Credit Card Twofers Compared - Which is Better
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- Опубліковано 4 лип 2024
- Both American Express and Barclaycard offer credit cards in the UK which, if you put £10,000 of spending through that card in a year, will give you an airline voucher. On the surface, these vouchers look and feel quite similar, but when you study them, there are some significant differences.
In this video I'll analyse the cards, show how they work in practice, and score the two options based on which card offers the better functionality. The winner is quite clear....
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⏰ Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1.34 - Disclaimer
1:54 - How the Amex Companion Voucher Works
7:50 - How the Barclays Upgrade Voucher Works
10:35 - Features Compared
16:52 - Conclusions
DISCLAIMER: Links included in this description might be affiliate links. If you purchase a product or service with the links that I provide I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you. This video may not be copied or reproduced without written permission.
Have both the Amex premium and the Avios plus cards. Always satisfying when someone gives you that “I’m sorry we don’t accept Amex” smile and you pull out the Barclay card Avios. 🤣
1.5 avios everywhere you look! "Your narrowminded card acceptance policy won't stop me!!!!"
I have just used the blue economy voucher for a 2 for 1 return from LHR non stop to GIG. A very long weekend away. Price if paying in cold hard filthy lucre was £2080 (£1040pp) or £400 + 70k Adios. That made each Adios worth 2.4p each. Not bad for an economy toofer, and value can be had by selecting an expensive route with no direct competition. Slept 6 hours both way as well!
Good to hear a success story for the economy voucher - the conventional wisdom is that they're always pretty terrible but with reward flight savers now worldwide, there is value to be had!
Thanks Matt - I have both and will tailor my strategy a little after watching your excellent video 🎉
Glad it helped
I have both cards already. but appreciate the input. Another great video. Thanks !
You're welcome!
I understand your channel is aimed at a very small percentage of travellers, not the masses, but this one went way over my head.
Sorry about that Maur1ce - file it away and perhaps it'll be more relevant for you sometime down the road!
Yes, I felt the same. So much to learn on this topic.
Great video, Matt! I picked up around 13:20 that you used a CV for a double open jaw flight - I didn't know this was possible, it could be a handy trick to reduce taxes if you fly from somewhere like Dublin and then return to London on the inbound. Will need to look into this a bit more!
Spot on Fraser. Double Open jaws can be really useful - I started in Madrid partly as I swerved the APD but also because Iberia's route network is great and their pricing is excellent too....
I appreciate the video but I think you the biggest difference between the 2 cards is Amex 2for1 opens extra flight availability ( since the last BA changes) whereas its really hard to find flights with barclays voucher. So much so that I now just take the 7,000 points instead
Thanks Gerry. Something I should perhaps have mentioned actually. I'm on a trip to Brazil right now which used a Barclays voucher and it wasn't too difficult to find seats even without the extra availability. I was booking 7+ months ahead though and was extremely flexible, but I get your point!
On Barclays you dont need to keep the ££ at £9900 you can elect for it to be issued at the end of the year or on demand, you can also change to the 7000 at anytime prior to issue
Thanks - I'll have to test that out!
Hi Matt,
Amazing clear video once again. May I take this opportunity to congratulate you on your excellent choice of knitwear on show in this video! Marvellous indeed!
As always, big fan, thank you for your service Sir!!
Thomas
Why thanks Thomas! This one had sunk a little way down my knitwear drawer as I don't wear it out much, but the contrast works well on video!
Holder of the premium plus and redeemed the voucher for a business return fare to Singapore for 2 people. Cost around £900 in tax in total plus around 200k avios. As we have a household account and am a Gold card holder, I think this is an excellent redemption especially as the flight cost would have been 8k
Singapore is a tough one to get seats on so congratulations for doing so! You must have grabbed them pretty close to 355 days before travel, or did you get lucky?
Nice one! I've read articles and watched other videos on this topic and so in my opinion this is easily the best comparison on the internet. Would it be possible to review the VA Reward+ card as well? I have the no fee card and Virgin have some great redemption options to places on my travel wishlist so it is tempting to look at that as well compared to the Amex BA premium card.
Thanks. I am planning to look at the virgin one too - I've never spent one and have one in the wallet so I'm waiting until I've used it so I can talk about it first hand.... Hopefully it won't be long as it is "burning a hole"....
