Cardless Avianca LifeMiles Elite Credit Card Review

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Full review

Cardless Avianca Elite

Silver status with account opening; 10% off award redemptions

  • Welcome bonus: 60,000 miles (spend $4,500 in the first 90 days) + 40,000 miles (spend $25,000 in the first 12 months)
  • Rewards: 3x on Avianca purchases; 2x on travel and dining; 1x on all other purchases
  • Redemption: Redeem for Avianca and Star Alliance flights, with 10% off redemptions
  • Annual fee: $249
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Benefits

  • Monthly mileage bonus: The first 1,000 miles earned each month receive double miles.
  • Avianca Silver elite status: You automatically receive Silver status just for having the card, with lounge access, cabin upgrades, and free checked baggage. Official benefits page
  • Award ticket discount: Get 10% off when redeeming AV miles for Star Alliance flights.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fee (FTF).

Drawbacks

  • Cardless is a relatively new bank, so the benefits and welcome bonus may not be very stable.

My Take

The biggest selling point of this card is the complimentary Silver elite status, but the annual fee is still a bit high. If you already have lounge access through a PP card, this card may not offer that much value. That said, if you use LifeMiles frequently, the 10% discount on award redemptions is pretty nice. After all, LifeMiles are easy to earn since all the major transferable points programs can transfer to it.

Application

  • This card is an AMEX network partner card. It uses the Amex payment network, but it does not count toward Amex's 5-card limit.
  • You only need to enter the last four digits of your SSN to apply, and it pulls Experian.
  • The welcome bonus can only be earned once. This product is not available to either (i) current cardholders of any Avianca LifeMiles American Express® card, or (ii) previous cardholders of any Avianca LifeMiles American Express® card who received a new cardholder bonus for any Avianca LifeMiles American Express® card.

Application Link