Reward Program Point Value Compare Table

Share
Learn about our information service

Compare the value of rewards points between the various rewards programs

The rewards points debate:

The credit card debate has two sides. The first side has people that use their credit cards wisely. They use their rewards points to make purchases, and they leave their money in the bank gathering interest until the end of the month when they pay off all the balance on the credit card. They believe that personal responsibility must be used by anyone that takes a card to receive rewards points.

They will say that it is not the credit cards that are to blame, but the people that use them. They are in fact only a tool and you can make of them what you will. They can be either useful or not, depending on what you use them for.

The next group of people believe that credit cards should not be used for any reason because the banks offering these credit cards are not using proper business practices and encourage overspending for a lot of people. Credit cards create a distance between money and the shopper, which can be quite dangerous.

For many people credit cards have ruined their lives. Many have succumbed to a heavy debt with the higher interest rates, terms that are not clear, the temptation to spend more and an inability to manage their finances.

Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card - Balance Transfer Offer

Reward Program Credit Card Offer

The Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card rewards spend with 1 Velocity Point per dollar spent up to $1,500. Receive up to 4 free additional domestic flights every year.

  • $64 p.a. annual fee for the first year ($129 p.a. thereafter) annual fee
  • 20.99% p.a. on purchases
  • 0% p.a. for 8 months on balance transfers
  • Cash Advance Rate of 20.99% p.a.
  • 44 days interest free
  • Minimum Income Requirement of $35,000 p.a.

