Update 7/24/25: During a recent earning call it was confirmed that this card would launch next in August.
Update 1/11/25: If you joined the waitlist when it became available the 500 miles should have posted.
Update: VFTW shares that the card will also come with companion passes (one for having the card and another when a spend threshold is hit). Can be used on any Alaska airlines redemption (any class of service and with partners) there will be a mileage cap but this can be topped up with miles as well.
Alaska Airlines (along with cobrand partner Bank of America) plan to launch a $395 premium credit card in summer 2025. You can get 500 miles if you join the waitlist by December 31, 2024 and an additional 5,000 miles if you join the waitlist and apply for the card when it launches (this is in addition to the unknown sign up bonus that will be offered at launch).
The card will have the following features:
- $395 annual fee
- 3X miles on all eligible foreign purchases
- 3X miles on all eligible dining purchases
- Waived award ticket fees
- Alaska Lounge passes
- Wi-Fi vouchers
- accelerated paths to elite status
- innovative travel disruption program
Our Verdict
It’s interesting that it says lounge passes rather than lounge access, I assume that means it’ll be limited.
I certainly hope they don’t “revamp” the existing card and raise the annual fee yet.
“3x points on foreign spend”
Sounds like an excellent everyday card for Americans living abroad…
to be clear, the 500 just for signing waitlist is long gone right?
Yes, The cutoff was December 31, 2024 with 5,000 miles bonus miles if you end up signing up for the card.
what is the signon bonus? 100k?
Benefits are weak and disappointing
The companion award pass would be huge. I’ll be shocked if it’s a yearly thing for just having the card and not for hitting a certain spend threshold.
Edit – a comment on VFTW says the yearly companion award pass has a cap of 25k miles, you can ‘earn’ another one through spend that has a cap of 100k
25k?? Ouch that’s stingier than Marriott
I wonder if AA or JAL made them cap it that low
That’s like not even an international trip. I guess within the Americas? It would be more interesting if they allow us to top up. At least 25k for the higher priced APAC flights.
In the article above it says that top up will be allowed.
It would be interesting if Alaska released a $0 annual fee card.
smart for bofa to launch next month after CSR circus, but still too close to citi strata. they should prob do it sept or oct before the holidays.
i still wanna know wtf w/ barclays. keeping HA or no? cuz thats gonna change the CC strat if shit doesnt move over to bofa.
https://beatofhawaii.com/hawaiian-says-dont-worry-but-travelers-still-await-clear-answers
After reading about the CSE, I’m far more interested in this card. Really it’s perfect timing just before Citi (rumor) launches.
i would get both. both part of OW. i find both super useful. but citi has sensitive rules so will prob do CSE first. then AS. bofa is way more relaxed. but if u had to pick one, i guess it would be AS card. cuz the global comp cert is pretty insane. but the 3x on all foreign spend is impossible to keep. i say both cards get nerfed ASAP. u could also go double AS. do old AS card $95 + premium. almost like CSP CSR combo.
IDK about bofa being way more relaxed. Their 3/12 (7/12) rule can be a problem. I got denied recently for the business version even though I have an active checking account with them, so should be 7/12, and am currently only at 4/12 with 2 personal 2 business cards
BOA Biz is a total crap shoot. For years I’d get an AS Biz between other subs and hold several at a time (like now). Then was turned down about 9 months ago. Then got approved instantly about 3 months ago with a huge CL. I have accounts at BOA and history. BOA, like Barclays, is just a shot that costs a very few credit report points for 2 months to give a try.
What is CSE?
City Strata is looking like a weak card tbh. I’m also happy that they announced it would come in the summer 6 months ago and have stuck with the timeline. It’s too common for things to get pushed back nowadays so this builds trust for me
Hopefully it comes with the two step authentication benefit 😛
Really curious what the initial SUB will be. Hoping for 100K+ without a crazy MSR.
I wouldn’t be surprised with a 80-90k offer.
I feel like a 100k offer is inevitable. If they don’t start at 100k I will just wait. Bigger offers will come.
The reason I don’t think it’ll be 100k as I don’t think there’s ever been a bank of America bonus above 90k. Not even the premium elite their flagship crown card.
Well except sonesta.
Agreed. I think 85,000 was the highest the Alaska personal card ever was and 80,000 was the highest the business card ever was.
I don’t know about that in tis case. They already have a ton of people who signed up on the waitlist that are owed a 5,000 AAdvantage miles bonus on top of whatever SuB is intially offered. And Citi just introduced their first ever 100,000 miles SuB offer on their AAdvantage Executive card a coule weeks ago. Seeing as AA is defintely a higher tier carrier than Alaska, I expect an initial offer of 80,000 to 85,000 (not including the extra 5,000 for eligibile applicants) for the first few months and then a pull back to like 75,000 miles or less. And I only say this becuse when you consider the a.f. of $395, it’s the same a.f. as the Capital One Venture X — a card thats never had a SuB over 75,000. And none of the Alaska Airlines co-branded BofA cards already in existence have ever had SuBs over 80,000 either. So historically, it looks like 75,000 to 90,000 is about the max. SuB for cards in this annual fee range from Capital One and BofA sized lenders. If anything, the initial SuB offer might be much higher — 100K miles even, though I doubt it — at launch but only last a few weeks or months before it pulls back and stays there. Notice how the welcome offers for the other two BofA Alaska cards hasn’t really moved at all these last few years…but when the offers did change, they only wnet down, never up. Sure, Amex and Chase and others increase their welcome offers much more often but how often do they increase them to a figure that is higher than the card’s original SuB offer was when the card debuted? I’ve never seen it. But even if it has happened, its rare. And BofA/Alaska aren’t they kind of card issuers to do it based on their past activity. I’m anxious to see what they do offer, though…and sure hope it’s 100,000 miles!!!