How to choose a Capital One card for Taylor Swift presale access

On Nov. 1, 2022, Taylor Swift officially announced her 2023 The Eras Tour, presented by Capital One. While fans prepare and plan for their desired tour dates, many have a leg-up on others for securing their tickets with presale access.

If you bought a ticket to Swift’s canceled 2020 Lover Fest tour, you have preferential access to the TaylorSwiftTix presale, according to Ticketmaster.

Separately, if you have a Capital One credit card, you have premium presale ticket access to The Eras Tour. The first six digits of your card are the code to get into the Capital One Cardholder Presale that starts Nov. 15, 2022, at 2 p.m. local time of the venue.

If you didn’t purchase Lover Fest tickets and don’t want to open a new card for presale access, you can still register as a verified fan with Ticketmaster for a chance to gain non-premium presale access before the general sale.

While we don’t necessarily recommend opening a new credit card solely for the purpose of getting access to Taylor Swift tour tickets, we understand that the offer is appealing to people whose wildest dreams are to see Swift live in concert — and the new Taylor Swift and Capital One commercial just adds to the hype.

According to Capital One’s terms and conditions, “New applicants that have recently applied and have yet to receive card information are not eligible if a new card is received post the Cardholder Pre-sale window or after presale tickets have sold out.” Long story short, you need to apply for and open a Capital One card before the Nov. 15 to Nov. 17 window or when tickets sell out.

The best Capital One cards for The Eras Tour presale access

Once you’ve decided to apply for a Capital One card, all you need to do is choose which one. Here is a sampling of Capital One cards that can get you access to presale tickets (with terms and conditions) and serve you well beyond The Eras tour.

Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card: Best for groceries and dining

The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card is best for the Taylor Swift fans that like to cook at home with their cats or go out to dinner with their friends. It earns 3 percent cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart and Target), in addition to 5 percent on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One’s travel portal.

This card makes a great companion when nailing down travel and transportation details and buying dinner or groceries on your way to the show. Plus, it makes a case for staying in your wallet after the tour and heading to more concerts since it earns 8 percent back on Capital One Entertainment purchases.

Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card: Best no-annual-fee travel card

If you’re a Swiftie willing to travel far and wide for concerts, then the Capital One VentureOne Rewards card can help get you there with no annual fee. It doesn’t have the flashiest perks, but it earns 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through the Capital One Travel portal and 1.25X miles on all purchases.

Plus, its easily attainable welcome bonus of 20,000 miles after spending $500 in the first three months of account opening (Offer not available) means you can earn a modest windfall of miles if you buy two $250 Taylor Swift tickets. Then, you can use those miles toward flights with a Capital One transfer partner to get to the show.

Capital One Platinum Credit Card: Best for fans with fair credit scores

It takes time to build credit history. With the Capital One premium cardholder Taylor Swift presale starting only two weeks after The Eras Tour announcement, there’s not nearly enough time to build your credit score for eligibility for a Capital One rewards card.

That’s where the Capital One Platinum comes in. It’s recommended for people with fair to good credit (580 to 740 on the FICO scale) and has no annual fee. There’s no rewards program to speak of, but again, if you’re only opening a Capital One card for its premium cardholder Taylor Swift presale access, this card will get the job done. Since it has no annual fee, there’s no extra cost for simply having the card, and you can leave it alone after you’ve bought and paid off your ticket purchase.

Capital One Quicksilver Student Cash Rewards Credit Card: Best flat-rate cash back card for students

If you’re still in school, the labyrinth of points and miles doesn’t appeal to you and you just want a simple cash back card, then the Quicksilver Student is a solid option. It earns 5 percent cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel as well as unlimited 1.5 percent cash back on all other purchases. Because it earns slightly elevated, straightforward cash back, college students can spend time on studies and planning for the tour rather than playing the points and miles game.

