How to Compare Air Miles Credit Cards

Air Mile Credit Card Best Buys Air Mile Credit Card FAQ's Have a question? Send in your question and we'll do all we can to help answer it. Where appropriate user questions will be added to the FAQ's for future use.

Air mile credit cards allow you to get a little back from your spending and start converting your grocery shopping trips into New York clothes shopping trips!

Air mile credit cards reward you with flyer miles or travel points just for using the card to pay for your purchases. These miles or points soon add up and can see you on your way to free travel around the world - with some of the world's biggest airlines.

Before you jump off to grab the first air mile credit card you can find, there are a few tips and pointers to help make sure you get the best air mile credit card for you.

These cards are best for...

Regular travellers and holiday makers
Air mile credit cards are great for anyone who travels regularly, but also for the discerning holidaymaker too.

Chosen and used well, an air mile credit card really can knock pounds off your next holiday or flight. Unlike some unscrupulous 'loyalty point' systems, air miles can actually see you with a nice reward at the end of your collection.

Regular spenders!
Obviously though, you have to actually spend on the air mile credit card to earn your miles or travel points, and of course the more you do spend the quicker you'll be on your way to your first free flight.

So in summary, air mile credit cards are best suited to people who will spend on their credit card (repaying it in full each month) to collect the miles and for people who will then actually make good use of the rewards.

These cards are not suitable for...

Don't want to be tied down?
While air mile credit cards are quite liberal in the types of rewards actually on offer, they will mainly be limited to travel and travel related services.

If you don't want to be tied down to just one type of reward, you can still collect great rewards on your credit card spending.

There are credit cards offering cash back rewards, for example, that will reward you with straight-up hard cash for your spending - that you spend on anything you like!

The undisciplined spender
If you know that you rarely or only occasionally clear your credit card balance, then a reward credit card is probably not the best card for you.

If you are charged interest on any reward credit card, the interest cost will usually always far outweigh any of the money-saving benefits of the rewards you have earned.

For carrying a balance over a credit card offering a continual low rate of interest or an introductory 0% purchase rate would save you far more money in the long term.

A poor credit history
If you know yourself to have a poor credit history you may not be accepted for an air mile credit card.

To save your credit score from further knock-backs it would be better to get a credit card that is designed especially for rebuilding and strengthening a bad credit rating.

Knowing what's on offer...

It's a good idea to familiarise yourself with what is actually on offer, so that you know what you want from an air mile credit card and of course, what you don't want too.

Air miles and their available rewards
The main benefit on offer with an air mile credit card is the ability to earn air miles that can be collected and then redeemed for a reward.

But exactly how many air miles will you earn? How many air miles do you need for a reward? What rewards will you actually be able to get? And, of course, will these rewards be something you want to use?

When looking at air mile credit cards you will usually see that they are in associated with just one particular airline company.

The plus points of an airline specific air mile credit card is the ability to clock up miles faster and the general increase of miles per pound on all your everyday spending too.

The restriction however, is that the air miles you earn will be for use with the airline company's frequent flyer mile program - and thus, you will usually only be able to redeem your miles for rewards with their airline and their partner airlines and travel companies.

Don't be put off though, British Airways, for example, has partnerships with well over 10 different airlines and a number of hotel and travel companies too.

It's important to remember though, when choosing an air mile credit card, you should pick an airline you already use.

Additional and bonus air miles
Air mile credit cards sometimes offer additional or bonus miles to top up your everyday spending earnings.

While the best way to earn credit card rewards is to move all your everyday spending to the card, additional and bonus miles can offer a real extra push.

Many airline specific air mile credit cards will offer, for example, double miles when you buy a flight with their airline - which adds more reason for choosing an airline you already fly with.

Air mile credit cards often offer bonus miles when you use the card for the first time. Often you’ll be given a set time limit in which to make your first purchase to receive the bonus miles, but on some cards the bonus miles on their own can be enough for your first free flight!

Airline club membership
The added extra of choosing an airline specific air mile credit card is the automatic entry to their club membership program.

Airline club membership offers a ream of customer perks, including goodies like priority check-ins, VIP airport lounge access, free upgrades and special offers.

continued...

Compare air mile credit cards