What's happening to the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card's lounge access in February?

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has long been an amazing card for airport lounge access. Starting February 2026, there will sadly be a downgrade. Guests of Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card cardholders and authorized users of the card will not have complimentary access to Capital One Lounges and Priority Pass lounges.

What’s the change on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card with guest access for lounges?

Currently, Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card cardholders and authorized users can each bring two complimentary guests into Priority Pass lounges and Capital One lounges. This means that an authorized user on the Venture X can bring their own two complimentary guests (and authorized users don't cost anything to add).

Unfortunately, starting on February 1, 2026, guests of authorized users and primary cardholders of the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card will have to pay for lounge access. They’ll have to pay $35 each for Priority Pass lounges. And $45 for Capital One Lounges and Landings (or $25 if you're 17 and under).

How will Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card authorized user fees change starting Feb 01, 2026?

Since the card's launch, adding authorized users did not cost anything—they were completely free to add.

However, beginning February 1, 2026, adding authorized users to the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card will cost the primary cardholder $125. Once added, the authorized user gets unlimited access to Capital One & Priority Pass lounges for themself.

Is the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card worth keeping with the changes to lounge access?

Even with the negative lounge access changes, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is still one of the most appealing travel & lifestyle cards out there. It has a solid welcome bonus, impressive earn rates, great travel partners and good bang for your buck with perks & benefits on the card.

What are the earning rates on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card?

On the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you get some pretty solid earn rates:

• 10 miles per $1 spent on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
• 5 miles per $1 spent on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel
• 2 miles per $1 spent on all other purchases (no cap)

The 2 miles per $1 spent on all purchases stands out to me in particular as this is very rare in the credit card space. This isn’t a card that you have to spend a lot of time thinking about—you can just use the card on all your purchases and earn 2 miles per $1 spent to eventually transfer to Capital One’s travel partners.

What transfer partners are available with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card?

Capital One has a variety of travel partners with different rates:

Airline Partners

• Capital One has a 2:1.5 transfer ratio to EVA Air and Japan Airlines Mileage Bank.
• With JetBlue it’s a 5:3 transfer ratio.

All of Capital One’s other airline partners have a 1:1 conversion rate.

• Aeromexico Rewards
• Air Canada Aeroplan®
• Avianca LifeMiles
• British Airways Executive Club
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
• Emirates Skywards
• Etihad Guest
• Finnair Plus
• Flying Blue
• Qantas Frequent Flyer
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• TAP Miles&Go
• Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
• Virgin Red

Hotel Partners

• Preferred Hotels has a 1:2 conversion ratio.
• Choice Privileges and Wyndham Rewards have a 1:1 ratio.
• Accor Live Limitless has a 2:1 ratio.

Capital One has one of the best airline & hotel partner lists out there. It gives you incredible flexibility when thinking about how to use your Capital One Miles.

What’s the welcome bonus on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card?

The welcome bonus on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is x miles after spending x in x months. It’s a pretty solid offer that can get you international business class flights, hotel stays or rental car bookings.

What’s the $300 travel credit on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card?

When you book travel through Capital One Travel, you will get up to a $300 annual travel credit for all kinds of bookings. You can book flights, hotel stays, rental cars, vacation rentals and activities/tours on Capital One Travel.

What is the $120 Global Entry/TSA precheck credit?

You will get an application fee credit when you apply for TSA Precheck or Global Entry (up to $120 value)—a much needed benefit if you fly regularly.

What’s the 10,000 miles anniversary bonus on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card?

At every account anniversary with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you will get 10,000 Capital One Miles. A nice chunk of points to get you closer to your next vacay.

What’s a better card than the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card for lounge access?

If you are looking for airport lounge access, there’s a decent amount of cards out there—the American Express Platinum Card®, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Delta Skymiles Reserve American Express card, and Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard are all cards that come to mind.

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is one of the cheapest cards out there that has Priority Pass lounge access ($395 annual fee) but if you are looking for improved access for guests, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is the place to look. You can bring two guests complimentary into Priority Pass lounges and Chase Sapphire lounges.

I have the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and it’s been great to have for trips with friends and family. It can be awkward if you have guests with you, since some cards charge fees for guests. The Chase Sapphire Reserve® solves this problem for a party of 3 as you get two complimentary guests.

If you are looking for the cheapest card for decent lounge access, the U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card is the way to go. With this no annual fee card, you get four free visits a year to Priority Pass lounges. For people that travel only a couple times a year, this could be perfect. I’m thinking of the kind of traveler that takes two big vacations a year—two round trip flights making for four lounge visits total.

My parents would probably love the U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card as they don’t travel regularly but enjoy a couple of vacations a year. They like to go to Florida for Christmas and travel to one additional place the rest of the year. My dad is mostly interested in cash back cards as a result. He believes the cash back is more valuable and he’s also scared of the cards with big annual fees. That’s why the U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card could be an excellent pick for my parents with no annual fee and airport lounge benefits.

Final Remarks

Airport lounge access is an extremely popular benefit for folks when thinking about their next credit card. Although Capital One is removing complimentary guest access in lounges on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card in February, the card still ranks pretty high in my rankings. As a primary cardholder, you aren’t paying an exorbitant price for lounge access. And you get a $300 travel credit, 2x miles per $1 spent and 10,000 Capital One Miles each account anniversary along with many other perks and benefits. All for a $395 annual fee.

I’ll say that it is definitely sad news for authorized users on the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card as the primary cardholder will now have to pay a $125 fee to effectively get each authorized user lounge access. My recommendation for authorized users is to check out the U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card.

If you’re a Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card cardholder, how are you feeling about the changes to lounge access for guests and for authorized users?