These are the best publicly available travel credit card offers in May 2013. Thanks to credit card offers such as these, you can Earn 1 Million (or More) Miles and Points in a Year Without Flying. With this post, I'll go into some detail as to why we rank these credit card offers the way we do, and separate them into the best ones for signup bonuses and the best ones for everyday spend. We do receive referral credit for some of the cards listed, but not all of them. I'll also aim to keep this blog post up to date to track changing offers and spend bonuses. Overwhelmed? Check out our Beginner's Guide to Miles and Points.

Note that there are sometimes targeted offers that are better than public offers, so make sure to check your email and even junk mail regularly. 

Also note that the value of miles and points varies enormously depending on how you plan to use them.  Someone redeeming for U.S. domestic flights that are normally inexpensive will typically get much less face value out of the same number of miles or points than someone redeeming for an international business or first class award ticket. For more, see How Much Is A Mile Worth? Value of United Airlines Miles and How Much Is A Mile Worth? Value of American Airlines Miles. 

The other part of the equation is redeeming miles and points for first and business class. If you don't have time or need help, consider using our Award Booking Service.

Best Travel Credit Cards for Sign-Up Bonuses

In ranking these, I've taken into account not only the bonus, but the spend to get that bonus. I apply the highest value use, so be sure to read my notes to decide if you would value the card as highly.

1. Citi American AAdvantage AMEX, Visa, and CitiBusiness - 80,000-100,000 AA miles for any two cards

NOTE: The Citi AAdvantage Two Browser Trick Is Dead, if You Don't Get Instant Approval for Both Cards. See Bye Bye Citi AAdvantage Two Browser Trick?

The new strategy is getting 80K for 2 Citi AAdvantage personal cards, or 1 personal and 1 business for 100K AA miles. See Citi AAdvantage Credit Cards: New Rules to Earn 130K AA Miles

• Note: The links below are the application pages and do NOT show the offer terms. But based on the recent experience in this Flyertalk thread, most do receive the bonuses stated if you're approved. Your mileage may vary, so be sure to confirm the bonus miles and terms when you call to activate your card.

• 50,000 AAdvantage miles after $2500 spend within the first 4 months for the Citi Platinum Select AAdvantage Visa (No statement credit and no Admirals Club Lounge passes; this link still works as of 3/25/13)

• 2 AAdvantage miles per $1 spent on American Airlines within first 12 months, 1 AAdvantage mile for all other spend

• $85 annual fee waived the first year

• 30,000 AAdvantage miles after $1000 spend within the first 4 months for the Citi AAdvantage Gold Card

• Make sure to apply for two cards at the same time using different browsers (but note: the two browser trick may be dead if you don't get instantly approved for both cards) or clear your cache/cookies so that you can get both bonuses. Citi will not approve 3 cards at once, so pick 2 of the personal cards above: either Citi AA Visa and AMEX for 100,000 AA miles or one of them and Citi AA MasterCard for 90,000 AA miles

• 2 AAdvantage miles per $1 spent on American Airlines within first 12 months, 1 AAdvantage mile for all other spend

• $85 annual fee waived the first year

• 50,000 AAdvantage miles after $3000 spend within the first 4 months for the CitiBusiness AAdvantage Visa (note that you cannot apply for all 3 cards at once; you'll need to wait at least 2 months after the 2 personal Citi AAdvantage applications before applying for the CitiBusiness card)
• CitiBusiness card does *not* come with Companion Certificate, but does come with a $150 statement credit for first eligible AA purchase made within the first 12 months, and also comes with 2 Admirals Club Lounge One-Day Passes

Why #1: These 2 cards make it relatively easy to earn 100,000 AAdvantage miles, but you do have to make $5000 in spend within the first 4 months to get the bonus, so it doesn't rate as highly as the United Explorer MileagePlus Visa targeted offer. Don't forget that if you have a good amount of money that's currently not earning you much in a checking or savings account, you could be earning American Airlines AAdvantage Miles at Half a Cent per Mile that you can then use to Fly Cathay Pacific First Class!

2. United MileagePlus Explorer - 55,000 United Miles

• Targeted offer; make sure you have United miles in your MileagePlus account before following the tips in our post United MileagePlus Explorer 65,000 Bonus Miles Offer Tips 

• 50,000 United miles after $1000 spend in the first 3 months

• 5000 additional United miles after adding an authorized user

• 10,000 additional United miles after spending $25,000 on the card in a calendar year (not worth it for most, except for high spenders)

• 2X United miles on United purchases

• Check your first bag free

• Priority boarding

• Two complimentary passes to the United Club per year

• Annual fee waived first year, then $95

Why #2: If you can see this targeted offer, 55,000 United miles after $1000 spend and adding an authorized user is a great deal, even though this card isn't a good one for everyday spend.

