Best Credit Cards For British Airways Avios

Top Picks + Avios Points Calculator
Get the most out of earning British Airways Avios with our top-recommended credit cards and exclusive Avios calculator tool!
Last Updated 2023-05-22 By R.Flowers III

Looking for a credit card to start earning Avios points? British Airways has one co-branded card, and there are also a number of partner credit cards that can provide you with introductory bonuses and everyday spending rewards which can be transferred directly into your British Airways Executive Club account.

This page covers our top credit card picks for earning British Airways Avios, lists the best Avios credit card offers, and provides an Avios points calculator to help you find out which card will earn you the most Avios.

Best Credit Cards For British Airways Avios


Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

Best For Flexible Travel Rewards
  • Earning Rate: Earn 5X Ultimate Rewards points on travel purchases through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 3X on dining, online grocery purchases, and select streaming services, 2X on other travel purchases, and 1X on everything else.
  • Annual Credits: $50 credit towards hotels booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards portal.
  • Main Highlights: 10% bonus points annually based on how much you spent the prior cardmember year and a 25% boost to point value when redeemed for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
  • Transfer Ratio: 1,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points = 1,000 British Airways Avios.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.
  • Annual Fee: $95.
  • Summary: The Chase Sapphire Preferred is one of the best flexible travel rewards credit cards available. Points can be transferred to British Airways and many other partners or be easily redeemed for 1.25 cents each towards travel booked via Chase Ultimate Rewards.

Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Best For High Value
  • Earning Rate: Earn 10X points on Chase Dining and both hotel and car rental purchases through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 5X on airfare through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 3X on dining and other travel purchases, and 1X on everything else.
  • Annual Credits: $300 travel credit.
  • Main Highlights: Priority Pass Select membership, up to $100 towards a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application, top-notch travel insurance, and a 50% boost to point value on travel redemptions made through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
  • Transfer Ratio: 1,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points = 1,000 British Airways Avios.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $900 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.
  • Annual Fee: $550.
  • Summary: Fantastic premium travel credit card for earning points transferable to Avios. Points are also worth a whopping 1.5 cents towards travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards which is a great alternative option if you can't find great reward space with British Airways and their airline partners.

Chase Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

Best For Flexible Business Travel Rewards
  • Earning Rate: Earn 3X points on up to $150,000 on travel, shipping, internet, cable services, phone services, and advertising purchases each account anniversary year. All other purchases earn 1X.
  • Main Highlights: 25% point value boost towards travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
  • Transfer Ratio: 1,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points = 1,000 British Airways Avios.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 100k bonus points after you spend $15,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $1,000 cash back or $1,250 toward travel when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.
  • Annual Fee: $95.
  • Summary: The Ink Business Preferred is the best business credit card for earning points on business purchases and travel. Points earned with the card can be transferred to British Airways and other partners as well as be redeemed for 1.25 cents each towards travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal.

American Express® Gold Card

Best For Restaurants & U.S. Supermarkets
  • Earning Rate: Earn 4X Membership Rewards points on restaurant purchases worldwide, 4X at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 per year, then 1X), 3X points on airfare purchased direct or through American Express Travel, and 1X points on all other purchases.
  • Annual Credits: Up to $120 in annual dining credit ($10 per month) and up to $120 in annual Uber Cash ($10 per month).
  • Main Highlights: Book hotels through The Hotel Collection with American Express Travel and receive a $100 hotel credit and room upgrade upon arrival (when available) when booking at least a two consecutive night stay.
  • Transfer Ratio: 1,000 Membership Rewards Points = 1,000 British Airways Avios.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $4,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months.
  • Annual Fee: $250. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: If you spend heavy in restaurant and U.S. supermarket purchases and you want to maximize your Avios, you'll want to consider the American Express Gold Card. It is one of the best credit cards for earning flexible travel rewards points.

American Express® Green Card

Best For Travel & Dining
  • Earning Rate: Earn 3X Membership Rewards points on travel, transit, and at restaurants, and 1X on all other purchases.
  • Annual Credits: Up to $189 in CLEAR credit and up to $100 in LoungeBuddy credit.
  • Transfer Ratio: 1,000 Membership Rewards Points = 1,000 British Airways Avios.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, earn 20% back on eligible travel and transit purchases made during your first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $200 back in the form of a statement credit.
  • Annual Fee: $150.
  • Summary: This card lives in the forgotten shadows of the American Express Gold Card, but honestly... it's a slept on credit card. It's bonus categories combined with having no foreign transaction fees makes it a really solid travel card.

British Airways Visa Signature® Card

Best For British Airways Benefits
  • Earning Rate: Earn 3X Avios on British Airways, Iberia, and Aer Lingus purchases, 2X Avios on hotel bookings made directly with the hotel, and 1X on all other purchases.
  • Main Highlights: 10% off British Airways flights and a Travel Together Ticket after spending $30K on the card during the calendar year.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 75,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
  • Annual Fee: $95.
  • Summary: Great card if you frequently purchase airfare with Avios-earning airlines and want to earn Avios directly on all of your purchases. It also provides a solid intro bonus.

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

Best For Small Business Travel
  • Earning Rate: Earn 2X Membership Rewards points on the first $50,000 in annual purchases, then 1X for the remainder of the year.
  • Main Highlights: The 2X points at no annual fee.
  • Transfer Ratio: 1,000 Membership Rewards Points = 1,000 British Airways Avios.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within your first 3 months of Card Membership.
  • Annual Fee: $0. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: The Blue Business Plus is the best credit card for small businesses but it is also the best credit card for miscellaneous purchases. You can pair this card with any business or personal Membership Rewards credit card to make sure you're always earning at least 2X points on your purchases (at least up until you hit the $50K annual cap). If you want to maximize your Avios, I highly suggest picking up this card if you can.

Avios Credit Card Offers

Want to boost your balance of Avios points? Here are 10 of the best credit card offers currently available for British Airways Avios. This table is updated automatically whenever our partner offers change, so you will always find the most up-to-date bonuses listed.

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Avios Points Calculator

Use the British Airways Avios Points Calculator to get a list of the best credit cards for earning Avios based on the spend amounts you enter.

Results will be sorted by net return which is the average value of the rewards earned, plus annual credits, and minus annual fees.

Results will consist of credit cards that earn British Airways Avios and credit cards from our partners that earn rewards that can be transferred to the British Airways Executive Club program.

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These estimates are to help guide you towards making the best decision when it comes to picking up a rewards credit card. They should be used for illustrative purposes only.

You can click on the estimated earnings to see the calculations or click on the card to learn more and apply for the card through our partners.

Do note that all spend amounts entered into the tool above will carry over to every credit card rewards calculator on the site, so there's no need to re-enter spend if you choose to dive deeper into calculating rewards for credit cards on the site.

**Amount of rewards when transferred to program.

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