Alaska airlines bank of america business credit card

This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with the latest information.

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles are the highest-valued airline miles out there. So getting one of their two cobranded credit cards might be something that interests you.

Want more credit card news and advice from TPG? Sign up for our daily newsletter!

Sign up for our daily newsletter

Those two cards that you might want to think about are the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card and the Alaska Airlines Visa® Business card, with the business card featuring an attractive new limited-time sign-up bonus.

In addition to how useful Alaska Airlines miles can be, another good reason to consider these cards is that they are both issued by Bank of America. That's important because if you have reached your limit with American Express cards or are affected by Chase’s 5/24 rule, it is probably a good idea to look to other banks for your next credit card.

Now let’s look into the details of these two cards and discuss how they match up.

Here’s a quick comparison chart of the two products and their individual benefits:

Annual fee

Although their annual fees are structured differently, if you are just getting a single card, you will end up paying the same amount for either one. The Alaska Airlines Visa Signature credit card charges $75 per year to keep your account open. The Alaska Airlines Visa Business card costs $50 per account plus $25 per card.

So if you have a single card as the business owner, you will also have to pay $75 total per year, though you can obviously take out more cards at an additional expense of $25 per card.

Related: Alaska Airlines Visa Signature card review

Sign-up bonus

The business card is currently featuring its highest-ever publicly-available welcome offer, but you will need to spend $2,000 more on it (compared to the personal card) to unlock that bonus.

Approved applicants for the Alaska Airlines Visa Business card are eligible for 70,000 bonus miles after they make purchases of $4,000 or more within the first 90 days of account opening, and receive the airline’s Companion Fare, which is basically a companion ticket that costs from $121 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $22).=

Based on our current valuations, those 70,000 Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles are worth around $1,260. However, you can get a ton of value from your Alaska Airlines miles thanks to Mileage Plan’s phenomenal roster of Oneworld and non-alliance partners, including British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Fiji Airways, JAL, Qantas and Singapore Airlines.

If you apply for the personal Alaska Airlines Visa Signature credit card instead and are approved, you’ll earn 50,000 bonus miles plus Alaska's Famous Companion Fare™ from $121 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $22) with this offer. To qualify, make $2,000 or more in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account.

While that’s a lot fewer miles, it’s also somewhat less money to lay out right off the bat. So if your budget is tight, the personal card might be a better option for you. Though if you can meet the minimum spend requirement of $4,000, aim for the business card instead.

Related: Alaska Airlines Visa Business review

Earning

Both cards earn equivalently. The Alaska Airlines Visa Signature credit card racks up 3 miles per dollar on eligible Alaska purchases and 1 mile per dollar on everything else.

The Alaska Airlines Visa Business card also earns 3 miles per dollar on Alaska purchases and 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases. Unfortunately, there are no other category spending bonuses.

Related: How to earn miles with the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan program

Alaska Airlines benefits

You won’t find many differences between the two cards’ day-of-travel perks, either.

Both the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature credit card and the Alaska Airlines Visa Business card afford cardholders a free checked bag for themselves and up to six guests on the same reservation. Cardholders with either product also receive 20% back on Alaska inflight purchases including food and Wi-Fi, which represents a savings of $25 per person. Interestingly enough, priority boarding is not a perk with this card.

Companion Fare

Even more importantly, though, both products reward cardholders with an annual Companion Fare, which is one of the most generous airline credit card companion certificates around. Basically, this is a buy-one-get-one-discounted deal (plus taxes and fees).

Related: Maximizing the Alaska Airlines Visa Companion Fare

When you book a round-trip economy ticket on Alaska Airlines, you can use the Companion Fare to reserve a second ticket on the same reservation from $121 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $22).

The Companion Fare must be redeemed within 12 months of the issue date, though the actual travel can take place after that, which essentially extends its usefulness to nearly two years. Even better, both travelers accrue full mileage credit for their flights and are eligible for upgrades. The cardholder themselves doesn’t even have to be flying, but they must use their Alaska card to pay for the tickets. Depending on how you redeem your Companion Fare, it can be worth hundreds of dollars, especially on some of the airline’s more expensive routes, like those to Hawaii, and can more than offset either card’s annual fee each year.

Business vs. personal

Given how similar the two cards are, your final and perhaps most significant consideration should be whether you need a personal credit card or if it’s worth applying for a business credit card.

There are a lot of reasons why a business credit card might be a better fit for your needs. Carrying and using one will help you separate your personal and work purchases, which in turn can even help boost your personal credit score over time. What’s more, if you are interested in applying for a Chase card in the future, the business card will not count toward your overall 5/24 limit, which can open up your options down the line.

You could even consider applying for both and raking in 110,000 Alaska miles to put toward future travel. While diversifying your points and miles is always a good idea, considering the value of Alaska miles and the fact that Mileage Plan does not have many great transfer partner options, opening both cards could be a good way to raise your balance in the short term.

If you have (or have previously had) other accounts with Bank of America, be sure to check out our guide to credit card application rules to ensure that you are eligible for the welcome bonus on the card or cards you are interested in applying for. For example, the welcome bonus on these cards is not available if you currently have or have had the card in the preceding 24-month period.

Bottom line

Anytime is a great time to apply for either the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature credit card or the Alaska Airlines Visa Business card (or both), given the high value of Alaska miles and the Companion Fare. But now is an especially ideal time to jump on the high welcome bonus on the business version.

With $75 in annual fees, neither is that expensive to carry year after year, and both confer decent day-of-travel benefits when actually flying on the airline.

Apply here for the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature credit card or the Alaska Airlines Visa Business card.

Additional reporting by Ryan Wilcox and Chris Dong.

Updated on 9/7/22

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

Does Alaska Airlines use Bank of America?

What Bank runs Alaska Airlines credit card?

What score do you need for Bank of America business credit card?

Does US Bank business Card Report to personal credit?