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Who wouldn’t want to earn free cash from simply buying gas or groceries? Or to earn free airline miles and hotel stays when you travel? There are a ton of rewards credit cards on the market that give you cash back, travel points, and many other benefits. But which one is right for you?
Read our reviews below of the best credit cards for rewards to help you choose. Then you can be on your way to earning while you spend.
Article Overview
- For Earning Miles
- Best For Travel
- Top Card For Getting Cash Back
- Most Prestigious
- Tips To Maximize Your Credit Card Rewards
- Do’s & Don’ts Of Rewards Cards
Benefits Of Contactless Cards (via RFID)
Most of the cards we review now offer a contactless option via RFID (radio frequency identification) technology that is embedded in a chip. The contactless card allows you to pay without swiping. The significant advantage is a fast, secure way to pay without touching the keypad (especially beneficial during the COVID-19 pandemic). To use an RFID-enabled, contactless card, hold it near the terminal to make your transaction.
Best Credit Card For Airline Miles:
If you’re all about racking up those miles to earn free travel, then these cards are for you. They come with big annual fees but if you fly often, they more than pay for themselves in the long-run.
Chase Sapphire Reserve Review
Chase Sapphire Reserve debuted in the fall of 2016 with the promise of unbeatable rewards, and still lives up to its hype. This card is best for frequent flyers/travelers — the annual fee is a steep $550 (comparable to the most premium credit cards) but comes with a $300 annual travel reimbursement automatically applied to your statement (so if you travel frequently the annual fee is only $150).
Chase Sapphire Reserve offers a fantastic sign-up bonus, some of the best rewards rates on airfare and other travel-related spending, no foreign transaction fees and travel perks galore. Get 50% more in travel redemption using Chase Ultimate Rewards (using any partner airline). And unlike brand-specific airline credit cards, you can earn rewards on multiple airlines. If you spend thousands per year on airfare and you have excellent credit, this card is your best choice.
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Fees, APR & Other Perks
- Annual fee of $550
- Variable APR at 16.99%–23.99%
- Trip cancellation, interruption and accident insurance
- Rental car theft and damage coverage
- New purchase protection for 120 days against damage or theft
Best Credit Card For Travel: Capital One Venture Review
Capital One Venture is our pick for the overall best travel credit card. Although its rewards program doesn’t quite match Chase Sapphire Reserve, there are definite benefits to Capital One Venture. You can use Venture Rewards’ platform for travel redemption to find good deals on flights, hotels and vacation packages.
You also have the option to book your travel elsewhere and get credit for your flight, hotel, rental car or other travel-related expenses using Capital One’s Purchase Eraser. With a lucrative sign-up bonus, 2X miles per dollar, no foreign transaction fees and a low annual fee, Capital One Venture is a huge plus for travelers of all kinds.
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Fees, APR & Other Perks
- Annual fee is $95
- Variable APR at 17.24% – 24.49%
- Travel accident insurance
- $100 credit for TSA PreCheck
- Rental car theft and damage coverage
- Extended warranty on items purchased with Venture card
Best Cash Back Credit Cards: Chase Freedom & Discover it
Who wouldn’t want 5% cash back on purchases — and many other benefits to boot? We’ve chosen Chase Freedom and Discover it as our picks for the best cash back credit cards. Check out our reviews below.
Chase Freedom Review
Chase Freedom is among the highest cash back credit cards on the market — on top of that, there’s no annual fee and an introductory 0% APR for the first 15 months. Chase Freedom gives you 5% cash back on rotating quarterly bonus categories like drugstores, commuter purchases, grocery stores and more.
You earn 1% cash back on all other purchases (up to $1,500), and can redeem your cash back rewards via direct deposit, a statement credit, or for gift cards from dozens of popular retailers and restaurants. And you don’t have to have a stellar credit score to qualify.
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Fees, APR & Other Perks
- No annual fee
- 0% intro APR for first 15 months
- Variable APR of 17.24%–25.99% after first 15 months
- 5% balance transfer fee
- Free DoorDash delivery and 5% off Lyft
- Purchase and extended warranty protection
- Trip cancellation, interruption and accident insurance
- Rental car theft and damage coverage
Discover it Card Review
There are a lot of similarities between Chase Freedom and the Discover it Card. Both offer quarterly rotating 5% cash back categories and 1% cash back on all other purchases; both have no annual fees and an introductory 0% APR for over a year.
