Credit card review: JetBlue Plus Card

Editor’s note: This post has been updated with the latest card sign-up bonus and perks.

The JetBlue Plus Card offers a terrific return on airfare spending and comes with a 5,000-point anniversary bonus that covers nearly two-thirds of the card’s $99 annual fee. Benefits such as a free checked baggage allowance, 10% rebate on award redemptions and annual JetBlue Vacations statement credit make this card worthwhile, even for occasional travelers. Card Rating*: 

*Card Rating is based on the opinion of TPG’s editors and is not influenced by the card issuer.

JetBlue’s loyalty program, TrueBlue, tends to fly under the radar, as redemptions are largely restricted to flights operated by JetBlue and Hawaiian Airlines. However, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing if JetBlue is your airline of choice. After all, it has long been known for its customer-friendly experience, superior (and TPG Award-winning) Mint business class and an extensive East Coast and Caribbean route network. The ability to use TrueBlue points on Hawaiian Airlines is definitely a good thing. Plus, the airline announced plans to fly to London in 2021, although that’s probably been put on hold as the industry grapples with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

The information for the JetBlue Plus Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

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If you are a JetBlue flyer and want to boost your TrueBlue balance or elevate your flying experience with the airline, it makes sense for you to pick up the JetBlue Plus Card. The card has a solid welcome bonus given its low spending requirement and offers a number of valuable perks that help justify its $99 annual fee.

Related reading: How to Earn Points With the JetBlue TrueBlue Program

Who is this card for?

This card is ideal for those who fly JetBlue regularly. An annual points bonus, free checked bag, discount on inflight purchases and a rebate on award bookings make it easy for frequent flyers to get value from the card. If you’re a frequent JetBlue flyer but don’t fly enough to get elite status, the card offers a fast track JetBlue Mosaic status.

This card is great for families. In addition to the savings the card provides on award flights, bag fees and onboard purchases, JetBlue offers many family-friendly programs and policies that aren’t specific to the card. For instance, it offers complimentary assigned seats, the most economy legroom among U.S. airlines, a free snack basket, free DirecTV and gate-to-gate Wi-Fi for all passengers. The JetBlue TrueBlue program is also unique in that it permits family members to pool their miles to earn award flights faster.

Welcome bonus: As much as $520 in value

The JetBlue Plus Card is currently offering new cardholders 40,000 points after spending $1,000 in the first 90 days and paying the annual fee. That’s worth $520 based on our valuations, which is not bad considering the spending requirement is lower than on most travel rewards cards. The welcome bonus is worth slightly more, as the card offers a rebate on all award bookings, stretching your points further.

Main benefits and perks

In addition to the high return on JetBlue spending, there’s a ton of value in the perks offered by the JetBlue Plus Card. Although the perks mostly revolve around JetBlue, even occasional flyers should be able to take full advantage of them.

• Free first checked bag — Get a first checked bag free for you and up to three companions on the same reservation when you purchase a Blue fare with your card.
• 5,000-point anniversary bonus — Get 5,000 points on every account anniversary. These points are worth about $65. So without setting foot on a JetBlue plane, you’re covering nearly two-thirds of the card’s $99 annual fee.
• 50% inflight savings — Get 50% back on eligible inflight purchases on JetBlue-operated flights, including alcoholic drinks and Eat Up snack boxes. This discount is applied automatically, generally on the day the charge posts to your card account.
• Fast-track Mosaic status — Get automatic Mosaic status after spending $50,000 on the card in a calendar year.
• 10% rebate on award flights — When you redeem TrueBlue points for a JetBlue flight, you’ll earn 10% of those points back that can be used toward your next redemption.
• Annual JetBlue Vacations statement credit — Get a $100 statement credit every year with your purchase of a JetBlue Vacations package of $100 or more with your card.
• No foreign transaction fees

Aside from the JetBlue-specific perks, there are general travel and purchase protections, as well as other everyday perks through World Elite Mastercard. Here are a few that stand out:

• Trip delay protection — Get up to $300 per trip if your flight is delayed more than six hours (maximum of twice in a 12-month period)
• Trip cancellation and interruption coverage — Get up to $5,000 back in nonrefundable expenses per trip ($10,000 maximum per 12-month period) if you need to cancel or interrupt a trip for a covered reason.
• Lyft credits — Take five rides in a month and get a $10 credit once a month.
• Postmates discount — Get $5 off every order of $25 or more.
• Cell phone insurance — When you charge your monthly telephone bill to your card, your cell phone will be covered against damage or theft up to $800 — with a $50 deductible — up to $1,000 per 12-month period.

