Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card Editor's Review

Is the Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card Worth It?

The Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card is worth it for people with good credit or better who are frequent flyers with Hawaiian Airlines. The card gives 1 - 3 points per $1 spent on purchases, but it comes with a $99 annual fee.

There’s also an initial bonus of 60,000 points after spending $1,000 within the first 90 days, which is a great deal even if you’re just looking to save on a single trip. You can combine that with a one-time 50% discount for a round-trip flight between Hawaii and North America for some serious savings. Plus, you can get a $100 annual companion discount and two free checked bags on eligible Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines flights purchased with the card.

What You Need to Do to Make the Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card Worthwhile

To make the Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card worthwhile, you should spend at least $1,000 within the first 90 days to earn the initial bonus of 60,000 points. That will cover the card’s annual fee for several years. You should also take advantage of the 50% round-trip discount, as well as the companion discount if you’re traveling with another person.

Hawaiian Airlines points are worth up to 2.29 cents each when redeemed for airfare. So if you disregard the initial bonus and the card’s supplemental benefits, you’d have to spend around $3,000 to $9,000 in a normal year to break even on the annual fee.

It’s also best to pay your credit card balance in full each month so that you don’t owe interest at the card’s 19.49% - 29.49% (V) APR, which would detract from the value you get from rewards.

Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card Highlights

• 60,000 Initial Bonus Points:  Spending at least $1,000 during the first 90 days you have this card will get you 60,000 bonus points. That’s enough for a roundtrip coach flight from the U.S. mainland to Hawaii.
• Companion Discounts:  Account approval scores you a one-time 50% companion ticket discount for a round-trip flight between  North America and Hawaii when flying with Hawaiian Airlines or Alaska Airlines. This offer must be used within 13 months of card issuance, does not apply to any taxes and service charges associated with the ticket, and cannot be combined with any other discounts. Card holders also get a $100 companion discount each year on your account anniversary – also applicable to a round-trip coach flight between North America and Hawaii on Hawaiian Airlines or Alaska Airlines operated flights.
• Free Checked Bag: Cardholders get two complimentary checked bags each time they fly with Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines. Anything free is obviously great, but it is important to note that the free checked bags are contingent on booking your ticket directly with Hawaiian Airlines or Alaska Airlines (i.e., not through a comparison site like Kayak or Travelocity).
• No Foreign Transaction Fees:  Consumer interest in avoiding international transaction surcharges has led to an increase in the number of issuers offering cards without foreign fees. Hawaiian Airlines has clearly gotten the message, and its lack of a foreign transaction fee on purchases made outside the United States can help cardholders save up to 9% compared to exchanging hard currency at an airport kiosk or local bank, according to WalletHub research.
• No Blackout Dates:  This is becoming more and more common with airline rewards credit cards, but it is nevertheless worth mentioning as a strength.

The Lowlights

• $99 Annual Fee:  Paying for well-above-average rewards can sometimes make sense, but there are cheaper cards that offer more lucrative ongoing rewards than the Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card.
• Better Ongoing Rewards Available:  Unless you make a few trips back and forth to Hawaii each year, you will likely earn 1 point for every dollar you spend on most transactions. That’s the equivalent of the average rewards card. You should also take into consideration the 2 points for every $1 spent on gas, grocery store and dining at restaurants. You should be earning more, especially when you’re paying for membership in the rewards program.

Marketing Fluff

• Atmos Rewards Point Sharing: This is a Hawaiian Airlines program that allows point sharing between friends and family members. Most, if not all, airlines that offer branded rewards provide such a mechanism, so you should not mistake it as adding value to the card.
• Chip-Enabled Card:  Like the vast majority of chip-based credit cards on the market, the Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card relies on chip-and-signature technology. Without getting into the technical aspects, chip-and-signature does not get you anything relative to normal magnetic stripe credit cards when used abroad. The chip merely makes the card seem more sophisticated and therefore more valuable.

Overall

The Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card is a logical choice for frequent travelers who are loyal to the Hawaiian Airlines brand given its array of airline-specific perks.

For everyone else, other cards offer better rewards at a lower price point. More specifically, the card's main attraction is an initial bonus worth a roundtrip from North America to Hawaii. When you factor in the $99 annual fee, you're playing with a little more than $664 in value.

Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card Review Methodology

This Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card review is based on WalletHub’s proprietary 100-point credit card rating system. By using a consistent methodology to evaluate the Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card and all other cards, WalletHub’s credit card experts make it easy for people to compare their options and find the best credit cards for their needs.

The WalletHub rating system uses 16 key metrics grouped into seven categories: Fees, Rewards, Two-year Cost, Interest Rates, Approval Requirements, Special Features, and Reviews. Each metric has a maximum number of points allocated to it, based on the metric’s importance as determined by our editors. The points are added up to create an overall rating for the Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card out of a maximum of 100 points, which is then converted to a 5-point scale.

Ratings for each category reflect how close Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card is to WalletHub’s definition of a 5-star credit card, which is based on market conditions and what we believe are reasonable terms. We compare Hawaiian Airlines Credit Card to that standard to give a numerical approximation of how reasonable and competitive its terms are compared to other cards.

To learn more about how WalletHub rates credit card offers, check out our full credit card review methodology.