Iberia Visa Signature card credit card review: Earn Avios to connect with the world

Chris Nelson is an associate credit card writer for TPG. He specializes in budget travel, hotels, earning elite status through minimal spending and redeeming points for maximum value.

Chris was a reporter at The Points Guy, where he covered the intersection of credit card rewards and travel. At TPG, he wrote a broad array of stories ranging from in-depth features and reports to trending travel news as it related to loyalty, card benefits and consumer behavior.

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Editor's Note

Iberia Visa Signature® Card overview

The Iberia Visa Signature® Card is an intriguing option if you're interested in collecting Avios points. You can redeem Avios for flights across the Oneworld alliance — and even transfer them to partners like British Airways. As a cobranded airline card, benefits are fairly run-of-the-mill, but this card can make sense for Avios fans. Card Rating*: ⭐⭐⭐

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

International airline credit cards typically have fewer benefits than their domestic counterparts. Unlike a cobranded airline card from, say, Delta, the Iberia Visa Signature card doesn't come with priority boarding or a free checked bag. However, this is the only cobranded offering from Iberia available in the U.S. — and it's ideal if you're trying to earn extra Iberia Avios.

The Iberia Visa Signature® Card comes with a $95 annual fee that isn't waived for the first year, but the hefty sign-up bonus and a couple of money-saving perks more than offset the cost.

Iberia — and sister airlines British Airways and Aer Lingus — all earn their own version of Avios, and can be used for booking flights all over the world. Iberia is also part of the Oneworld alliance, which opens the door to thousands of mileage redemption possibilities with airlines on every continent. Avios is one of my favorite airline currencies to earn since they can be lucrative for short-haul flying and business class to Spain.

The recommended credit score for the Iberia Visa is at least 670. Let's take a closer look at whether this card deserves a spot in your wallet.

Iberia Visa pros and cons

• Avios points can be redeemed for travel with Oneworld Alliance partners such as American Airlines and Alaska Airlines or transferred to British Airways or Aer Lingus
• Solid earnings rate for an airline card

• Lacks benefits despite the annual fee
• Your Avios points could all expire after 36 months if you don't accrue, transfer or redeem them

Iberia Visa sign-up bonus

The Iberia Visa currently offers an impressive sign-up bonus of 75,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.

TPG values Avios at 1.5 cents apiece, making those 75,000 Avios are worth $1,125.

One important note: The Iberia Visa Signature falls under Chase's 5/24 rule. If you've opened more than five credit cards in the past 24 months (from all banks, not just Chase), your application will be automatically rejected — even if you have a nearly perfect score.

Iberia Visa benefits

Although the Iberia Visa lacks many of the usual domestic cobranded airline card benefits, such as a free checked bag and priority boarding, it does offer a few perks that can make it a worthwhile addition to your wallet.

• Flight discount: Save 10% on Iberia flights purchased at Iberia.com/Chase10 when you use your Iberia Visa card.
• $1,000 voucher: Earn a discount voucher of $1,000 to use toward two tickets on the same flight each year you spend $30,000 on purchases on your Iberia Visa card.
• No foreign transaction fees: Since this is an international airline card, it makes sense that there are also no fees when you use it abroad.
• Visa Signature perks: As a Visa Signature card, you'll get standard perks such as lost and delayed baggage protection, purchase protection, car rental insurance and access to the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection.

Earning Avios on the Iberia Visa

With the Iberia Visa , you'll earn Avios at the following rates:

• 3 Avios per dollar spent on purchases with Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, and LEVEL
• 2 Avios per dollar spent on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel
• 1 Avios per dollar spent on all other purchases

If most of your flying — once flying gets back up to speed — is done on Iberia, British Airways or Aer Lingus, then you'll earn the most bonus points when using this card. You'll get 3 Avios for every dollar spent on purchases with Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, and LEVEL.

