A new year means new opportunities to maximize the points you earn and redeem. Make one of your New Year’s resolutions to put together an even stronger points strategy by taking advantage of the best rewards credit card offers out there at any given time.
To help you accomplish that, I compile a short list of the top credit card offers available each month. The list changes month to month based on the offers available at any given time as well as other relevant news, so be sure to check back each month to stay current. For each card on my list, I provide the basics on sign-up bonuses and benefits, but also some personal context on how I’ve been able to maximize each one so you get a sense of where these cards can get you.
For instance, telling you that the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express is still one of the best credit cards out there is one thing. But wait till I tell you how I was able to use 130,000 points I earned from it (and hotel stays) to book a five-night stay at the all-new St. Regis Maldives worth over $10,000.
Though this list has the best offers of the moment, you can always find a comprehensive roundup of the best deals currently available, as well as specific hotel and airline credit cards that might interest you, on the Hot Deals page.
Before you apply, check out these posts for more information on credit scores, applications processes and more. Contrary to what you might think, it might actually help rather than hurt your score in the long term to open new cards.
How Credit Card Applications Affect Your Credit Score
5 Things To Understand About Credit Before Applying For Cards
Debunking Credit Card Myths: Does Applying For A Card Permanently Impact My Credit Score
Now, here’s this month’s list of the best travel credit cards.
THE SHORT LIST
Here’s the short list of this month’s cards, but continue reading below for more details on each.
1. Chase Sapphire Reserve
2. The Enhanced Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN
3. Ink Business Preferred Card from Chase
4. Chase Sapphire Preferred
5. The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN
6. Citi Prestige Card
7. Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite MasterCard and the CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select World MasterCard
8. The Platinum Card from American Express
9. Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express and the Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card from American Express
10. Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard
THE DETAILS
Here’s a quick look at each card’s sign-up bonus, specific benefits and the ways I’ve been able to maximize each.
1. Chase Sapphire Reserve
Current Bonus: 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months.
Standout Benefits: Earn 3 points on travel and dining at restaurants and 1 point per dollar everywhere else. $300 annual travel credit. Priority Pass Select lounge access. Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit. No foreign transaction fees. Primary auto rental insurance. Trip cancellation coverage. Redeem points through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal for 1.5 cents apiece.
Annual fee: $450
Why it’s worth it: Since it launched last year, the Sapphire Reserve has quickly become one of the most popular travel rewards cards on the market thanks to a phenomenal benefits package, including that $300 annual travel credit, the Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit, its travel earning bonus and the high sign-up bonus. However, there’s no telling how long Chase will keep the current bonus at the 100,000-point level, so if you’ve held off on applying for the past few months, I wouldn’t wait too long in case it goes down with little notice.
There are so many ways to put those 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points to use for great value. I recently redeemed my Chase Sapphire Reserve sign-up bonus points for a one-way first-class award on Korean Air from Bali to New York via Seoul that would have cost me $7,200 otherwise. Not bad for a single sign-up bonus. You can also redeem the points directly for travel through the Ultimate Rewards portal at a great rate of 1.5 cents per point, meaning that sign-up bonus alone would be worth $1,500 in travel, over three times as much as the annual fee.
2. The Enhanced Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN
Current Bonus: Earn up to 100,000 Membership Rewards points; 50,000 points after you spend $5,000 in purchases on the card and an extra 50,000 points after spending an additional $10,000 within your first three months of cardmembership. Offer ends 1/25/2017.
Benefits: Earn 2 points per dollar on eligible purchases when you book through American Express Travel. Earn 1.5 points per dollar on purchases of $5,000 or more (up to 1 million additional points per year) and 1 point per dollar on other purchases. $200 annual airline fee rebate. Access to Delta Sky Clubs, Priority Pass lounges and Centurion Lounges. Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application rebate. Transfer Membership Rewards to 20 airline and hotel partners.
