Navy Federal Visa Signature® Flagship Rewards review 2024: A good introductory travel rewards card

Whether you’re looking for a beginner travel rewards credit card or simply want to add a new rewards program to your travel rotation, the Navy Federal Credit Union Visa Signature® Flagship Rewards Credit Card is a smart option to consider if you’re a current or prospective member of this credit union. Read more about what this card has to offer in our Navy Federal Visa Signature Flagship Rewards Credit Card review.

Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards basics

• Annual fee: $49.
• Welcome bonus: 35,000 points (a $350 value) after spending $3,500 on purchases in the first 90 days of account opening. Plus, get a complimentary year of Amazon Prime (a $139 value). Offer ends April 30, 2024.
• Rewards: 3 points per $1 on travel and 2 points per $1 on everything else.
• APR: 15.24% to 18.00% variable APR on purchases and balance transfers.
• Recommended credit score: Very good to excellent.
• Does the issuer offer a preapproval tool? Yes.
• Other benefits: Global Entry or TSA PreCheck statement credits, one year of Amazon Prime and travel benefit protections.

Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards credit card review

The Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards card offers a good option for its credit union members who want to get rewards and standard perks for travel purchases at a low annual fee. Keep in mind that Navy Federal Credit Union’s Visa Flagship Rewards credit card is only available to members of the institution. 

For a low annual fee of $49, it offers generous rewards points on travel-related purchases. Additionally, cardholders receive access to travel benefits, like a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee reimbursement, which is a benefit that’s typically synonymous with premium travel rewards cards.

Although the Flagship Rewards Card offers some of the travel perks you might expect from a travel rewards card, its membership requirement to apply is a drawback — Navy Federal Credit Union membership is open to military members, veterans and family — and the card’s travel benefits might be duplicative for someone who is a tenured travel rewards aficionado. 

Pros

• No foreign transaction fees: You won’t be charged for transactions made outside of the U.S.
• No rewards limits or expiration: You can earn unlimited rewards on purchases.
• Welcome bonus: New cardholders can earn 35,000 points (a $350 value) after spending $3,500 on purchases in the first 90 days of account opening. Plus, get a complimentary year of Amazon Prime (a $139 value). Offer ends April 30, 2024. 

Cons

• Annual fee: The $49 annual fee will eat into rewards.
• Points are nontransferable: You can’t combine your accrued points across multiple Navy Federal rewards programs or transfer points to travel partners.
• Membership required: You’ll need to be a member of the credit union, which is only available to current and retired military members and their families.

Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards card rewards

Using the card for travel-related purchases is where you’ll get the most value from its rewards program. Cardholders earn 3 points per $1 on travel and 2 points per $1 on everything else. Eligible travel spending includes airfare, hotels, ride-share services, car rentals, amusement parks and more.

There are no restrictions on how many reward points you can earn, and points don’t expire as long as your account is open. This means you can redeem them whenever you’ve accumulated enough points that are advantageous for you. 

Notably, in addition to redeeming your points for cash-back, a statement credit or travel booked through Navy Federal, you can also redeem your points towards the card’s annual fee.

Using government data and other publicly available information, we estimate that a U.S. household in the market for this card would likely charge $25,087 in annual expenses to a credit card.

We estimate that households spend $2,941 on travel annually, which would earn just over $88 in rewards on the Navy Federal Flagship card. The remaining $22,146 of annual spending in non-travel categories would earn almost $443 in value. 

In total, cardholders can expect to earn approximately $531 rewards potential annually from the Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards card.

CATEGORY	SPENDING AMOUNT	REWARDS	TOTAL REWARDS
Travel	$2,941	3 points per $1	$88.23
Non-travel	$22,146	2 points per $1	$442.92
TOTAL	$25,087		$531.15

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Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Apply Now

On Bank of America’s secure website

Welcome bonus

25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening – that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases.

25,000 points

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

18.24% – 28.24% Variable APR on purchases and balance transfers

Credit score

Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.