3. Hyatt Visa - 2 Award Nights at any Hyatt, including Park Hyatts (up to $2000 value; more for Diamonds)

• 2 Free Nights at any Hyatt worldwide including Park Hyatts after spending $1000 in the first 3 months

• Receive 1 Free Night each year on your anniversary in any Category 1-4 Hyatt

• No foreign transaction fees 

• 3 Hyatt points per $1 

• 2 Hyatt points per $1 spent at restaurants, on airline tickets purchased directly with the airline and at car rental agencies. 

• 1 Hyatt Gold Passport point for every $1 spent on other spend

Why #3: This is a great deal even with the $75 annual fee (not waived) if you use your 2 free award nights in a Park Hyatt, especially one of the most expensive properties, such as the Park Hyatt Maldives or the Park Hyatt Paris. See Best Park Hyatt to Stay 2 Free Nights with the Hyatt Visa.Depending on the time of year, a paid stay would cost you anywhere from $700-$1000 per night, so the face value of a 2 night stay is $1400-$2000. Amazing deal, even with the $75 annual fee and despite the new requirement of $1000 spend within 3 months. I also like that the Hyatt card is one of the few U.S. credit cards with an EMV Chip. See Best U.S. EMV Chip Travel Credit Cards

Don't forget that if you're an existing Hyatt Platinum elite member when you apply for the Hyatt Visa, in addition to your 2 free nights, you receive 2 suite upgrade certificates to use on paid stays. If you're an existing Diamond elite member when you apply for the Hyatt Visa, you receive your 2 free award nights in a suite!

The Hyatt Visa is also a good card to keep beyond the bonus since it gives you Hyatt Platinum status as long as you have the card, with 15% point bonus on each Hyatt stay, preferred rooms, complimentary in-room Internet access, dedicated elite check-in, 2pm late checkout. You also receive an annual free night at category 1-4 Hyatts. As of 2/7/13, there will even be 2 Park Hyatts that are Category 4; see Park Hyatt Aviara and Park Hyatt Toronto to be Category 4-Hyatt Visa Annual Free Night. 

All that said, the Hyatt Visa is still not great for everyday spend, even with its new bonuses and elite benefits (see Hyatt Visa: New Bonuses and Elite Status Benefits) since the Sapphire Preferred trumps it for dining, airline and other travel spend at 2.14X vs. 2X; the AMEX Premier Rewards Gold trumps it for airline spend (3X vs. 2X); and ironically the SPG Business AMEX trumps it for Hyatt spend, since it gets 5% cash back at Hyatt hotels via American Express OPEN, in addition to the 1 SPG point per $1. Even if you value the Hyatt Visa's 3 Hyatt points per $1 at about 5% cash back, the SPG point means the SPG Business AMEX comes out ahead. That said, you should bring your Hyatt Visa along for any Hyatt spend abroad, since the Hyatt Visa does not have foreign transaction fees whereas the SPG Business AMEX does.

4. British Airways Visa

• 50,000 bonus Avios after $1,000 spend within the first 3 months of account opening

• 2.5 Avios for every $1 spent on British Airways purchases and 1.25 Avios for every $1 spent on all other purchases

• Smart Chip Technology 

• No foreign transaction fees

• Travel Together companion ticket valid for 2 years after $30,000 spend within a calendar year

Why #4: 50,000 Avios could get you 2 roundtrip coach tickets or 1 business class ticket from Boston to Europe with under $150 taxes/fees. See Maximizing British Airways Avios-Fly Aer Lingus to Europe and Avoid Fuel Surcharges. Note that the $95 annual fee is NOT waived.

Or, use the 50,000 Avios to pay for part of a roundtrip business class ticket on British Airways (you'll need to either have another 30,000 Avios if flying from the East Coast, or another 50,000 from the West Coast) and get another ticket with the Companion Ticket, for a total of ~$2200 in fees. See How to Maximize the British Airways Companion Ticket on Award Travel.  

Keep in mind that earlier the offer was 100,000 Avios (although with high spend required to earn the last 50,000 Avios) so if you're a big spender you may want to wait until the 100,000 bonus is offered again. Avios in my view are good to have for miles and points diversification, since they can offer the best deal for short direct flights in the U.S., Asia, Australia, and even in Europe, to a lesser extent (due to all the low fares from easyjet, Ryanair etc.) 

