Aer Lingus Visa Card Review: Versatile and Valuable for the Right Flyers
The Bottom Line
3.2
The card is most beneficial to high spenders who can earn the largest bonus tier and the annual companion pass. Otherwise, its true value comes from Avios rewards points' flexibility.
Rates, fees and offers
Rates, fees and offers
Annual fee
$95
Rewards rate
1x-3x
Bonus offer
Earn 85,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Intro APR
N/A
Ongoing APR
APR: 20.99%-27.99% Variable APR
Cash Advance APR: 29.74%, Variable
Penalty APR: Up to 29.99%
Balance transfer fee
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
Foreign transaction fee
$0
More details from Chase
More details from Chase
- Earn 85,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
- Earn 3 Avios per $1 spent on purchases with Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, and LEVEL.
- Earn 2 Avios per $1 spent on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel.
- Every calendar year you make purchases of $30,000 on your Aer Lingus Visa Signature Card, you'll receive a Commercial Companion Ticket good for 12 months
- You and any authorized users on your account are eligible for Priority Boarding on Aer Lingus flights departing from and returning to the US from Ireland, subject to availability.
- Pay no foreign transaction fees when you travel abroad.
- Simply tap to pay with your contactless Aer Lingus Visa Signature Card. Just look for the contactless symbol at checkout. It's fast, easy and secure!
- Member FDIC
Pros and Cons
Pros
Companion benefit
Premium travel protections
Early boarding
Cons
Has annual fee
Rewards have limited flexibility
Detailed Review
Fact: Guinness tastes better in Ireland. And thanks to the generous sign-up bonus offered by the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card — the co-branded card of Ireland's major airline — it's easier to experience that for yourself.
The card, issued by Chase, earns Avios, which can be redeemed not just on Aer Lingus, but also on British Airways, Iberia and multiple other Oneworld Alliance airlines. An annual companion ticket for Aer Lingus-operated flights adds an extra dose of value to the card.
But it takes a lot of spending to earn it. And as is the case with all airline-branded credit cards, you get the most out of this card only if you fly that airline often. If not, consider a general travel rewards credit card for more flexibility.
The Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card card is a close cousin of two Avios-earning credit cards from other European airlines: The British Airways Visa Signature® Card and the Iberia Visa Signature® Card.
Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card: The basics
Card type: Airline.
Annual fee: $95
Sign-up bonus: Earn 85,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Rewards:
Aer Lingus distributes rewards points known as Avios, a currency it shares with several other airlines including British Airways, Iberia and LEVEL. The card earns:
3 Avios per $1 spent on purchases with British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, and LEVEL.
2 Avios per $1 spent on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel.
1 Avios per $1 spent on all other purchases.
Be aware that Avios expire if you don't collect, spend, share or purchase any for 36 consecutive months.
Foreign transaction fees: None.
Other benefits:
Companion ticket: Make $30,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year, and you'll earn an economy companion ticket, which you have one year to redeem. The companion ticket is valid for Aer Lingus-operated flights when the cardholder is taking a paid economy flight. No taxes and fees apply to the companion ticket.
Priority boarding: The primary cardholder, and any authorized users, are eligible for priority boarding on Aer Lingus flights to and from the U.S. and Ireland or the U.K.
Travel coverages, such as baggage delay insurance and lost luggage reimbursement.
Compare to Other Cards
Benefits and Perks
Generous sign-up bonus
The card comes with a solid sign-up bonus, which the issuer phrases this way: Earn 85,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Annual companion pass
Bring someone else along on your journey for no extra charge when you book an economy ticket for yourself. You need to spend $30,000 on your Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card in a calendar year to receive the companion pass. No taxes or fees are charged on the companion pass, either. Sláinte!
Multiple ways to redeem Avios
If your #travelgoals extend to other destinations around the world, you can also redeem Avios for flights operated by British Airways, Iberia, and Oneworld Alliance partners like American Airlines.
Helpful travel protections
Your baggage doesn't have to weigh you down when you use the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card to book your trip. If your baggage gets delayed by more than six hours, you'll be reimbursed up to $100 a day for three days to cover the cost of toiletries and clothing. And if your checked or carry-on baggage is lost or damaged, you're covered for up to $3,000.
Drawbacks and Considerations
Getting the companion pass requires high annual spending
You'll have to spend $2,500 per month in one calendar year to earn the companion pass. With the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card, you'll get one companion pass per anniversary year, which is good for an Alaska flight booked on alaskaair.com. Using the pass will cost $99 plus taxes and fees, from $23. What's more: you only have to spend $6,000 in a given year in order to access this companion pass. Alaska Airlines partners with Aer Lingus, British Airways and the rest of the Oneworld Alliance. The annual fee is $95.
The Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card also grants cardholders a companion pass for domestic, Mexican, Caribbean, or Central American main cabin travel when you renew your card, with no spend requirement. When you use the pass, you'll pay taxes and fees of up to $80 for domestic flights, and $250 for international flights. The card's $350 annual fee is on the high end, however (see rates and fees).
General travel cards can offer more flexibility
When it comes to international travel, Avios are remarkably versatile and can be used with a number of airlines. But Avios are of more limited use domestically. You can redeem them for flights with American Airlines and Alaska Airlines, but that's it. And keep in mind that Avios also have an expiration date.
A card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, on the other hand, offers a lot more flexibility. It features around a dozen travel partners, to which you can transfer points at a 1:1 ratio, and those partners include members of all three major airline alliances: SkyTeam, Star Alliance and Oneworld. But more than that, you'll have access to major U.S.-based airline partners as well, including JetBlue, United and Southwest. The card's rewards currency — Chase Ultimate Rewards® points — won't expire as long as you have an open card account. The annual fee is $95.
If these options don't work for you, check out Nerdwallet's full list of the best credit cards to have.
How To Decide If It's Right For You
If earning Avios will get you where you want to go, the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card can be a good fit. The card offers the biggest benefit to high spenders, because they'll earn the sign-up bonus and the valuable companion pass.
But if you simply don't spend enough to unlock these additional perks, fear not. There are a lot of travel rewards cards that can put you well on your way to your next international trip.
To view rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card, see this page.
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Methodology
NerdWallet reviews credit cards with an eye toward both the quantitative and qualitative features of a card. Quantitative features are those that boil down to dollars and cents, such as fees, interest rates, rewards (including earning rates and redemption values) and the cash value of benefits and perks. Qualitative factors are those that affect how easy or difficult it is for a typical cardholder to get good value from the card. They include such things as the ease of application, simplicity of the rewards structure, the likelihood of using certain features, and whether a card is well-suited to everyday use or is best reserved for specific purchases. Our star ratings serve as a general gauge of how each card compares with others in its class, but star ratings are intended to be just one consideration when a consumer is choosing a credit card. Learn how NerdWallet rates credit cards.
About the author
Sara Rathner
Senior Writer/Spokesperson
