The best Avios credit card: Which one is right for you?

Avios quickly became one of Europe’s most popular loyalty currencies.

British Airways Club, Iberian Club and Aer Lingus Aerclub have long used Avios as their loyalty currency, while Loganair Loyalty and Finnair Plus are recent additions. Qatar Airways Privileges Club and Vueling Club are also part of the Avios program.

What is unique and valuable about Avios is that you can transfer Avios in any direction at a 1:1 speed as needed.

Several common credit cards can be obtained from airlines using Avios, and each major credit card plan is at least 1:1 as the transfer partner.

So with Avios being so easy to make money, walking around and redeeming, what is the best card for Avios to redeem?

While not one of the best cards wins in every category, it depends on your priorities, but this is the best choice.

You want to win a huge welcome bonus

Now, there are a lot of big welcome bonuses on our favorite cards. This includes three chased Avios cards:

The guys independently collected information about the Aer Lingus Visa signature and the Iberia Visa signature card. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

TPG’s September 2025 AVIO is valued at 1.4 cents, with these welcome bonuses worth $1,190. For top-notch flights to London, this is enough (plus fees, taxes and carrier surcharges).

Remember that if you currently hold or have received bonuses for these cards in the past 24 months, you will receive a welcome bonus on one of the cards.

Related: Best Avios Desserts: How to Redeem Domestic and International Reward Flights

You spend a lot of money on your flight

If you make money and redeem Avios, you may use the airline directly to make some purchases, whether it is to pay for fees, taxes and surcharges related to your redemption, or to increase your Avios balance by purchasing cash fares.

If you’re mainly flying in Aer Lingus, British Airways, or Iberia, it makes sense to add one of these common branded rack cards to your wallet. However, if you are unfaithful to an airline, consider the following options for your airline expenditure:

Related: British Airways Signed Credit Card Review: Earn Flexible Avios – A Must Have to Use BA Flyers for Frequent Use

You want to maximize transfer bonuses

Sometimes, credit card issuers provide transfer bonuses for certain airlines and hotel partner programs. When do these bonuses occur and the amount of points and mileage you can earn from the bonus range from as low as 10% to more than 40%.

In terms of how often the bonus is transferred, American Express is usually located at the most important place. With that in mind, these are the best AMEX cards available currently available:

• Platinum card for American Express: Find out your offer and see if you are eligible for up to 175,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 in the first six months of card membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.
• American Express® Gold Card: Find out your offer and see if you are eligible for up to 100,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 in the first six months of card membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.
• American Express Business Platinum Card: Spend $20,000 in the first three months of card membership and earn a $20,000 bonus.
• AmericanExpress® Commercial Gold Card: Spend $15,000 in the first three months of card membership and earn 100,000 bonus points.

You want to enjoy the allowance for elite status

Earning elite status in an airline loyalty program often requires substantial expenses directly with the airline and/or shared credit card. Fortunately, if you want to enjoy the stipend for elite status, you can do this with the right Avios credit card.

Qatar Airways Privileged Club Visa Unlimited Credit Cards receive up to 50,000 Avios – 25,000 Avios after the first transaction, $5,000 spent in the first three months of opening, and another $5,000 Avios and 150 QPoints after opening $5,000. The card comes with an annual fee of $499.

Information on the Qatar Airways Privileged Club Visa Unlimited Card has been collected independently by Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

While this welcome bonus is lower than the cards earned by Chase Avios, it also offers a one-year free Qatar Airways Privileged Club Gold (equivalent to Oneworld Sapphire), which includes priority boarding, preferred seating, priority seating in the lounge, lounge access and a 75% bonus, and receives a 75% bonus.

You can also get access to the global lounge with the right credit card.

Capital One Venture X Rewards credit card provides unlimited free access to you and two guests, offering over 1300 lounges including Capital One Lounges and Priority Pass Lounges (registration required).

Starting from February 1, 2026, the lounge X cardholder will be changed. After this date, Venture X cardholders will no longer be able to bring free guests to the Priority Pass and Capital One Lounges (unless they spend $75,000 a year on the latter).

Chase SapphireReserve® (See Rates and Fees) Cardholders can access the Chase Sapphire lounge and get a priority access lounge.

Finally, qualify Amex Platinum Cardmembers has access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection, including Centurion, Delta Sky Clubs*, Escape, Plaza Premium Lounges, Priority Pass™ and Select Lufthansa Lounges. Registration may be required.

*On the same-day Delta flight, eligible Platinum Card members will visit the Delta Club every year or catch and grab while traveling on the same-day Delta operation flight.

You want to save on air tickets and redemption

While each of the three Chase Avios earning cards offers companion vouchers or a discount of $30,000 a year, British Airways Signature Card Additional benefits are provided when booking cash and Avios redemption.

Every year, in addition to getting a companion voucher, you can:

• When you book through the website provided in the Welcome Materials, you can earn revenue flights to the United States and beyond, including fees, taxes and carrier surcharges (excluding excess luggage or seat selection fees).
• When you book an award flight through British Airways and book an award flight using a card (up to $600 per year), you get a stated credit of $100 per year ($200 for business and first class seats).
• When you redeem your British Airways ticket, use Avios to pay for taxes, fees and carrier fees, although this is usually not a lot.

You spend in non-travel categories

While Avios enthusiasts may indicate a lot of credit cards to spend on air tickets, if you spend a lot of money on other categories like dining, groceries, and other travel, you can get a lot of rewards on the earning rate of these categories with the following cards:

• this American Express Gold Card In global restaurants (up to $50,000 per calendar year, 1 point per dollar) and 4 points per dollar and grocery stores ($25,000 per year, then 1:1 point per dollar per year), income per dollar is 4:4 points per dollar per dollar.
• this Citi Layer Premier® Card (See Rates and Fees) Earn 3 points per dollar in electric vehicle charging and gas stations, restaurants and supermarkets.

You fly to Europe regularly

this British Airways Signature Card There are many discounts and statement credits when redeemed with British Airways on cash fares and Avios.

With BA’s infamous carrier surcharge, you can save on cash fares and a lot of money from Avios redemption when booking multiple seats or flights each year.

Related: Quick Points: That’s Why You Shouldn’t End a European Travel in the UK

You want to travel in the premium cabin with your family

You may want to earn a lot of Avios quickly to redeem luxury products such as British Airways’ award-winning QSuite Business Class. In this case, you need a card with a high welcome bonus and a generous category bonus.

New cardholder Citigroup Elite Card (See interest rates and fees) Spending $4,000 in the first three months of opening an account can earn 80,000 bonus points. If you apply in person at a Citi branch, you can get a higher welcome offer of 100,000 bonus points with the same spending requirements.

The card also has an impressive revenue rate, allowing you to earn bonus points through Citi Travel and Catering Booking trips.

If you spend a lot on these categories, you can quickly improve the balance and provide you with solid Avios for these high-end bookings.

Bottom line

Even if you don’t fly to Europe often, Avios is worthy of your consideration. Avios is easy to earn from many different credit cards and can be redeemed through seven different programs using the currency. You also have unique flexibility to transfer Avios between each program at a 1:1 speed in any direction at a 1:1 rate.

Although every traveler doesn’t have a slam dunk Avios or a credit card that transfers points, there are great options to help you book your next trip.

Related: New user-friendly tools enable you to easily transfer Avios between all 7 airline plans

For rates and fees for Amex Platinum cards, click here.
For rates and fees for Amex Business Platinum Card, click here.