalty programs

2. Cardholders can earn a healthy sign-up bonus

New account openers will be eligible to earn up to 70,000 bonus miles: 60,000 after spending $1,000 in the first 90 days, and an additional 10,000 miles when a purchase is made on an employee card.

Many credit cards require you to spend a hefty sum within a small window of time in order to score a sign-up bonus. However, the Hawaiian Airlines® Business Mastercard® offers a sizable welcome offer with a relatively low spending requirement.

» Learn more: Why I love my Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite Mastercard®

3. You can earn annual bonus miles (if you spend enough)

Depending on how much your business spends each year, you could rack up serious bonus HawaiianMiles toward your next trip. However, the spending requirements are steep.

Cardholders can earn 20,000 bonus miles on their account anniversary when they spend $50,000 to $99,999 per year, or 40,000 bonus miles when they spend $100,000 or more per year.

4. You’ll get limited companion and employee perks

With the Hawaiian Airlines® Business Mastercard®, you'll get the following benefits:

• Cardholders will receive a one-time 50% companion discount for a round-trip coach ticket booked with the card. The offer is valid only for trips between Hawaii and North America within the first 13 months of account opening.

• With the Hawaiian Airlines Share Miles program, you can transfer miles to friends and family (or vice versa) at no cost. You just have to make the transfer through HawaiianAirlines.com.

• Business owners will get complimentary employee cards and the option to set controls on employee cards for credit lines, single purchase limits and cash access.

While the companion discount can provide one-time savings, benefits of the card are generally paltry — especially for its $99 annual fee. Many other airline credit cards come with more lucrative benefits and perks, such as free checked bags.

» MORE: NerdWallet’s best small business credit cards

5. There’s a consumer version of the card

If you're interested in the Hawaiian Airlines® Business Mastercard® for personal use, it has a nonbusiness counterpart: the Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite Mastercard®. Both Barclays-issued cards charge the same $99 annual fee and offer similar ongoing rewards structures.

Unlike its sibling card, the Hawaiian Airlines® Business Mastercard® offers the opportunity to earn bonus rewards. However, it lacks some key perks that the consumer version has, such as a $100 companion discount annually and a complimentary checked bag.