Discover it, however, really delivers with its sign-up bonus — they match all the cash back you earn dollar for dollar at the end of your first year. Sure, you have to wait a year, but it could pay off if you’re a big spender.
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Fees, APR & Other Perks
- No annual fee
- Cash back never expires
- 0% introductory APR for first 14 months
- Variable APR of 14.24% – 25.24% after first 14 months
- 3% balance transfer fee
- Purchase and extended warranty protection
- Flight accident insurance
- Rental car theft and damage coverage
Most Prestigious Credit Cards: Citi Prestige & AMEX Platinum
Chase Sapphire Reserve, our pick for the best credit card for airline miles, also fits into this category of the most exclusive credit cards.
American Express Platinum Review
The American Express Platinum card is best for people who fly a lot (especially internationally) and want to travel in luxury. If you take advantage of all the perks that come with this card, the $550 annual fee is entirely worth it.
In addition to the lucrative sign-up bonus of 60,000 points after $5,000 spent in 3 months, and 5X rewards points for booking flights, you get VIP access to 1,000+ airport lounges across 120 countries, VIP status on Uber rides (and up to $200 in Uber credits a year), a $200 credit each year for incidental airline expenses, hotel upgrades, VIP experiences, exclusive invites, presale for concert and sporting event tickets and much more. The AmEx Platinum card’s rewards are best for air travel, so if you’re looking for better overall premium travel rewards consider the Citi Prestige (see our review below).
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Fees, APR & Other Perks
- Annual fee of $550
- No APR: can’t carry a balance on this card
- No foreign transaction fees
- Car rental loss & damage insurance
- Credit for TSA PreCheck and Global Entry Fee
- Travel accident insurance
- Purchase protection
- Extended warranty protection
Citi Prestige Review
As of summer 2021, new applications for the Citi Prestige are no longer being accepted. Existing cardholders can continue to use their cards.
Citi Prestige used to be the best premium rewards card out there, but the company has done away with a few of its previous perks. However, this card still packs a punch for travel rewards. Like the American Express Platinum, you get a lot of upgrades and priority benefits when traveling.
You must spend more to get your sign-up bonus points, and Citi Prestige only has 3X airline points vs. AmEx’s 5X points. But Citi gives you 3X points for hotel bookings — more than AmEx. Another huge perk is a fourth-night-free hotel room, as long as you book through Citi’s Concierge service. And Citi Prestige has the best priority pass membership for airport lounges.
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Fees, APR & Other Perks
- Annual fee of $495
- Variable APR of 16.99% – 23.99%
- No foreign transaction fees
- Car rental loss & damage insurance
- Travel accident insurance
- Purchase protection
- Extended warranty protection
What Do Experts Have To Say?
Check out this video interview with a Consumer Reports expert, who gives some great tips on how to maximize your credit card rewards and some of their rewards card recommendations.
6 Do’s & Don’ts For Rewards Cards
These tips for the best credit cards for rewards may seem like common sense, but it’s always good to keep them in mind:
- Don’t apply for a rewards credit card unless you have good to excellent credit. If you know you won’t be approved, your credit card application can hurt your credit score.
- Always pay your monthly bill in full. If you don’t, you’ll end up spending rewards on interest.
- Use two rewards credit cards to maximize all the benefits. For example using the Capital One Venture card and the Chase Freedom alternately on purchases will get you airline miles and cash back.
- Don’t get too many credit cards. You want to maximize your spending on a couple of cards to take full advantage of their rewards.
- Use your credit cards shopping portal whenever possible. Discover, for example, has their Discover Deals portal with 130+ merchants. You can often find special deals and earn extra rewards by spending on their portal.
- Monitor your open accounts. Keep an eye out for unfamiliar charges on your billing statements to detect credit card fraud.
We hope we’ve given you some helpful information and tools to start racking up those points. Happy spending and make sure you keep track of all your spending with the best personal finance software.
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