It’s not a surprise that many people look for Founders Card reviews online before signing up, often due to not knowing the exact founders card cost or the full list of founderscard benefits. That’s why we’ve created this review so you can make an informed decision on whether to sign up or to opt for one of the alternatives available.

What is Founders Card

Founders card is a community membership for founders and business owners, it gives card holders access to certain benefits and perks, with a focus on travel perks it can be a good option for those business owners who travel a lot and don’t currently have access to perks from existing credit cards or loyalty cards.

Although it has a range of perks on software and business tools, other options such as FounderPass focus more on this side with a wider variety of perks as well as a much lower membership price.

As well as benefits, they also boast a community for you to network with, they have been known to put on events too in the past many of which are in the US.

Founders Card Cost

Some businesses make pricing and membership costs clear and easy to see, unfortunately finding out the Founders Card cost isn't quite as easy, you have to essentially go through the sign up process to see what you'll be charged if you are accepted.

The exact membership fee you will pay may vary as they do run promotions from time to time but as of 2024 it's currently $995 per year with an offer of $595 for your first year. This membership fee is high when compared to other platforms such as FounderPass which is just $99/year and offers many of the same perks and discounts.

When compared to travel credit cards and other business memberships it's clear not only from the pricing but also the perks they offer that they are more targeted to the high end entrepreneurs who may be happier spending nearly $1,000 a year.

FoundersCard do offer free trials and also do offer some discounts on membership from time to time but remember if you do sign up to one of these always check the terms and make sure if you’re using a free trial that if you don’t cancel within the time frame given you’ll be charged the membership price, an easy thing to do if you don’t set yourself a reminder.

Of course, if you look at the benefits and feel you can save over $995 over the year by utilizing the perks then it could be a option for you to explore.

FoundersCard benefits

The exact FoundersCard benefits you’ll get are tricky to find unless you sign up for a free trial, this can be frustrating for those wanting to know what the benefits are and if they are ones they may make use of.

They do have a good range of perks, as mentioned previously it’s more focused on travel and hospitality with many of the main perks and benefits revolving around hotel and flights. For the business person who travels a lot these could be very useful especially if you don't use a business credit card that offers similar perks.

Status and hotel upgrades

One of the unique benefits that they do offer is the ability to get free status upgrades, these often give you things such as later checkins, free room upgrades etc.

Currently they offer these benefits to those on the All Access Elite membership including:

• Omni Select Guest® Platinum
•  IHG® One Rewards Gold Elite
•  Hilton Honors™ Gold
•  Avis President's Club
•  Hertz President's Circle
•  Sixt Platinum Card Membership

Luxury hotel discounts

You’ll also find that you will have access to a range of discounts on a range of luxury/higher end hotels, the discount can range from a percentage discount such as 10-15% off or a fixed price discount. 

From other FoundersCard reviews online, we’ve found this is sometimes the best price but other times people have found that booking from other websites such as Booking.com can be the same if not lower priced. 

The current hotel brands they work with include:

• Mandarin Oriental
• Park Hyatt
• Rosewood
• Ritz-Carlton
• W Hotels
• Loews Hotels
• The Peninsula hotels
• And more

So if you regularly stay at the hotels above then it could be worth exploring the Founderscard membership to see if it could indeed save you money or give you access to the upgrades that you could gain from.

Concierge hours

One of the other benefits that they have is a dedicated concierge service and as a full member you’ll be able to get 5 hours of virtual personal assistance per year, whether that’s to help arrange a flight, book a hotel on your behalf and so on.

If members actually make use of this it’s unclear and you’ll need to consider if you would actually use this if you signed up as to whether you take this as a benefit of joining.

Discounts on luxury brands

They also have partnerships with a variety of luxury brands from cars to electronics to computer brands, so if you’re planning to purchase a new car from brands such as Mercedes Benz in the US, BMW and a few others then you may be able to get a discount of up to $5,000 if you’re an Elite member.

The range of discount will vary per partner and some will have certain terms to them such as a minimum spend or a maximum saving.

Perks on software

They also have a range of perks on software and tools such as the $5,000 of AWS credits (which is also available on the $99/year FounderPass membership) which can be useful if you’re looking to use new software in the coming months.

As you can see, lots of the perks revolve around the luxury and high end side of travel and hospitality, so if you are a founder who actively purchases and spends in these areas then the FoundersCard may suit you. It’s worth weighing up if you have access to these perks from existing credit cards and memberships too though.

Note: At the time of writing this the list of perks are up to date however these can change from time to time, so it’s worth checking if you’re after a specific perk that they still offer it before signing up.