How to choose a Capital One card for Taylor Swift premium presale tickets

Again, we don’t recommend opening a new card account only for presale access, but if you were considering a new card and are a Swift fan, then Capital One’s presale access benefit makes sense. It’s crucial to strike a delicate balance between what you want and what you will actually use, so here are some questions to ask yourself when choosing a new card.

Do you want travel perks or cash back?

For people planning to travel to a different city for their desired tour stop, Capital One’s lineup of Venture cards can help with booking flights and hotels. With one of the Venture cards, you can earn elevated rates on hotels booked through the Capital One Travel portal. If you strategize, you can use the points earned from booking your travel to the concert and buying tickets for another trip.

Capital One also offers cash back credit cards in its Quicksilver and SavorOne families that come with elevated rates on dining, travel and everyday purchases. For Swift fans who also like to dine out or shop for groceries, one of these cards could be a fit for your wallet, since it would earn you a small nest egg of cash rewards while you use it.

What’s your credit score?

Capital One credit cards run the gamut for credit score tiers. If your credit score is fair or worse, you still may be eligible for its Platinum card, discussed above. Other options include the Capital One Platinum Secured Credit Card or the Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card. If you’re a student, consider one of Capital One’s student credit cards.

These cards aren’t bejeweled with perks and shiny benefits, but they give you the Capital One cardholder Taylor Swift presale access you want and may help you build credit. Some Capital One cards for fair credit do have modest rewards rates, like the QuicksilverOne’s 1.5 percent cash back on everyday purchases.

Are you going to use the card after the presale?

If you are only going to use the card for presale access and buying tickets with no intentions of using it for anything else, then you should get one of Capital One’s no-annual-fee cards. Because there’s no cost to carrying a card that doesn’t have an annual fee, you can keep the card long after you’re done using it without paying a fee.

On the other hand, there are situations in which an annual fee is worth it. For example, if the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is appealing to you for long-term use, it comes with statement credits and benefits that can offset the annual fee.

Tips for using a new Capital One card for Taylor Swift tickets

Many Swifties know all too well the mayhem surrounding the mad rush for Taylor Swift stadium tour tickets, and Capital One offers an exclusive way to increase your chances of getting tickets. Opening a Capital One card just to get premium presale access is understandable (we still don’t recommend it), but it’s important to know how to get the most out of your card and avoid any treacherous credit mistakes.

• Don’t apply for more than one card. Applying for multiple cards at once causes multiple credit inquiries on your report, which can hurt your score. It also signals to credit card issuers that you’re in financial hot water and desperate for credit. Pick the 1 you are most eligible for and stick with it. You can also use Bankrate’s CardMatch™ tool to help you determine your approval chances.
• Don’t close the card right away. Even if you plan to never use the card again, don’t close the account immediately. Having that credit card can help increase your credit score in a few ways. First, the increase in your available credit will lower your credit utilization ratio. Second, the longer the card account is open, the longer your credit history, which accounts for 15 percent of your credit history. Lastly, if you have other credit types under your name (like loans), adding a credit card may improve your credit mix. You don’t have to keep it forever & always, but plan to keep it open for at least a year if it doesn’t have an annual fee.
• Pay off the balance as soon as possible. You have to use your new Capital One credit card to pay for your Taylor Swift tickets. Depending on how many you’re buying and the quality of the seats, you may spend several hundred dollars for your first purchase on the card. Only a handful of the best Capital One cards have 0 percent intro APR offers on purchases, which can give you some breathe-ing room while paying off a large charge, but it’s best practice to pay it off as soon as possible.

The bottom line

It’s been four years since the last time Taylor Swift toured. With four new studio albums plus two album re-recordings since the 2018 Reputation tour, the superstar has a lot of new material to cover in her upcoming 2023 The Eras Tour. Capital One’s cardholder-exclusive presale access is enticing and probably enchanted plenty of fans enough to sign up for a new credit card. If you’re considering opening a new Capital One card to get some peace of mind when buying tickets, make sure you also practice responsible credit card habits and pick a card that you can carry for no cost or will use after the tour.