Capital One Changes Airport Lounge Access as Industry Turns Toward Spend-Driven Benefits

Capital One Venture X and Venture X Business primary cardholders will no longer be able to bring guests to airport lounges with them for free unless they meet certain conditions, including spending at least $75,000 per year on their cards. It’s a move that reflects the industry’s pivot toward spend-driven benefits.

Primary cardholders of Capital One’s Venture X and Venture X Business credit cards have enjoyed the privilege of accessing the company’s lounges and bringing two guests with them for free. But that perk will now come with restrictions beginning Feb. 1, 2026, according to a recent email from the company.

Access to airport lounges is a high-demand benefit for travelers seeking an oasis before the next leg of their trips.

More than half of all frequent travelers who participated in an Airport Dimensions study said they access an airport lounge at some point during their journeys. 

Overcrowding and increased wait times to the popular lounge areas may be the main culprits for Capital One’s change in policy.

Henry Harteveldt, a Travel Industry Analyst with Atmosphere Research Group, said Capital One’s changes to its lounge policy are a symptom of the company’s success, according to The New York Times article.

Capital One “designed great lounges that are very popular,” Harteveldt said, to the extent that “they’ve become overrun, overcrowded.”

Credit card issuers considering entering the airport-lounge arena should know that Capital One isn’t the only company that’s limited lounge access recently.

Delta operates more than 50 airport retreats, known as Sky Clubs, that provide travelers with a range of amenities, including complimentary wifi and access to showers. Prior to this year, people who used a premium American Express card to gain entry to Sky Clubs could do so as often as they wanted. 

But those cardholders can now only access Sky Clubs on up to 10 or 15 occasions annually, depending on which card they own. Affected American Express cardholders can regain unlimited Sky Club access by meeting spend thresholds or purchasing lounge memberships, if eligible.

Capital One is providing other options, including fee-based entry to lounges, for cardholders who are affected by its recently announced change.

Capital One Venture X and Venture X Business cardholders can still bring companions to airport lounges, but it’ll cost them. 

Cardholders can pay $45 to bring adult guests with them into one of the company’s lounges or $25 for guests ranging in age from 2 years old to 17, the report from The New York Times revealed. Those under 2 years old can enter without charge. 

Capital One reduced airport lounge benefits on other cards in its portfolio earlier this year.