Great video, and i have both the black bapp card and avios plus card. One crucial point you did not mention and i haven't seen many people talk about is being able to pay your amex bill off with your barclaycard effectively, giving you 3 avios per £ spent
Thanks Saif. Slightly shady territory awaits down that pathway, which is why I didn't mention it... You can do something with Curve, although they now charge for doing it in any volume and there's a couple of other ways which are not loved by the credit card companies, shall we say...
@MattsPlanet yes agreed I do this via curve, which somehow muddys the water for the CC companies. PayPal route is forcing the closure of a lot of peoples card accounts, so I agree to avoid this route completely.
Hi Matt, Great video as always!
A couple of questions from me:
1. Do you know whether it’s possible to transfer AMEX membership rewards points to Avianca life miles?
2. What are the best points/miles credit cards available in the UK?
Thank you
1 - I believe you can. 2 - I can't give advice or guidance as cards are regulated products but the cards mentioned in this video are widely regarded as being very good!
Great info thank you. Regarding the difference between the two vouchers I've read that the toofer can be used for indirect flights for example: Edinburgh to Sao Paulo where more than one flight is necessary, but the upgrade voucher can only be used for direct flights so for Edinburgh to Sao Paulo you could use it for the long haul but would have to purchase the Edinburgh to London flight separately.
The Barclays upgrade voucher can only be used on flights from the UK (including Jersey). The Amex twofer can be used from anywhere... I looked myself and could apply a Barclays voucher to a JER-LHR-JFK booking - lots of availability actually. I also tried GLA-LHR-JFK and couldn't find any availability so it may be a lot trickier to connect through London but it should still be possible.... May be something you need to call them to book as I know a concept called Married Segments can get in the way of the online booking system.
@@MattsPlanet Thank you! Enjoy your week.
Revisiting this great video, one question though, can you use an upgrade voucher on a multi leg ex-EU flight thereby reducing the taxes?
The Amex can be used on trips starting outside the UK - the Barclays has to start in the UK. And I did indeed start a trip in Dublin to reduce the taxes - whether it makes sense overall can be marginal but with an Amex it is possible,
Thanks Matt, great video and explanation. As you will no doubt be aware, the BA Amex Card is currently running a promotion based on spending and providing BA Tier Points as a reward. Spend before 21 May 2024, £15k=100 TP, further £5k(i.e. £20K in total)=additional 50TP and a further 50TP for a further £5k (i.e. total £25k).
Thanks.... I doubt anyone would be motivated to find thousands of pounds of spending for a few tier points, but if you put those volumes through routinely then this is a great bonus
This was all going over my bronze-star head until you mentioned that Avios-earning Barclaycard. Must look into that.
Great video.
Thanks as always - its worth a look!
yes for our family two AMEX vouchers and two barclays vouchers per years, it is challenging to use the barclay ones
As the Amex one have wider validity (Aer Lingus and Iberia and on trips starting outside the UK) the advice is to use the Barclays one first... And if you can't use all of them, Barclays offers 7,000 avios instead of the voucher which is trivial but better than allowing the voucher to expire unused
sorry, I forgot to mention that with the upgrade there is very few options available compared to the toofer.
Amex draws from an expanded pool of seats so there will be more availability routinely with that voucher
"Nice problem to have" 😅
Very informative, thanks
A very nice problem to have!!!!
Great vid Matt.
How do they compare to the Amex Platinum?
The Amex plat is trying to do somethng different, which is to provide a stack of travel benefits not focussed on BA. I did a video talking about the Plat in detail. Whilst the Plat gives a lot, it doesn't have a pathway to an upgrade voucher, and it gives 1 avios per point spent versus 1.5 for the BA card.
Do you have a video of the evaluation table a would like a explain/breakdown
Not sure I 100% understand the question but I hoped to cover everything in the video...
Great video from fellow Gen X , I’ve got an Amex 2/4/1 and lots of avios will I ever get business to Sydney return , the availability has gone by the 3 to 4 weeks stay has past the 355 days
You need to call them at midnight on the 355th day prior to travel.... And hope no-one else is calling for that day at the same time!
Struggling to find info...if you can indeed use the barclays voucher on a household members flight booking?
As if i cant will take the 7,000 avios as already got an amex voucher with limited travel plans. Thanks
You can use the Barclays voucher for a household account member. You need to make the booking but you don't need to be the traveller
Hi Matt, I wondered if you knew how often BA released their booster sign up bonuses? I want the BA premium Amex card but not sure whether to wait till they have the increased sign up bonuses.
