Best Credit Cards

The Best  Travel Credit Cards of July 2018 based on signup bonuses and category spend bonuses are listed here–these are public offers, available to U.S. residents. Credit card offers such as these, category spend bonuses and some modest mile purchases are How We Earned Nearly 1 Million Miles and Points in 2017 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?http://travelsort.com/blog/beginners-guide-to-miles-points Check out our Beginner's Guide to Miles and Points.

Note that there are sometimes targeted offers that are better than public offers, such as a 150K AMEX Business Platinum offer, 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 first class award ticket, which could have a retail value of $20,000 or more. If you only fly inexpensive domestic flights you may be best off with a cash back card.

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, which is just $75 per person if you book at least $5000 in hotels or cruises with us for your travel itinerary.

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. 50K Chase Sapphire Reserve

• 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points signup bonus after spending $4000

• Earn 3X Ultimate Rewards points on travel purchases

• Earn 3X Ultimate Rewards points on dining

• $300 Travel Statement Credit per year automatically applied for travel purchases charged to your card

• Up to $100 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Fee Credit if charged to your card

• Get 50% more value when you redeem points for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards

Why #1: The Chase Sapphire Reserve is now my most used card in terms of dollar value of purchases, thanks to earning 3X on all travel and dining. If you travel, this should be your go-to card for virtually all purchases, and in my view it's the best card to have if you opt to have just one travel rewards credit card. Yes, it has a high $450 annual fee, but effectively it's a $150 per year card because of the $300 travel statement credit each year (December to December billing cycle). This reimburses you for $300 per year of all kinds of travel–airfare, hotel spend, taxis, car rentals, etc.

Heck, even if you're not positive you're going to keep the card for the long term (although personally I will) you can make about $850 off the card in the first year. Get a $300 travel statement credit plus the 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points as a signup bonus (worth $1000 at a valuation of 2 cents per point. That gives you $1000 + $300 – $450 = $850.

Since you earn 3X on all travel and dining, anyone who spends $2500 or more per year on some combination of travel and dining will easily earn back the annual fee on an annual basis, at least if you value Chase Ultimate Rewards points at ~2 cents per point. That's because your $2500 in spend will earn you 7500 Ultimate Rewards points, and at a valuation of 2 cents per point, that's $150. And this is in addition to the trip interruption, cancellation, delay, Chase Sapphire Reserve Priority Pass Select lounge access and other card benefits.

2. Chase Ink Business Preferred Credit Card – 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points (limited time offer; usually 50K bonus)

• 80,000 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!)

• 3X points per dollar on the first $150,000 in combined purchases each anniversary year on travel, shipping purchases, Intternet, cable and phone services, and on advertising purchases made with social media sites.

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

• No foreign transaction fees

• Annual fee of $95 is NOT waived the first year, unless you apply in a Chase branch

Why #2: The Ink Bold and Ink Plus have been eliminated for new applications, so now the only Ultimate Rewards linked Ink card is the Ink Business Preferred, which launched November 14, 2016. It has an 80K sign up bonus, 3X bonus categories, and the $95 annual fee is NOT waived the first year for this offer unless you apply in a Chase branch. Note that this card is subject to Chase 5/24, so you'll most likely not be approved for it unless you have opened 4 or fewer new credit cards within the past 24 months.

Points may be transferred 1:1 to Singapore KrisFlyer,Korean Air SkyPass, United MileagePlus, British Airways, Korean Air Skypass, Southwest, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, Hyatt, Ritz-Carlton, Marriott, Intercontinental/Priority Club, Amtrak.

Thanks in part to the points from the Ink Bold (no longer available), 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.

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.

3. Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa – Up to 65,000 points 

• 60,000 Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $4000 spend in the first 3 months

• 5000 Ultimate Rewards points after adding an authorized user within 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

• 1:1 point transfer to Singapore KrisFlyer, Korean Air, United, Hyatt, Southwest, Marriott, InterContinental, Priority Club, Amtrak

• Direct access to expert service advisors anytime

• Annual fee of $95 is NOT waived for this 60,000 points offer

Why #3: The 60K + 5K for total of 65,000 points is a better offer than the prior 50,000 points offer (55K points including the 5000 bonus for adding an authorized user) BUT the $95 annual fee is not waived. I still consider the lower 50K Chase Sapphire Reserve a better card offer, however, because you're only allowed one signup bonus and you typically have to wait a year to product change your card. That's an entire year you'd be missing out on 3X for all travel and dining, in addition to the other Chase Sapphire Reserve benefits such as the Global Entry reimbursement, Priority Pass lounge access, emergency evacuation and transportation coverage, and of course the $300 annual travel credit that effectively reduces the annual card cost to $150 per year.

