If you enjoy business travel benefits and rewards, watch for the new U.S. Bank Business Altitude™ Connect World Elite Mastercard®*. This unique travel rewards card combines earnings of up to 5 rewards points per dollar on purchases, a quarterly $25 rideshare credit with qualifying purchases and a competitive $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $95.
Here’s a closer look at the new Business Altitude Connect Card and what business owners should know about this waitlist-only travel rewards card scheduled to publicly launch in February.
Business Altitude Connect Quick Facts
The Business Altitude Connect Card is a brand new business travel rewards card from U.S. Bank. As a World Elite Mastercard, it comes with valuable benefits beyond what you experience with most comparable business travel rewards cards with an annual fee of around $100.
The Spark business travel cards from Capital One are similar in some ways to this new U.S. Bank travel rewards card but the tiered rewards rate of the Business Altitude Connect merits attention. Rewards are as follows:
5 points per dollar on hotel and rental car purchases booked directly through the U.S. Bank Rewards Center, 4 points per dollar on other travel purchases, including flights, hotels, gas, and EV charging, up to $150,000 in combined annual purchases, 2 points for dollar for dining (including delivery) and cell phone services, 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.
The four points per dollar rate on travel is particularly interesting as it’s an industry-leading rewards rate for a business card, especially one with a sub-$100 annual fee.
New cardholders can earn 60,000 bonus points worth $600 after spending $6,000 in the first 180 days after opening a new account.
Travel and Purchase Benefits
When you’re on the road or shopping in-store or online, the Business Altitude Connect offers benefits to protect you from losses or enhance your experience.
Airport Lounge Access
Even if you don’t use the card regularly, the included Priority Pass Digital membership could make this card worthwhile to occasional travelers. With this card, you can enter more than 1,300 airport lounges, often offering complimentary beverages, snacks or meals, clean bathrooms, and a quiet oasis outside the hustle and bustle of a busy airport concourse. The card includes four complimentary guest visits per year.
Rideshare Statement Credits
A helpful feature for regular riders on Uber and Lyft (or old fashioned taxis), you’ll get a $25 statement credit after every three consecutive months you use the card for rideshare or taxi purchases. Learn more about this and other World Elite Mastercard benefits here.
No Foreign Transaction Fee
Whether across the border or ordering a shipment from an overseas provider, you don’t have to worry about spending more due to currency-related fees. US Bank doesn’t add additional foreign transaction fees for purchases made with this card.
Travel Protections
Additional World Elite Mastercard benefits include an auto rental collision damage waiver, lost luggage insurance, and a travel assistance program to help you navigate the situation if you get stuck away from home or encounter canceled flights.
What are US Bank points worth?
The US Bank Altitude Rewards program works with a growing list of Visa and Mastercard credit cards. Points are redeemable for travel, statement credits, gift cards, or merchandise. As with most rewards programs, merchandise redemptions are usually a low-value redemption option when considering value per point.
If you redeem for statement credits or gift cards, you’ll redeem rewards at a rate of one cent per point. When redeeming for travel, you may find redemptions valued at around 1.5 cents per point, which is a nice increase in value.
You can combine points between accounts if you also have a personal US Bank travel rewards card.
Is the Business Altitude Connect Card Worth It?
Despite the ongoing annual fee, it’s easy to see how you can get outsized value from the Business Altitude Connect card. If you use it only for rideshare and taxis and qualify for the quarterly $25 statement credit, you’ve made up the full annual cost already.
In addition, consider the value of rewards points, rental car coverage, and airport lounge access, among other perks. It’s easy to see how a frequent traveler could see hundreds of dollars in value annually from this card.
With a signup bonus worth $600 and the annual fee waived the first year, this card will likely give you much more in return compared to the modest annual cost.