Reward Program Credit Cards Comparison

Learn about our information service
Interest rate (p.a.) Balance transfer rate (p.a.) Annual fee Points per $ spent
Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card - Balance Transfer Offer
Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card – Balance Transfer Offer
Earn 1 Velocity Point per $1 spent up to $1,500 per month. Receive a complimentary domestic flight up to 4 times per year. 20.99% p.a. 0% p.a. for 8 months $64 p.a. annual fee for the first year ($129 p.a. thereafter) VISA/MC: 1.00; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card - Balance Transfer Offer
Read More About The Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card - Balance Transfer Offer
American Express Platinum Edge Credit Card
American Express Platinum Edge Credit Card
Earn Bonus Membership Rewards points when you apply plus complimentary domestic and international travel insurance. 20.74% p.a. $195 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 3.00 Apply Now For The American Express Platinum Edge Credit Card
Read More About The American Express Platinum Edge Credit Card
American Express Qantas Discovery Card
American Express Qantas Discovery Card
Earn Qantas Frequent Flyer points, plus take advantage of the no annual fee offer. 20.74% p.a. $0 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 1.00 Apply Now For The American Express Qantas Discovery Card
Read More About The American Express Qantas Discovery Card
ANZ Frequent Flyer Platinum American Express/Visa
ANZ Frequent Flyer Platinum American Express/Visa
Earn Bonus Qantas Points, plus earn 1.50 Frequent Flyer points for every $1 spent on your American Express card, and 0.50 point for every $1 spent on your Visa. Uncapped Frequent Flyer earnings. Complimentary International travel & medical insurance. 19.39% p.a. $295 p.a. (which includes a $240 annual account fee and a $55 Rewards Program services fee) VISA/MC: 0.50; AMEX: 1.50 Apply Now For The ANZ Frequent Flyer Platinum American Express/Visa
Read More About The ANZ Frequent Flyer Platinum American Express/Visa
NAB Qantas Rewards Premium Card
NAB Qantas Rewards Premium Card
Earn 1.5 points per $1 spent on eligible purchases. Plus enjoy a low balance transfer offer. 19.99% p.a. 4.99% p.a. for 6 months $250 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.50; AMEX: 1.50 Apply Now For The NAB Qantas Rewards Premium Card
Read More About The NAB Qantas Rewards Premium Card
HSBC Platinum Credit Card
HSBC Platinum Credit Card
Earn 25,000 bonus rewards points. Double or triple your rewards points with bonus partners. 19.99% p.a. 0% p.a. for 8 months $129 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The HSBC Platinum Credit Card
Read More About The HSBC Platinum Credit Card
Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card
Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card
An impressive balance transfer offer, plus earn 1 Velocity Point per $1 spent up to $1,500 per month, then 1 Velocity Point for every $2. Get 4 complimentary flights every year. 20.99% p.a. 2.9% p.a. for 6 months $129 p.a. VISA/MC: 1.00; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card
Read More About The Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card
American Express Velocity Escape Card
American Express Velocity Escape Card
Earn 7500 bonus Velocity points if you spend $300 in the first 3 months. Plus no annual fee. 20.74% p.a. $0 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 2.00 Apply Now For The American Express Velocity Escape Card
Read More About The American Express Velocity Escape Card
Commonwealth Bank Gold Awards Credit Card
Commonwealth Bank Gold Awards Credit Card
Redeem a wide range of rewards and enjoy premium travel insurance and benefits. 0% p.a. for 5 months (reverts to 20.24% p.a.) 5.99% p.a. for 5 months $144 p.a. ($114 for qualifying customers) VISA/MC: 1.00; AMEX: 2.00 Apply Now For The Commonwealth Bank Gold Awards Credit Card
Read More About The Commonwealth Bank Gold Awards Credit Card
ANZ Frequent Flyer
ANZ Frequent Flyer
Earn 20,000 bonus Qantas Frequent Flyer plus earn 1.00 Frequent Flyer point for every $1 spent on your American Express card, and 0.50 point for every $1 spent on your Visa. 19.39% p.a. $95 p.a. (which includes a $40 annual account fee and a $55 Rewards Program services fee) VISA/MC: 0.50; AMEX: 1.00 Apply Now For The ANZ Frequent Flyer
Read More About The ANZ Frequent Flyer
Citibank Rewards Credit Card - Platinum Card
Citibank Rewards Credit Card – Platinum Card
Consolidate your debt with a low balance transfer offer and a host of platinum privileges. Earn Citibank Reward points for every $1 spend. 20.99% p.a. 1.5% p.a. for 15 months $199 p.a. VISA/MC: 1.25; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The Citibank Rewards Credit Card - Platinum Card
Read More About The Citibank Rewards Credit Card - Platinum Card
HSBC Platinum Qantas Credit Card
HSBC Platinum Qantas Credit Card
Receive 20,000 Bonus Qantas Frequent Flyer points plus a balance transfer offer. 19.99% p.a. 0% p.a. for 6 months $199 p.a. VISA/MC: 2.00; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The HSBC Platinum Qantas Credit Card
Read More About The HSBC Platinum Qantas Credit Card
Commonwealth Bank Awards Credit Card
Commonwealth Bank Awards Credit Card

Earn up to 50,000 points per year. Online security guarantee. Frequent Flyer Awards system, including Bonus Partner Reward Offers.

0% p.a. for 5 months (reverts to 20.24% p.a.) 5.99% p.a. for 5 months $89 p.a. ($59 for qualifying customers) VISA/MC: 1.00; AMEX: 1.50 Apply Now For The Commonwealth Bank Awards Credit Card
Read More About The Commonwealth Bank Awards Credit Card
Emirates Citibank Platinum Card
Emirates Citibank Platinum Card
Earn 15,000 bonus Skywards Miles points. Plus a low interest rate on balance transfers. 20.99% p.a. 3.9% p.a. for 9 months $229 p.a. VISA/MC: 1.50; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The Emirates Citibank Platinum Card
Read More About The Emirates Citibank Platinum Card
Citibank Rewards Credit Card - Signature Card
Citibank Rewards Credit Card – Signature Card
Citibank reward points can be redeemed for airline reward programs including the Qantas Frequent Flyer program. 20.99% p.a. 1.5% p.a. for 15 months $199 p.a. annual fee for the first year ($395 p.a. thereafter) VISA/MC: 1.50; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The Citibank Rewards Credit Card - Signature Card
Read More About The Citibank Rewards Credit Card - Signature Card
Virgin Australia Velocity High Flyer Card
Virgin Australia Velocity High Flyer Card
Earn up to 1.25 Rewards Points per $1 spent, Plus a low balance transfer offer. 20.99% p.a. 1.9% p.a. for 6 months $289 p.a. VISA/MC: 1.25; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The Virgin Australia Velocity High Flyer Card
Read More About The Virgin Australia Velocity High Flyer Card
American Express Velocity Platinum Card
American Express Velocity Platinum Card
Earn 1.50 Velocity Points per $1 spent with the Virgin Australia group of Airlines.