Annual fee: $450
Why it’s worth it: First things first: a limited-time sign-up bonus 100,000 Amex Membership Rewards points. That alone is worth $1,900 in my estimation. While that requires a fair amount of spending, it’s still an amount that’s likely within most small-business owners’ wheelhouse. Amex also made huge improvements to the Business Platinum Card recently, including the fact that it now earns 1.5x points per dollar on all purchases of $5,000 or more. Cardholders also receive a 50% points rebate when redeeming points for air travel with the same carrier they select for their $200 annual airline fee credit, or when they book business- or first-class airfare (with any airline) through Amex Travel. That means you’re getting 2 cents per point in value on those redemptions. That is, if you decide to do that instead of transferring them to one of the Membership Rewards program’s 20 transfer partners. In fact, these key benefits have all changed the way we use the card at TPG.
3. Ink Business Preferred Card from Chase
Current Bonus: 80,000 bonus points when you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Standout Benefits: Earn 3 points per dollar on the first $150,000 spent on travel, shipping, social media advertising and internet/cable/phone services and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. Cell phone insurance when you use the card to pay your bill. No foreign transaction fees and employee cards at no additional cost.
Annual Fee: $95
Why it’s worth it: The 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points you earn as a sign-up bonus would be more than enough for a one-way business-class award on Singapore’s new A350 route from San Francisco to Singapore, which otherwise costs about $3,500, if you transferred them to Singapore’s KrisFlyer program. However, there are plenty of other great reasons to consider this card. Not only can you transfer your points to Ultimate Rewards’ airline and hotel travel partners, but you get 1.25 cents per point on direct redemptions through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal. This card earns a respectable 3 points per dollar on the first $150,000 in combined spending on travel; shipping purchases; internet, cable and phone services; and advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines. That’s a potentially huge earner for small-business owners, making this card a nice alternative to the Business Gold Rewards Card from Amex.
This card’s most unique perk might be the cell phone protection, though. When you pay your cell phone bill with this card (including the fees for any employees listed on the bill), you’ll get up to $600 in protection against any covered damage or theft, for you and any other lines listed on your bill, up to three claims per year; subject to a $100 deductible. And, since phone services are listed as an eligible bonus category, you’ll be earning 3x points in the process. All in all, this card is a great new addition to the Chase portfolio and a great way to stock up on more Ultimate Rewards points if you already have other personal cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve. Also note that if you apply for this card at a Chase branch, you can get the $95 fee waived for the first year.
4. Chase Sapphire Preferred
Current Bonus: 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $4,000 on the card in the first three months. That’s $625 in travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards. You’ll earn another 5,000 bonus points when you add an authorized user and make a purchase within the first three months.
Standout Benefits: Earn 2 points per dollar on travel and dining at restaurants and 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases worldwide. Waived foreign transaction fees, primary auto rental insurance, trip cancellation coverage and gives cardholders the ability to transfer points to 11 travel partners, including British Airways, Hyatt, Marriott, Southwest and United, among others.
Annual Fee: $0 introductory annual fee the first year, then $95.
Why it’s worth it: Even after the introduction of the Chase Sapphire Reserve, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is still a great choice if you want to avoid the Reserve’s $450 annual fee, or if your credit score might not be high enough to qualify for the Reserve. The Sapphire Preferred has a strong earning rate of 2 points per dollar at restaurants and on a range of travel purchases (as opposed to the Reserve’s 3x rate), and you can transfer your points to the Ultimate Rewards program’s great travel partners or redeem Ultimate Rewards points directly for airfare at a rate of 1.25 cents apiece. All of those are good reasons in and of themselves. But the annual fee is waived the first year, making this a great starter card for travelers, and one you can try at no risk for the first year.
5. The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN
Current Bonus: 50,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of cardmembership.
Standout Benefits: Earn 3 points per dollar on a category of your choice from a list of five options, 2 points per dollar on the four remaining categories, and 1 point per dollar on other purchases. The 3x and 2x apply to the first $100,000 in purchases in each of the five categories per year, then you earn 1 point per dollar thereafter. The card waives foreign transaction fees.
