If you’ve changed jobs or are taking on new responsibilities that will have you traveling for work more often, first congratulations to you. Business travel, for all of its hassles, can be a rewarding experience, especially if you find ways to make the travel system work to your advantage.
The right credit card can help a lot even though you’ll earn a lot of miles and points the old fashioned way – from actually flying and staying in hotels. The key for you is bigger mile balances in a few programs are more valuable than a lot of small balances in many programs, so your credit card strategy should be to add to the pools of miles you’re already earning.
In this guide we’ll talk about:
Transferable points and why you should earn them
Whether an annual fee is worth it
Which cards have spending category bonuses for business travel
Why you may want another card that just provides travel perks
Start with transferable points
You will probably have an airline you fly most often because it’s convenient or your company has a deal with it. A good start is to look past your airline’s own card as Skift.com notes and get a card that earns transferable points that you can move into several airline mile or hotel points programs at any time.
There are no or small fees for the transfers, and they are often instant. For example, Chase has cards that let you transfer the points they earn into your United, Southwest, Marriott, Hyatt, Amtrak, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, IHG Hotels, and Korean Airlines mile / point accounts. All with no fee for the transfer and a conversion rate of 1 point = 1 mile.
Why should you start with a transferable points card?
Double leverage. Transferable points can leverage both the airline and hotel points you’re already earning from your business travel since many transferable points cards let you add to your totals in either your airline or hotel program accounts.
Diversifying your bets. Since the price of awards in miles can change at anytime, you should ‘invest’ in points that aren’t tied to just one program. Cards that let you transfer points into multiple airlines give you more options when it comes time to book an award.
For example, if you’re trying to collect United miles, Chase has a program called Ultimate Rewards. Cards in this program let you transfer the points you earn 1:1 into real miles for your United account at any time with no fee for the transfer. So 1,000 points from your card equals 1,000 United miles when transferred. You can also transfer into other partners like Southwest, British Airways, or Marriott. So when it comes time to book your award trip, if United doesn’t have the award you want you can always try the other programs and transfer points there. That makes the points you earn more valuable to you.
These are the transferable points cards we most commonly recommend for business travelers. You should pick one that allows transfer of points to the airline you use most often:
Chase Ink Plus® Business Card
This card lets you transfer points into real miles with United, Southwest, Marriott, Hyatt, Amtrak, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, IHG Hotels, and Korean Airlines. It also earns 2x points on gas as well as hotel purchases made directly from the hotel.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
This is a personal card similar to the Ink Plus Card for Business. It lets you transfer points into real miles with United, Southwest, Marriott, Hyatt, Amtrak, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, IHG Hotels, and Korean Airlines. Also earns 2x points on all dining and travel spending.
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express
Available as both a personal and business card. It earns points at Westin, W, Sheraton, Four Points, Le Meridien, St. Regis hotels. Also transfer points to American, Delta, US Airways, Alaska, and more. Here’s a full list. You get 5,000 extra miles for ever 20,000 points you transfer.
The Enhanced Business Gold Rewards® Card from American Express
Earns 3x points on airfare, 2x on gas. Also transfer points to Delta, JetBlue, British Airways, and more. Here’s a full list. If you want a personal card, The Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express has similar features. You can compare this and other Membership Rewards cards here.
If your company issues The Corporate Card from American Express it can also transfer points to the same programs. To take part in transferable points with The Corporate Card you’ll need to call American Express and pay $90 a year to enroll in Membership Rewards. Then, you can transfer points to Delta, JetBlue, British Airways, and more. You can’t apply for this card – your company has to give it to you, and many large firms use it for business expenses.
Here is a list of cards that transfer points into each major airline:
Alaska: Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express (1 point = 1 Alaska mile. And you get 5,000 extra miles for every 20,000 points you transfer)
American: Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express (1 point = 1 American mile. And you get 5,000 extra miles for every 20,000 points you transfer)
Delta: Amex Membership Rewards cards with an annual fee, including The Premier Rewards Gold Card and The Platinum Card. Also available on The Corporate Card for $90 per year. (1 point = 1 Delta mile), Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express(1 point = 1 Delta mile. And you get 5,000 extra miles for every 20,000 points you transfer)
JetBlue: Amex Membership Rewards cards with an annual fee, including The Premier Rewards Gold and The Platinum Card. Also available on The Corporate Card for $90 per year. (250 points = 200 JetBlue points)
Southwest: Chase Ultimate Rewards cards with an annual fee, including the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Ink Plus® Business Card, Ink Bold® Business Card. Holding an annual fee based card also lets you use points from no annual fee Ultimate Rewards cards like the Ink Cash® and Chase Freedom® for transfer. (1 point = 1 Southwest point)
United: Chase Ultimate Rewards cards with an annual fee, including the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Ink Plus® Card, Ink Bold® Card. Holding an annual fee based card also lets you use points from no annual fee Ultimate Rewards cards like the Ink Cash® and Chase Freedom for transfer. (1 point = 1 United mile)
US Airways: Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card American Express (1 point = 1 US Airways mile. And you get 5,000 extra miles for every 20,000 points you transfer)
Virgin America: Membership Rewards cards with an annual fee, including Premier Rewards Gold and The Platinum Card. (2 points = 1 Virgin America point). This isn’t a good deal because the number of points you have is cut in half when you transfer.