20.74% p.a. $349 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 1.50 Apply Now For The American Express Velocity Platinum Card
Read More About The American Express Velocity Platinum Card
American Express Velocity Gold Card
American Express Velocity Gold Card
15000 bonus Velocity Rewards points if you spend $500 within the first 3 months. 20.74% p.a. $99 p.a. annual fee for the first year ($199 p.a. thereafter) VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 1.25 Apply Now For The American Express Velocity Gold Card
Read More About The American Express Velocity Gold Card
American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card
American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card
Earn up to 1.5 Membership Rewards Points for every $1 you spend using your card 20.74% p.a. $395 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 3.00 Apply Now For The American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card
Read More About The American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card
American Express Qantas Premium Card
American Express Qantas Premium Card
Earn Frequent Flyer points for every dollar spent. Travel insurance included. Earn up to 7500 Frequent Flyer points when you make your first purchase on your Qantas Premium card. 20.74% p.a. $249 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 1.25 Apply Now For The American Express Qantas Premium Card
Read More About The American Express Qantas Premium Card
Westpac Earth Platinum Card
Westpac Earth Platinum Card
Offers all the benefits of the Earth plus a range of complimentary insurance covers including overseas travel insurance, purchase security insurance and extended warranty insurance. 19.99% p.a. 0.99% p.a. for 6 months $125 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.50; AMEX: 1.00 Apply Now For The Westpac Earth Platinum Card
Read More About The Westpac Earth Platinum Card
Westpac Earth Classic
Westpac Earth Classic
The Westpac Earth Card is the best rewards card to maximise your Qantas Frequent Flyer points earning with up to 1.00 points earned for every $1 spent. 19.99% p.a. 0.99% p.a. for 6 months $75 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.50; AMEX: 1.00 Apply Now For The Westpac Earth Classic
Read More About The Westpac Earth Classic
Commonwealth Bank Platinum Awards Credit Card
Commonwealth Bank Platinum Awards Credit Card
A range of Commonwealth Bank travel insurance and luxury opportunities. 0% p.a. for 5 months (reverts to 20.24% p.a.) 5.99% p.a. for 5 months $280 p.a. ($250 for qualifying customers) VISA/MC: 1.00; AMEX: 3.00 Apply Now For The Commonwealth Bank Platinum Awards Credit Card
Read More About The Commonwealth Bank Platinum Awards Credit Card
NAB Low Fee Card
NAB Low Fee Card
Earn FlyBuys points towards a great range of awards by linking your FlyBuys membership to your credit card account at no extra cost. 19.49% p.a. 4.99% p.a. for 6 months $30 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 0.00 Apply Now For The NAB Low Fee Card
Read More About The NAB Low Fee Card
American Express Qantas Ultimate Card
American Express Qantas Ultimate Card
Receive up to 50,000 extra Qantas Frequent Flyer points after you make your first purchase on your credit card. Plus earn upto 1.50 points per $1 spend. $450 p.a. VISA/MC: 0.00; AMEX: 1.50 Apply Now For The American Express Qantas Ultimate Card
Read More About The American Express Qantas Ultimate Card

We take only a few popular products and services to redeem in order for an easy and quick comparison.

