Last chance to apply for the Capital One Venture 100,000-mile welcome bonus — this sky-high offer is worth $1,000 in travel

• The Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card is one of the best rewards credit cards, especially if you don't want to keep track of bonus categories.
• The standard welcome bonus is 50,000 miles, but for a limited time there's a much bigger offer: Earn 100,000 bonus miles when you spend $20,000 on purchases in the first 12 months from account opening, or still earn 50,000 miles if you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.
• This offer ends on December 14, so there are only a few days left to apply.
• You'll earn 2 miles per dollar no matter what you buy, and it has a reasonable annual fee of $95.
• See Business Insider's list of the best travel credit cards »

Even if you have no idea when you'll feel comfortable traveling again, it's a good idea to build up your stash of points and miles now. After several pretty quiet months on the rewards credit card front, we're now seeing exciting new welcome offers, so you have great options for getting started.

The Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card currently has one of the biggest offers available: Earn 100,000 bonus miles when you spend $20,000 on purchases in the first 12 months from account opening, or still earn 50,000 miles if you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.

It's now the final week to apply for this offer — the increased bonus will end on December 14, so if you've been considering the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card, you should apply soon.

Capital One Venture credit card welcome bonus ends soon

Until December 14, the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card has a whopper of a welcome bonus: Earn 100,000 bonus miles when you spend $20,000 on purchases in the first 12 months from account opening, or still earn 50,000 miles if you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.

To unlock the full bonus, that sounds like a lot of money — and it is — but it breaks down to an average of $1,666 per month. If you use the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card as your primary credit card in your first account year, meeting the minimum spending requirement to earn 100,000 miles could be quite doable.

Normally, Capital One Venture miles are worth 1 cent each when you redeem them toward travel purchases, so the full 100,000-mile bonus is worth $1,000 in airfare, hotels, rental cars, and more. However, until April 30, 2021, Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card and Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Credit Card holders can also redeem miles toward restaurant takeout and delivery and streaming services charged to their card, at the same rate of 1 cent per mile.

This limited-time promotion is one of many ways card issuers have made it easier to earn and redeem points during quarantine. You can use your Capital One Venture miles to "erase" purchases made directly with restaurants and with popular delivery companies like Postmates, DoorDash, and UberEats, plus streaming services like Hulu and Netflix. 

The Capital One Venture card is worth considering beyond the bonus

Aside from the welcome bonus, the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card is worth considering if you want to earn travel rewards without having to devote hours to learning the ins and outs of the points and miles hobby.

It's a straightforward card that earns 2x miles on every purchase, and you can redeem your miles at a rate of 1 cent per mile to cancel out travel purchases made on your card. You can also transfer Capital One miles to a handful of airline and hotel partners, including Air Canada, JetBlue, and Wyndham. 

The Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card offers a statement credit of up to $100 to cover the application fee for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck. That may not seem like a relevant benefit right now, but you'll want to have expedited security and immigration clearance once you do finally travel. There's a $95 annual fee, and no foreign transaction fees.

Alternatives to the Capital One Venture Rewards card

If you already have the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card, or want to compare this bonus with other travel rewards credit cards, here are other solid offers to consider:

• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card— This card also has a $95 annual fee, and comes with a welcome bonus of 60,000 points (worth $750 in travel) after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening. You'll earn 2x Chase Ultimate Rewards points on travel and dining and 1x on everything else. Here's our review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred. 
• Citi Premier® Card— The Citi Premier® Card is another good travel card and has a $95 annual fee. It earns 3x points at restaurants, supermarkets, and gas stations and 3x points on air travel and hotels (and 1 point per dollar on everything else). You'll want to learn about your options for using Citi ThankYou points, including transferring points to Citi's travel partners, if you're considering the Citi Premier. See our Citi Premier review for more details.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®— If you like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card's benefits but you're looking for more perks, the $550-annual-fee Chase Sapphire Reserve® is a good alternative. It earns 3x (rather than 2x) points on travel (after earning the travel credit) and dining, and you get up to a $300 annual travel credit that automatically applies to purchases such as airfare, parking, tolls, subway fare, and hotels. It has a lower welcome bonus than the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, but if you travel a lot, the card's extra benefits like Priority Pass Select airport lounge access could make it a better pick in the long run. Here's our Chase Sapphire Reserve review.
• The Platinum Card® from American Express— Here's another big welcome offer to consider — you'll earn 75,000 points after you spend at least $5,000 in your first 6 months of account opening(Note: New cardmembers can earn 10x points on eligible purchases at U.S. Gas Stations and U.S. Supermarkets, on up to $15,000 in combined purchases, during the first 6 months of card membership). Find out more in our Amex Platinum review and our guide with reasons to apply for the Amex Platinum.

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