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The Bank of America Preferred Rewards program can be extremely lucrative if you’re a Bank of America customer or willing to become one. This program offers special banking discounts, bonus rewards on credit card spending, and other financial perks to consumers who keep a certain amount of money on deposit with the bank over time.
The minimum account balance requirements are high with Bank of America Preferred Rewards, but you have to keep your emergency fund somewhere, right? At the end of the day, this program could be extremely fruitful if you move some of your savings over and take advantage of all the benefits you can.
We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.
Credit cards eligible to receive Preferred Rewards bonuses
Most of Bank of America’s branded consumer credit cards are eligible for the Preferred Rewards bonuses, but non-rewards cards, certain partnered cards (like the Alaska Airlines Visa® Credit Card and Virgin Atlantic World Elite Mastercard®), and secured or student versions of Bank of America rewards cards can’t earn Preferred Rewards bonuses.
CardWelcome bonusReview
Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit Card
Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit CardUnlimited Cash Rewards Card review
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit CardCustomized Cash Rewards Card review
Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit cardTravel Rewards Card review
Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card
Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card – Intro BonusPremium Rewards Card review
Also note that you can get some co-branded versions of credit cards above, including options like the Susan G. Komen® Cash Rewards Visa® credit card from Bank of America. These are simply “branded” options of other cards, so their reward structures are the same.
Business credit cards eligible for Bank of America Preferred Rewards
CardWelcome bonusReview
Bank of America® Business Advantage Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit Card
Bank of America® Business Advantage Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit CardBusiness Advantage Unlimited review
Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card
Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit CardBusiness Advantage Customized Cash review
Bank of America® Business Advantage Travel Rewards World Mastercard® Credit Card
Bank of America® Business Advantage Travel Rewards World Mastercard® Credit CardBusiness Advantage Travel Rewards review
It’s important to note that Bank of America business cards technically have their own program: Bank of America Preferred Rewards for Business. However, eligibility for the business program, as well as bonuses rewards and benefits, are essentially the same as the regular Preferred Rewards program.
Personal Bank of America accounts cannot receive Preferred Rewards for Business benefits and vice versa.
How to qualify for the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program
The Bank of America Preferred Rewards program is offered in three major “tiers,” with each tier offering a greater level of benefit than the one before based on your deposits. Your balance is reviewed monthly, so you’ll automatically move to the next tier level if applicable.
Here’s a basic rundown of how you can qualify for each tier – and what you’ll receive in return.
Bank of America Preferred Rewards Gold
To achieve Gold status in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program, you’ll need a three-month average combined balance of $20,000 to $50,000 in your Bank of America banking and/or Merrill (Bank of America’s wealth management division) investment accounts.
Gold tier benefits:
25% more rewards on eligible Bank of America rewards credit card spending5% interest rate savings booster on eligible savings accounts0.05% fee discount on Merrill Guided Investing services$200 off your origination fee with a Bank of America mortgage0.125% home equity line of credit (HELOC) rate discount0.25% auto loan rate discountWaived monthly maintenance fees on up to four checking and up to four savings accountsNo-fee banking services1% discount on foreign currency exchange rates
Bank of America Preferred Rewards Platinum
To achieve Platinum status, you’ll need a three-month average combined balance of $50,000 to $100,000 in your Bank of America accounts.
Platinum tier benefits:
50% more rewards on eligible Bank of America rewards credit card spending10% interest rate savings booster on eligible savings accountsUp to 12 no-fee ATM transactions per year at non-Bank of America ATMs in the US0.10% fee discount on Merrill Guided Investing servicesPriority customer service$400 off your origination fee with a Bank of America mortgage0.250% home equity line of credit rate discount0.35% auto loan rate discountWaived monthly maintenance fees on up to four checking and up to four savings accountsNo-fee banking services1.5% discount on foreign currency exchange rates
Bank of America Preferred Rewards Platinum Honors
To achieve the highest tier of status in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program, you’ll need a three-month average combined balance of at least $100,000 in your Bank of America accounts. This tier of status comes with the following benefits:
Platinum Honors tier benefits:
75% more rewards on eligible Bank of America rewards credit card spending20% interest rate savings booster on eligible savings accountsUnlimited no-fee ATM transactions per year at non-Bank of America ATMs in the US0.15% fee discount on Merrill Guided Investing services$600 off your origination fee with a Bank of America mortgage0.375% home equity line of credit rate discount0.50% auto loan rate discountWaived monthly maintenance fees on checking and savings accountsNo-fee banking services2% discount on foreign currency exchange rates
While many of the perks this program offers could help you save money, the bulk of them can only be utilized a few times over your lifetime. For example, how often will you take advantage of savings on an origination fee for a new mortgage? And how often do you take out a car loan? Maybe once or twice for every decade you’re alive?
This is why the additional rewards you can earn in this program with a Bank of America credit card are so intriguing. Unlike other Bank of America Preferred Rewards perks, the credit card benefit can help you earn considerably more travel rewards or cash back on everything you buy all year long.
If you’re already enrolled in the Preferred Rewards program, and your balance temporarily drops below the eligible minimum, there’s no need to worry. You can keep your current Preferred Rewards status for a full year. After that, if your balance is still too low, you could be in danger of losing your current program status.
How to earn more credit card rewards by joining Bank of America Preferred Rewards
At this point, you’re probably wondering how much more you’ll earn in rewards by becoming a Bank of America Preferred Rewards member. Not surprisingly, this all depends on the card you sign up for, how much you spend each year, and the tier of Preferred Rewards you qualify for based on your deposits.
Let’s imagine you sign up for the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card instead and spent the following amounts the first year:
$10,000 each year on travel and dining to earn 2x points$16,000 per year on other purchases to earn 1.5x points
In that case, you would rack up 20,000 points, worth $200, on travel and dining during year one, as well as 24,000 points worth $240 on other purchases for a total of $440. If you were a Bank of America Preferred Rewards member, however, your rewards would grow to these amounts during year one:
Preferred Rewards Gold (25% bonus): $550Preferred Rewards Platinum (50% bonus): $660Preferred Rewards Platinum Honors (75% bonus): $770
If you add in the initial Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card you can earn with this card, your first-year rewards haul would be at least $1,050, but could run as high as $1,320 depending on your rewards tier in this program.
Bottom line
If you’re a Bank of America customer or thinking of switching over, it’s hard to deny the power of the Preferred Rewards program. Considering you could move just $20,000 of your savings over to the bank to qualify, you may want to consider it.
Before you do, however, it makes sense to compare all the best Bank of America credit cards to see which one might fit your needs. Bonus rewards from the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program will be nice, but you should strive to pick a card that makes the most sense for your normal spending patterns, too.
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