Capital One Venture X $300 Travel Credit: Everything You Need to Know

Capital One's top-tier offerings the *venture x* and the new *venture x business* come with a ton of valuable travel benefits while coming with a far more affordable price tag than the annual fees attached to both the *chase sapphire reserve* and *amex platinum card*.

This is by design. The personal and business versions of the Venture X cards fill a void with their $395 annual fee between lower-end travel cards starting at around $95 and the ultra-premium cards with annual fees pushing $700 a year. And thanks to a few benefits you get with either version of the card, you can very easily recoup that annual fee each and every year. And no perk makes it easier than the Venture X $300 travel credit.

But Capital One recently changed the way the $300 travel credit works. Rather than getting that credit back on your statement after making a purchase in the Capital One Travel portal, you'll now apply it as a discount on your booking at checkout. While that change removes some of the value of Capital One's annual $300 travel credit, it's still one of the benefits that makes both the Venture X and its sibling the Venture X Business some of the top travel rewards cards on the market.

Let's walk through what this benefit is, how it works, and everything you need to know about using it.

Read next: Capital One Venture X FAQs: Bonus, Benefits & More

Learn more about the *venture x*.

How Does the Venture X $300 Travel Credit Work?

Each year that you hold the Capital One Venture X card, you'll receive a $300 travel credit that is redeemable only through the Capital One Travel Portal.

Previously, this meant that after making a purchase on the Capital One Travel portal, you could expect to receive a $300 credit on your card statement shortly after making your travel booking.

However, there have been recent changes to how you are able to utilize these credits. Now, instead of the $300 credit being posted on your card statement after purchase, you can apply the credit towards the total of your purchase during checkout when booking through Capital One Travel.

The benefit of this change is that you'll be able to enjoy an immediate discount on your travel purchases rather than waiting anywhere from days to weeks for the $300 statement credit to post.

You simply have to select the option to apply your travel credits on the checkout screen, which will also show the balance you have left on the credit as well as how long you have to use it. This is a useful feature since you have the ability to use the credit across multiple transactions. For example, if you purchased a $200 flight, you would still have a $100 travel credit to redeem on the Capital One Travel portal for future purchases.

A few other key details of the credit remain unchanged:

• Unlike many American Express card benefits, there is no enrollment requirement. You get the benefit just for being a cardholder.
• This credit will only work on transactions in which you don't use your Capital One Venture Miles.
• If you book travel through Capital One Travel and later cancel, Capital One should credit the amount back to your account to use on a future trip, so long as it isn't expired.
• This $300 travel credit is available on a cardmember-year basis – not the calendar year. That means if you opened the Venture X Card in November 2022, you'd get another $300 travel credit after renewing in November 2023. You won't get it each year on Jan. 1

Does the Venture X $300 Travel Credit Roll Over?

Use it or lose it.

The Venture X $300 travel credit does not roll over. That means if you don't use the entire balance before your card renews, you'll forfeit the unused amount.

Using all of the Venture X $300 travel credit is a big part of making the value proposition work. Make sure you don't leave any money on the table.

What Kind of Travel Can You Book Through the Capital One Travel Portal?

In addition to launching this card last year, Capital One turned heads by unveiling a brand new travel portal powered by the popular travel app Hopper.

This new and improved portal will allow you to book flights on most airlines, hotels, and even rental cars. And when you're looking at flights, you'll see the kinds of tools and predictive analytics that has made Hopper so popular to help you zero in on the cheapest flights, the best time to book, freeze the price of a cheap flight, and more.

Read our guide to booking flights & more through the new Capital One Travel portal!
 

What Airlines Can You Book With the $300 Credit?

Most airlines will be bookable through the Capital One Travel Portal if you want to put your $300 credit toward flights.

That includes the likes of Delta, United, American, Alaska, JetBlue, and most foreign carriers. Almost any fare you see through Google Flights should be available here, and generally speaking, the pricing should match – though small variances will exist from time to time.
 

