There are a ton of credit cards that offer rewards. So if you’re just starting out, it’s tough to figure out which ones will best fit you and your lifestyle. Make the process easier by first considering our favorite credit cards for earning and redeeming points and miles based on your spending behavior.
Best Credit Cards For Travel
General Travel Purchases
In this guide, we’ll cover the best credit cards to use for travel purchases. Our list of the best credit cards for travel purchases covers a wide range – from a low-cost card to premium ones – so you’ll easily find a card that suits you and your spending habits.
Airfare Purchases
Before you book another flight, make sure you have one of our best credit cards for airfare purchases listed below.
| The Platinum Card® From American Express | Best for airline miles |
| The Business Platinum Card® From American Express | Best for airline bonus miles |
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | Best travel protections |
| Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card | Best sign-up bonus |
| American Express® Gold Card | Best for dining at restaurants |
| Citi Premier® Card | Best for broad travel categories |
| Citi Prestige® Credit Card | Best for airline miles & dining |
Hotel Stays
In this guide, we cover our favorite hotel credit cards listed below, both co-branded and for general travel.
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | Best premium card for earning |
| Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card | Best mid-tier card for earning |
| The Platinum Card® from American Express | Best card for luxury hotels |
| Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card | Best overall Marriott card |
| Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card | Best low-cost Marriott card |
| Hilton Honors American Express Card | Best overall Hilton card |
| Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card | Best low-cost Hilton card |
| IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card | Best overall IHG card |
Annual Travel Statement Credits
Most people get drawn to travel credit cards for their big welcome bonuses but you should also weigh-in ongoing benefits such as annual travel statement credits. See this guide for our list of the best credit cards in for annual travel credits.
| CREDIT CARD | ANNUAL TRAVEL CREDITS |
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | $300 for general travel |
| Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card | $300 for Marriott purchases |
| The Platinum Card® from American Express | $200 for airline incidentals $200 for Uber purchases |
| The Business Platinum Card® from American Express | $200 for airline incidentals |
| Citi Prestige® Credit Card | $250 for general travel |
| U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Visa Infinite Card | $325 for general travel |
| Bank of America Premium Rewards credit card | $100 for airline incidentals |
Travel Rewards For Family Vacations
In this guide, we’ll cover the best travel credit cards for families. These are the cards that stand out for their earning structure and benefits, which are particularly family-friendly.
Global Entry & TSA PreCheck
Global Entry and TSA PreCheck are both trusted traveler programs to help cut your time at airport screenings. It is not free but you can avoid fees with the right credit card. In this guide, we’ll cover the best cards for Global Entry and TSA PreCheck listed below.
United Airlines Miles & Perks
For those of us that decided to pledge loyalty to United Airlines, this guide will cover the best United credit cards for miles and perks.
| United℠ Explorer Card | Best overall card, Best for non-elite flyers |
| New United Quest℠ Card | Best for earning miles |
| United Gateway℠ Card | Best for budget travelers |
| United Club℠ Infinite Card | Best for lounge access |
| United℠ Business Card | Best for business travelers |
Best Credit Cards For…
Dining
In this guide, we sifted through all the rewards cards available to come up with a list of our favorite dining credit cards.
| Best Overall Credit Cards For Dining | American Express® Gold Card Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Chase Sapphire Reserve® |
| Best Cashback Credit Card For Dining | Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card |
| Best No-Annual-Fee Credit Cards For Dining | Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card Chase AARP Credit Card Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card |
| Best Hotel Credit Cards For Dining | Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card The World of Hyatt Credit Card |
| Best Business Credit Cards For Dining | The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card Ink Business Cash® Credit Card Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card |
Cash Back
Not all cash back cards are created equal. This guide takes a closer look at the best cash back credit cards.
| Chase Freedom FlexSM | Best cash back card with rotating bonus categories |
| Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card | Best cash back card for dining & entertainment |
| Blue Cash Preferred® Card From American Express | Best cash back card for gas & groceries |
| Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card | Best cash back card for fair or average credit |
| Chase Freedom Unlimited® | Best cash back card for pairing |
| Citi® Double Cash Card | Best flat-rate cash back card Best no-annual-fee cash back card |
| Bank Of America® Cash Rewards Credit Card | Best cash back card with custom bonus categories |
No Annual Fees
In this guide, we’ll go over our favorite no-annual-fee credit cards, so you can decide which ones are worth signing up for.