One thing to consider is the time it takes to transfer. Chase Ultimate Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards transfers to the big U.S. airline mile programs are generally instant – the miles will show up in your airline account immediately. But Starwood transfers to airline miles can take several days. We have a rundown of transfer times here.
Is an annual fee worth it?
All transferable point cards require you pay an annual fee as do nearly all cards that earn ‘real’ airline miles. A rule of thumb to see if a fee is worth it is this:
If you charge more than $10 a month on the card per dollar of annual fee it will probably be worth it to pay the fee.
For example, if a card has a $90 annual fee, and you spend $900+ a month on it, you’ll generally earn more than $90 in reward value from the card in a year, covering that cost. If it has a $175 annual fee, you should to spend at least $1,750 a month on it to make it worth it. You might get even more value than that, depending on how you use your points, but this is a conservative way to think about it.
You can use our CardFinder tool to better judge if a fee is worth it. The CardFinder factors in annual fees and the value of points themselves to see how much in travel savings you can earn with a card. You can also see cards that earn transferable points for each of the major airlines and compare how many miles they earn versus the traditional airline cards. Just choose ‘Filter by program’ under ‘What points do you want?’.
If you haven’t chosen an airline
If you haven’t yet chosen an airline to fly most often you can pick a program based on where you want to travel on vacation with the miles you earn.
Generally:
United miles are most useful for getting award travel to international destinations in Economy Class
Southwest points are valuable for domestic travel
American miles are useful for Business / First class travel of all kinds
Alaska miles are a good option if you fly Delta or American, as you can earn when flying both airlines and redeem on many more airlines via Alaska’s partners.
If you travel over 25,000 miles per year and could be an ‘elite’ level flier, American Airlines has the most well regarded elite level program, particularly if you want upgrades on international flights. Alaska is also well liked, though upgrades are only reliable on its own flights. United has the most extra legroom Economy Plus seats available.
There are lots of exceptions, these are just quick guidelines, but if you want to read more we have reviews of the pros and cons of mileage programs for travel to each major award region or check out sites like BoardingArea.com for discussion of elite status.
Pair your hotel choice based on transferable points
To get the most out of your miles, try pairing your airline and hotel choices with your transferable points card. So if you fly Southwest or United frequently, consider staying at Marriott, Hyatt, and IHG hotels. You can transfer points to all of these hotel points programs with a Chase Ultimate Rewards credit card.
Marriott also has a deal with United, where elite members of each earn privileges. For example, United’s Gold Premier and higher members get Gold Elite status with Marriott which offers free breakfast and access to hotel lounges.
If you fly Delta or American, consider Starwood hotels as you can transfer to each of these airline mile programs from the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express. Starwood hotels include Westin, Sheraton, W, Le Meridien, and Four Points among others.
Delta has a deal with Starwood where its elite members earn privileges at Starwood like free wifi and late check-out.
You can also consider Hilton as a Delta flier, as Amex Membership Rewards cards let you transfer points to both Delta and Hilton. Just be aware that mile program enthusiasts don’t value Hilton points very highly, as they require more points for many awards than other hotel programs, particularly lucrative luxury rewards.
Think about categories
We think it’s most important you earn miles in a transferable program that can add to the miles you’re already earning via flying or staying in hotels on your company’s dime. But you can also add to your totals with category spending bonuses.
For business travel, the most common expense categories you’ll have are gas, dining, hotel rooms, and airfare. Below is a list of cards that earn miles that can be deposited in a real airline or hotel program by category spending bonus.
You can also use our CardFinder tool to enter how much you think you’ll spend in these categories and see which cards rank best for the program with which you want to earn miles.
Hotels
Chase Ink Plus® Business Card / Ink Bold® Business Card: 2x points when purchased directly from the hotel
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: 2x points
Most hotel branded cards: They generally earn at least 2 points per dollar when you spend with the home hotel.
Gas
Chase Ink Plus® Business Card / Ink Bold® Business Card / Ink Cash® Business Card: 2x points
The Enhanced Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN / Premier Rewards Gold Card: 2x points
United MileagePlus® Explorer Business Card: 2x miles
Airfare
The Enhanced Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN / Premier Rewards Gold Card: 3x points when purchased directly from airlines
Alaska Airlines Visa®Business Credit Card: 3x miles on Alaska purchases
Most other airline branded cards: 2x miles on purchases on the home airline
Dining
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: 2x points
Ink Cash® Business Card: 2x points
United MileagePlus® Explorer Business Card: 2x miles
Car Rental
CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® World MasterCard®: 2x miles at certain agencies
Do you want perks while you travel?
Also remember you don’t have to hold just one card. Sometimes you’ll want to hold a credit card not so much to earn points with it, but to reap travel benefits that come along with it. These include priority boarding, access to airline lounges, outright elite status with hotels, car rental status that can score you upgrades, and faster earning of elite status with both hotels and airlines.