  • The $100 Myer/Caltex Vouchers are the reward point cost of the voucher. If the card is not available, a similar retailer/petrol station card will be substituted i.e David Jones, Harvey Norman, Shell or BP. If a $100 card is not available, then a $20, $25 or $50 voucher will be used and multiplied accordingly to give the reward point cost of $100.
    Reward Program Credit Card Comparison

  • The ‘Flight Syd to Melb‘ is the point cost of the average discount flight from Sydney to Melbourne. Some providers may only let you fly on specific dates, typically in the middle of the week when it’s cheaper. If the reward’s program does not directly offer flights as redeemable rewards, a travel voucher will be used in its place. For the sake of this table, we will assume an average discount fare from Sydney to Melbourne costs $100.
  • The ‘Cashback Value‘ is how many points you need to redeem for $1 of credit or cash (subjective to what the program offers). No program actually allows you to redeem in $1 increments, more commonly you can receive cashback in $25, $50, $100, $200 or $250.
  • The ‘Average $ Value of Point‘ is taken as an average from a wider range of products than the ones listed below. The higher, the more value.*
  • Point Expiry: Some reward programs have point expiry for the points you have earned. Most of the time, if the program has point expiry they will most likely expire 1-5 years after they have been accumulated. Others have more specific conditions such as point expiry when your account falls out of good standing.
  • Point Capping: There are two forms of point capping. The first is done in order to entice consumers, reward programs will sometimes offer a high dollar:point ratio as an introductory offer, such as “3 points for every dollar you spend on your card”. If you analyze the fine print, you’ll find that this will only apply to the first $5,000 or so spent on your card per year. Others have a standard hierarchy of point capping, with a tiered system which progressively gives you less points after certain spending milestones per year. The other type of point capping will simply have a cap on how many reward points you can earn per year/month.
    Even if a reward program is listed as ‘No‘ for Point Expiry, this is assuming that the account remains open. If your account becomes un-current, points will typically expire from 12-36 months.

Take note that on the surface of this table, the value can be misleading – while most reward programs offer 1 reward point for every $1 spent, many have promotional reward point offers which allows you to quickly accumulate points, and raise the value equation in your favour.
Every consumer has their own individual spending patterns, financial leanings and levels of income, and thus will have to take their own circumstances into account when judging what reward program is best for them.

Want to compare Australian reward program credit cards directly? Click here for a comparison table of leading reward cards.

What are interchange fees?

These are the fees that the acquiring bank, the merchant’s bank, pays the issuing bank, the customers bank, when merchants use cards such as MasterCard and Visa for purchases. These are typically a percentage of the purchase price in total with taxes included, plus a flat fee. This fee adds up to approximately 2% of the value of the transaction.

Some very big merchants may be able to negotiate the fee prices, and these interchange fees have been part of a regulatory and antitrust investigation. Smaller merchants would prefer the customer to use debit cards or cash, but they cannot refuse to take these credit cards, even when the fees go over the profit margin. Some countries have lower fees and some have higher.

The cost of these fees must be passed over to the consumer in the form of higher prices. Merchants are not allowed to tell consumers about these fees, according to the rules of the credit card companies, during any transaction.

Consumers are paying billions of dollars to pay for these hidden fees on top of all of the other fees charged by their credit card issuers such as late fees, over the limit charges and interest. These interchange fees do not appear on any statements.

In reality what is happening is every consumer, whether they use a credit card or not, is paying for this interchange fee by paying extra money for their items.

Merchants are not allowed to tell consumers how much this fee information really is. Merchants are charged a flat fee plus a percentage for every purchase made, but they can not legally ask for a minimum purchase amount before people can use their credit cards. By using credit cards we are supporting an industry that is causing the prices of goods to rise, for the vulnerable and the poor as well.

Using credit cards with this hidden fee costs us a lot more money than we could ever make back using rewards points. The banks make a lot of money and use rewards points to make us think that we are actually making money. Credit card banks generally equate one reward points into approximately .65 unit cash, instead of one point equaling one unit of cash.

