Westpac Altitude Credit Card

• Earn Altitude points on purchases
• 2 Altitude points per $1 spent on your Altitude American Express ® Card
• 1 Altitude point per $1 spent on your Altitude Visa ® Card or Altitude MasterCard ®
• Two credit cards linked to one account - with one monthly statement and one credit limit
• Money magazine Award Winner - Altitude American Express ® Card
• No points capping or expiry
• Receive 5,000 bonus Altitude points when you first use either card for a purchase
• Paperless eStatements available
• Read the terms and conditions

• 2 cards linked to 1 account means you can earn more points
• Redeem points on a choice of top airlines
• Added security with SecureCode for online purchases
• Chosen as Money Magazine’s “Best Rewards Credit Card”
• Cards with cheaper purchase rates are available
• Average $100 p.a. annual fee
• No promotional offer for purchases
• No insurance despite being a travel rewards credit card

How does the Westpac Altitude Credit Card compare for rates and fees against an average credit card? Based on the data from our website this credit card comparison scorecard shows:

		Purchase Rate	Cash Adv Rate	Annual Fee	Bal. Transfer Rate	Bal. Transfer Rate Period
	Westpac Altitude Credit Card	19.99%	21.59%	$100	3.99%	6 months
	The Average Credit Card	17.17%	21.04%	$95	3.04%	7 months

You can transfer from:



• ANZ
• Aussie
• Bank of Melbourne
• Bank of Queensland
• Bank SA
• Bankwest
• Citibank
• Coles
• Commonwealth Bank
• HSBC
• NAB
• St.George
• Suncorp
• Virgin
• Woolworths

You cannot transfer from:



• Westpac

The award winning Westpac Altitude credit card is a rewards credit card worth further investigation. With no expiry date and no limit on the number of points you can earn, it is suitable for big spenders as well as those of you who spend less regularly. This is a dual card account with a MasterCard and an American Express, which gives you the opportunity to earn Altitude reward points at a faster rate.

Pros

This card is linked to the Altitude reward scheme, which allows you to redeem points for flights on many of the world’s major airlines including Virgin, Malaysia Airlines, Air New Zealand and Singapore Airlines. You can also spend your points on rewards and gift vouchers from a wide range of retailers.

Collecting points is quick and easy with the Altitude credit card, not only do you get 5,000 points when you first use the card, but you can also receive bonus points when you spend with selected retail partners. Cardholders earn 2 Altitude points for every $1 spent using the American Express card and 1 Altitude point when using the MasterCard. There’s no limit on the number of points you can collect and no expiry date – perfect if you’re saving up for something special.

The Altitude MasterCard is perfect for anyone who’s on the go. Thanks to the integrated PayPass contactless technology, you can pay for items under $100 by simply swiping the card on the terminal – no waiting around to tap in your PIN!

If you are concerned about security, then you’ll be pleased to know that Westpac have the latest technology available to protect cardholders against fraud. There’s also the option to sign up to MasterCard’s SecureCode service, which makes online shopping even more secure.

Cons

The Westpac Altitude credit card may be Money Magazine’s ‘Best Rewards Credit Card’ for 2010, but unfortunately the same can’t be said about the rates. The purchase rate comes in at 19.99% p.a. and the balance transfer rate is a princely 3.99% p.a. for a period of 6 months. It’s not all doom and gloom though. The Westpac Altitude credit card does come with a 45 day interest free period, which is great so long as you can afford to pay of your balance each month. The card could benefit from better rates, but this is to be expected form a rewards credit card.

Conclusion

The Altitude credit card offers one of the most flexible reward schemes on the market and is suitable for practically anyone. You can collect points regardless of where you are in the world and can redeem them for anything from free flights to a free toaster! This Westpac reward program credit card is perfect for anyone looking to reap the benefits of spending on a credit card. Signing up takes a matter of minutes, just bare in mind that you must be earning at least $15,000