If you want a top-of-the-line travel rewards card with benefits such as a 24/7 concierge service, airport lounge access, including an airport meet-and-assist program, plus a credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, the Mastercard® Black Card™ might be right for you.
This is the middle tier of the three Luxury Cards issued by Barclays. The Mastercard® Black Card™ offers more benefits (for a more expensive annual fee) than the Mastercard® Titanium Card™, but doesn’t quite break the bank like the Mastercard® Gold Card™.
The Mastercard® Black Card™ also comes with some physical heft to match its perks. It weighs in at 22 grams and is made of a black-PVD-coated stainless steel front and carbon back. PVD stands for Physical Vapor Deposition, and to put it simply, involves metal being vaporized in a vacuum chamber. Pulling a card covered with vaporized metal out of your wallet is sure to be a conversation starter.
However, this card falls short in some areas compared with other luxury travel cards, such as its low earning rate and not being able to transfer points to airline and hotel partners. Unless you really want the high-end travel benefits like the concierge services, you might be better off with The Platinum Card® from American Express or Chase Sapphire Reserve®.
Intro Purchase APR
N/A
Regular Purchase APR
21.24%, 25.43% or 28.24%
Intro BT APR
0% introductory APR for the first fifteen billing cycles following each balance transfer that posts to your account within 45 days of account opening.
Regular BT APR
After that, (and for balance transfers that do not post within 45 days of account opening) the APR will be 21.24%, 25.43% or 28.24%, based on your creditworthiness. There is a fee for balance transfers.
Annual Fee
$495 ($195 for each Authorized User added to the account)
Cash Advance Fee
Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater.
Foreign Transaction Fee
0% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
Balance Transfer Fee
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
Airport lounge access
Perhaps one of the best features offered by this card is complimentary Priority Pass™ Select membership — which allows for unlimited visits for you and your guests to more than 1,300 airport lounges in more than 600 cities worldwide.
Without the complimentary benefit, standard Priority Pass membership plans start at $99 per year, and charge $35 per member visit and $35 per guest visit. The top-tier plan costs $469 per year, with unlimited free member visits and guest passes for $35 each.
Valuable travel credits
The Mastercard® Black Card™ offers the following travel credits, which can help offset the card’s annual fee:
Luxury card concierge service
You can access a Luxury concierge rep 24/7 via live chat, phone or email for help with everything from travel bookings to dinner reservations to sourcing high-demand products. Some of the situations concierge representatives have helped cardholders with in the past include rescuing jewelry left in a hotel room, researching school districts ahead of a move and arranging for a late-night delivery of Tylenol for a sick child. Access the concierge via live chat, phone or email.
Intro APR on balance transfers
If you have a large amount of existing high-interest credit card debt, you can transfer it to the Mastercard® Black Card™ without incurring interest charges for more than a year. The card offers a 0% introductory APR for the first fifteen billing cycles following each balance transfer that posts to your account within 45 days of account opening. After that, (and for balance transfers that do not post within 45 days of account opening) the APR will be 21.24%, 25.43% or 28.24%, based on your creditworthiness. There is a fee for balance transfers. You’ll be charged either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
No foreign transaction fees
If you use your Mastercard® Black Card™ to make international purchases, you won’t be charged foreign transaction fees. By contrast, some travel cards charge fees ranging from 3% to 5% of the amount of each transaction when you use it to make purchases outside of the U.S.
Low rewards earning rate
For a card with an annual fee as expensive as this one, you’d expect a higher rewards rate than one point per $1 spent. Granted, you effectively earn 2% back if redeeming points for airfare or 1.5% back if redeeming points for cash back. This means 10,000 points will be worth $200 when redeemed for airfare and $150 when redeemed for cash back.
That said, there are cards with no annual fee that earn 2% cash back on every purchase you make.
No sign-up bonus
Unlike most premium travel cards (and rewards cards in general), the Mastercard® Black Card™ doesn’t offer a sign-up bonus.
If you want the opportunity to earn a huge lump sum of rewards after reaching a specific spend threshold within a given timeframe, you should choose a card like The Platinum Card® from American Express. The card lets you earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
Can't transfer points to partners
American Express, Capital One, Chase and Citi all offer travel cards that let you transfer rewards to hotel and airline loyalty partners — sometimes for even more value. However, the Mastercard® Black Card™ does not.
Instead, points can only be redeemed for travel, cash back, bank deposits, gift cards, merchandise or experiences.
Pricey annual fee
With the Mastercard® Black Card™, you’ll be responsible for paying an annual fee of $495 ($195 for each Authorized User added to the account), and a fee of $195 for each authorized user added to your account.
It’s not unusual for a premium travel card to charge a high annual fee. For example, The Platinum Card® from American Express has a $695 annual fee, and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a $550 annual fee. However, each of those cards offers more robust and valuable travel benefits, as well as better rewards rates and welcome offers than the Mastercard® Black Card™.
