Update 1/8/23: Negative changes go into effect on 3/31/23. Positive changes now live. Letters have been sent out announcing these changes. Similar changes on the business version of the card as well.
The Bank of America Alaska Airlines card released today a nice signup bonus. Notably, however, the landing page also shows numerous other changes to the card details and benefits. Presumably these changes will roll out to all card applications and eventually to existing cardholders as well. You can still apply under the old rules, but the signup bonus isn’t as good.
Negative Changes:
- Annual fee increase from $75 to $95.
You only get Alaska’s Companion Fare after you spend $6,000 or more on purchases within the prior anniversary year.They seem to have scrapped this changed.
Positive Changes:
- New 10% rewards bonus on all miles earned from card purchases if you have an eligible Bank of America account.
- New earning category of unlimited 2x miles for every $1 spent on eligible gas, cable, streaming services and local transit including ride share purchases.
- New $100 discount off an annual Alaska Lounge+ Membership when you pay with your new card.
- New priority boarding benefit
I mentioned the changes in our post earlier with the new 70k+$100 bonus, but thought it worth highlighting as a separate post here.
Do you get priority boarding benefit for saver fare?
Unfortunately I could see the other airlines move to require card usage to get the free checked bag.
I see that they are raising the AF and also requiring flight to be booked with the credit card to qualify for free baggage.
What if partially pay for the flight with Alaska gift card and pay for the rest quick with the credit card. Does that qualify?
These changes take effect in March 2023. If my flight has already booked with points for June travel, are my bags still free under the old rules?
I’m not sure, but if I were in your situation, I would bring my Alaska Airlines CC to the airport and see if the agent tries to charge you for the checked bags. Their system should be able to tell when the ticket was purchased (and if it was purchased before the changeover date) and still operate under the current policy.
Given the new $100 Alaska Lounge discount, I wonder if my spouse and I (who both have elite status) could stack these card-based discounts with elite-based discounts and split the cost?
So a $650 Alaska+ membership is $550 for elite members. Then if we split the charges it would be $275 per person. Then if each of us have the $100 discount, it would end up being $175 per person. Great deal if this works!
Unfortunately fine print says “not compatible with other Alaska Lounge+ membership discounts”. My guess is they’re meaning elite status discounts.
Can anyone give me the scoop of churning this and the business card? I used to have BoA cards from 2017-2019. I didn’t realize how powerful AS miles were until this year and would love to rack 200k points within 1-2 years. After I meet the SUB do I cancel or do I have to wait a year or so? I’m 8/24 till Dec 23 (I will be 3/24 then onwards). I’d assume I open an account with BoA and put some $$$ to get pre approved?
I believe if you have a Bank of America checking or savings account, the number of BofA CCs you can apply for increases. I have 3 personal and 4 business CCs with BofA.
Missing a negative change: You only get the free checked bag benefit when you book with the AS credit card. It’s no longer simply tied to your FF#.
This is a pretty big bummer because this Alaska card doesn’t have travel insurance. Don’t really want to sacrifice the insurance for that free bag…
Darn. Really? That’s a bummer.
I think a lot of people get the AS cards just to churn them. AS has very small footprint. I have the biz card. But I only used the compaion pass once. It again expired just days ago.
Those cards have no spending bonus. Everything is 1x other AS flights. It is said AS miles worth more. But do not seem so. I still get about 50k miles. But the redemption rate is not good.
Maybe time to move on.
Well, they are introducing spending bonuses (category bonuses) for gas, internet, ….
Not particularly interesting or useful to me and not worth another $20. So my card will get cancelled.
That was what I thought was “positive”. But as a whole, it is even less exciting than the Barclay JetBlue cards. Those AF cards still give out 5,000 miles every year. That is about $75 to offset the annual fee. Everyone should keep one of those if you get a chance to fly Jetblue once over 2 years or so…..
The companion pass has not changed – it does not require $6,000 spend.
I think that’s supposed to go into effect on 3/31/23?
Not according to the email I received as an existing cardholder.
Here is the notice I received:
NEW: Alaska Cardholder Benefits — effective immediately!
