US Premium Travel Credit Card Emerging Features Benchmark 2021

How 8 Leading Cards Meet Prospective Customers’ Demands

Report by David Morris  | Dec 16, 2021
Download
Report
Crosstabs
Share
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Key Findings
Introduction
Leading Premium Travel Credit Card Programs in 2021
No. 1: Security and Control
No. 2: Earning Rewards
No. 3: Shopping
No. 4: Payment Flexibility
No. 5: Travel and Entertainment Features
No. 6: Redeeming Rewards
No. 7: Advanced Digital Features
Methodology
Terms and Definitions
Survey Demographics
Appendix
Read Next
Sources
Media Gallery
About This Report
This inaugural study ranks eight leading premium travel credit cards offering 49 emerging features, weighted by demand from prospective customers.
Topics
Credit & Debit
Travel
Financial Services
United States
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Key Findings
Introduction
Leading Premium Travel Credit Card Programs in 2021
No. 1: Security and Control
No. 2: Earning Rewards
No. 3: Shopping
No. 4: Payment Flexibility
No. 5: Travel and Entertainment Features
No. 6: Redeeming Rewards
No. 7: Advanced Digital Features
Methodology
Terms and Definitions
Survey Demographics
Appendix
Read Next
Sources
Media Gallery

Executive Summary

3 KEY QUESTIONS THIS REPORT WILL ANSWER

  1. Which key emerging features do prospective US travel credit card customers value most?
  2. How can these features best attract and engage customers?
  3. How do top premium travel credit card programs compare with their competitors on key features or categories of features?

WHAT’S IN THIS REPORT? Competition to attract prospective travel credit card holders is growing fiercer as travel—along with consumers’ credit appetite—picks up. This inaugural benchmark report evaluates premium travel credit cards (with annual fees ranging from $75 to $99) based on their features across seven categories, and we weight their scores according to the results from a survey of US adults interested in a travel credit card.

Chart Redirect

KEY STAT: Of the 49 travel credit card features included in our study, various ways to earn rewards placed in three spots among the top five travel credit card features. The other top features fell under Security and Control (first place) and Payment Flexibility (fourth).

Here’s what’s in the full report

2files

Exportable files for easy reading, analysis and sharing.

25charts

Reliable data in simple displays for presentations and quick decision making.

Table of Contents

  1. Executive Summary
  2. Key Findings
  3. Introduction
  4. Leading Premium Travel Credit Card Programs in 2021
  5. No. 1: Security and Control
  6. No. 2: Earning Rewards
  1. No. 3: Shopping
  2. No. 4: Payment Flexibility
  3. No. 5: Travel and Entertainment Features
  4. No. 6: Redeeming Rewards
  5. No. 7: Advanced Digital Features
  6. Methodology
  1. Terms and Definitions
  2. Survey Demographics
  3. Appendix
  4. Read Next
  5. Sources
  6. Media Gallery

Charts in This Report

Most In-Demand US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)Security and Control Feature Score of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)
Earning Rewards Feature Score of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)Shopping Feature Rank and Score of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)
Payment Flexibility Feature Score of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)Travel and Entertainment Feature Score of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)
Redeeming Rewards Feature Score of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)Advanced Digital Feature Score of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards (benchmark score*)
Demographic Summary of Respondents, US Travel Credit Card Emerging Features Benchmark 2021, Aug 2021 (% of total)Expenses on Which US Adults Would Most Like to Spend Travel Credit Card Annual Rewards*, Aug 2021 (% of respondents)
Types of Purchases that Would Be Most Valuable for Earning Travel Credit Card Rewards According to US Adults, Aug 2021 (% of respondents)US Adults Who Have Used Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) Services in the Past Year, Aug 2021 (% of respondents)
Methods US Adults Used to Access Their Credit Card Account, Aug 2021 (% of respondents)Top 5 Most In-Demand US Travel Credit Card Features (% of respondents who called each feature "extremely valuable")
US Premium Travel Cards with the Most In-Demand Features (rank out of 8*)Top 3 In-Demand Travel Credit Card Features, by Feature Segment (% of respondents who called each feature "extremely valuable")
Most In-Demand Travel Credit Card Features, by Feature Segment (% of respondents who called each feature "extremely valuable")Travel and Entertainment Features of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards
Security and Control Features of Top US Premium Travel Credit CardsPayment Flexibility Features of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards
Earning Rewards Features of Top Premium US Travel Credit CardsRedeeming Rewards Features of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards
Advanced Digital Features of Top US Premium Travel Credit CardsShopping Features of Top US Premium Travel Credit Cards
Most Valuable Advanced Digital Features of Travel Cards According to US Consumers, by Generation (% of respondents)

Access All Charts and Data

Gain access to reliable data presented in clear and intelligible displays for quick understanding and decision making on the most important topics related to your industry, included at no extra cost.
Gain Access to EMARKETER →
Log in to EMARKETER

authors

David Morris

Contributors

Grace Broadbent
Analyst
Daniel Decea
Researcher, Financial Services
Na Li
Director, Primary Research
Reuben Loewy
Director, Report Editing
Jaime Toplin
Senior Analyst
Ona Koehler
Senior Director, Benchmarking
Tyler Brown
Senior Analyst
Daniel Van Dyke
VP, Content