What’s the Cheapest Way to Snag Airport Lounge Access? We Did the Math

I first discovered airport lounges when I watched the movie Unaccompanied Minors. There’s a scene where a rich teenager sneaks into a luxe airport lounge with an access pass that she presumably got from her parents. 

This had me convinced me that airport lounges were an exclusive club reserved for the rich elite — the kind of glamorous place that someone like me, whose middle-class family rarely traveled, would never experience. 

It’s funny how wrong I was.

Last year, I left my job as a full-time personal finance editor to travel the world. Armed with my knowledge of credit card points, savings hacks and smart money advice, I figured out how to visit more than 36 countries on a budget. One thing I learned along the way: airport lounges are hardly exclusive. You can typically snag a day pass for around $35 to $75, and there are plenty of ways to get free access. 

A Priority Pass membership, which grants members access to a network of over 1,600 airport lounges and experiences worldwide, is one of the most popular ways. Here’s how you can get Priority Pass airport lounge access affordably, and in some cases, for free.

Read more: These 10 Credit Cards Offer Cell Phone Insurance for Free — But This One Is My Favorite

How much does Priority Pass membership cost?

The prices for an annual Priority Pass membership range from $99 for the Standard plan (with a $35 charge for each lounge visit) to $469 for the Prestige plan (with unlimited complimentary visits). 

If you only plan to visit a lounge once or twice a year, paying for a day pass or the standard plan is your best bet. But if you’re taking more frequent trips, you’ll want a plan that gives you unlimited access. 

Luckily, there’s a cheaper way to get it than purchasing the Prestige plan directly from Priority Pass: credit cards.

Popular credit cards that offer Priority Pass

Several premium travel credit cards offer cardholders (and sometimes authorized users) complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, which grants unlimited lounge visits just like the Prestige plan. 

Since the Prestige plan costs $469 annually, any credit card with an annual fee below that amount is already a better deal, even before you consider the card’s other benefits. 

Some of the most popular travel cards people turn to for Priority Pass include: 

Several business cards and hotel or airline co-branded cards also offer Priority Pass, but those cards appeal to a narrower audience and aren’t significantly cheaper than the options above. 

What’s the cheapest way to get Priority Pass airport lounge access?

Looking at the four cards above, there’s a clear standout: the Capital One Venture X has the lowest annual fee, at $395. Capital One also lets you add up to four authorized users, who all get their own Priority Pass membership at no additional charge. 

Clearly, the Venture X is the winner, right?

Well, that depends. If you’re not going to use the card for any other travel benefits, then maybe. But if you’re traveling often enough to want Priority Pass membership, there are other factors to consider. 

In addition to offering Priority Pass, the four cards above come with a litany of benefits, including statement credits that offer quantifiable cash value. If you use these credits to offset purchases you were going to make through normal spending, they can help lower the card’s annual fees significantly. Let’s take a look at the value you can get from each card’s statement credits and effective annual fees if you use all of them. 

For ease of comparison, I’m only counting credits that have a defined cash value attached and don’t come with complicated restrictions. Some credits aren’t available every year, so the calculations below reflect each card’s first-year value. 

Notice a trend?

If you can maximize all the credits without overspending, these cards are effectively free and you might even come out on top.

Of the four cards above, the Amex Platinum technically has the lowest effective annual fee, at -$599. However, the Platinum’s credits are split into many different parts, some of which may be harder to maximize than others. Among the options listed, it’s also the card with the highest actual annual fee, meaning it requires the largest upfront investment with no guarantee you’ll be able to “earn” it back. 

Which card offers Priority Pass at the best value?

For most people, the Venture X will provide the best balance between minimizing the effective annual fee and ease of using the credits. The card only has two credits, one for TSA PreCheck/Global Entry and one for the Capital One Travel Portal, which offers a large selection of flights, hotels and rental cars.

I didn’t factor each card’s rewards into the calculations above, but it’s worth noting that the Venture X offers a 10,000-mile anniversary bonus each year after the first (worth $100 if redeemed as a statement credit toward travel). This bonus, combined with the $300 annual travel credit, keeps the card’s effective annual fee negative even in years without the TSA PreCheck/Global Entry credit.

However, if you can use all of the travel credits, the Amex Platinum might be a more rewarding way to enjoy airport lounge access with other perks to boot.

The card that offers Priority Pass for free

If you’ll be making four or fewer trips in a year, there’s another lesser-known card that could get you Priority Pass for no annual fee: the U.S. Bank Altitude® Connect Visa Signature® Card*. 

The card got an upgrade in September that changed some of its rewards and benefits and removed its previous $95 annual fee. Despite the annual fee elimination, the card kept its Priority Pass and TSA PreCheck/Global Entry credit benefits, essentially giving the card a few premium card perks for the price of a no-annual-fee card.

So what’s the catch? 

You’ll only get four complimentary lounge visits per year with the Altitude Connect’s Priority Pass membership. Any guest you bring also counts against the four-visit allowance. That might not be enough to tempt frequent travelers, but it’s perfect for occasional travelers or anyone curious about airport lounges who doesn’t want to commit to an annual fee card. 

Do you need airport lounge access?

You don’t need airport lounge access to enjoy traveling. In fact, you might learn, like I did, that this particular perk isn’t always as glamorous as it seems. But if you’re in and out of airports often, lounge access could elevate your travel experience.

If you’re new to airport lounges, I don’t recommend springing for unlimited lounge access until you’ve decided that it’s an experience you value. Investing a few hundred dollars or opening a new credit card — which can have larger implications on your credit score and overall finances — isn’t a decision you should make lightly. If you’re on the fence, buy a day pass and try it out with no commitment. 

After testing the waters, if you plan to visit lounges frequently, it’s smart to find a credit card that aligns with your travel goals. For most travelers, the Capital One Venture X will be the best pick. For more frequent trips, the American Express Platinum can give you the best bang for your buck.

As for me, if I decide I want lounge access again, I’d turn to the U.S. Bank Altitude® Connect Visa Signature® Card. With no annual fee, airport lounge access feels like a nice perk, rather than a benefit I’d feel forced to use each time I fly to get my money’s worth.

*All information about the Bank of America Premium Rewards Elite Credit Card, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card and the U.S. Bank Altitude® Connect Visa Signature® Card has been collected independently by CNET and has not been reviewed by the issuer.

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card from American Express, click here.