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Christine ran her own business developing and managing insurance and financial services. This stoked a passion for points and miles and she now has over 2 dozen credit cards and creates in-depth, deta...
A long-time points and miles student, Jessica is the former Personal Finance Managing Editor at U.S. News and World Report and is passionate about helping consumers fund their travels for as little ca...
Juan has been involved in credit cards, loyalty, travel, and personal finance for more than 10 years. He has worked for several outlets including The Points Guy and Forbes and was previously Editor-in...
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Capital One is a unique credit card issuer offering a large collection of cards with options appropriate for every credit rating. Perhaps you’d like to get started on the path toward securing a rewards-earning credit card, for example, but your credit history is not quite there yet. There’s a Capital One card right for you.
Conversely, if you’ve worked hard to improve your credit history, you’ll find several card options that will allow you to earn rewards on every purchase you make.
We’re comparing 3 Capital One cards today, each designed for a consumer with a specific level of credit history. We’ll cover what it takes to qualify for each card, compare the features and benefits, and if applicable, how you can earn and redeem rewards.
Join us as we discuss the Capital One Platinum Credit Card, the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card, and the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.
Capital One Platinum Card vs. Capital One VentureOne Card and Capital One Venture Card — Overview
First, let’s take a side-by-side look at our 3 featured cards. You’ll notice that each level of card comes with additional reward-earning potential and greater features/benefits.
While the Capital One Platinum card does not offer a welcome bonus, the Capital One VentureOne card and Capital One Venture card each offer a welcome bonus in the form of Capital One miles earned when you complete minimum spending requirements within the first 3 months after card approval.
The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the in's and out's of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.
The Capital One Platinum card is great for those looking to build up their credit score and credit history, without paying a deposit or annual fee.
The Capital One Platinum card is great for those looking to build up their credit score and credit history, without paying a deposit or annual fee.
None
$0
30.74% (Variable)
Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO®Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit cardapplication.
Fair to Good (580-739)
If you’re ready to get serious about building or rebuilding your credit, you’ll want a credit card for which approval is probable, one that has a simple structure and is easy to manage, and ideally, has some benefits you can use. This is where the Capital One Platinum Credit Card really shines.
Pros
No annual fee
Free credit monitoring
Cons
Does not earn rewards
The high APR can be costly if you carry a balance
No annual or hidden fees. See if you're approved in seconds
Be automatically considered for a higher credit line in as little as 6 months
Help build your credit through responsible use of a card like this
Enjoy peace of mind with $0 Fraud Liability so that you won't be responsible for unauthorized charges
Monitor your credit score with CreditWise from Capital One. It's free for everyone
Get access to your account 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with online banking from your desktop or smartphone, with Capital One's mobile app
Check out quickly and securely with a contactless card, without touching a terminal or handing your card to a cashier. Just hover your card over a contactless reader, wait for the confirmation, and you're all set
Pay by check, online or at a local branch, all with no fee - and pick the monthly due date that works best for you
The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the in's and out's of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.
The card offers unlimited miles at 1.25x per $1 and no annual fee. When you consider the flexible rewards, frequent travelers come out on top.
The card offers unlimited miles at 1.25x per $1 and no annual fee. When you consider the flexible rewards, frequent travelers come out on top.
Earn a bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $200 in travel.
20,000 miles
$360
$0
19.99% - 29.99% (Variable),0% intro on purchases for 15 months
Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO®Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit cardapplication.
Good to Excellent (670-850)
Interested in a travel rewards credit card without one of those pesky annual fees? Then say hello to the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card, the no-annual-fee version of the more popular Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.
In addition to no annual fee, the Capital One VentureOne card offers no foreign transaction fees.
But is this card worth its salt, or is it merely a shell of the more popular Capital One Venture card?
Pros
No annual fee
No foreign transaction fees
Ability to use transfer partners
Access to Capital One Dining
Cons
Weak earn rate at 1.25x miles per $1 spent on all purchases
No luxury travel or elite benefits
$0 annual fee and no foreign transaction fees
Earn a bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $200 in travel
Earn unlimited 1.25X miles on every purchase, every day
Miles won't expire for the life of the account and there's no limit to how many you can earn
Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options
Use your miles to get reimbursed for any travel purchase—or redeem by booking a trip through Capital One Travel
Transfer your miles to your choice of 15+ travel loyalty programs
Enjoy 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months; 19.99% - 29.99% variable APR after that; 3% fee on the amounts transferred within the first 15 months
Financial Snapshot
APR: 19.99% - 29.99% (Variable),0% intro on purchases for 15 months
The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the in's and out's of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.
Get 2x miles plus some of the most flexible redemptions offered by a travel credit card!
Get 2x miles plus some of the most flexible redemptions offered by a travel credit card!
Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.
75,000 miles
$1,350
$95
19.99% - 29.99% (Variable)
Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO®Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit cardapplication.
Good to Excellent Credit (670-850)
The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Cardis one of the most popular rewards cards on the market. It’s perfect for anyone in search of a great welcome offer, high rewards rates, and flexible redemption options.
Frequent travelers with excellent credit may benefit from this credit card that offers a lot of bells and whistles. And it offers easy-to-understand rewards earning and redemption.
Pros
5x miles per $1 on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
2x miles per $1 on all other purchases
2 complimentary visits to a Capital One Lounge or Plaza Premium Lounges each year
Keep in mind that welcome bonuses can change, but we’ve shown a snapshot above of the current applicable welcome bonuses and spending requirements.
