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The Capital One Spark Miles for Business earns an unlimited 2x miles on all purchases, plus 5x on hotels and rental cars booked through the Capital One Travel portal. Much like the consumer-oriented Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, the Spark Miles card earns miles that can be transferred to other partners and charges a $95 annual fee — though the Spark Miles card waives the annual fee during the first year.
For those with significant business spending that doesn't fall into bonus categories on other credit cards — or those who want simple earning on all purchases without worrying about bonus categories — the Spark Miles card can be an excellent option. Let's break down the pros, cons, and benefits of this card.
- Earn 50,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening; worth $500 in travel if redeemed for a fixed-value, or potentially much more when transferred to airline partners
- 2 Miles per $1 on every purchase, everywhere
- Fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✔® (up to $120)
- No foreign transaction fees
- $0 introductory fee for the first year; $95 after that
- 2X miles per dollar on every purchase, everywhere, no limits or category restrictions
- 5X miles per dollar on purchases through Capital One Entertainment (through 12/31/2025)
- 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
Page Contents
Spark Miles Pros
- Earn 2x miles on every purchase.
- Earns Capital One miles that can be transferred to 19 partners.
- Up to $120 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit.
- Annual fee waived the first year.
Spark Miles Cons
- Charges a $95 annual fee in years two and beyond.
- High 25.24% APR (Variable).
- Limited bonus categories.
Spark Miles Welcome Offer
New applicants for the Spark Miles card can earn 50,000 bonus Capital One Miles when you spend $4,500 within 3 months from account opening.
Though later to the game than other card issuers, Capital One's transferable miles are an excellent flexible reward currency. You can transfer Capital One miles to three hotel and 16 airline partners for a total of 19 transfer partners.
With these partners, it's easy to maximize the miles that you'll earn. Partners include Avianca Lifemiles, British Airways Executive Club, Air France–KLM Flying Blue, Virgin Red, Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles, and Choice Privileges. These partners include representation from all three airline alliances, which means you'll be able to use them for flights with domestic airlines such as Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlines.
In recent AwardWallet user redemptions, the average value of Capital One miles is 2.01¢ each. Since you'll earn at least 2 miles per dollar on the spending required to earn the bonus, plus the miles from the bonus itself, this offer can be worth over $1,100.
Spark Miles Benefits
The Spark Miles card doesn't have a ton of benefits, but it does provide a few that are worth noting.
$120 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
Most travel credit cards offer up to $120 in credit for a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee, and the Spark Miles card is no exception. These two programs allow you to speed through airport security and/or immigration by registering you as a low-risk traveler. If you can work in the interview, skip TSA PreCheck and go straight for Global Entry since it also includes TSA PreCheck access.
When you use your Spark Miles card to pay, you'll receive a credit reimbursing you for the cost. It's valid once every four years, which is excellent since Global Entry membership lasts for five years.
Airport lounge access
If you pass through an airport with a Capital One Lounge, you can purchase a day pass for a discounted rate of $45 per person. This rate even applies to Capital One's newly launched Landing Lounges.
Virtual card number
Cardholders can request a Capital One virtual card number — which is different from the number printed on the card — to use when shopping online. This prevents would-be thieves from getting your actual card number and causing damage.
Extended warranty
Get an extra year added to the original manufacturer's warranty for items you've purchased with your card. The warranty must be three years or less to qualify.
No foreign transaction fees
Using this card for purchases in another country or currency will not incur any foreign transaction fees.
Other potential benefits
Capital One issues various types of Visas and Mastercards based on creditworthiness. You may receive additional benefits depending on what type of card you're issued. Be sure to consult your card's guide to benefits for additional offerings.
Spark Miles Earning Rates
The Spark Miles‘ real strength lies in its ability to earn 2 Miles per $1 on every purchase, everywhere. This is both better and worse than competitor options, as some cards will reward you with more points on specific categories but fewer on everyday spending.
You'll also earn 5x miles on hotel and rental cars booked within the Capital One Travel portal. This mimics the earnings we see on the consumer Capital One Venture. This may be worthwhile for rental cars, but you'll want to be wary of travel booked through the portal. Hotels and rental car companies don't honor elite status benefits when using a third party to complete your booking. You won't be able to skip the rental car line or enjoy upgrades at your hotel, so factor in if the extra earnings are worth this loss of benefits.
Related: Complete Guide to Capital One Rewards Miles
Redeeming Rewards With the Spark Miles
There are a few different ways you can redeem your hard-earned Spark Miles rewards, though some ways are more valuable than others.
Transfer to partners
Capital One Miles are some of the most valuable you'll find, especially if you use them for transfers. One of our favorite redemptions includes using 20,000 Turkish Airlines miles to fly round-trip to Hawaii from anywhere in the United States.
You also can find great value in transferring Capital One Miles to Choice Privileges. Though less well-known than competitors like Hilton and Marriott, Choice has several sweet spots and doesn't charge you additional points for booking a suite versus a regular room.
Capital One Travel portal
Capital One pushes its travel portal pretty heavily. Instead of paying and getting increased earnings on bookings with this portal, you can choose to use your Capital One Miles for flights, hotels, and rental cars. You'll want to be wary of this option, however, as you'll only receive a value of 1 cent per mile on these redemptions. This falls well below the average AwardWallet user redemption of 2.01¢.
