In January 2025, JetBlue and Barclays introduced the JetBlue Premier Card, a new premium credit card aimed at loyal JetBlue travelers. Since I already have the JetBlue Plus Card, I received an offer to upgrade. It didn’t take long to review the card’s benefits and ask myself: Who is this card actually for?
JetBlue Premier Card Benefits
For an eye-popping $499 annual fee, here’s what the JetBlue Premier Card offers:
- Priority Pass Select membership
- Paisly Statement Credit – Get a $50 statement credit for every $250+ Paisly purchase, up to six times per year (max value: $300).
- Global Entry/TSA PreCheck Credit – Up to $120 every four years.
- Group A boarding on JetBlue-operated flights.
- Free first checked bag for the cardholder and up to three companions on JetBlue-operated flights.
- 10% points rebate when redeeming for a JetBlue-operated award flight.
- Annual 5,000-point bonus after your cardmember anniversary.
- 50% savings on eligible inflight purchases.
- Earning structure:
- 6X points per $1 on JetBlue and Paisly purchases
- 2X points per $1 at restaurants and grocery stores
- 1X points per $1 on all other purchases
At first glance, this sounds like a decent set of perks, but when you compare it to the JetBlue Plus Card—which costs just $99 annually—the differences start to look… underwhelming.
The only additional perks you get for the extra $400 per year are:
- Priority Pass Select membership
- Paisly statement credit (if you use it enough)
- Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
- Group A boarding
If you already have Priority Pass access through another card (which many frequent travelers do) and a Global Entry/TSA credit from a different premium card, that leaves you paying $400 for Group A boarding and a Paisly credit that requires multiple large purchases.
Is that really worth it? IMHO, no.
Why Does the JetBlue Premier Card Exist?
Barclays has a habit of introducing “upgrade” versions of existing airline co-branded credit cards. Two other examples include:
American Airlines Aviator Silver Card
- Available as an upgrade from the Aviator Red.
- Has benefits that cater to frequent AA flyers, like additional Loyalty Points, companion certificates, and Wi-Fi credits.
- Has a $199 annual fee
Emirates Skywards Premium Card
At the same $499 annual fee as the JetBlue Premium, the Emirates premium card offers:
- Gold Tier status for the first year (renewable with $40K spend).
- 10,000 bonus Skywards Miles after spending $30K per year.
- 3X miles on Emirates purchases, 2X miles on travel, and 1X miles on everything else.
- Priority Pass Select membership
- Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
- 25% discount on buying/gifting miles
Now, I’m not sure how many people are jumping at the chance to have an Emirates-branded credit card, but at least the Gold Tier status and earnings structure make sense for someone who flies Emirates regularly.
This brings me back to JetBlue Premier: Does it offer the same value proposition for JetBlue flyers?
The Upgrade Dilemma
If you go to the Barclays website, the sign-up bonus for the JetBlue Premier Card is:
Earn 70,000 bonus points + 5 tiles after spending $5,000 and paying the annual fee in full within the first 90 days.
But there’s a catch—if you have or previously had a JetBlue Plus Card, you’re not eligible for the welcome bonus.
That means my only option is to upgrade—without a sign-up bonus. And if I had canceled my JetBlue Plus Card in the past, I’d be completely out of luck.
Final Thoughts: Who Is This Card For?
Honestly, I’m struggling to find the target audience here.
- Frequent JetBlue travelers? They likely already have TSA PreCheck/Global Entry credits from other cards.
- NYC-based JetBlue flyers? No Priority Pass lounge at JetBlue’s JFK terminal makes that perk useless.
- Paisly users? You’d need six separate $250+ purchases to maximize that benefit.
It’s hard not to wonder: What were they thinking?
For $499 a year, you’d expect more exclusive perks—maybe Mint-related benefits or a bonus toward Mosaic status. But as it stands, the JetBlue Premier Card feels like a solution in search of a problem.
Would you pay an extra $400 yearly for early boarding, an iffy statement credit, and some redundant perks? Because I sure wouldn’t.
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