Miles can generally be redeemed for 1 cent each, so a 75,000-mile welcome bonus would equal $750 in travel value. However, you could receive potentially greater value when utilizing the option to transfer miles to travel partners and use them for flights or hotel nights. We’ll cover more on redemption options shortly.
5x miles on hotels and rental cars purchased through Capital One Travel
2x miles on other purchases
Redemption Options
Redeem Capital One miles for free flights by transferring to airline loyalty programs. Image Credit: Sergio Shumoff via Shutterstock
While the Capital One Platinum card doesn’t earn rewards, miles earned on the Capital One VentureOne card and Capital One Venture card offer several redemption options.
Purchase Travel via Capital One Travel — Receive 1 cent per mile in value when purchasing travel via the Capital One Travel portal.
Additional Redemption Options — Redeem miles for gift cards, shopping at Amazon, statement credits, and more. However, not all options provide good value. Strive for no less than 1 cent per mile in value.
Minimum Qualification Requirements
Capital One offers cards that are designed for every level of credit history. Image Credit: Capital One
Each of our featured cards has its own specific requirements to get approved for the card. Let’s look at the level of recommended credit you would need to qualify for each card.
Capital One Platinum Card
The Capital One Platinum card encourages at least a fair credit score. The definition of afair credit score, according to leading credit score creator FICO, is a score between 580 and 669. Additionally, Capital One describes the typical qualifying applicant as “having defaulted on a loan in the past 5 years” or “having a limited credit history, owned a credit card or other credit for less than 3 years.”
Capital One VentureOne Card
If your credit score is considered good to excellent, you might want to apply for the Capital One VentureOne card. According to Capital One, in order to qualify for the card, you “have not declared bankruptcy or defaulted on a loan in the past 5 years” and “have a credit card or loan that has not been more than 30 days late on any payment in the last year.”
Capital One Venture Card
The Capital One Venture card recommends a good to excellent credit score which is generally defined as between 670 and 850. Capital One states that the ideal applicant “has never declared bankruptcy or defaulted on a loan, not been more than 60 days late on any credit card, loan, or medical bill, in the last year, and has had a loan or credit card for 3 years or more with a credit limit above $5,000.”
Next Steps
Prior to applying for any card, you’ll want to know your credit history and credit score. You can obtain a credit report from each of the major credit bureaus via AnnualCreditReport.com and there is no cost for the service. Reviewing your credit report for accuracy is always a good first step.
Should you find any errors on your credit report, you’ll want to submit a dispute to the credit bureau and resolve the issue prior to applying for a card.
Once you’ve determined where you stand and have corrected any errors, you can access any available card offers risk-free with the CardMatch tool. There is no inquiry on your credit report and very little information is required to utilize the tool. Capital One also has a risk-free pre-qualification tool, but it does require you to provide more information.
These tools provide a list of card offers you may qualify, for but do not guarantee that you will be approved for the cards.
Final Thoughts
Capital One is a good place to start building or rebuilding your credit. The variety of cards offered can serve as stepping stones to elevate your creditworthiness to a point where you may have an endless choice of rewards-earning card options.
If your credit is fair, starting with the Capital One Platinum card could help you improve your credit and ultimately qualify you for a next-step card such as the Capital One VentureOne card and then the Capital One Venture card. For information on additional Capital One miles- and rewards-earning cards, you’ll want to check out this list of some of the best cards from this issuer.
Once you’ve achieved a good to excellent credit score, you’ll have your choice of some of the best travel rewards cards.
For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
Featured Image Credit: Upgraded Points
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, the Capital One Platinum card, Capital One Venture card, or the Capital One VentureOne card?
The Capital One Venture card is the best card among these cards but isn’t necessarily the one you’ll qualify for. If you have fair credit, you will not qualify for the Capital One Venture card or Capital One VentureOne card. You may, however, be able to qualify for the Capital One Platinum card.
If you have good to excellent credit you may be able to qualify for one of the Venture cards.
Prior to applying, you should obtain a copy of your credit card, verify it for accuracy, and know where you stand. You can also use the CardMatch tool to see if you have card offers available.
Does the Capital One Platinum card earn rewards?
The Capital One Platinum card is designed for building or rebuilding credit and does not earn rewards.
Can I use my Capital One miles for flights?
Capital One miles earned on the Capital One VentureOne card and Capital One Venture card are not frequent flyer miles that can be redeemed directly for flights. However, you can transfer Capital One miles to airline partners and then use the airline’s frequent flyer miles to purchase award flights.
You can also redeem Capital One miles for flights via Capital One Travel at the value of 1 cent each.
What credit score do I need for the Capital One Venture card?
It’s recommended you have excellent credit to qualify for the Capital One Venture card. While the definition of an excellent credit score varies, it is generally defined as one that is at least 740 or better.
Capital One describes the ideal applicant for the Capital One Venture card as one who “has never declared bankruptcy or defaulted on a loan, not been more than 60 days late on any credit card, loan, or medical bill, in the last year, and had a loan or credit card for 3 years or more with a credit limit above $5,000.”
Christine ran her own business developing and managing insurance and financial services. This stoked a passion for points and miles and she now has over 2 dozen credit cards and creates in-depth, detailed content for UP.
This bonus value is an estimated valuation calculated by UP after analyzing redemption options, transfer partners, award availability and how much UP would pay to buy these points.
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