Annual fee: $0 the first year, then $175 thereafter.
Why it’s worth it: Though the Business Gold Rewards card doesn’t have the benefits package of the more premium Business Platinum Card, it also doesn’t have that card’s $450 annual fee. In fact, the $175 annual fee on this one is waived the first year, so getting it is like a risk-free trial of its benefits. Beyond that, I consider this to be one of the best cards for small businesses thanks to that 3x category of choice and the range of 2x spending categories as well. Those categories include airfare purchased directly from airlines; US purchases for advertising in select media; US purchases at gas stations; US purchases for shipping; or US computer hardware, software and cloud computing purchases made directly from select providers. I earn about 300,000 extra Membership Rewards points a year thanks to earning 3 points per dollar on advertising.
As for redemptions, one of my favorite ways to use Amex points is to transfer them to Aeroplan and redeem those miles for Lufthansa first class. Alternatively, because I also have the Business Platinum Card, I can redeem Amex points directly through Amex Travel for something like JetBlue Mint transcontinental business-class tickets starting at about 29,950 points ($599) one-way. Just based on my advertising spend, I have enough for 10 tickets! The options are endless, and there are phenomenal values to be had.
6. Citi Prestige Card
Current Bonus: 40,000 Citi ThankYou points after you spend $4,000 in purchases in the first three months.
Standout Benefits: Earn 3 ThankYou points per dollar on air travel and hotels, 2 points per dollar on dining out and entertainment and 1 point per dollar on everything else. Get a $250 annual air travel credit for things like airfare, lounge access and some in-flight purchases. Get your 4th Night Free at hotels when you book through Citi’s concierge service. Priority Pass Select lounge access. Redeem your points for air travel at a rate of 1.33 points cents apiece, or 1.6 cents apiece on American Airlines (until July 23, 2017). Transfer points to 14 different travel partners, including Air France/KLM Flying Blue, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and Hilton HHonors.
Annual Fee: $450
Why you should get it: While Citi announced some negative changes to this card back in July — including a lower sign-up bonus, the elimination of Admirals Club access and the end of the free rounds of golf benefit — one of its most valuable perks still remains. Even though the 4th Night Free perk will no longer be calculated based on the actual fourth night (instead it will be based on the average nightly rate) starting on July 23, 2017, it can still save you thousands of dollars a year. I used this benefit to save nearly $1,800 on my recent trip at the Park Hyatt Maldives, and I’ll be taking advantage of it for upcoming stays this year as well. That benefit alone far outweighs this card’s $450 annual fee for me.
7. Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite MasterCard and the CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select World MasterCard
Current Bonus: 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage bonus miles after $3,000 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Standout Benefits: You will receive 10% of your redeemed miles back — up to 10,000 miles each calendar year. Enjoy Group 1 boarding, your first checked bag free on domestic American Airlines itineraries for you and up to four companions traveling with you on the same reservation and 25% off eligible in-flight purchases.
Annual Fee: $0 the first year, $95 thereafter.
Why you should get it: The standard offer for the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite MasterCard and the CitiBusiness AAdvantage Platinum Select World MasterCard is just 30,000 AAdvantage miles after you spend $1,000 in the first three months, so this is nearly double that. But apart from the sign-up bonus, these cards have a few key benefits worth considering, especially if you tend to fly American. First, you get those elite-style perks like priority boarding and a free checked bag as well as the in-flight discount. Cardholders also have access to reduced mileage awards. Then there’s the 10% mileage refund, which can save you up to 10,000 miles per year, meaning this card’s bonus just keeps on giving.
8. The Platinum Card from American Express
Current Bonus: 40,000 Membership Rewards points when you spend $3,000 in the first three months. There are targeted offers through the CardMatch Tool, where you might be eligible for special bonuses like 60,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months, which we last saw in November.