(700 – 749) Good, Excellent

Earn unlimited 1.5 points per $1 spent on all purchases, with no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees and your points don’t expire as long as your account remains open.

Editor’s Take

Pros

• 15 billing cycles of intro APR financing on both new purchases and on qualifying balance transfers.
• Earn an unlimited 1.5 points per $1 on purchases.
• No foreign transaction fees so it’s a good choice to use abroad.

Cons

• Points must be redeemed towards eligible travel and dining purchases for maximum redemption value.
• You can’t transfer rewards to airline or hotel partners.

Applicants seeking a travel credit card with a solid flat rewards rate and a lengthy intro APR period will appreciate this card.

Card details

• Earn unlimited 1.5 points per $1 spent on all purchases, with no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees and your points don’t expire as long as your account remains open.
• 25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening – that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases.
• Use your card to book your trip how and where you want – you’re not limited to specific websites with blackout dates or restrictions.
• Redeem points for a statement credit to pay for travel or dining purchases, such as flights, hotel stays, car and vacation rentals, baggage fees, and also at restaurants including takeout.
• 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days. After the Intro APR offer ends, a Variable APR that’s currently 18.24% – 28.24% will apply. A 3% Intro balance transfer fee will apply for the first 60 days your account is open. After the Intro balance transfer fee offer ends, the fee for future balance transfers is 4%.
• If you’re a Bank of America Preferred Rewards® member, you can earn 25%-75% more points on every purchase. That means instead of earning an unlimited 1.5 points for every $1, you could earn 1.87-2.62 points for every $1 you spend on purchases.
• Contactless Cards – The security of a chip card, with the convenience of a tap.
• This online only offer may not be available if you leave this page or if you visit a Bank of America financial center. You can take advantage of this offer when you apply now.

How the Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards card compares to other rewards credit cards

Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards vs. Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card 

The Bank of America Travel Rewards card spares you the need to track bonus categories by letting you earn 1.5 points per $1 on purchases. There’s no annual fee and it offers a welcome bonus of 25,000 points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days of account opening. New cardholders can receive a 0% intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases and any balance transfers made in the first 60 days, followed by a 18.24% to 28.24% variable APR. A 3% intro balance transfer fee will apply for the first 60 days; then a 4% fee applies to future balance transfers.

Those who are part of Bank of America’s Preferred Rewards program have even greater earning potential of 25% to 75% more rewards, depending on which tier they’re in.

Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards vs. Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card * The information for the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

The Capital One VentureOne Rewards Card lets you earn 5 miles per $1 on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 1.25 miles per $1 on other purchases. There’s no annual fee, and new cardholders receive a welcome bonus offer of 20,000 miles after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months of account opening.

There’s a 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months, then a variable APR of 19.99% to 29.99%. There is a 3% fee on each balance transfer in the first 15 months but no fee for amounts transferred at the purchase APR after the first 15 months. 

Finally, rewards earned with the VentureOne can be transferred to Capital One’s selection of more than 15 travel partners.

Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards vs. Citi Double Cash® Card

If you don’t travel enough to take advantage of the Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards Card, and can’t justify the annual fee, a no-annual-fee cash-back card might be a better fit. The Citi Double Cash Card lets you earn 2% cash back on purchases — 1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off, plus, for a limited time, 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24. Rewards, which come as Citi ThankYou® Points, can be redeemed for cash back as a statement credit, direct deposit or check.

It also comes with a 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months. After that, the standard variable APR will be 19.24% to 29.24%. An intro balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3%, whichever is greater, applies to transfers completed in the first 4 months. After that, the fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5).

Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards card is right for you if:

The Navy Federal Visa Flagship Rewards credit card is a great choice with some “ifs” attached: 

• If you are a current or retired military servicemember or have one in your family.
• If you don’t already have a travel rewards card that offers similar benefits.
• If you can manage the card’s $49 annual fee.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)