Courtesy of Doctor of Credit
PenFed Pathfinder Rewards Card Relaunches As Visa With 50,000 Point Bonus
@imaximous wrote:
@lhcole77 wrote:Thanks for posting, @Anonymous
Does anyone know what 50,000 points equates to in travel redemption?
I searched the trusted interwebs, but to no avail.
This where I think the card falls a bit short. I myself didn't research this well before getting it. For some stupid reason, I thought I could convert points to cash 🤦🏻♂️. This my own fault.
Except for hotels, redemptions are under 1:1 ratio. Gift cards about 0.85x unless they have some promos/sales. Air travel about 0.85x - 0.90x and hotels between 1.15x - 1.25x on average. It's not a bad card if you can earn points consistently at 4x, but I'm sure people can do better with other cards in the travel category.
That's what I was thinking when I saw it available again, I seemed to remember that valuation from when it was previously available. I couldn't find it in the cardholder agreement, though.
Some points of note:
- That 50K SUB is therefore worth $425 in travel, not $500 like some other 50K SUBs.
- At 0.85 ccp, the earnings rate with Honors Advantage is 3.4% or 2.55% without Honors Advantage. With Honors Advantage having no AF and then earning 3.4% on travel, plus the SUB and the credits below, it's easy to come out ahead depending on your spend, other cards, and lifestyle.
- The base level of 1.5 points per dollar is worth only 1.275%.
- It appears you can't redeem for either cash or account credit. Points can be redeemed for travel, merchandise, and gift cards. It sounds like this essentially sets indirect redemption thresholds since you can't cash out for small amounts of money or statement credit.
- Points expire in five years after they are earned. (In comparison, Power Cash Rewards points don't expire.) This could trip some people up if they aren't watching and using the card regularly.
- TSA Global Entry on many cards is limited to one $100 credit every four years. With the language on the Pathfinder, it appears that you could claim $100 once every four years for every unique card number including Authorized Users. For a couple or family without other Global Entry credits, this could be a big gain.
- Airline Fee credits are limited to selected domestic airlines (Alaskan, American, Delta, Frontier, Hawaiian, JetBlue, Southwest, United, and Virgin America.) Airline Fee credits can be claimed by any cardholder but the annual limit is $100 reimbursed per account.
@Aim_High wrote:
@imaximous wrote:
@lhcole77 wrote:Thanks for posting, @Anonymous
Does anyone know what 50,000 points equates to in travel redemption?
I searched the trusted interwebs, but to no avail.
This where I think the card falls a bit short. I myself didn't research this well before getting it. For some stupid reason, I thought I could convert points to cash 🤦🏻♂️. This my own fault.
Except for hotels, redemptions are under 1:1 ratio. Gift cards about 0.85x unless they have some promos/sales. Air travel about 0.85x - 0.90x and hotels between 1.15x - 1.25x on average. It's not a bad card if you can earn points consistently at 4x, but I'm sure people can do better with other cards in the travel category.That's what I was thinking when I saw it available again, I seemed to remember that valuation from when it was previously available. I couldn't find it in the cardholder agreement, though.
Some points of note:
- That 50K SUB is therefore worth $425 in travel, not $500 like some other 50K SUBs.
- At 0.85 ccp, the earnings rate with Honors Advantage is 3.4% or 2.55% without Honors Advantage. With Honors Advantage having no AF and then earning 3.4% on travel, plus the SUB and the credits below, it's easy to come out ahead depending on your spend, other cards, and lifestyle.
- The base level of 1.5 points per dollar is worth only 1.275%.
- It appears you can't redeem for either cash or account credit. Points can be redeemed for travel, merchandise, and gift cards. It sounds like this essentially sets indirect redemption thresholds since you can't cash out for small amounts of money or statement credit.
- Points expire in five years after they are earned. (In comparison, Power Cash Rewards points don't expire.) This could trip some people up if they aren't watching and using the card regularly.
- TSA Global Entry on many cards is limited to one $100 credit every four years. With the language on the Pathfinder, it appears that you could claim $100 once every four years for every unique card number including Authorized Users. For a couple or family without other Global Entry credits, this could be a big gain.
- Airline Fee credits are limited to selected domestic airlines (Alaskan, American, Delta, Frontier, Hawaiian, JetBlue, Southwest, United, and Virgin America.) Airline Fee credits can be claimed by any cardholder but the annual limit is $100 reimbursed per account.
The valuation was not provided in PenFed docs. It's basically what your points are worth based on what you're trying to use them for, and it always varied.
They had some gift card sales that made the value closer to 1:1, but all those numbers came from people going to the portal and trying to use their points. Hotel bookings were the highest sometimes up to 1:1.25, but then the room prices weren't always the lowest on the PenFed travel portal compared to other sites. That'd make the extra value a moot point too. It's always been a hit or miss.
@imaximous wrote:The valuation was not provided in PenFed docs. It's basically what your points are worth based on what you're trying to use them for, and it always varied.
They had some gift card sales that made the value closer to 1:1, but all those numbers came from people going to the portal and trying to use their points. Hotel bookings were the highest sometimes up to 1:1.25, but then the room prices weren't always the lowest on the PenFed travel portal compared to other sites. That'd make the extra value a moot point too. It's always been a hit or miss.
Ah yes, the old "moving point valuation" trick. That's the classic problem with points. Value isn't known for certain until after you've used it and been able to see exactly what you got. I don't blame people sometimes for just sticking to 100% cash-back rewards. Points can offer good opportunities for higher earnings but sometimes they are a disappointment.
I was wondering if this was a card I should try to get since I have their Gold Visa card. After what I've read, I'm not sure it's something I'd use much or get much benefit from.
EQ8 777, TU8 757, EX8 770 as of December 8
I applied for the card with a 754 FICO score and was instantly approved for a $7,500 SL. I wanted this card years ago but was denied and when I tried to apply again they took it off the market for a revamp. I am happy to finally have it so I can have a no annual fee card that will get me global entry for free. I do not even plan on completing the sign-up bonus since I am in final year of college with very low spend due to me priortizing saving. I used a referral link so I will get a $50 Visa GC and the perks of the card! 