Standout Benefits: This card offers no shortage of valuable benefits, including the one that Amex most recently added: 5x points per dollar on airfare. Then there’s the $200 annual airline rebate, access to Delta Sky Clubs, Priority Pass lounges and Amex Centurion Lounges and a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application rebate. You can also transfer the Membership Rewards points you earn with this card to 20 airline and hotel partners.
Annual Fee: $450
Why it’s worth it: Although the sign-up bonus isn’t as high as we’ve seen in the past, Amex has added some great new benefits to its cards, including this one’s unprecedented new 5x airfare spending bonus. That’s this card’s single greatest asset now, in my opinion, though it does offer some amazing other perks including the airline and Global Entry credits, those 20 transfer partners, Hilton HHonors Gold and Starwood Preferred Guest Gold status (and thus Marriott Rewards Gold status now), Fine Hotels & Resorts benefits and access to the Centurion Lounges. I also love that you can get three additional cards for $175, and each one of those cardholders gets their own Global Entry fee reimbursement and lounge access, which equates to huge savings.
9. Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express and the Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card from American Express
Current Bonus: Earn 25,000 bonus Starpoints when you make $3,000 in purchases within the first three months with the personal card or $5,000 with the business card.
Standout Benefits: Earn 2 Starpoints per dollar on purchases at participating Starwood hotels in addition to what you’d normally earn through SPG. Earn 2 stays/5 nights of credit toward elite status each year, plus automatic Gold status when you spend $30,000 on the card in a calendar year. American Express added new benefits to both cards in 2015, including no foreign transaction fees, complimentary unlimited Boingo Wi-Fi on up to four devices at once and complimentary premium in-room internet access. The business version offers OPEN program perks as well as free access to Sheraton Clubs when you book rates that are eligible to earn Starpoints.
Annual Fee: $0 the first year, then $95.
Why they’re worth it: There’s no telling how much longer these cards will be around and available for new applications because of the Marriott takeover, so now might just be the perfect time to apply. Apart from hotel redemptions, you can transfer Starpoints to over 30 airline partners, and now also transfer points from Starwood to Marriott Rewards at a 1:3 ratio, opening up even more redemption options. The sign-up bonus for one of these cards alone would be worth 75,000 Marriott points, but if you already have a hoard of Starwood points, you could also transfer them to Marriott and redeem for a combination of a hotel stay and airline miles at some very favorable rates with Marriott’s Night + Air packages.
10. Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard
Current Bonus: For a limited time earn 50,000 bonus miles when you spend $3,000 or more in the first 90 days, enough to redeem for a $500 travel statement credit.
Standout Benefits: Earn 2 miles per dollar on all purchases and get 5% of your miles back when you redeem for travel statement credits. There are no foreign transaction fees.
Annual Fee: $89, waived the first year.
Why it’s worth it: Arrival miles are worth just 1.05 cents apiece when redeemed for travel, but the fact that the card earns 2 miles per dollar provides a decent rate of return of around 2.1%. This kind of fixed-value mile can be quite useful for unusual redemptions where other points and miles might not be applicable, say for a foreign train ticket, renting a campsite or dealing with carrier-imposed surcharges on airline award tickets or upgrades. I recently used 70,000 Arrival miles to “wipe away” the $700 fee I paid when using Avios to upgrade a British Airways flight from London to Austin to first class.
Which of these travel rewards cards do you plan to add to your wallet this month?
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
APPLY NOW
Earn 50,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $625 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
Named Best Credit Card for Flexible Travel Redemption - Kiplinger's Personal Finance, July 2016
2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
Earn 5,000 bonus points after you add the first authorized user and make a purchase in the first 3 months from account opening
No foreign transaction fees
1:1 point transfer to leading airline and hotel loyalty programs
Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards. For example, 50,000 points are worth $625 toward travel
No blackout dates or travel restrictions - as long as there's a seat on the flight, you can book it through Chase Ultimate Rewards
Intro APR
Regular APR
Annual Fee
Foreign Transaction Fee
Credit Rating
N/A
16.24%-23.24% Variable
Introductory Annual Fee of $0 the first year, then $95
0%
Excellent Credit