It's impossible to predict - their business cards have a super bonus on at the moment so it could be the personal cards' turn next... I'd say they are raised a couple of times a year but whether the deal is good or not is impossible to predict
Hi Matt. I enjoyed the video. I have recently signed up for both cards as I have booked a flight with Qatar and hoping to upgrade to Q suites for part of my flights. A problem I have faced with my booking is that whenever I select award upgrade, my booked flights are showing as no award availability to upgrade. Does it say this as I have an avios balance of Zero? Thanks
Upgrading a Qatar flight with BA avios isn't going to work - a BA flight certainly but not Qatar.... You can transfer avios across to the Qatar scheme and try over there but I don't know how easy that will be.... And obviously you need reward availability in the cabin you're upgrading to...
Hi Matt, another perk for the Amex card is that it can be used with the GUF1 or GUF2, the Barclaycard cannot be used like this. Great Video
Cheers Mike - good point. The world of GUFs is one I am aware of but have no personal experience of so its often on the fringes of my radar...
Matt love the channel as always! Perhaps you could do a future video on how to book a 241 companion voucher from Premium Plus card, as a return booking!? Seems a bit confusing. TIA!
It should be very straightforward as the voucher shows up in your exec club account and can easily be applied.... It gets complicated with the 355 day thing but I'm not sure you're asking that?
Thanks Matt, more so the booking. Ive read people having to call up 355 days before to book a one way, then phoning again to try add on a return journey? Does this all fall under the one 241? Thanks!
@@dangerzone9565 it does. They can reopen the one way booking and add the return when it's available for booking
After your AEGEAN video I decided to do a Tier run for Aegean. But I am not sure yet if its clever to collect my award miles there, as the only way I see possible for me to collect loads of miles are credit cards, german credit cards -> miles & more...
If you want status, and can fly Aegean reasonably easily, it's a great answer. For gathering and spending heaps of points, it's perhaps less great
Hi Matt. Re: the barclaycard choice between a voucher or extra avios, you can choose at any time after opening the account, and can change your mind at any point (or multiple times) up until 1 working day before the anniversary of the account opening. If you don't make a choice, you get the voucher by default.
Thanks for that - I'm actually conducting a controlled experiment on that this week - not that I doubt you but its always nice to prove something for yourself!
@TheNutcracker19 hey, do you know how I can let them know what I prefer? my anniversary is coming up in a week or two
Got 5,000 avios to renew my premium BA amex rather than downgrade....on top of the extra avios earnt and the potential for the voucher....seems like a good deal....I wonder if I get the retention offer again next year
Thanks for sharing! I know Amex can be generous with retention offers on their charge cards but I haven't heard many success stories with the BA credit card. Good data point
Hi Matt. Another great informative video. On the subject of taking the 7000 Avios instead of the voucher. 1. Once you hit the spend target you can choose in the app which you want to take, but you can delay that decision up until the end of your card year if you want, which is good. 2. If you do decide to take Avios rather than the voucher but use them with the Amex 241 - you’ll get double the value 😊
Thanks EG. Interesting and thanks for sharing.... Presumably you need to have not made an election prior to hitting the spending target?
You can make a selection before hitting the target, but you have to click a button to redeem (or change your mind) when ready.
Good video
Thanks mate
The system BA has with AMEX and Barclays sounds suspiciously like the one SAS has with AMEX and SEB in Norway and Sweden. Though they call it a Companion Ticket (or CT), and Fly Premium. And both card issuers have different versions depending on which card you have in their portfolios.
There's a Chase card in the US which also gives a BA voucher which I mentioned in the earlier video. I think its a well trodden path for airlines and credit card companies to work together on.
@@MattsPlanet as I understand both the BA and SAS systems, the Eurobonus ones are better, at least for now. The CT/Twofer is valid alliance wide if you have the Elite AMEX, and FlyPremium is unlimited on SAS in the regions your card allows. Still interesting to see how especially AMEX handles fundamentally the same product across countries and frequent flyer programs.
Matt, do you know how the Barclays voucher can be used as a solo traveller when looking for difficult to get award availability? I’m looking at LHR-HND but of course, this route sells out the same day. How am I supposed to use the voucher in 2 bookings if the TOS forbids it. Unless I misunderstood? Thank you.