Thanks to our prior two 100,000 British Airways bonuses and 50,000 Sapphire Preferred bonuses, we enjoyed Cathay Pacific First Class to Bali via Hong Kong. 

5. Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa - 40,000 points

• 40,000 Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $3000 spend in the first 3 months

• 2 points per dollar spent on travel and dining at restaurants & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases

• No foreign transaction fees

• Receive a 7% Annual Points Dividend on all new points earned on purchases - even on points already redeemed. This makes your effective earn on travel and dining 2.14X

• 1:1 point transfer to United and Hyatt (best use of points), Korean Air, Southwest, Marriott, InterContinental, Priority Club, Amtrak

• Direct access to expert service advisors anytime

• Annual fee waived first year, then $95

Why #5: While the 40,000 point bonus isn't quite as good as the previous 50,000 point bonus, it's still good for a card that gives you the flexibility of several transfer options: United and Hyatt offer the best value redemption options, but I've also transferred small amounts to British Airways Avios in the past, when there wasn't an AMEX transfer bonus being offered and I was low on AMEX points.

Points may be transferred 1:1 to United MileagePlus, British Airways, Korean Air, Southwest, Hyatt, Marriott, Intercontinental/Priority Club, Amtrak. United and Hyatt are the two highest value uses for points transfers.

It's great to be able to get the 2.14X points (taking into account the 7% points dividend) on international dining and travel spend, since there are no foreign transaction fees. Plus, there's an end of year 7% points dividend (including on bonus points) and annual fee is waived the first year.

6. Chase Ink Bold Business Card - 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points

• 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $5,000 in the first 3 months from account opening

• No interest charges because it's a pay in full charge card

• 5X points per dollar on office supply store spend, telephone, cable and Internet services

• 2X points on hotel spend when directly with the hotel, gas stations

• 1:1 point transfer to United and Hyatt (best use of points), Korean Air, Southwest, Marriott, InterContinental, Priority Club, Amtrak

• Annual fee waived first year, then $95

Why #6: 50,000 points is great, and $5000 spend over 3 months isn't that hard by front loading some spend. If you purchase needed supplies or gift cards at office supply stores, that $5000 spend x 5X points = 25,000 points, on top of the 50,000 signup bonus points. See Maximizing the Chase Ink Bold 50,000 Bonus-How to meet Minimum Spend for some tips. 5X points categories are: office supply stores and for cellular and landline phone services, Internet, and cable TV. 2X points categories are: gas stations and hotels when purchased directly from the hotel.

Points may be transferred 1:1 to United MileagePlus,  British Airways, Korean Air, Southwest, Hyatt, Marriott, Intercontinental/Priority Club, Amtrak. United and Hyatt are the two highest value uses for points transfers.

Thanks in part to the points from the Ink Bold, I recently experienced Lufthansa's New First Class. Ultimate Rewards points are great for transferring to United to redeem for awards on Lufthansa, ANA, Asiana, Thai and other Star Alliance partners. 

Consider applying now, in Dec. 2012, since minimum spend is expected to increase again soon, around end of 2012. See Ink Plus and Ink Bold Minimum Spend to Increase and FAQ

7. Chase Ink Plus Credit Card - 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points

• 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $5,000 in 3 months from account opening

• Credit card (may carry a balance, although don't be tempted to!) 

• 5X points per dollar on office supply store spend, telephone, cable and Internet services

• 2X points on hotel spend when directly with the hotel, gas stations

• 1:1 point transfer to United and Hyatt (best use of points), Korean Air, Southwest, Marriott, InterContinental, Priority Club, Amtrak

• No foreign transaction fees

• Annual fee waived first year, then $95

Why #7: Actually, this card is tied with the Ink Bold, since it has the same sign up bonus, bonus categories, perks and the $95 annual fee is waived the first year. Some used to place it above the Ink Bold because you don't incur interest charges for the first 6 statement cycles, giving you extra leeway to make minimum spend, but unfortunately the current version does *not* offer a 0% APR for 6 months.  

Another thing I love about business cards is that unlike personal cards, credit utilization is not reported to credit agencies. So as long as you're paying it off in full by the due date, no need to zealously pay off high spend right after it occurs.

As with the Ink Bold, try to apply now, in December 2012, as minimum spend is expected to increase again around end of 2012. See Ink Plus and Ink Bold Minimum Spend to Increase and FAQ

8. US Airways MasterCard - 35,000 US Airways miles after first use

• Update:Note that after submitting an application you will likely receive "We apologize for the inconvenience, but our website is experiencing technical issues..." but most applications are still successful. Use this link to check the status of your application to see if it in fact was submitted.

