As of February 1, 2026, authorized users on the Venture X and Venture X business credit cards will no longer have free airport lounge access.
Going forward, primary cardholders will be required to pay $125 annually per authorized user to maintain their Priority Pass memberships for lounge access. Outside of those who pay this fee, all guests of primary cardholders will now be required to pay $35 for each lounge visit.
Additionally, for authorized users who have paid the annual fee, any guests they would like to bring in will also have to pay $35 for each visit. Children under 2 years of age remain free to enter.
For Capital One Lounges and Capital One Landings, primary cardholders and authorized users who have paid the annual fee will still be allowed entry into the lounges free of charge. However, any additional guests will now be expected to pay the $45 entry fee for adults and $25 for guests 17 and under. Entry for children under 2 will continue to be complimentary.
The only exemption to these fees for guests at the Capital One Lounges and Landings are limited to primary cardholders whose annual spend on the card exceeds $75,000. These cardholders are permitted two complimentary guests at Capital One lounges and one complimentary guest at the Capital One Landings per year.
It should be noted that adding authorized users to the Venture X cards is still a free service, with limits up to 4 authorized users per primary cardholder. However, the perk of lounge access will no longer be available without paying the annual $125 per authorized user.
These severe cuts to lounge access are no doubt disappointing, but come as no surprise when considering similar changes we have seen in the Chase Sapphire family and American Express lounges. Though extraordinarily disappointing, these restrictions are done in an effort to cut down on the overcrowding and hours-long lines that have hijacked the lounge experience. To read a more detailed summary of Capital One’s update, click here.
This has been the second major blow to Venture X’s Priority Pass program in just a few short years. In July of 2024, Venture X pulled out of the Priority Pass restaurant access program, which for someone like myself who resides in Portland, Oregon, was a huge disappointment as at the time we did not have a proper lounge we could access through Priority Pass.
The Venture X has been one of my favorite credit cards for years, in large part due to the incredible access it bestows on up to 4 free authorized users. Personally, this gutting of lounge access will make me reconsider Venture X as being the superior premium travel credit card going forward. Although still more budget friendly than the Chase Sapphire Reserve and American Express travel cards, losing free guest privileges to the lounges is not something I take lightly.
I cannot help but wonder if American Express and Chase will take the opportunity to increase their annual fees knowing that many people will defect from Capital One once these changes kick in next year. Another outcome may be that these other two programs may follow in the footsteps and diminish guest access as well, pigeonholing travelers into either signing up for the credit cards themselves or paying the hefty entry fee for each visit.
We will likely continue to see such devaluations as lounges try to manage overcrowding and the hours-long lines that have been plaguing them. Thus, in the same vein as not hoarding airline points as valuations are constantly in flux, I urge you to take maximum advantage of credit card perks while you can as the landscape of credit cards points and perks is ever-changing and generally not for the better.