I've not done it myself, but I believe it is possible to book the outbound 355 days prior to travel with a Barclays voucher, then call again later when the return flights are created to add them in and tidy everything up. Another option is to book both legs 353 days prior to travel when outbound and return are available, then call on the day the return leg is released to amend the booking - that will cost £35 but may be a good way of doing it. For a simple date change you may well be able to do it online too
@@MattsPlanet thanks for the response. The latter sounds genius! I did try put a post on HFP about it but it didn’t seem to work. This will be my first time in business, so I look forward to it. As a 6 foot odd like yourself, it will be a proper treat. Currently at 65k Avios, so not too far off. The Barclays welcome bonus should get me very close 😁 All the best mate, thanks again.
I’m having to plan ahead over two years in order to maximise my AmEx twofer. We’re a family of 4 with our amEx/BA anniversary month in Nov. We’ll aim to delay triggering the next one until Oct ‘24 so we get summer hols ‘25 and ‘26 in scope. The subsequent one we won’t be able to trigger quickly enough to get decent redemption options for Summer ‘25, leaving us to plan an awesome trip for Summer 2026. I have a feeling it might involve the word “Disney” though…
Good work - if you're able to plan that far ahead it does open up more availability as you're booking closer to the release of the flight so the availability should be better. A Disney holiday is by no means a disaster though!!!
Alas today’s announcement about the increasing fee and spend requirement for the BA Prem Plus Amex has given you cause to film an update 😂
I'll talk about it in a video at some point but I don't think its quite the disaster it might first seem to be!
@@MattsPlanet sounds great! I suppose the £10k limit has been the same for years and years so with inflation, it was probably about time they did it!
Hi Matt, love the content. Is it possible for my wife to open a Barclaycard and collect points against my Avios membership and benefit from the bonus points? Or are we better to keep seperate Avios accounts but pool it as a family account? Cheers
Everyone's avios balance is personal so she'd need her own exec club account to catch the avios she earns on her own card. You can create a household account though which pools all the avios of the members so you can still spend them!
Thanks@@MattsPlanet I appreciate you taking the time to explain.
Any advice on the best card for short haul flights and/or families of 4 please?
Any card you qualify for is the short answer. Barclays and amex give 1.5 points per pound so no difference there. As fit vouchers, the amex is the stronger in several ways but you'll need 2 to cover all 4 of you.
@@MattsPlanet thanks Matt, I was looking at a Virgin card but they seem to be mainly Carribbean or other long haul destinations.
I'm getting shot of my Amex. Nightmare to find available flights and a bloody pain in the arse getting a connection flight as that's not covered using Avios meaning u have to collect your luggage to check in again. If there is a delay you're screwed
Connections are a pain, although if you leave ample time (ideally overnight) they can work.... If you have the time of course. I hear a lot of people complaining about how hard it is to find availability - I never struggle but I am flexible on dates and destinations....
What's your thoughts....to get a base floor value from amex ba premium card ....if u spend £10k in the year...has to be 20,000 avios at 1p per avios, as you need to get £200 valueat least, slightly offset by the extra avios per £1 spent given you have to spend £10k to trigger.
Not sure I completely understand your comment, but £10k will get you 15,000 avios if none of that spend is with BA. That is perhaps £150 in value so as the annual fee is £250 the voucher is costing £100 if you spend the bare minimum to obtain it... Ignoring the welcome bonus...
@MattsPlanet Trying to compare it to the free card, with the additional cost... the additional avios gets you around £50 of value, (5,000 avios on a £10k spend (1 vs 1.5) leaving you £200 to cover which means you need to get at least 20,000 avios of value out of the voucher, which should be easy in premium card.
@@adamingleton8529 Mathematically that makes great sense. In actuality, as the basic card only yields a voucher you can use in economy, the potential value of the paid card is significantly higher
You have to nominate before you earn the reward - default is the voucher if you dont nominate
You can still change your mind, it seems until the voucher is triggered so it perhaps isn't critical to get the choice right from the outset
Hi Matt,
Extremely new to this…. My wife has just left £250 deposit for a £6500 holiday.
She’s opened an BA executive account, if I get a Amex credit card and pay for it, can I link (even though in my name) my card to her ba account, and secondly (I know you say “don’t hang onto Avios as they can change at anytime”) can I keep buying and say topping up for a few years and then use them in say 3 or 4 years time, or do they expire? Thanks in advance Richard.