My favorite transfer option for Ultimate Rewards points are Singapore KrisFlyer and Korean Air Skypass. Previously, United miles were the best value transfer partner for Ultimate Rewards points, but that changed as of 2/1/14 due to the massive United Award Chart Devaluation. Note also that you are likely to be turned down for a new Chase Sapphire Preferred if you've opened 5 or more new credit cards within the past 24 months; see Chase 5/24 rule.

Points may be transferred 1:1 to Singapore KrisFlyer, 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.

Note that the 7% annual points dividend has been eliminated for those who got this card July 20, 2014 or later for this card. Those who already had the card will continue to receive the points dividend for 2015 spend, but that will be the last year; no 7% points dividend for 2016 spend.

5. 60K Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select

Note that you shouldn't apply for more than one Citi card of any kind on the same day–wait at least a week between Citi applications, if you're hoping to be approved for both. Also note that AAdvantage miles are worth less, after the 2016 AAdvantage Award Chart Devaluation.

• Earn 60K AAdvantage miles after $3000 in spend within the first 3 months of account opening

• No foreign transaction fees

• 2 AAdvantage miles for every $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases and on purchases at telecommunications merchants, gas stations and car rental agencies

• $95 annual fee is waived the first year

• First checked bag free on domestic American Airlines flights
• Note that you are not eligible for the bonus miles if you have had this same card opened or closed in the past 24 months.

Why #5: Even after the major AAdvantage award chart devaluation, AAdvantage miles still have their uses. For example, you can fly JAL Sky Suite Business Class between the U.S. and Japan for 60,000 miles each way, JAL Business Class from Tokyo to Sydney for 40,000 miles each way, or JAL First Class Tokyo to Sydney for 60,000 miles each way. If you need more miles more quickly than you can earn them via credit card signup bonuses, you may want to top up your account by buying AAdvantage miles.

10. 100K AMEX Business Platinum Also 150K AMEX Business Platinum by Calling In (Targeted)

• 100,000 Membership Rewards points signup bonus after spending $25,000 within your first 3 months of card membership (50,000 points after spending $10,000 and another 50,000 points after spending an additional $15,000)

• Receive $200 in statement credits for airline incidental fees such as for checked luggage after selecting a qualifying airline

• Enjoy complimentary access to AMEX Centurion lounges, such as the AMEX Centurion Lounge SFO, AMEX Centurion Lounge in New York LaGuardia, AMEX Centurion Lounge in Las Vegas, and the AMEX Centurion Studio in Seattle.

• Earn 35% extra Membership Rewards points for all first class and business class tickets booked with Pay with Points, as well as economy tickets for the same airline selected for the airline incidental credit. This used to be a 50% points rebate, but was changed 6/1/17. See AMEX Business Platinum Cuts 50% Points Rebate

• Earn 1.5X Membership Rewards points per dollar for each single transaction of $5000 or more. For example, spend $6000 and earn 9000 Membership Rewards points.

• No foreign transaction fees

• $450 annual fee is NOT waived the first year

• Offer not available if you have or have had the AMEX Business Platinum card

Why #10: This offer was previously 100,000 bonus Membership Rewards points until January 25, 2017, with a $15,000 minimum spend. 75,000 bonus points for higher $20,000 minimum spend is significantly worse, which caused this to fall significantly in the rankings. Be on the lookout for targeted 100K or even the targeted 150K AMEX Business Platinum offers that sometimes come via snail mail.

11. 50K Lufthansa Miles & More

• 20K bonus Miles & more miles after making a first purchase and paying the annual fee

• 30K additional bonus miles after spending $5000 on the card within the first 90 days of card membership

• 2X miles per $1 for tickets purchased directly with Lufthansa and partner airlines such as Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and SWISS

• $89 annual fee is NOT waived the first year

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.)

14. 50K United MileagePlus Business Card

• Earn 50,000 Bonus MileagePlus miles after you spend $3000 on the card within the first 3 months of account opening

• Earn 2X MileagePlus miles per $1 spent on tickets bought from United Airlines, spend at office supply stores, restaurants, and gas stations

• Earn 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases

• Free first checked bag

• Priority boarding

• No foreign transaction fees

• 2 United Club passes each year

• $0 annual fee the first year, thereafter $95 per year

Why #14: Other Chase cards linked to Ultimate Rewards should be higher priority, since Ultimate Rewards can transfer 1:1 to United MileagePlus miles (as well as the flexibility of transferring to other frequent flyer programs), and the Chase cards above come with higher signup bonuses. I've also demoted this card in the ranking due to the massive United award chart devaluation that took effect February 1, 2014, and given the MileagePlus award increased change fees and stopover rule changes that went into effect October 6, 2016. Note that you are unlikely to be approved for this card if you've opened 5 or more credit cards in the last 24 months; see Chase 5/24 rule.