To see rates & fees for The Platinum Card® from American Express please click here.
No intro APR on purchases
While the Mastercard® Black Card™ provides an intro APR on balance transfers, it does not offer one for purchases. This means, if you carry a balance on your card from month to month from purchases, you’ll be subject to interest charges at an APR of 21.24%, 25.43% or 28.24% (variable).
It’s worth noting that it’s pretty rare for a premium credit card to offer an interest-free period on purchases. If you do need to finance a large purchase and pay it off over time, you’ll be better off with a card that offers a 0% intro APR on purchases for a year or longer.
If you want access to much more valuable rewards and travel benefits, The Platinum Card® from American Express will be a better fit — as long as you don’t mind paying a higher annual fee.
The card lets you earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. If you use your points to book a flight through American Express Travel, that’s an $800 value. Plus, get 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. Terms apply.
You can redeem your points for travel, statement credit, merchandise and more. But you’ll get the most value by transferring them to an American Express travel partner, which includes British Airways Executive Club, Delta SkyMiles®, Marriott Bonvoy™ and Singapore KrisFlyer.
Along with a number of travel insurances and purchase protections, The Platinum Card® from American Express also offers the following credits, which can easily cancel out the card’s $695 annual fee:
This card also offers access to American Express Global Lounge Collection, which includes complimentary access to The Centurion Network of lounges and Priority Pass Select lounges (enrollment required).
To see rates & fees for The Platinum Card® from American Express please click here.
Where the Chase Sapphire Reserve® really packs a better punch is the value you can get from the card’s rewards – since they’re worth 50% more when redeemed for travel through Chase’s portal and can be transferred to a variety of loyalty partners at a rate of 1:1.
You’ll 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®. Additionally, get Earn 5x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards® immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. Earn 3x points on other travel and dining & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. You can redeem points for travel, cash, gift cards, statement credits and products and services, or transfer them at a rate of 1 to 1 to 14 airlines and hotel partners.
Card benefits include a $300 annual travel credit, complimentary Priority Pass Select membership and a Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS application fee credit. You’ll also get access to protections, like trip cancellation and interruption insurance, lost luggage reimbursement, purchase and return protection, extended warranty protection and more.
This list is less robust than that of The Platinum Card® from American Express, but the Chase Sapphire Reserve® charges a lower annual fee than that card ($550 compared to $695). The authorized user fee is also lower than that of the Mastercard® Black Card™ ($75 compared to $195).
To see rates & fees for The Platinum Card® from American Express please click here.
| Credit Cards | Welcome Offer | Rewards Rate | Annual Fee | Intro Purchase APR | Regular APR | Intro Balance Transfer APR | Regular Balance Transfer Rate | Recommended Credit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mastercard® Black Card™
 Apply Now
on Luxury Card's secure site |
N/A | 2% value for airfare redemptions with no blackout dates or seat restrictions. 1.5% value for cash back redemptions. Earn one point for every one dollar spent. | $495 ($195 for each Authorized User added to the account) | N/A | 21.24%, 25.43% or 28.24% | 0% introductory APR for the first fifteen billing cycles following each balance transfer that posts to your account within 45 days of account opening. | After that, (and for balance transfers that do not post within 45 days of account opening) the APR will be 21.24%, 25.43% or 28.24%, based on your creditworthiness. There is a fee for balance transfers. | Excellent |
Apply Now
on Luxury Card's secure site |
|
The Platinum Card® from American Express
|
Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. | 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. Terms apply. | $695 | N/A | See Pay Over Time APR | N/A | N/A | Excellent/Good | |
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
Apply Now
on Chase's secure site |
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® | Earn 5x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards® immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. Earn 3x points on other travel and dining & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases | $550 | N/A | 22.49% – 29.49% Variable | N/A | 22.49% – 29.49% Variable | Excellent |
Apply Now
on Chase's secure site |
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Apply Now
on Capital One's secure site Rates & Fees |
Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel | 2 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day; 10 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel; 5 Miles per dollar on flights booked through Capital One Travel | $395 | N/A | 22.24% - 29.24% (Variable) | N/A | 22.24% - 29.24% (Variable) | Excellent |
Apply Now
on Capital One's secure site Rates & Fees |
If you want luxury service packaged in a stylish black metal card, and you won’t balk at an expensive fee, you may like the Mastercard® Black Card™. But we think you can get much more value from The Platinum Card® from American Express or the Chase Sapphire Reserve®.
Although those cards come with higher annual fees, they provide excellent travel benefits and protections, as well as lucrative welcome offers and more flexible rewards that can be transferred to airline and hotel loyalty partners at a strong rate.
Apply Now To see rates & fees for The Platinum Card® from American Express please click here.