When it comes to low-cost carriers like Spirit, Sun Country, Frontier, and others it appears to be a mixed bag. I was able to pull up flights on certain routes, but not on others. Your experience may vary.

Finally, Southwest Airlines is not available. But that comes as no surprise as Southwest flights are only bookable directly on Southwest’s website. The airline even shut down a browser extension that pulled up its fares on Google Flights.

Will You Earn Miles on Travel Booked with the Credit?

Capital One is doing everything it can to encourage cardholders to book their flights, hotels, and rental cars through its travel portal.

With both the personal and the business versions of the Capital One Venture X card, you'll earn 10x Venture Miles per dollar spent on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. You'll also earn 5x miles per dollar spent on flights. The only requirement is that you pay with your Venture X card.
 

The bad news?  You'll earn fewer points on any purchases you make on the Capital One Travel portal when using the $300 travel credit. The issue is that applying the $300 travel credit as an immediate discount lowers the total amount of the Capital One Travel booking you put on your Venture X card, thus lowering the number of bonus Venture Miles you're able to earn.

With the way the Capital One travel credit previously worked, you'd book a $300 flight through the travel portal with your Venture X card and earn 1,500 Venture Miles on that purchase – and still get the $300 back as a statement credit later. With the $300 credit now applied as a discount at checkout, you'd get a free $300 flight but earn zero Venture Miles in the process. If you booked a more expensive flight, you'd earn Capital One miles only on the remaining balance.

You'll earn airline miles and elite status credits on flights booked through the Capital One Travel portal, even when using the $300 travel credit. Keep in mind though, that this does not usually apply to hotels when booking through online travel agencies. That's why we think it is a great option for booking boutique hotels and those not affiliated with large chains.

Read More: Will I Earn Miles When Booking via Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)?

Venture X $300 Travel Credit vs Other Premium Travel Credits

Almost all the premium travel credit cards on the market offer some kind of annual travel credit. Some are better than others.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers a $300 travel credit each and every year of card membership. But unlike the Venture X, there's no requirement that the booking be made through the Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal or anywhere else. Spend up to $300 directly with airlines, book up to $300 in Uber or Lyft rides, or any other travel expense. The credit kicks in automatically.
 

The Platinum Card from American Express goes in the other direction with a series of different credits.

For starters, there's a $200 Amex airline credit meant to cover fees like baggage fees, lounge day passes, change fees, taxes, and more. Buying a ticket outright typically won't work, and it's gotten harder to use over the years. Plus, you have to select one domestic airline each year to use it.

Read More: 9 Great Ways to Maximize Your Amex Airline Credits This Year
 

Further, each year you’ll have a $200 credit to use at either Fine Hotels and Resorts or Hotel Collection properties for a minimum two-night stay. Just book via Amextravel.com, pay with your Platinum Card, and that $200 credit will kick in automatically. That's a little easier to use, but your mileage may vary.

If you ask us, the Venture X $300 travel credit isn't quite as easy to use as what you get with the Chase Sapphire Reserve … but it's not nearly as complicated as the Amex Platinum travel credits. It strikes a nice balance somewhere in between both of them, making it fairly easy to use each year while charging a much smaller annual fee of $395.

Bottom Line

The Venture X $300 travel credit is relatively simple and straightforward to use.

But while that change removes some of the value of Capital One's annual $300 travel credit, it's still one of the benefits that makes both the personal and business versions of the Venture X cards some of the top travel rewards cards on the market.

However, with recent updates to how to apply the credit, further limitations and potential benefits are lost when it comes to spending and accumulating Venture miles on the Capital One Travel Portal. Regardless, these changes doesn't change the fact that this credit basically cancels out the high annual fee for cardholders.

Just book $300 worth of flights, hotels, rental cars, or some combination of all three each year, and Capital One will automatically reimburse you up to $300. That alone takes a huge chunk out of the Capital One Venture X annual fee of $395.

Learn more about the *venture x*.