The Black Card 6 way (Now Mastercard Black Card)
All You Need To Know About The Visa Black Card (Now Mastercard Black Card)
For upon |If you are looking for a 2018 review of the Visa Black Card, also known as the Luxury Card from Barclaycard, there’s good news and bad news.
The bad news is that the Visa Black Card is no longer valid.
The good news is that the same product is now available, just rebranded as the Mastercard Black Card, with some new benefits and rewards
This card had some issues in its previous iteration.
Now that it’s gone through a transformation, is it worth considering, especially considering its high annual fee?
This credit card review should answer your questions
What is the Mastercard Black Card?
The black Luxury Card is one of three tiers you can get from Barclaycard, along with the Titanium and Gold levels.
This card comes with all kinds of services, a decently high initial credit limit, and a big annual fee that you’ll want to weigh against other cards in this class.
What benefits does it come with?
Other than being a nice stainless steel card (which, if you’re getting this card because it’s nice to hold, you don’t need this review), you’ll want to know these important benefits:
- 24/7 Luxury Card Concierge (good for event planning, travel, shopping, and more)
- 5% value for cash-back bonuses
- 2% value for airfare redemptions
- $100 annual airline credit toward qualifying purchases (such as baggage fees or in-flight food and drink)
- $100 Global Entry application fee credit
- Worldwide acceptance
- Periodic luxury gifts
- Enrollment in the VIP airport lounge program
- Typical insurance, warranty extensions, and purchase protections
Some of these benefits are new to the Mastercard edition of the card and are an upgrade from what the Visa card offers.
What are the numbers I need to know?
The card comes with an annual fee of $495, which is higher and may not be worth the benefits if you don’t spend big or travel much
Other important numbers include:
- 0% introductory APR for the first 15 billing cycles on balance transfers made in the first 45 days
- A regular APR of 16.24% variable
- A FICO score of 720+ is required to gain card approval
- Spending allowances average between $20,000—$25,000
How does this card stack up to its competitors?
When it comes to the Black Card vs. other cards in this class, many find this card’s offerings to be a little lacking considering the price tag.
While the new card is an improvement over the old one, and it does boast some benefits that its Amex or Discover rivals don’t match, you may want to consider other credit card options with lower annual fees and bigger savings, benefits, and rewards.
However, the offering may improve as Barclays considers tinkering with the rebranding of the card, so stay tuned, especially if you are already a Barclays customer.
The article was originally published here.
Comments are closed.