Review: Barclays Jet Blue Business Card

The Barclays Jet Blue Business Card is a great option for those who want to earn TrueBlue bonus points faster. Its also a great card for business-people who frequently fly on Jet Blue and want benefits and rewards.

Jet Blue is a favorite airline among domestic travelers and points and miles enthusiasts. This is especially true because the airline is a transfer partner with Chase, Amex, Citi, and Capital One. This means that you can transfer any of their points to your Jet Blue account.

This review was inspired by my Dad. He has been taking business trips and flying on Jet Blue frequently. He told me that the flight attendant handed him an application for the Jet Blue Plus Card. I explained to him how that card was a good one, but that the business version is better for him and his business travels. I investigated the Jet Blue Business Card with him, and we found that it was a winner.

Keep reading to see why this card is awesome for business travelers.

Earning

The Jet Blue Business Card is one of the best ways to earn TrueBlue bonus points, especially if you don’t have a Chase UR-earning card. This card earns 6x points for Jet Blue flights. It also earns 2x points at Office Supply Stores and Restaurants. And it also earns one point for all non-bonus category spend. Jet Blue flights and Restaurants are great categories for business travel. And Office Supply Stores are nice for certain types of businesses back home. They can also be great for purchasing gift cards via manufactured spending.

Barclays also offers a sign-up bonus worth 60,000 points. You can earn the bonus after spending just $1,000 in the first three months. This bonus is worth 50% more points than the Jet Blue Plus card for the same minimum spend. That’s impressive.

Furthermore, the Jet Blue Business Card has an anniversary bonus. You will receive 5,000 points every time you pay your annual fee. These points can be enough to justify the card’s annual fee, depending on how you value them. That’s $50 at a meager 1 cent per point (CPP) or $75 at a more robust 1.5 CPP.

The card’s fantastic earning opportunities and bonuses are countered with a $99 annual fee (NOT waived the first year).

Burning

The question here is “what do you do with all of those TrueBlue bonus points?”. There are two options that could be of value.

Airfare

As with most airlines, redeeming for airfare is the most rewarding and valuable method. Plus, you will receive 10% of your points back towards the next redemption each time you book a reward ticket.

Jet Blue Vacations

Jet Blue Vacations are pre-packaged trips that are often offered on airline portals. You can’t redeem points for hotel rooms, rental cars, or other incidentals. However, you can get packages that include everything.

Benefits

The Jet Blue Business Card has some nice benefits that should help justify its annual fee. This is especially important for smaller businesses who don’t spend enough to justify the fee that way.

Mosaic Elite Status

This level of status is the highest in the Jet Blue pyramid. You can achieve it after spending $50,000 per year on your card. Mosaic Status includes the following:

• Bonus Points
• Dedicated Customer Service Phone Number
• Priority Check-In, Security, & Boarding
• Qualification Bonus
• Take 3 and Lucky 7 Bonuses
• Two (More) Free Checked Bags

All these perks are worth the card’s $99 annual fee and then some, even if you fly JetBlue once per year. The two checked bags are easily worth $50 each. The catch is that you must spend at least $50,000 per year on the Jet Blue Plus card to get the status. I don’t suggest doing so because you can spend more efficiently. Otherwise, you can justify the card’s annual fee through its other perks.

50% Discount on In-Flight Purchases

This is a nice perk for any incidentals, food, and entertainment that’s purchased while flying. Many airlines charge premiums for in-flight goods and services, so it’s nice to see Jet Blue pass the savings along.

$100 Annual Statement Credit

If you buy a Jet Blue vacation package worth at least $100, you will receive a $100 annual statement credit. This credit is enough to justify the card’s $99 annual fee and come out with a whole dollar of positive expected value.

Free Checked Bags

This perk gives you the first checked bag free for you and up to three companions, employees, or co-workers. Three of the four personal Delta cards have a similar perk, but it covers the main flyer and up to nine companions.

No Annual Fee Employee Cards

Many credit cards offer employee or authorized user cards for an additional fee. This is very common with American Express. However, the Jet Blue Business Card offers these cards for no additional fee.

Primary Car Rental Insurance

This perk is exclusive to the Jet Blue Business Card. You will receive primary car rental insurance for eligible rentals for up to a 30-day period. That’s a nice perk because car rentals are a common expense for business travelers on the go.

Other Insurances and Protections

Trip Delay Protection helps you out if your flight is delayed at least six hours. You can receive up to $300 for incidentals and food. This insurance can only be used twice per calendar year.

Trip Cancellation Insurance also covers up to $5,000 to refund your trip if you need to cancel before departing. This insurance has a maximum liability of $10,000 per calendar year.

Fraud Liability Protection ensures that you’re not responsible for any fraudulent transactions that occur on your card. Barclays is big on security with all their cards. Therefore, having this backing could be reassuring for many business-people.

Similar Cards

If the Barclays Jet Blue Plus Card is not right for you, check out these alternatives:

Chase Ink Business Preferred

Chase’s top business card can be either a complement or a substitute for the Jet Blue Business card.

The Chase Ink Business Preferred earns 3x Ultimate Rewards (UR) points on a six different categories. It also earns just one point on non-bonus spend. UR points can be transferred to Jet Blue. Furthermore, the Ink Business Preferred has a sign-up bonus worth 80,000 points. It can be earned after spending $5,000 in the first three months.

This card has excellent travel insurances that would work well with those from the Jet Blue Business card. It also has many of the same benefits and travel insurances. But the Jet Blue card has a few that are airline specific. The Ink Business Preferred is a UR-earning card, giving it membership in the Chase “ecosystem”. Such membership does not limit it to Jet Blue redemptions. Therefore, people who are not loyal to Jet Blue (or any other single airline or hotel) could transfer points to one of Chase’s partners.

American Express Hilton Honors Business Card

The American Express Hilton Honors Business Card is a nice alternative or complement to the Jet Blue Business Card. It has more hotel-centric benefits and a similar $95 annual fee (NOT waived the first year) to boot.

This card earns 12x Hilton Honors (HH) points at Hilton hotels. It also earns 6x HH points at a plethora of business and travel related categories. All other spend earns just 3x HH points. The Hilton Honors Business card also has a sign-up bonus worth 125,000 HH points. The points can be earned after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months.

The card also comes with Hilton Gold Status, Priority Pass lounge access, secondary car rental insurance, and other great benefits.

This card is a great complement for businesses that send their employees (or themselves) to Hilton hotels while traveling. But it can be a substitute for businesses who care more about hotel benefits than airline benefits.

Final Draw

The Barclays Jet Blue Business card is a great option for Jet Blue loyalists and business-people on the go. This card is one of my favorite co-branded cards for business owners because it has everything you would want in a card. It has a large sign-up bonus, fantastic earning opportunities, an anniversary bonus, and great perks. Businesses will likely be profiting from having this card in their arsenal.

Apply Today: Barclays Jet Blue Business Card