PenFed Pathfinder Rewards Visa Signature Card review

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If you’re looking for a travel points card with solid rewards rates, a terrific welcome bonus, and a 0% intro APR on balance transfers, the PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card is worth considering. You’ll need to be a member of PenFed Credit Union to apply, and it’s best for PenFed Honors Advantage Members as they’ll earn more rewards on travel purchases, and their annual fee is waived. 

Review: Is the PenFed Pathfinder Rewards Visa Signature Card best for you?

If you’re a Pentagon Federal (PenFed) Credit Union member (anyone can join), the PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card could be a great fit for your wallet. It has good rewards rates on all travel categories (up to 4x points per dollar spent), and a decent flat-rate reward earning on all other purchases. Cardholders get unique redemption options and a selection of travel and purchase benefits, for a modest annual fee of $95 (waived for existing Honors Advantage Members).

New cardholders can earn 50,000 bonus points when you spend $3,000 in the first 90 days of account opening (up to $500 in value). Other benefits include a $100 annual domestic air ancillary travel statement credit, access to the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection, complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge annual membership (worth $99), up to $100 in statement credit toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee, and no foreign transaction fees. 

In addition, the card offers a 0% balance transfers promo APR for 12 months made in the first 90 days after account opening, 3% fee applies to each transaction (then a 17.99% APR on balance transfers, 17.99% Variable APR on purchases APR). This balance transfer offer is good for folks who want to consolidate and pay down debt without incurring high interest charges. However, the 0% intro APR offer does not apply to new purchases, so it’s not ideal for those who need to pay off large purchases over multiple billing cycles. 

The PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card is best suited for PenFed Honors Advantage Members since they’ll earn an additional 1 point per dollar spent on travel purchases (a total of 4x points on all travel categories). Plus, PenFed Honors Advantage Members don’t pay an annual fee.

Non-members will miss out on the higher rewards earnings and will still need to pay the annual fee. So if you don’t qualify for the PenFed Honors Advantage Program, you may want to consider a different travel rewards credit card. 

We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

How to earn rewards with the PenFed Pathfinder Rewards Visa Signature

The PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card earns unlimited points in all categories with no spending caps. Cardholders earn:

• 4x points on all travel categories, including airfare, hotels, and car rentals (PenFed Honors Advantage members only): 
• 3x points on all travel categories (if you’re not an Honors Advantage member)
• 1.5x points on all other purchases

You’ll receive your points at the end of the billing cycle in which you earned them. 

How to use rewards from the PenFed Pathfinder Rewards Visa Signature

It’s important to note that PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card doesn’t have airline and hotel transfer partners. Instead, you can redeem points on travel only through the PenFed Rewards catalog, which can be quite limiting — the same goes for shopping, donating to charity, gift cards, and other redemption options. But you can still redeem rewards for statement credits to your PenFed card or account (when you set up automatic redemptions).

Rewards points earned with the PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card are redeemable as statement credits, gift cards (physical cards and e-gift cards), travel, shopping, experiences, charity, and at the Apple Store. 

You can access the PenFed rewards catalog through your PenFed Online Account or app. Once you’re logged in, you’ll be able to view your balance and click “Redeem Rewards” to browse redemption options for travel, merchandise, gift cards, and more — you can also click “Set Up Auto Redemptions” to set up an automatic statement credit to your credit card or PenFed account (uses the available balance on the 25th of each month). 

PenFed Pathfinder benefits and features

$100 annual statement credit

The PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card comes with up to $100 annual domestic air ancillary travel statement credit. When you charge eligible purchases (including baggage fees, flight change fees, inflight food and beverage purchases, airport lounge day passes, pet kennel fees, and phone reservation fees) to your card, you’ll be reimbursed up to $100 each year.

Note that airline tickets, upgrades, mileage points purchases, mileage points transfer fees, gift cards, duty free purchases, and award tickets aren’t eligible for the domestic air ancillary travel credit. In addition, only certain US airlines qualify (Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta, Frontier, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue, Southwest, and United).

Global Entry or TSA PreCheck statement credit

When you charge your Global Entry ($100) or TSA PreCheck ($78) application fee to your PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card, you’ll receive a statement credit for the amount, every four years. 

Complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge annual membership

You’ll receive a complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge annual membership (a $99 value) with your PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card. Unlike most other cards that come with Priority Pass, this membership doesn’t include free unlimited entry to lounges — you’ll be charged $32 per visit.

Baggage delay reimbursement

If your luggage is delayed for more than four hours, you can be reimbursed up to $100 a day for essential items for up to three days (max value of $300). This benefit applies to you and immediate family members whose tickets were purchased with your card. You must notify the benefits administrator within 20 days of delayed luggage. 

Lost luggage reimbursement

You can be reimbursed for checked or carry-on luggage lost due to theft or misdirection by the airline or other common carrier (up to $3,000 per covered trip). To be eligible for this benefit, you have to purchase a portion of your trip with your PenFed credit card/through the rewards program. 

Roadside dispatch

PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card cardholders receive access to pay-per-use roadside assistance for towing, tire change, jump start, lockout service, and more 24/7. 

Travel and emergency assistance

If things go wrong when you’re traveling, you can access a travel and emergency assistance hotline which can help arrange things like medical and legal referrals, translation services, prescription assistance, and more. The service itself is free, but you’re responsible for any third-party costs.

Purchase security

You’ll get protection on new purchases made with your PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card (for the first 90 days from the date of purchase) that are damaged from fire, explosion, rain, theft, and more. You can get replacements, repairs, or reimbursements up to the total purchase price of the item (max of $500 per claim and $50,000 per cardholder). 

Travel accident insurance

You’ll receive up to $250,000 in coverage for accidental death or dismemberment (no extra cost) when you charge your entire travel fare to your PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card. 

Trip delay reimbursement

You’ll receive up to $300 per purchased ticket when your trip is delayed for more than 12 hours (one claim per trip). To be eligible for this benefit, you have to purchase a portion of your trip with your PenFed credit card/through the rewards program. Your spouse and dependent children under 22 years old are automatically covered. 

Visa Signature benefits

Cardholders can get assistance with bookings, travel, sports and entertainment tickets, restaurant reservations, golf tee times, and more 24/7 by calling the Visa Signature Concierge at 800-953-7392. Other Visa Signature card benefits include shopping, golf, wine, food, and entertainment discounts and access to the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection.

Fees and costs

The PenFed Pathfinder® Rewards Visa Signature® Card comes with a 0% balance transfers promo APR for 12 months made in the first 90 days after account opening, 3% fee applies to each transaction (then a 17.99% APR on balance transfers, 17.99% Variable APR on purchases APR). 

The card charges a $95 (waived for existing Honors Advantage Members) annual fee. It also has late payment fees (up to $28), returned payment fees (up to $25), and balance transfer fees (3%). 

The card doesn’t have a cash advance fee or an over-the-credit limit fee. Plus, it’s a good card to travel abroad with since it doesn’t charge a foreign transaction fee. 

PenFed Pathfinder Rewards vs other PenFed credit cards

PenFed Pathfinder Rewards vs other travel credit cards

PenFed Pathfinder Rewards Card frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Tessa Campbell

Personal Finance Reviews Fellow