How to earn points

On the earning side, this card outdoes most cobranded cards from other airlines and even some cards that earn  transferable points. With this card, you’ll earn 6x points per dollar on JetBlue purchases, 2x points at restaurants and grocery stores and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

Based on our valuations, that is equal to a 7.8% return on JetBlue spending, 2.6% on dining and groceries and 1.3% on everything else. As a point of comparison, the no-annual-fee version of this card offers half as many points on JetBlue purchases.

It’s also worth noting that as a TrueBlue member, you’ll earn at least 6 base points per dollar on JetBlue flights booked directly on top of the 6x points you’ll earn through the card, so you’ll really be walking away with a minimum 15.6% return on JetBlue airfare spending.

How to redeem points

The TrueBlue loyalty program is revenue-based, so redemptions are very straightforward. You can redeem points for any seat, including JetBlue Mint seats, on any JetBlue flight across its entire route network and get a fairly consistent value from your points. The more a flight costs in cash, the more it costs in points and vice versa.

For instance, whenever JetBlue offers one of its somewhat frequent flash sales with flights starting at $20 one-way, they can usually also be booked for a measly 400 points. The positive to this is that you won’t have to worry about scouring for saver award availability, though it also means that there aren’t any major sweet spots for long-haul international first class.

Although JetBlue partners with a handful of airlines, you can currently only redeem TrueBlue points on Hawaiian Airlines. Instead of using the revenue-based redemption model that ties the award rates to the price of an individual itinerary, TrueBlue has a more standard, region-based award chart for these tickets.

To give you a general idea, one-way flights to Hawaii cost 22,000 points from the West Coast and 30,000 points from the East Coast in coach or 45,000 points and 70,000 points, respectively, in first class.

Which cards compete with the JetBlue Plus Card?

Being a transfer partner of all of the major transferable points programs — American Express, Capital One, Chase and Citi — the card’s competition goes well beyond just the no-annual-fee and business versions of the card. Here’s a side-by-side look at the card’s three direct competitors:

*Return percentages (%) are based on TPG valuations and not provided by the issuers

The information for the Citi Premier and the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Although there’s plenty of value to be had for other types of spending, none of the other mid-tier cards come close to the JetBlue Plus Card when it comes to return on JetBlue spending or benefits.

There is The Platinum Card® from American Express, which technically gets you a 10% back on airfare booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel — 5x Membership Rewards points, worth 2 cents apiece per TPG valuations. However, that valuation is assuming you can get more value from your points through other transfer partners. If your end goal is to transfer your Amex points to JetBlue, then you’ll really be getting a lower return on JetBlue spending than with the JetBlue Plus Card.

The Amex Platinum card also comes with a much heftier $550 annual fee (see rates and fees).  So, no matter which type of ticket you’re booking — award or cash — you’re going to come out ahead using the JetBlue Plus Card compared to using another card

Bottom line

Between the 6x earning on JetBlue flights, free checked baggage allowance, 10% rebate on award redemptions and 50% savings off inflight purchases, the JetBlue Plus Card is a no-brainer if you regularly fly JetBlue. Even if you’re just an occasional traveler, the 5,000-point anniversary bonus alone makes up for two-thirds of the annual fee and then checking a bag on one round-trip a year will bring you ahead.

If you don’t think you could benefit from the higher earning rate or perks such as the free checked baggage allowance then you might want to stick to the no-annual-fee JetBlue Card.

For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum Card, please click here.

Additional reporting by Benét J. Wilson

Featured image by Craig Warga/Bloomberg via Getty Images