If you’re reading this, you’re probably restricted to life at home for the time being. Thank goodness this all happened an era of Uber, Hulu, Netflix, Lyft and all the other things that are keeping the world sane, one reality show, or pad thai at a time.
Capital One Venture just added a bunch of new ways to redeem points, which could make the next reality TV binge, or takeaway feast as close to free as possible, thanks to points.
Capital One is one of the better cards suited for the current world sans travel, thanks to 2% cash back earning if used properly, in addition to the option to earn 1.5 airline miles per dollar. Whereas some cards only allow you to redeem points for miles or points with an airline or hotel, all Venture or Venture One purchases earn 2% back, making it among the strongest earning cards in the game.
When it comes to redeeming points, travel purchases can be wiped off a Capital One Venture, or Venture One account at a rate of one cent per point, which means 10,000 points would cover $100 of a purchase, and 100,000 points would cover $1,000 – and so forth.
Typically this value is reserved for travel purchases, but for a limited time, Capital One Venture is adding food delivery, online streaming and takeout, meaning you can wipe these purchases clean with points.
If you pay $10 per month for Netflix, you’d be able to spend 1,000 Venture Miles to erase that purchase, through June 30th. It’s a great bit of flexibility in a time where flexibility is nice. Merchants that count include…
- Restaurant delivery, takeout: including DoorDash®, Uber Eats® and Postmates®. Local restaurant takeout also applies.
- Online streaming services: including Netflix®, Hulu®, Spotify®, Disney+® and Kindle Unlimited®.
Sadly, these earning categories are currently only temporary, for purchases that post before June 30th, but with any hope they’ll prove so widely popular that Capital One will find a way to add them on longer term.
After the transaction posts to your Capital One Venture/Venture One account, which typically happens within a few days, you can then select “cover your purchases”. From there, you’ll be able to wipe any purchase off your account using points, for purchases up to 90 days old.
You can cover some, or all of the purchase, which is handy flexibility. Should you, though?
Getting one cent per point ain’t bad these days and if money is tight, it’s great to be able to use a rewards bonus to keep you eating and streaming. With that said, Capital One added fantastic airline transfer partners in the last year, and travel will return. You may want to hang on to your points, if you can.
This is a very solid offer, and if anything just a great reminder that Capital One Venture earns 2% cash back, which makes it a great card to spend on right now, whether you burn the points or not.
