Mastercard Luxury Black Card Credit Card

Why This Card Could Be Right For You

The Mastercard Black Card becomes much more compelling when it offers a large welcome bonus. The current 75,000-point offer can be worth up to $1,500 toward airfare or $1,125 as cash back due to receiving 2¢ per point when redeeming for airfare and 1.5¢ per point when redeeming for cash back. With the welcome offer, the card provides substantial first-year value even after accounting for the high $699 annual fee.

The card's annual credits are also very easy to use compared to credits from other high annual fee cards. The $200 airline credit applies to qualifying airline purchases including airfare, baggage fees, lounge access, and some in-flight purchases, with no airline designation or portal booking required. The $100 dining credit applies to qualifying restaurant purchases based on the merchant category code only. So if it codes as a restaurant, the credit will work.

The card also offers:

• 2x points on airfare and hotels booked through LuxuryCardTravel.com
• 1x point on other eligible purchases
• 2 cents per point when redeemed for airfare
• 1.5 cents per point when redeemed for cash back
• Priority Pass Select membership for primary cardholders and authorized users, with unlimited visits for cardholders and guests at participating locations, including Priority Pass Restaurants
• Up to $120 toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck once every four years
• Luxury hotel benefits at more than 3,000 participating properties booked through LuxuryCardTravel.com, with complimentary benefits like daily breakfast for two, room upgrades, early check-in, late checkout, and resort credits (these benefits vary by property)
• 24/7 Luxury Card Concierge for travel planning, tickets, gifting, and other requests
• No foreign transaction fees

The card also offers various travel protections, like:

• Trip cancellation and interruption coverage: Up to $5,000 per insured person for eligible non-refundable roundtrip expenses
• Rental car coverage: Secondary coverage for eligible rental vehicles
• Travel accident insurance: Up to $250,000 in eligible common carrier accidental death and dismemberment coverage
• Baggage delay insurance: Up to $100 per day for three qualifying days after eligible delays of more than four hours
• Travel assistance: 24/7 travel, medical, and legal referral assistance when traveling 50 miles or more from home

Note that many of these travel protections are not comparable to protections offered by some other premium cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve.

When The Usual Advice Doesn't Apply

Here are some exceptions where the card might not be good for you:

• You prefer being able to transfer your points to partners for even more value than 2x or 1.5x
• You already have similar premium travel benefits like Priority Pass, Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, and luxury hotel perks, concierge service, and travel protections may overlap with benefits from cards you already hold.