| Chase Freedom Flex℠ | Best for rotating bonus categories |
| Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Credit Card | Best for airlines |
| Hilton Honors American Express Card | Best for hotels |
| Capital One® SavorOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card | Best for dining & entertainment |
| Capital One® Quicksilver® Cash Rewards Credit Card | Best for credit card newbies |
| Ink Business Cash® Credit Card | Best for small businesses |
| Discover it Student Cash Back | Best for students |
| Citi® Double Cash Card | Best for flat-rate rewards |
| Bank of America® Cash Rewards Credit Card | Best flexible rewards structure |
| Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card | Best for travel |
Everyday Spending
What’s the best credit card to use for everyday spending?
Grocery
While there are plenty of travel rewards cards to choose from, there aren’t as many credit cards available with bonuses on grocery spending. In this guide, we examined the best grocery credit cards.
| Blue Cash Preferred® Card From American Express | Best overall grocery card Best grocery card for high cashback rate |
| PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature Card | Best no-annual-fee grocery card Best grocery card with unlimited rewards |
| Wells Fargo Visa Signature Card | Best grocery card with high points-earning rate |
| Target REDcard | Best card for Target grocery purchases |
| Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card | Best grocery card for Whole Foods spending Best card for online grocery shopping |
| Capital One Walmart Rewards Card | Best card for budget grocery shopping |
Visa Credit Cards
Choosing one “best” Visa card is impossible. It all depends on your spending, reward preferences and other personal factors. With that in mind, we came up with a guide for the best visa credit cards for bonuses, perks and rewards.
Amazon Purchases
If you regularly shop on Amazon, you’ll want to use a credit card to maximize rewards on every dollar that you spend. In this guide, we’ll cover the best credit cards for Amazon purchases.
Young Professionals To Earn Points, Cash & Miles
In this guide, we’ll cover the best credit cards that fit well with the young professional lifestyle.
Millennials To Establish Credit
In this guide, we’ve rounded up the best credit cards for millennials to establish credit and earn points. These eight reward cards are the best fit for a millenial’s lifestyle.
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | Best premium travel card |
| American Express® Gold Card | Best for dining & travel purchases |
| Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Credit Card | Best low-cost travel card |
| Capital One® SavorOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card | Best for dining and entertainment purchases |
| Citi Premier® Card | Best mid-tier travel card |
| Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card | Best cashback card |
| Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card | Best for Amazon purchases |
| Discover It Secured Card | Best for building or rebuilding credit |
Small Businesses
If you’re a business owner, you’ll want to consider a small business rewards credit card if you haven’t already. In this guide, we will dive into the best business cards.
| Capital One Spark Miles For Business | Best for everyday business spending |
| Capital One Spark Cash For Business | Best for cash back rewards |
| Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card | Best for bonus categories |
| The Business Platinum Card® From American Express | Best for travel perks |
| Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card | Best for occasional Delta flyers |
| Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card | Best for frequent Delta flyers |
| Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card | Best for occasional Southwest flyers |
| Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card | Best for frequent Southwest flyers |
| United℠ Business Card | Best for United flyers |
| The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card | Best for Hilton travelers |
| Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card | Best for Marriott travelers |
| CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard® | Best for American Airlines flyers |
Other Suggestions
For more card suggestions, see these overall guides:
Best Travel Credit Cards by Rewards Category
Best Rewards Credit Cards by Spending Category
| OFFER LINK | OFFER | OUR REVIEW |
| Chase Business Complete Banking℠ | $300 Cash | Review |
| Chase Total Checking® | $225 Cash | Review |
| Bank Of America Advantage Banking | $100 Bonus Offer | Review |
| TD Bank Beyond Checking | $300 Cash | Review |
| Huntington Bank | $500 Cash | Review |
| HSBC Premier Checking | $450 Cash | Review |
| Axos Business Checking | $100 Cash | Review |
| Aspiration Checking | $150/$200 Cash | Review |
| Ally Invest | Up To $3,000 | Review |
| Betterment | Up To 1 Year Free | Review |
| BlockFi | Up To $250 BTC | Review |
| Voyager (code BH5F1A) | $25 In BTC | Review |
| TradeStation | $100 Bonus | Review |
| Motley Fool | Stock Advisor Discount | Review |
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
Disclaimer: These responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, credit card issuer, hotel, airline or other entity. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post. It is not the bank advertiser's or any other entity's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.