Chase Aer Lingus Visa Signature Review
Updated July 30, 2023.
The Facts
The Math
Amex SPG (1.25x), Amex EveryDay Preferred (1.5x), and Chase Freedom Unlimited (1.5x, when paired with a premium UR card such as Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve) all return higher value for general spending, because their points can all be transferred into Aer Lingus Avios. Chase Sapphire Reserve also returns the same value for Aer Lingus/British/Iberia etc., with wider bonus categories (all travel and dining) and flexibility (Chase points can be transferred to other partners in addition to Avios or simply redeemed for travel at 1.5 cent per point). The annual companion ticket is sort of attractive if you make companion travel on Aer Lingus metals at least once a year with cash; however, spending $30K per year on none-Aer Lingus purchases means a loss of 7,500-15,000 Avios compared to the aforementioned cards. The bottom line is that Aer Lingus Visa will be good to keep after the first year only for a limited number of customers.
The Conclusion
There are very few reasons to keep Chase Aer Lingus Visa after Year 1, unless you can use the annual companion ticket and are able to put down $30K on the card each year.
The Facts
- Annual Fee: $95
- Signup Bonus: 75,000 points after you spend $5,000 within 3 months of new account opening. This bonus is not available if you currently have this card or have received a signup bonus for this card in the past 24 months. Historical best bonus of this card: (1) 100K with $5K spending in 2021; (2) 120K points with 30K spending in 2019; (3) 100,000 points with $20K spending in 2018 & 2019 & 2020 & 2022;
- Application Landing Page
- Rewards: 3x Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, LEVEL and OpenSkies, and 1x everywhere else
- Best Use of Aer Lingus Avios: Aer Lingus is a member airline of oneworld, one of the three global airline alliances. Avios is the frequent flyer currency of Aer Lingus, British Airways, and Iberia, and you may transfer Avios among three programs at 1:1 ratio. You can use Avios, on Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, or their partner airlines. Unlike US domestic airlines, most foreign airlines add hefty fuel surcharges to award tickets, making redemption on economy cabins less valuable. Redemption on premium cabins may be desirable but you still have to take the fuel surcharges into your calculation. The alternative is to use Avios on American Airlines (AA) for economy or premium cabins, because AA does not have fuel surcharges.
- Aer Lingus Benefit: (1) An annual companion economy ticket good for 12 months, after you spend at least $30,000 per calendar year. The primary cardholder must travel with the companion in the same itinerary and pay for his/her own economy class ticket. No taxes and fees apply to the companion ticket. (2) Priority boarding on Aer Lingus flights originating in the U.S. and Ireland.
- Other Benefits: Waived foreign transaction fees with an embedded EMV chip.
The Math
Amex SPG (1.25x), Amex EveryDay Preferred (1.5x), and Chase Freedom Unlimited (1.5x, when paired with a premium UR card such as Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve) all return higher value for general spending, because their points can all be transferred into Aer Lingus Avios. Chase Sapphire Reserve also returns the same value for Aer Lingus/British/Iberia etc., with wider bonus categories (all travel and dining) and flexibility (Chase points can be transferred to other partners in addition to Avios or simply redeemed for travel at 1.5 cent per point). The annual companion ticket is sort of attractive if you make companion travel on Aer Lingus metals at least once a year with cash; however, spending $30K per year on none-Aer Lingus purchases means a loss of 7,500-15,000 Avios compared to the aforementioned cards. The bottom line is that Aer Lingus Visa will be good to keep after the first year only for a limited number of customers.
The Conclusion
There are very few reasons to keep Chase Aer Lingus Visa after Year 1, unless you can use the annual companion ticket and are able to put down $30K on the card each year.