Only you can decide whether these perks are worth the annual fee, but here is a rundown of the perks you can fast track by holding a credit card:
Priority Boarding
United MileagePlus® Explorer, United Club Card: Group 2 Boarding
Delta SkyMiles® Credit Cards: Zone 1 Boarding (after First Class and ‘SKY’ zones)
American AAdvantage Credit Cards: Group 1 Boarding (after First Class and top elite fliers)
US Airways Dividend Miles Premier MasterCard: Group 2 boarding
Lounge Club Access
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN / The Platinum Card from American Express: Delta Sky Club access for the card holder, American Express Centurion Lounges, and Priority Pass lounges.
United Club Card: Full United Club membership and you can bring 2 guests or your spouse and kids
Citi Executive® / AAdvantage® World EliteTM MasterCard®: Admirals Club and US Airways Club access for you and 2 guests or children / spouse
Delta Reserve Credit Card: Delta Sky Club access for the card holder. No complimentary guest privileges as of May 2014.
Car Rental Status
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN / The Platinum Card from American Express: Hertz Gold, 4 hour grace period on Hertz rentals, National Executive Club status (guaranteed free upgrades – this is a reliable perk), Avis First status (not so reliable car upgrades)
United Club Card: Avis First status
Hotel Status
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN / The Platinum Card from American Express: Starwood Preferred Guest Gold Elite status
Citi Hilton HHonors Reserve Credit Card / Hilton HHonors Surpass Credit Card from American Express: Hilton Gold status. Also achieve HHonors Diamond status after you spend $40,000 in purchases in a calendar year.
Club Carlson Premier Rewards / Club Carlson Rewards Visa Business Card: Your Club Carlson membership will be upgraded to Gold Elite Status after you activate and use your card. You will receive 15 qualifying nights toward obtaining or maintaining Concierge Elite status after you activate and use your new card.
Club Carlson Rewards: Your Club Carlson membership will be upgraded to Silver Elite Status after you activate and use your card. You will receive 10 qualifying nights toward obtaining or maintaining Gold or Concierge Elite status after you activate and use your new card.
The Hyatt Credit Card: Hyatt Platinum Status. Also receive 2 stay credits and 5 night credits toward Diamond status upon spending $20,000 in each calendar year. Receive an additional 3 stay credits and 5 night credits toward Diamond status upon spending $40,000 in each calendar year
IHG® Rewards Club Select Visa®: Platinum Elite status.
Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card: 15 nights credit toward Elite status every year upon account anniversary, earn 1 Elite Night Credit for every $3,000 spent
Marriott Rewards Credit Card: 10 Nights Credit toward your next Elite membership level every year after account anniversary, earn 1 Elite Night for every $3,000 spent
Marriott Rewards Business Card: 10 Nights Credit toward your next Elite membership level every year after account anniversary, earn 1 Elite Night Credit for every $3,000 spent
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express: 2 stays or 5 nights elite credit. Earn Gold Elite status after $30,000 in spending in a calendar year.
United Club Card: Hyatt Platinum status
Airline status
Citi Executive® / AAdvantage® World EliteTM MasterCard®: Each calendar year when you reach $40,000 in spending on purchases, you will earn 10,000 AAdvantage® elite qualifying miles from American Airlines to put you on the fast track to American Airlines AAdvantage® elite status membership.
Platinum Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express: Earn 10,000 bonus miles and 10,000 MQMs (Medallion Qualifying Miles) after you spend $25,000 or more on eligible purchases each calendar year. Also earn an additional 10,000 bonus miles and 10,000 MQMs after you spend $50,000 or more on eligible purchases each calendar year.
Delta Reserve Credit Card: 15,000 bonus miles and 15,000 Medallion Qualification Miles after $30,000 in spending in a calendar year. An additional 15,000 bonus miles and 15,000 MQMs when you spend $60,000 in a calendar year.
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Visa: 1,500 Tier Qualifying Points for every $10,000 in purchases. Get up to 15,000 Tier Qualifying Points each calendar year.
Want to really juice your earning?
The fastest way to earn miles and points is to not be loyal to a single card. Instead, some people like to apply for several cards over time to try them out and earn the big sign up bonuses each offer.
The reason they do it is this.
Let’s say you’re using a card with a 30,000 mile bonus after $1,000 in spending within 3 months. That means for the first $3,000 you spend on that card you’re earning 30 miles per dollar. That’s much better than any regular earning you’ll get from a card after the bonus.
So once the bonus spending on one card is done, you can consider opening up a different card and working toward that bonus. Let’s say it’s a card that earns 40,000 miles after $3,000 in spending. Then, you’re earning 13 miles per dollar you spend upfront. That’s much more than just continuing with your first card after its bonus and earning only the standard 1-2 miles per dollar on spending
This is not for everyone. Switching cards can make filing expense reports a bit more complicated.
It’s okay to be comfortable with just one or two cards you really like and ‘setting it and forgetting it’ – you’ll still earn hundreds or thousands of dollars a year in extra travel rewards. But if you’re really set on big mile balances doing this for part of the year can help boost your accounts quickly.
We keep a list of the latest deals and tips here.