2 Miles Earn Category
NEW — Even more ways to earn miles on everyday purchases. 2 miles for every $1 spent on: • Gas • Local transit including ride share • Cable • Select streaming services
Relationship Bonus
NEW — Earn a 10% rewards bonus on all miles earned from purchases if you have an eligible Bank of America® account.
Priority Boarding
NEW — Enjoy an earlier boarding position and get a better shot of scoring coveted overhead bin space when your tickets are purchased with your Alaska card.
Alaska Lounge+ Membership
NEW — Enjoy $100 off one Alaska Lounge+ Membership annually when purchased with your Alaska card.
Priority Boarding and First Checked Bag Free eligibility for all authorized cardholders
NEW — Now when traveling without the Primary Cardholder, authorized users and co-applicants will also be eligible for a Free Checked Bag and Priority Boarding when the Alaska Airlines Visa® card is used to purchase Alaska tickets.
Changes to Benefits — effective March 2023
First Checked Bag Free
To receive the first checked bag free for you and up to 6 additional guests traveling on the same qualifying reservation, you will be required to pay for the tickets with your Alaska Airlines Visa card.
Alaska Lounge Day Pass
Day pass discounts are being replaced with a Lounge+ Membership discount above. The card will no longer feature a day pass benefit.
Benefits you will continue to enjoy
Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare™ every year
Receive an annual companion fare which allows you to book a companion flight from $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from $23).
How you earn miles
Continue to earn: • 3 miles per dollar spent on eligible Alaska purchases • 1 mile per dollar spent on all other purchases
20% Inflight Rebate
20% Inflight Rebate on Food, Beverage and Wi-Fi onboard purchases when you pay with your Alaska card.
Regarding the new perk “Earn a 10% rewards bonus on all miles earned from purchases if you have an eligible Bank of America account”, does anyone know what is considered an eligible account? I would presume any personal checking or savings.
Thankfully the $6,000 spend seems to only be for that cancelled sign up bonus.
I read over my card documents too and it seems like the $6,000 spend isn’t mentioned for the annual companion pass.
There’s no notice in the letter of the $6K spend requirement for the companion fare. It appears they floated that idea and decided not to go forward with it.
Thanks, I’ll update
Got an email from BoA in a “legal document” that annual fee will increase to $95 starting on March 1, 2023.
On the bright side, the companion fare will remain as is without any spending requirement (no $6k spend unlike the previous rumor).
The “positive changes” stated in OP remains true on the new changes in March 2023.
But one new negative change: in order to get the free checked luggage benefit for cardholder or companions, you must pay with Alaska CC now instead of any card.
What matters on the luggage thing is whether that is enforced.
The checked-bag change is a significant devaluation & will produce all the same angst that Chase United Explorer cardholders experience. For example: if I redeem AS miles for award travel, will paying the TSA fees with my BofA card be enough to trigger the bag benefit?
(I’m thinking you’ll get no luggage benefit for redeeming AA miles for AS travel even if you use the BofA card, since Alaska won’t see the card used.)
You are expected to charge to the card if you want to receive benefits. I do not see that is any negative. You can’t pay bag with AmEx Plat card to claim that benefit and Alaska bag benefit at the same time.
Pretty big negative if you got the card specifically for 7 people to get free baggage. That’s $420 savings when I booked a flight in July of 2022 for June of 2023. Now they changed the terms so it looses all of its value to me.
I don’t understand where the loss of $420 savings come from. Even the previous terms required all guests to be on the cardholder’s reservation in order to get the free baggage. The only difference is that cardholder has to pay with alaska card now instead of another card.
It’s more like a 2% reward difference if you were previously using a 5% travel card to book alaska flights vs the 3% on the alaska card. I wouldn’t say you lost the value entirely.
Pretty simple. I got the card for the $420 value with the understanding I didn’t have to charge it on the Alaska card. Then they changed the terms. Hence I lost that value and sole purpose I got the card.
You could until now. You just had to have the card.
Changes are live according to my “legal document” received in online banking tonight. Should be in your documents tab online
AF is postponed until September whatever reason
I didn’t see any stipulations on earning companion fare