35,000 Avios + 12 Months of Apple TV with Barclaycard Avios Plus

Barclaycard has quietly dropped a very strong offer on the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard – and because they don’t run promos very often, this one is worth a proper look.

As always: this is our personal experience and opinion using points, not financial advice. There are lots of other cards out there (American Express, Virgin Atlantic, IHG, Tesco Clubcard → Virgin/Hotels, etc.) and you should only ever take out a card if it’s right for you.

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What’s the current offer?

For a limited time, new Barclaycard customers can get:

• 35,000 Avios
  • When you spend £6,000 in 6 months on the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
• 12 months of Apple TV (T&Cs apply – you generally need to be a new or lapsed subscriber)
• You must apply by 15th January 2026
• The standard deal is usually 25,000 Avios and no Apple TV, so this is a genuine boost

Given how rarely Barclaycard runs special offers, if you were already thinking about this card, this is the kind of promo we’d personally move on rather than “wait and see”.

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A quick recap: the two Barclaycard Avios cards

Just like the BA Amex setup, there are two cards:

1. Barclaycard Avios Mastercard (Free)
2. Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard (£20 a month)

In our view, because of the 35,000 Avios sign-up bonus, the Plus card is the one that makes most sense right now – especially as the fee is paid monthly and you can cancel whenever you like.

You also can’t hold more than one Barclaycard credit card at a time, and if you cancel a Barclaycard you generally need to wait 6 months before applying again – so you want to pick carefully.

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Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard – the paid card (and where the 35,000 Avios live)

Representative APR: 80.1% APR variable (including the £20 monthly fee)
Representative APR on purchases: 29.9% variable

Key benefits:

• £20 a month fee
  • Reduced to £15 a month if you’re on Barclays Avios Rewards via a Barclays Premier current account
• 35,000 Avios sign-up bonus
  • New Barclaycard customers only
  • Spend £6,000 in 6 months
  • Limited-time offer until 15th January 2026 (normally 25,000 Avios)
• 12-month Apple TV subscription
  • For new Apple TV subscribers or those who cancelled more than 60 days ago
  • Not for existing, ongoing subscribers
• 1.5 Avios per £1 spent on everyday purchases
• Avios upgrade voucher each card year when you spend £10,000
  • Valid on British Airways Avios redemptions
  • Can be very powerful for premium cabins
• Or 7,000 bonus Avios instead of the voucher if you prefer
• Discounted airport lounges
  • Access to DragonPass lounges for £20.50 per visit, per person

A couple of extra things to note:

• The fee is taken monthly, so you can cancel at any time if you decide it’s not for you.
• Some people are offered the option to downgrade to the free Avios card in the Barclays app. Weirdly, this is controlled by a Barclays algorithm – so it’s not guaranteed that you’ll see the downgrade button, but it is possible.

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Barclaycard Avios Mastercard – the free card

Representative APR: 29.9% APR variable

Key benefits:

• No annual fee
• 5,000 Avios sign-up bonus
  • New Barclaycard customers only
  • Spend £1,000 in 3 months
• 1 Avios per £1 spent
• Avios upgrade voucher when you spend £20,000 in a card year
• Or 7,000 bonus Avios instead of the voucher if you prefer

In normal times this is a great “no-fee, keep forever” Visa/Mastercard for earning Avios on non-Amex spend.

However, with the Plus card currently offering 35,000 Avios, we personally struggle to justify going for the free card first. You’re effectively giving up 30,000 Avios to avoid a £20/month fee that you can cancel whenever you like.

A common strategy is:

1. Start with the Plus card, hit the 35,000 Avios bonus (and possibly the upgrade voucher at £10,000 spend).
2. Then decide later whether to keep paying, downgrade (if offered in-app), or cancel and possibly reapply for the free card after six months.

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Why these cards are such a big deal for non-Amex spend

For non-Amex spending, these Avios Mastercards are extremely strong.

1. The earn rate is hard to beat

• Free card: 1 Avios per £1
• Plus card: 1.5 Avios per £1

If you value Avios around 1p each, that’s like getting:

• 1% back on your spend with the free card
• 1.5% back with the Plus card

That’s typically 4–5x better than most standard cashback Visa/Mastercards in the UK.

2. The Avios upgrade voucher

On top of that, both cards offer a British Airways cabin upgrade voucher:

• Free card: Earned at £20,000 annual spend
• Plus card: Earned at £10,000 annual spend

You can use the voucher to upgrade an Avios booking by one cabin (e.g. Economy → Premium, or Premium → Business), and it can easily save you tens of thousands of Avios on the right route. If you don’t want the voucher, you can simply opt for 7,000 Avios instead.

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Our view: which card would we choose?

For us, the maths on this promo heavily favours the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard:

• 35,000 Avios sign-up bonus for £6,000 spend in 6 months
• Higher ongoing earn rate (1.5 Avios/£1)
• Upgrade voucher at £10,000 spend instead of £20,000
• Monthly fee you can ditch at any time if your situation changes

If it takes you, say, the full six months to hit the spend, you’ve paid £120 in fees (£20 x 6) for 35,000 Avios.

Even if you value Avios conservatively at 1p, that’s £350 of value for £120 in fees – and that’s before you count the Avios you earn from your actual spend or any value you get from the upgrade voucher or Apple TV.

Once you’ve:

1. Hit the 35,000 Avios bonus, and
2. (Optionally) earned the upgrade voucher

…you can then decide whether to:

• Keep the Plus card,
• Downgrade to the free version (if the option appears in the app), or
• Cancel and step back for a while.

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Important eligibility points

• You usually must not currently hold any Barclaycard credit card, and
• You must not have held a Barclaycard in the last 6 months to be eligible for the full sign-up bonus.
• Existing Barclaycard holders (including people on old legacy cards such as Hilton Honors) would need to cancel and wait 6 months to go again.

Always check the full terms & conditions on the Barclaycard site before applying.

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Final thoughts

For UK-based Avios collectors looking for a non-Amex solution, the Barclaycard Avios cards were already strong. With a limited-time 35,000 Avios offer plus 12 months of Apple TV on the Avios Plus version, they become very hard to ignore – if you’re comfortable managing credit and the monthly fee.

Used well, this offer can:

• Dramatically boost your Avios balance,
• Give you access to a powerful upgrade voucher, and
• Help you earn worthwhile rewards from spend that can’t go on American Express.

Just remember: this is our experience, not financial advice. Only apply if a credit card fits your own financial situation and you can clear your balance in full each month. For more details/application visit the Barclaycard website – https://www.barclaycard.co.uk/personal/avios