A look at personal responsibility and rewards points:

This is an argument used by those who advocate rewards points programs, but it does not really take into account the less fortunate and poor people.

Universities and alumni associations are paid millions of dollars to sell personal information about their alumni, faculty, staff and students to credit card banks.

Poor people and others that have a bad credit history are still offered cards at an incredible interest rate of 20%+ instead of refusing to give them credit or lower interest rates.

People who have previously gone through bankruptcy are currently the target market for credit card companies.

This has become a moral and ethical issue that seeds to be addressed. It will be up to the individual to decide if these rewards points are really worth it or not. Every time you make a purchase you have the choice to make. It comes down to making a stand for the common people and not merely taking the easy way out. Most people will not take a stand and it doesn’t really matter if they do or don’t, as long as you stand up for your beliefs.

-
Want to compare Australian reward program credit cards directly? Click here for a comparison table of leading reward cards.
-
The following are online reward catalogues for each credit card provider. If a bank is not listed above, it will most likely be due to the fact you need to be a member to view some rewards catalogues online.

-
The information here is current as of March 29th 2009. The information and statistics on this page are all derived from independent research, and should only be used as a rough and simple guideline to compare reward point currencies and programs.
Any reward program is subject to change, and while we will be diligent to keep up with alterations, we can not keep up as fast as the banks. If a link is broken or a feature out of date, we would appreciate your help by
contacting us.


Was this content helpful to you? No Yes

Subscribe to our newsletter and get "The Ultimate Guide to Balance Transfers"

If You Like This Post...

Get all the latest deals, guides and loopholes in Finder's free bi-monthly email. Don't miss out - join the thousands who get it emailed!

We Respect Your Privacy

Credit Cards Comparison

Learn about our information service
Interest rate (p.a.) Balance transfer rate (p.a.) Annual fee Cash advance rate (p.a.)
ANZ Low Rate
ANZ Low Rate
A low rate on purchases, balance transfer and a low annual fee. 13.14% p.a. 0% p.a. for 9 months $58 p.a. 21.49% p.a. Apply Now For The ANZ Low Rate
Read More About The ANZ Low Rate
HSBC Credit Card
HSBC Credit Card
No annual fee for the life of the credit card. Plus a low balance transfer offer. 17.99% p.a. 0% p.a. for 6 months $0 p.a. 21.99% p.a. Apply Now For The HSBC Credit Card
Read More About The HSBC Credit Card
Bankwest Zero Platinum MasterCard
Bankwest Zero Platinum MasterCard
Exclusive Offer to Credit Card Finder. No annual fee credit card with platinum benefits. 17.99% p.a. 0% p.a. for 9 months $0 p.a. 21.99% p.a. Apply Now For The Bankwest Zero Platinum MasterCard
Read More About The Bankwest Zero Platinum MasterCard
Commonwealth Bank Low Rate Credit Card
Commonwealth Bank Low Rate Credit Card
A low interest rate offer on purchases and balance transfers. 0% p.a. for 5 months (reverts to 12.99% p.a.) 5.99% p.a. for 5 months $78 p.a. ($48 for qualifying customers) 21.24% p.a. Apply Now For The Commonwealth Bank Low Rate Credit Card
Read More About The Commonwealth Bank Low Rate Credit Card
ANZ Platinum Credit Card
ANZ Platinum Credit Card
No annual fee for the first year and a balance transfer offer. 19.39% p.a. 0% p.a. for 9 months $0 p.a. annual fee for the first year ($87 p.a. thereafter) 20.99% p.a. Apply Now For The ANZ Platinum Credit Card
Read More About The ANZ Platinum Credit Card

* The credit card offers compared on this page are chosen from a range of credit cards CreditCardFinder.com.au has access to track details from and is not representative of all the products available in the market. Products are displayed in no particular order or ranking. The use of terms 'Best' and 'Top' are not product ratings and are subject to our disclaimer. You should consider seeking independent financial advice and consider your own personal financial circumstances when comparing cards.