While it doesn’t have the history of the American Express Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve in the premium travel card space, the Capital One Venture X card has become a popular one in recent years. Possibly because of this popularity, changes are coming to the airport lounge benefits on both the Venture X and Venture X Business cards.
Capital One Lounge Access Changes are Coming in 2026
Capital One currently operates two lounge concepts, Capital One Lounges and Capital One Landings. The Venture X card also comes with a Priority Pass membership and, unfortunately for cardholders, all three are affected.
Authorized User Changes
The Venture X and Venture X Business currently have different lounge access policies. The primary difference currently is that Venture X authorized users have access to lounges while Venture X Business authorized users don’t.
The major value here was the fact that Capital One didn’t charge Venture X cardmembers to add authorized users to their account. For reference, American Express charges $195 per authorized user added to the Platinum Card.
As of February 1, 2026, authorized users will no longer get lounge access on the Venture X. While authorized users will continue to be free, cardholders of both the Venture X and Venture X Business can add lounge access for authorized users for $125 per person. This is good for up to four people.
While this is a blow to Venture X cardholders, this allows Venture X Business cardholders the ability to add lounge access for authorized users which wasn’t possible previously.
New Spend Requirement for Free Guest Access
Of all of the changes, the addition of a spend requirement for free guest access isn’t something I was surprised to see. We’ve increasingly seen this in the premium travel card space with American Express adding a $75,000 spend requirements for free guesting a couple of years ago. It has further been extended to unlock additional access to Delta Sky Clubs outside of the permitted number of annual visits.
Beginning February 1, 2026, Venture X and Venture X Business cardholders will need to spend $75,000 annually to unlock free guest access. While this is in line with what we’ve seen from American Express, 2025 spend is what is being applied towards the access requirement. With this change being announced around midyear, some cardholders will be way behind on that target if they haven’t been prioritizing that spend since the start of the year.
For those that don’t hit the spending threshold for free guest access, cardholders can still pay to for guest access to the lounge. Pricing is $45 for adults and $25 for kids 17 and under. Babies under two can enter for free.
Capital One Venture X Priority Pass Changes
Also beginning on February 1, 2026, the Priority Pass membership that comes with the Venture X card will no longer allow guesting privileges. This change only applies to the Venture X as the Venture X Business card will still retain access for two guests when using Priority Pass.
Venture X cardmembers looking to bring guests into a Priority Pass lounge will need to pay a $35 guest fee. Unfortunately, this fee is regardless of whether or not the $75,000 spend threshold is met.
My Thoughts on the Capital One Venture X Changes
If you’re confused by all of the changes on these two cards you aren’t alone, I drew out a chart to ensure I correctly documented the changes when writing this and have added that below.
| Card | Auth. User | Auth. User Lounge Access | Free Guesting | Paid Guest Access | Priority Pass Guest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venture X | $0 | $125/pp | $75k Spend | $45/adult $25/child | $35/pp |
| Venture X Business | $0 | $125/pp | $75k Spend | $45/adult $25/child | 2 Free |
While these are no doubt unfortunate changes for Capital One cardholders, I can’t say I’m surprised by them. We’ve increasingly seen issues with lounge crowding and card issuers and airlines making changes to mitigate that.
While I haven’t spent much time in the Capital One ecosystem (I’m an Amex and Chase guy) I was surprised by how great the perks are on the Venture X given it only has a $395 annual fee. If anything this brings the card more in line with its competitors and I still believe there’s good value here if you live in or travel through an airport with a Capital One lounge.
I don’t have a Venture X card and currently don’t have any plans to get one in the future. However, if I was in the market for one, these changes wouldn’t deter me from getting this card.
Summary
Capital One is making some big changes to its popular Venture X and Venture X Business premium travel cards. These changes appear limited to lounge access restrictions and will go into effect on February 1, 2026. While not ideal the card still appears to be a good value for those visiting airports with Capital One lounges.
