BofA just replaced Preferred Rewards — here's what changed

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If you’re a Bank of America customer, you might have access to one of the more generous banking rewards programs. Bank of America Preferred Rewards has long given members who meet minimum deposit requirements an extra 25% to 75% in rewards for each dollar spent on their card — along with perks like rate discounts on home and auto loans.

Earlier this year, however, BofA announced a revamp of the program. The new program is going live on May 27th, and it’s even more inclusive than the old one. Here’s everything you need to know.

The most notable change with the BofA Rewards Program for credit card customers is broader access. Instead of requiring consumers to have a minimum of $20,000 on deposit to qualify for bonus rewards, the new starter tier in the program is available to Bank of America customers with any amount on deposit up to $30,000.

The new deposit thresholds for BofA Rewards are:

• Member: No minimum balance required
• Preferred Plus: $30,000 to $100,000 in combined balances
• Preferred Honors: $100,000 to less than $1 million in combined balances
• Premier: $1 million in combined balances across eligible accounts

This is good news for consumers who don't have much money with the bank, but it's not a positive change for everyone. Here’s how credit card bonus rewards break down by tier under the new program:

• Member: 10% bonus
• Preferred Plus: 25% bonus
• Preferred Honors: 50% bonus
• Premier: 75% bonus

This means customers who currently have between $20,000 and $29,999 on deposit — and have been earning 25% bonus rewards under the old program — will drop to the new Member tier and earn just 10% bonus rewards on credit card spending.

To put the math in real terms: The Premium Rewards card earns a base 2 points per dollar on travel and dining and 1.5 points per dollar on everything else (worth 2% and 1.5% at the standard 1 cent per point redemption rate).

At the Member tier's 10% bonus, those effective rates become 2.2% on travel and dining and 1.65% on other purchases. At the Premier tier's 75% bonus, they jump to 3.5% on travel and dining and 2.625% on everything else — a meaningful difference on a card with a $95 annual fee.

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If you're currently enrolled in Preferred Rewards, you don't need to do anything — Bank of America will automatically move you into the new program. Gold and Platinum members will become Preferred Plus, Platinum Honors members will become Preferred Honors, and Diamond Honors members will become Premier.

If any of your current benefits change after the conversion, Bank of America says you'll keep your existing Preferred Rewards benefits for at least six months after May 2026.

The new BofA Rewards program is still free to join and beneficial if you want to earn more rewards with any of the issuer's rewards cards. This is true whether you want to keep a small amount on deposit with Bank of America, up to $30,000 on deposit or a substantial amount tucked away.

Eligible cards include the Bank of America Premium Rewards® Credit Card, the Premium Rewards® Elite Credit Card, the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card, and the Travel Rewards Credit Card, among others. Unfortunately, the Alaska Atmos Rewards-co-branded cards aren't part of the BofA Rewards bonus structure.

And while qualifying for Member-tier benefits is a breeze under the new program, reaching the higher tiers may be easier than you think.

Not only do deposit accounts like checking and savings with Bank of America count, but so do certificates of deposit (CDs) and IRA accounts.

Investments with Merrill also count toward the program thresholds, including 529 plans that appear on your Merrill statement. Revocable grantor trust accounts with Bank of America or Merrill also qualify.

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The Preferred Honors and Premier tiers come with a couple of perks worth noting. Both tiers get subscription credits applied to a Bank of America debit card linked to a designated checking account — up to $8 per month ($96 per year) for Preferred Honors members and up to $15 per month ($180 per year) for Premier members, applied to eligible streaming, entertainment, and news subscriptions.

Preferred Honors and Premier members also get access to lifestyle benefits across travel, automotive, dining, and entertainment, with partners that include Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Virgin Hotels, Sixt, BMW, Lexus, Audi, and (for Premier only) Mercedes, Backroads, and Sollis Health.

Worth noting for every tier: BofA Rewards members get enhanced fraud and identity monitoring as part of the program, including dark web monitoring, Social Security number monitoring, and full-service identity restoration. For Member-tier customers earning a smaller bonus on credit card spending, this may be the most valuable piece of the program — comparable services from standalone providers like LifeLock typically run $10 to $20 per month.

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