Editorial disclosure: CardRewards.ai is an independent comparison service. Card data comes from issuers' published terms; data as of September 27, 2026. Card issuers do not influence our rankings or content.
Annual fees: Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card $395/yr, SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® $0/yr. Strongest bonus categories: Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card on hotels, SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® on everyday spending.
Card data as of September 27, 2026.
Annual Fee
Welcome Bonus
| Category | Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card | SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | 2X | 2X |
| Hotels | 2X | 2X |
No unconditional category winner — 5 categories depend on how you earn.
Hotels
Depends: via Capital One Travel - No annual cap
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card earns 10X when conditions are met; SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® earns 2X (2X without restrictions)
Car Rentals
Depends: via Capital One Travel - No annual cap
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card earns 10X when conditions are met; SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® earns 2X (2X without restrictions)
Flights
Depends: via Capital One Travel - No annual cap
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card earns 5X when conditions are met; SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® earns 2X (2X without restrictions)
Vacation Rentals
Depends: via Capital One Travel - No annual cap
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card earns 5X when conditions are met; SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® earns 2X (2X without restrictions)
Entertainment
Depends: via issuer travel portal
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card earns 5X when conditions are met; SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® earns 2X (2X without restrictions)
Modeled net value (bonus categories at unconditional rates, caps applied). Spend mix: dining 15%, groceries 15%, gas 10%, travel 10%, everything else 50%. Statement credits use the same recurring usable estimates as each card's detail page; first-year-only credits count in year one only. Welcome offers valued at each card's program rate shown on this page.
Modeled value is close across spend levels — especially once statement credits are counted.
Published annual fees: Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card $395/yr, SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® $0/yr — a $395 difference before welcome offers and credits.
| Everything Else | 2X | 2X |
Network
Key Benefits
Pros
Cons
Modeled value is close across spend levels — especially once statement credits are counted.
| Scenario | Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card | SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® | Ongoing winner | Year-one winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light spender: $1,000/month | Rewards: $444 Credits (our usable estimate): $312 − Annual fee ($395) Ongoing: $361 Year one: $1,749 | Rewards: $240 Credits (our usable estimate): $65 − Annual fee ($0) Ongoing: $305 Year one: $305 | Close — depends on how much of the credits you use | Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card |
| Heavy spender: $4,000/month | Rewards: $1,776 Credits (our usable estimate): $312 − Annual fee ($395) Ongoing: $1,693 Year one: $3,081 | Rewards: $960 Credits (our usable estimate): $65 − Annual fee ($0) Ongoing: $1,025 Year one: $1,025 | Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card | Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card |
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card costs $395/yr — that's $395 more than the SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® (no annual fee). To justify that gap, you need to extract at least $395 in annual value from the card's higher earn rates and benefits.
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card includes travel credits, lounge access, Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit. Those perks are not included in the earn-rate scenario table above — compare their dollar value to the $395 fee gap for your own usage.
Bottom line: Use the year-one vs ongoing table for modeled earn value at your spend level. The $395 fee gap means the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card needs roughly $395 more in annual rewards (or credits you will use) to break even on hotels and car rentals and everyday spend.
Choosing one card means missing out on these benefits from the other.
Choosing SaksFirst World Elite Mastercard® means losing:
Get the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card if you:
Editorial disclosure: CardRewards.ai is an independent comparison service. Card data comes from issuers' published terms; data as of September 27, 2026. Card issuers do not influence our rankings or content.