• 35,000 US Airways miles after first use

• 10,000 bonus miles after the first anniversary of account opening

• Up to 10,000 miles for balance transfers in the first 90 days

• $89 fee is waived the first year

Why #8: Since I assume that many folks won't keep the card past the first year due to not wanting to pay the annual fee, and won't transfer any balances, I consider this a 35,000 mile offer, not a 45,000 mile offer. US Airways miles offer less flexibility than Ultimate Rewards or United points, so it's below the Chase Sapphire Preferred in my book.

9. Mercedes-Benz Platinum AMEX - 50,000 Membership Rewards points

• 50,000 Membership Rewards points after $3000 spend within the first 3 months (increased from $1000 previously)

• Points may be transferred to Aeroplan, ANA, British Airways, Delta, Singapore and others; there are sometimes transfer bonuses for British Airways and Delta

• $200 airline fee credit (some have managed to get this twice, because it's in a calendar year)

• 5X points per $1 on eligible Mercedes-Benz purchases, 1 point per $1 on all other purchases 

• $475 annual fee is NOT waived the first year

Why #9: After putting this card low on my priority list, I recently applied for and got approved for it. What changed? Mainly, I had a great experience in Singapore First Class and want to save more Membership Rewards points so that I can redeem for more Singapore Airlines First Class, by transferring MR points to Singapore KrisFlyer.

Because of that, I've bitten the bullet on the steep annual fee, though I do have some tips for Maximizing the AMEX Platinum Airline Fee Credit. I'll probably also take advantage of reimbursement for Global Entry.I still don't value the Fine Hotels and Resorts Program as I get far better rates via TravelSort Hotels and I tend to get upgraded even with no status or special booking package.

There are also no category bonuses, except for 5X for Mercedes-Benz purchases, unlike the AMEX Premier Rewards Gold Card. If you value the benefits more than I though, you could find the card to be worthwhile. Note that the current offer for the regular AMEX Platinum (not Mercedes-Benz) is now 25,000 points, although some report receiving a targeted offer for 50,000 points. That card comes with a $450 fee. And yes, it's possible to get the bonus for both cards, as they are different products.

10. Lufthansa Premier Miles & More MasterCard - 50,000 Miles

• 20,000 miles after first purchase

• 30,000 miles after spending $5000 in the first 90 days

• $79 annual fee is NOT waived

Why #10: This offer is best for the signup bonus, and $2500 minimum spend over 90 days isn't too onerous although of course it's not great that the annual fee isn't waived. Lufthansa Miles & More miles can be used to book Lufthansa First Class and Business Class in advance, although at more expensive redemption rates and with high fuel surcharges, compared to United or US Airways. Another good use is for domestic premium cabin tickets, for example United BusinessFirst seats on 2 cabin flights that are coded as I would be 35,000 miles roundtrip within the mainland U.S.

11. Marriott Rewards Premier Card - 70,000 Marriott points 

• Bonus is enough to stay 1 night at any Ritz-Carlton properties

• 5 points per $1 spent at Marriott® locations

• 2 points per $1 spent on airline tickets purchased directly with the airline, and at car rental agencies & restaurants

• Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on other purchases

• Receive 1 free night stay at a Category 1-4 Marriott on signup, and an anniversary night at Category 1-5 Marriotts when you renew the card

• Cardmembers achieve Silver Elite status with 15 nights credit toward Elite status

• Annual fee waived the first year, then $85

Why #11: I used to personally rank this card above the Mercedes-Benz Platinum AMEX, but I now value Membership Rewards more thanks to KrisFlyer Saver awards, especially as you can now even book Singapore Airlines Suites Awards. 

Ignore the "7 free nights" unless you don't mind staying in the lowest category motel-like Marriotts. Far better is that you can use Marriott points for Ritz-Carlton awards, and 70,000 points is enough for 1 free night at any Ritz-Carlton hotel, since the highest category, Tier 5 properties, are 70,000 points. Or, you could stay 1 night at a Tier 2 Ritz-Carlton, such as the Ritz-Carlton Orlando, and 1 night in a Tier 1 Ritz-Carlton, such as The Ritz-Carlton Buckhead in Atlanta. See Best Marriott Hotels and Resorts to Stay at Free with the Marriott Visa. It's also great that the annual fee is waived the first year, unlike for the Hyatt Visa.

And while I'm not a fan of lower category Marriotts, the category 1-4 free night could come in handy--more on this in a future post. Also note that if you do renew the card and pay the $85 annual fee, you'll receive a certificate for a free night at a category 1-5 Marriott.