South American carrier LATAM Airlines, in partnership with financial technology company Cardless, offers two co-branded credit cards: the LATAM Airlines Mastercard and LATAM Airlines World Elite Mastercard. Both cards are issued by First Electronic Bank.
For loyal LATAM flyers, the cards earn LATAM Pass Miles on purchases and include other benefits, especially if you opt for the version that charges an annual fee.
Here are five things to know about the LATAM credit cards.
1. There are two LATAM credit cards
The LATAM Airlines World Elite Mastercard has an annual fee, but offers significantly more extras compared to its no-annual-fee counterpart, the LATAM Airlines Mastercard. Here’s how the cards compare (as of this writing):
| LATAM Airlines World Elite Mastercard | LATAM Airlines Mastercard | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | $99. | $0. |
| Sign-up bonus | Earn 40,000 LATAM Pass Miles after spending $2,500 in the first three months. | Earn 15,000 LATAM Pass Miles after spending $1,000 in the first three months. |
| Earnings rates |
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| Other perks |
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These cards are ideal only if you fly with LATAM Airlines frequently. The annual-fee version, in particular, makes sense to get only if you spend enough in the card's rewards categories and know you'll use its perks to help offset that fee.
For more flexibility with your travel, consider a general rewards credit card like the $95-annual-fee Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It earns 5 points per dollar spent on travel purchased through Chase; 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services, online groceries, gas, electrical vehicle charging and vacation rentals; 2 points per dollar on all other travel purchases; and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. You can redeem your rewards through Chase's travel portal, or you can transfer them to multiple travel partners, including many major airlines. The card also offers a $100 annual credit on hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel℠, as well as this sign-up offer: Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
If annual fees are a deal-breaker for you, consider an option like the Wells Fargo Autograph® Card. You’ll get 3 points per dollar spent on restaurants, travel, transit, gas stations, electric vehicle charging stations, streaming services, and select phone plans; and 1 point on other eligible purchases. You can use those points to book travel via Wells Fargo at a value of a penny each, or transfer them to a handful of partners. The sign-up offer can also give your travel goals a head start: Earn 20,000 bonus points when you spend $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months - that's a $200 cash redemption value.
2. Get a faster path to status
A percentage of your mile earnings will qualify toward LATAM Pass Elite status. With the LATAM Airlines Mastercard, it’s 10% of your earnings. The LATAM Airlines World Elite Mastercard accelerates your path to status with 20% of your earnings qualifying.
LATAM Pass Elite status benefits include premium seat selection, early boarding, seat upgrades and more.
3. Enjoy elevated perks with one of the cards
In exchange for a $99 annual fee, the LATAM Airlines World Elite Mastercard has more to offer:
- Two passes per year to LATAM Airlines’ VIP airport lounges.
- Two courtesy segments per year where you can apply for cabin upgrades. One courtesy segment is for flights within South America, and the other is for flights outside of South America.
4. You won’t pay late fees
The cards charge neither late fees nor a penalty APR, so accidentally missing your due date by a few days won’t cost you. However, don’t miss out on making your payment entirely. Lenders will report late payments to credit bureaus as soon as 30 days after the due date, and this can affect your credit scores.
5. Earn and redeem miles through associated airlines
LATAM isn’t part of any of the major airline alliances, but you can earn and redeem LATAM Pass Miles when traveling on one of LATAM’s associated airlines, which includes Delta Air Lines, Alaska Airlines and a number of air carriers outside of the U.S., such as AeroMexico, Lufthansa, British Airways, Qantas and Iberia. You can earn, but not redeem, miles on Virgin Atlantic flights.