Still, these aren't especially impressive earning rates. You may decide to instead get a card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards or American Express Membership Rewards points since you can transfer them to Iberia Plus as well as other transfer partners.

Redeeming Avios on the Iberia Visa

As with most frequent flyer programs, you'll get the best value from your Iberia Visa Avios if you use them for flights. However, you can also use Avios for flight upgrades, hotel stays, rental cars and experiences.

Iberia has a close partnership with British Airways and Aer Lingus, two airlines that also use the Avios currency. You can transfer your Avios between these airlines, which is a nice perk if you prefer a particular program. As a U.S.-based traveler, one of the best aspects of redeeming with Iberia is the ability to use Avios for short-haul flights on Oneworld partner airlines, including American Airlines.

Iberia uses a distinct distance-based award chart, different from that of British Airways and Aer Lingus. One of my favorite redemptions is an award chart sweet spot: a one-way business-class ticket between New York (JFK) or Chicago (ORD) and Madrid (MAD) for just 34,000 Avios off-peak.

On the negative side, the Iberia website is clunky and is not user-friendly. Also, for Iberia partners, each has its own distance-based award charts (most are identical), some of which require round-trip bookings.Related: Best ways to redeem Iberia Avios

Transferring Avios on the Iberia Visa

Unlike other airline miles, you can transfer Iberia Avios to another airline as long as they stay under the same umbrella as the parent company of the International Airline Group.

That includes transferring Avios to British Airways and Aer Lingus at a one-to-one ratio if you so choose. This opens up a multitude of ways in which you can redeem your Avios on Oneworld partners. For instance, you can get value by transferring your Iberia Avios to British Airways to redeem on American Airlines for great value on domestic flights.

ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY

TPG managing editor Matt Moffitt likes to use 12.5k Avios to fly Qantas Business Class between Sydney and Melbourne to see family when he visits Australia and loves that it includes lounge access.

Which cards compete with the Iberia Visa?

While other cobranded airline cards might be more of a direct competitor, that won't be the case if you're looking specifically for Avios. Iberia is a one-to-one transfer partner of both American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards and a three-to-one transfer partner of Marriott, so it's pretty straightforward to earn Avios.

• If you prefer a more flexible currency and are under the 5/24 rule, TheChase Sapphire Preferred® Card is a solid card option with a $95 annual fee and earning Ultimate Rewards points. With it, you'll earn 3 points on dining, 2 points on travel and 1 everywhere else. For more information, read our full review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
• If you prefer a flexible currency and are over the 5/24 rule: The American Express® Gold Card is a worthy competitor to the Chase Sapphire Preferred, although the annual fee is higher at $325 (see rates and fees). The card earns Membership Rewards points: 4 points on dining at restaurants (up to $50,000 per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar) and at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar), 3 points on flights booked directly from the airline or amextravel.com, 2 points per dollar on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked through amextravel.com and 1 point on everything else. For more information, read our full review of the Amex Gold.
• If you prefer another Avios-earning airline. The British Airways Visa Signature® Card is another airline card that earns Avios. It also earns 3 points per dollar on Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, and Level but has useful benefits like 10% off eligible flights when booked through a special link and a reward statement credit. For more information, read our full review of the British Airways Visa.

For additional options, check out our best airline cards.

Is the Iberia Visa worth it?

With its low annual fee, the Iberia Visa is worth it for those who want to earn valuable Avios. However, if you want more flexibility or better earning rates, you'll want to opt for a card that earns transferable rewards instead.

Bottom line

The Iberia Visa Signature card is a solid option if you want to start earning Avios or are already invested in the program. With a solid sign-up bonus and decent perks, it's worth adding to your wallet if you're flying Iberia (or British Airways and Aer Lingus). Still, those who don't use Avios regularly will be better off with a card that earns American Express Membership Rewards or Chase Ultimate Rewards points and transferring them to Iberia Plus as needed.

For rates and fees of the Amex Gold card, click here.

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.