Statement credits for travel purchases
You can redeem miles from your Spark Miles card as a statement credit for any travel purchases (within 90 days of the date of purchase). Like the travel portal, Capital One will only give you 1 cent per mile in value with this method. However, this can be a great option when booking travel not available elsewhere, such as a metro station ticket machine.
If you're tempted to use miles to book travel through the Capital One Travel portal, it's best to do it in this order:
- Pay cash for your booking on the Capital One travel portal to earn 5x miles (on hotels and rental cars with the Spark Miles card).
- Use Capital One miles as a statement credit for 1 cent per mile to wipe away the charge after the fact.
Using this method, you'll be able to maximize your earn while still redeeming miles, and you'll come away with better earnings in the end. Redeeming directly through the portal doesn't give you this option.
Related: Why You Should Never Redeem Capital One Miles Through Capital One Travel
Application Restrictions and Strategy
Capital One has some pretty interesting rules when it comes to applying for credit cards. Unlike other banks, which may approve you for a card but not offer you the welcome bonus, Capital One doesn't tend to approve applicants unless they qualify for the bonus. This can be a welcome relief compared to trying to understand the archaic requirements other card issuers impose.
However, while there's no solid information about how many times you're able to get the bonus for the Spark Miles card, the offer page does include this language:
“The bonus may not be available for existing or previous Spark cardholders.”
There aren't any data points stating that you'll be able to get the card and not the bonus, but it has become an option. Capital One also tends to be the strictest when it comes to opening a new card, applying the following rules:
- A maximum of two personal Capital One credit cards at any given time.
- No rule on the number of business cards.
- One new card every six months.
- Issuer pulls from all three credit bureaus.
- Recent inquiries are a major factor in approval.
You'll also want to note that Capital One's business cards will probably report to your personal credit report. This is in contrast to other business credit cards and will impact your Chase 5/24 count.
Related: Understanding Rewards Credit Card Application Rules and Restrictions
Cards That Compete With the Spark Miles
Outside of the Spark Cash and Spark Miles cards, there are plenty of business credit cards out there. These run the gamut from no-annual-free options to cards that'll cost you hundreds of dollars per year to keep them in your pocket. There are also cards that provide far more benefits, such as hotel elite status.
If you're not sure the Spark Miles card is for you, consider the following:
- If you're after a bigger sign-up bonus, the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card comes with a massive 90,000-point welcome offer after you spend $8,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. It also earns valuable Ultimate Rewards, which can be transferred to partners such as Hyatt, British Airways, and Southwest. Finally, it earns 3x on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on shipping, select advertising, internet, phone, and travel. Check out our full Ink Preferred review for more details.
- If you're looking for a no-annual-fee option, The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express has no annual fee (Rates & Fees) and earns 2x Membership Rewards on all purchases (up to $50,000 per year, then 1x). These points can then be used for redemptions with partners such as ANA, Hilton Honors, Qatar Airways, and more. You can find more details in our review of the Blue Business Plus card.
- If you want to earn more points on spending, the most expensive option on our list is also the most rewarding: the American Express® Business Gold Card. Although it charges a $375 annual fee (Rates & Fees), it earns 4x Amex points on up to $150,000 of annual purchases in your top two spending categories each month (then 1x), 3x points on prepaid airfare and hotels booked with AmexTravel.com, and 1x on everything else. The 4X earning rates apply to purchases made for advertising with U.S. media providers, U.S. purchases from electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers, U.S. purchases at restaurants (including takeout and delivery), U.S. purchases at gas stations, transit purchases (includes trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, ferries, tolls, parking, buses, and subways), and direct U.S. wireless telephone service charges. Full details are in our Amex Business Gold review.
- 3X points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on travel, shipping purchases, Internet, cable and phone services, advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines each account anniversary year
- 1X point per $1 on all other purchases
(Terms Apply)
- Earn 2X points on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners. 2X applies to the first $50,000 in purchases per year, 1 point per dollar thereafter. Terms and limitations apply.
(Terms apply)
- U.S. purchases for advertising in select media (online, TV, radio)
- U.S. purchases made from electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers
- U.S. purchases at gas stations
- U.S. purchases at restaurants, including takeout and delivery
- Transit purchases including trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, ferries, tolls, parking, buses, and subways
- Monthly wireless telephone service charges made directly from a wireless telephone service provider in the U.S.
Related: Top Small-Business Credit Card Offers
Final Thoughts
The Capital One Spark Miles for Business can be a compelling option for those looking to maximize their everyday business spending. With a low annual fee and an unlimited ability to earn 2x miles on your purchases, those who have major expenses can easily rack up rewards. However, the card is limited when it comes to other perks.
Despite this, the Spark Miles card will be a good fit for many, especially since it earns miles that can be transferred to hotel and airline partners for extremely valuable redemptions.
- Earn 50,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening; worth $500 in travel if redeemed for a fixed-value, or potentially much more when transferred to airline partners
- 2 Miles per $1 on every purchase, everywhere
- Fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✔® (up to $120)
- No foreign transaction fees
- $0 introductory fee for the first year; $95 after that
- 2X miles per dollar on every purchase, everywhere, no limits or category restrictions
- 5X miles per dollar on purchases through Capital One Entertainment (through 12/31/2025)
- 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (Rates & Fees), American Express® Business Gold Card (Rates & Fees), and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
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