Welcome to the club! Beware... Its addictive! Each persons account is separate - you and the good lady need to open Exec club accounts to collect the points when you travel. If you then pay the balance on an Amex (which is very sensible) you'll get the avios into your account. And if you link the family via a household account, you can pool all of the avios for when you make a redemption. And if that takes a year or two, no worries!!!
Hi Matt, very enlightening video. Do American Express Platinum Card holders also get some kind of BA upgrade voucher?
No they don't - lots of other travel perks but no voucher. The BA Amex is the card for that.
@@MattsPlanet Thanks Matt, I googled and couldn't find a clear answer for that one. Always easy to find if there IS something, but not always so easy to find there ISN"T. Appreciate it!
With Barclays plus don't you get 4x lounge passes, not just Dragon pass membership.
You get the 4 lounge passes if you have both the credit card and Barclays Premier account. If you just have one of them, they give you the dragonpass with each entry costing £18.50.
Hey im going to New York soon who has the best business class from uk please? I like Virgin but delta one looks awesome and ba ok thanks
Ask 3 people that question and you'll get 4 answers! Some would say JetBlue although they're not great if you have or want status. Not flown delta but I have also heard decent things about them
@@MattsPlanet 😂😂thank youuu
If you have Blue Amex you no longer use is it possible to upgrade to the Black card do you think?
Yep did it this year & I had even just crept over the £10’000 spend trigger point before applying for the black card, I ran them up first & confirmed if they’d allow me to apply & automatically trigger the voucher, at first the lady said no but then after speaking to someone said yes, even did the application over the phone on the same call, happy days 🙂
Thanks for your reply! I'll give them a ring tomorrow!!
Thanks Madds
What about using both cards together on a trip?
Both have high fx fees so I wouldn't use either actually on a trip.... If you're talking about booking, then you can't combine one of each on a single booking, sadly....
I thought the Barclaycard free version could only upgrade to premium economy whereas the paid card could get to business? I could be completely wrong so let me know, I’ll happily downgrade my card 👍🏻
Nope...ive had the paid card for 1 year now...both cards offer the same voucher
@ihsnaqazi beat me to it but I agree - same voucher from both cards
Does the £15k requirement now change anything in your eyes, Matt?
Not really... It's still a good deal but if £10k was a stretch this may be a deal breaker...
Your the only boomer that makes me laugh :) 👊
I'll take the compliment but I'm not that old! Generation X for me mate, I'd need to be 7 years older to be a Boomer.... Maybe I should get some Botox if I'm looking that old!!!!
@Matt's Planet - A BA customer agent I spoke to was very candid with me on the Xmas period; he said that it is likely that by 2027 both Qatar and Finnair will be using avios entirely, IAG will be a one status linked to spend (which if Finnair is anything to go by, and the 241 can be used across all the above 5 airlines).
Finnair's new spend levels from 9 March 2023 (Status, Qualifying Points, Estimated Spend).
Silver (20,000/6) 3,333 Euros (around €3K) - OneworldRuby (BA Bronze) - aka £2,500
Gold (53,000/7) 7,571 Euros (€5K to €7K) - Oneworld Sapphire (BA Silver) - aka £4,000 to £6,000
Platinum (100,000/8) 12,500 Euros (€10K to €15K) - OneWorld Emerald (BA Gold) - £8,500 to £13,000
Lumo (300,000/8) 37,500 Euros (€30K to €50K) - OneWorld Emerald (AY's GGL status) - £25,000 to £43,000
Which will be time for me to retire to a cave in Thailand.....
@@MattsPlanet and now with the changes to tp to align to iags fiscal year….
It's all very complicated
Had a couple of comments that I may have pitched this a little high for the complete newcomer, so apologies if that's how you felt. Hopefully this has sparked an interest, and it may make more sense if you do a little of your own research if you think one of these vouchers sounds good!
I'd disagree on your point about the Barclay card; for it to work as a double, booking seperately (or which is more realistic, you only have one voucher when you come to book) you need to book the return leg for one person. This is because barclays make it so you HAVE to book the initasl flight of a booking as departing from the UK, a really annoying restriction.
I think I saw somewhere that you can work around this by booking on the phone, and they can work the magic to sort it all out.... But I've not done it personally...