The Offer
- Bank of America Spirit Airlines card is currently offering the following bonuses:
- 15,000 miles after first purchase
- Additional 15,000 miles after you make $500 in purchases within the first 90 days
Card Details
- Card earns 2x miles on all purchases
- Annual fee of $59 waived first year
- 5,000 anniversary bonus Spirit miles when you spend at least $10,000 in purchases annually and pay your annual fee
- Spirit miles don’t expire as long as you make at least one purchase per month on your Spirit credit card, usually they expire within three months unless you have any earning activity
- I’ve included the award chart below, which can be accessed directly by clicking here. You’ll notice that having the credit card allows you to take flights starting at 2,500 miles + taxes
Our Verdict
The previous best offer we’ve seen on this card is 15,000 miles + $100. The nice thing about this card is getting access to the off-peak awards. If you can make those work on a route you want/need to fly regularly and are familiar with spirit’s fees then this card can actually be fantastic. For example you could get 12 region 1 off peak flights with this bonus. It’s obviously not for everybody but as legacy airlines continue to double down on basic economy the difference between them and ultra low cost carriers like spirit diminishes. Read these things everybody should know about Bank of America cards before applying.
Hat tip to reader Justin T
You got me excited DoC for 12 one-way flights, so I got the card. Here’s my honest review: DON’T DO IT. Or at least pick up another BoA card while you’re at it.
The occasional 2,500 fares that you would book also cost next to nothing (e.g. BWI-IAH for $60. BWI-FLL for $30-$40). This would’ve been okay except Spirit charges $80 in fees 15 days out and $20 in fees 180 days out. I.e. you’re saving maaaaybe $20-40 on a very good day. Please post this info – I had no idea. And these are usually your mid-day Tuesday/Wed flights that no one wants.
In addition, you can book at the airport counter to save an extra $9 per leg – negating points value further. I live near BWI and did this once.
So. With 15 days out, you’re looking at maybe getting $300 of value out of this card. In addition, you get no benefits to offset the “budget” nature of the airline.
Anyone in the NYC area getting this card? I love Spirit and have been flying 10-12x/year to FLL for the past two years and roughly 4x/year to MDE (Colombia) for the past year. Their prices are unbeatable if bought right and at the airport. You’d think this card would be a no-brainer for me given how much I fly Spirit but I just can’t see any of the cheap award flights on the site that aren’t on a Tuesday returning on a Tuesday .
beware that in order to book a flight using the rewards without a fee, you must do it 180 days before flight time. Then the fee was like $15 for 180-15 days out and from 15 days to actual flight day it was like $75 flight redemption charge per ticket. I had the experience of trying to find a flight I could use with the previous promo of 15,000 miles and the availability 180 days out for common days of travel(weekends) was practically zero for that amount. Also if you want to book on a phone for whatever reason its $35. Maybe with more miles it is be a better option now.
The inflight offer using the paper application is 35,000 miles + 1,000 mile voucher if you complete and turn it in onboard.
Oooh, interesting!
lol spirit airlines…. You’re funny doc. Spirit air is the type of thing where you find yourself asking questions like “Maybe this would be more comfortable if I just put myself in a box and shipped it”
Thanks DOC for finding it. So there. 30K is the biggest Spirit offer ever if you can use it. Just make sure you WILL BE able to use it before applying. Otherwise, don’t waste your BoA spot.
I’ve had this card for a few years. I used to be (still am, somewhat) a Spirit fan boy and I wrote a detailed guide on Spirit some time ago. However, being based in NYC, I’ve found the FS quite difficult to use. Here are a few facts if anyone’s interested.
1. When I do fly Spirit, I almost always upgrade to the Big Front Seat, or at least Exit Row when I feel especially stingy. You won’t, I repeat, WILL NOT, catch me dead in their regular seat.
2. You’ll find the best value if you can plan your travel months ahead and your frequent destinations are one leg away. Connected flights mean paying upgrades for EACH LEG.
3. But that also means, if you live close to FLL or another major Spirit hub, you’re nuts NOT to have this card.
4. I’ve never seen gate agents ask passengers to pay for their regular sized carry-ons, but that’s just one person’s observation.
5. I put Netflix on the FSMS once a few years ago and haven’t even touched the card after that, other than to book flights. That takes care of their expiration policy.
6. And yes, to get those FSMC redemption rates, you have to use this card to book your flight. But you can add the bag and upgrades separately to get airline credits from another CC.
7. I wouldn’t use a Spirit flight for a tight connection, LOL, but I’ve never experienced any serious delays.
8, Their customer service is the most hilarious joke in the US civil aviation.
Incognito trick to get sign up offer for free banjo.
You get limited dates, but I find booking flights to Puerto Rico or the US Virgin islands are the best redemption on Spirit. You can get some great value on those flights.
I would also HIGHLY recommend creating a Spirit account and searching for Award flights you *would* want before getting this card. Like others have said, there are far less dates available than the chart says, so do your homework and see if this card has the routes and dates you will actually use.
The offpeak point will be applicable to only few flights even during the eligible card. I had the card for 3 years and was looking to use the points during the off-peak period. There were only 2 to 3 flights that I was able to find in the entire off speak.
I was looking for flights primarily from Boston, so ymmv. But please note that you will get only a couple of flights in 3-4 weeks that uses off-peak points. I closed the card this year as I was not able to find much (I was very flexible with the schedule whenever I search for the award flights)
Is thier a free bag included?
No free bags with the card
A small 8x14x18 carry-on bag is free (like a small backpack), as well as some other exceptions listed on their site. Costco (sometimes) and some other places actually sell roller bags that meet those specifications. You can get creative with how much you can actually take free with you onboard.