Is Founders Card worth it?

If you’re a frequent business traveller and want access to free upgrades on flights and hotels then it can be worth exploring, especially if you don’t have a credit card that offers these kinds of perks. 

If you don’t travel that often and are looking more for perks on business software, services and products then you may be better opting for a membership such as FounderPass which is around a 10% of the price and offers a focus on these types of perks. 

Pros

With thousands of members, many people do enjoy using the membership and some of the positives of the membership include:

• Free status upgrades on a range of airlines and hotels
• As it’s not a credit card, there is no credit check
• Good for those who like luxury travel and hotels

Cons

Some however may find that the downsides to this membership are:

• It’s expensive at $995 a year
• Some perks and discounts can already be got on credit cards
• Full list of benefits is hard to see on their website
• You have to apply to join, so approval is not guaranteed

Founders Card alternatives

If you’re looking for a FoundersCard alternative then why not consider FounderPass, having been established for over 2 years, they offer over $1.5m of perks and discounts on software, business tools and services.

They target both established business owners with large companies who are looking to save money and access perks as well as the earlier stage founders who may be in startup stage and looking for that helping hand to grow and save money.

Benefits of FounderPass

If you're considering alternatives to Founderscard then you may want to consider FounderPass for the following reasons:

• Just $99/year membership
• Over $1.5 million in business perks and software discounts
• All perks visible to see before sign up
• Popular perks include $5,000 of free AWS credit, $5,000 of Digital Ocean credit, 1 Year of Notion, 1 year of Intercom, Discounts on Hubspot, Pipedrive, Dropbox, Github, MongoDB, Typeform, Bubble, Webflow and more
• Tens of thousands of founders already use FounderPass
• Plus they have a free membership option

All of the perks can be seen when you browse the website and you need not join in order to see them, what’s more you can often offset the membership of just $99/year by just using one of the perks.

FounderPass also have all of the most popular perks such as the $5,000 of AWS credits, Google Workspace promo codes, Digital Ocean, Dropbox, Intercom, Hubspot, Notion, Github and hundreds more.

Who is FoundersCard designed for?

As you’d expect based on the type of benefits you’ll be able to get as a member, the founders card membership is aimed at founders and business owners. Especially those that may have more use for luxury hotels, products and services and want to get free upgrades whilst traveling, flying, renting cars and so on.

The card is focused on founders but you may be able to apply as an employee of a company but do remember that you cannot just sign up instantly as you’ll need to apply and wait to get approved.

Membership is open to founders from all over the world however some benefits will be country specific so that is worth considering when applying.

FC Points

In more recent years, FoundersCard have introduced a feature called FC points (standing for Founders Card points) which you earn from doing certain tasks such as inviting friends, adding a spouse membership and gifting memberships to friends or family.

The points you earn can then be redeemed against things including gift cards such as Amazon e-gift cards, Apple gift cards and so on, as well as for perks such as lounge access and free memberships. 

Due to limited ways you can earn these points as well as the smaller number of things you can redeem them for, it's unclear how many members make use of these but it's worth considering if you know you're someone who would refer a lot of people to the card.

FoundersCard verdict

In one line, Founders Card is a good choice for founders who regularly travel and want the upgrades and discounts at hotels, car hire and travel in general as well as perks in other areas and are happy to pay the $995 fee per year.

If you don't fit this then you may be better exploring founder perk memberships such as FounderPass which give you a lot of the same perks but more software and business ones and are priced at just $99 per year.

We can certainly see why lots of people have joined FoundersCard over the years, they initially had little competition in the space and for those who stay at the higher priced hotels, just a few nights upgrade could cover the cost of the membership.

As with any financial decision, look into the benefits and weigh them up against the costs, if the membership looks like something you will get use of then you can join.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Founders Card a credit card?

No, it’s a membership card, not a credit card, you cannot spend on the card itself nor go into debt on it, instead it gives you access to their perks and discounts.

How much is the Founders Card?

Currently it’s priced at $995 per year, with your first year at $595, this is expensive compared to the $99 a year that FounderPass charges and lower than other options out there including travel focused credit cards with annual fees.

Can anyone sign up?

The card is designed for founders and business owners, if you fit this area then you can apply, you may also be able to apply if you fit in other categories but we recommend checking the FoundersCard.com website directly to ensure the most up to date recommendations for who can apply.

Do you get instant access?

As you’ll need to apply for the card and get accepted you won’t get instant access and may in some cases get rejected for the card. Therefore if you’re looking for a perk to use straight away you may be better looking into options such as FounderPass where by you can get instant access to all of the perks and sign up in minutes.