The buzz effectually travel rewards credit cards is real, and if yous travel frequently, can seem nearly impossible to escape from. Figuring out how they work and which ones to utilise for is some other story. As is the case with choosing hotels and airlines, not all rewards programs are created equal. Whether or non y'all have any plastic in your wallet at the moment, applying for a bill of fare that kicks back some sexy rewards makes the prospect of 20 percent interest rates and annual fees much easier to eat. Merely here's the thing, at the end of the day, a travel rewards card is all the same a credit card and you lot tin however royally screw your finances if you slack off on payments or aren't educated on how to optimize the programs. So study upward, have a organization in place, then get excited for the free flights and loads of other perks in your hereafter.

The state of reward travel in 2020

The general tendency in rewards cards over the past few years is that credit card issuers will more often than not offer enough points — between thirty,000-50,000 in most cases– for a free domestic roundtrip between 2 major airports once a new client meets the initial spending minimum. This is true for both airline-specific cards and full general travel rewards cards. Your best way forward is to apply for ane of each and take advantage of the ultimate travel hack, known as the double dip. It works like this — book a flight on the card with the airline at which y'all are a mileage member, but don't utilise your mileage card to pay for the trip. Instead, pay with the non-airline specific rewards card. You'll earn points on that card correct away in relation to the amount of money spent on the flights.

Then, once you have the confirmation number from the airline, add the trip to your rewards account to earn miles with the airline later on you lot fly, and to take advantage of priority boarding and the program's other perks. By booking travel this mode, you're earning points both on your menu through one buy as well as with the airline. This hack tin can leave you at risk of paying for a checked handbag if the airline program only offers gratuitous bags when the flying is booked on the menu, such is the case with the standard United MileagePlus membership. Another mutual perk these days is trip protection insurance. While this isn't a replacement for full general travel insurance, information technology covers changes and cancellations that are across your control.

What to know before applying

Before you apply for any of these cards, have a house grasp on these credit menu best practices:

  • Involvement rates on travel cards commonly hover around 20 percent, charged each month following the first billing bicycle after a purchase is made, if you don't pay it off before the statement engagement. Our top card, Chase's Sapphire Reserve, charges a variable interest rate of 17.99–24.99 percent APR, for example. If you don't pay the balance off each month, you're looking at a markup in the ballpark of a fifth of what you already paid for every buy made. This offsets any perks real quick, and then unless there's an emergency, don't charge more than you can pay off each month.
  • Unless yous're peculiarly loyal to a specific airline (perhaps their hub is at your local airdrome and there are frequent cheap flights, for example), airline-specific cards on their own are oftentimes not the best selection for budget-conscious travelers. Both airline-specific and non-airline affiliated travel rewards cards allow you to collect points for all purchases fabricated. But airline cards mostly don't allow you to redeem bonus points for non-airline travel activity. In addition, they often require yous to buy further activity — namely a future flight — to redeem your points. On the other mitt, the Barclaycard Arrival Plus allows y'all to redeem points past applying them toward offsetting travel charges already on your card, whether that be hotel, flights, or other travel costs. As we noted to a higher place, the best arroyo is frequently to have one airline specific card and i non-airline specific card.
  • You must meet a minimum spending requirement in order to get that sweetness sign-on bonus. This is where they go you — hoping you'll proceed a spending spree to hit the minimum and be unable to pay off the residual each month. If that happens you'll end up racking upwardly plenty in involvement charges to reimburse the company for the bonus — and so some. Go along it smart by charging things you already pay for, like your phone bill, gas, and utilities. Some people are even able to pay their rent or mortgage on the bill of fare, and and then immediately pay it off through their bank. You lot generally have a few months to hit the minimum spend, so there's no demand to head straight to Amazon and purchase your entire wishlist.

Best travel rewards credit cards to apply for this yr

Chase Sapphire Reserve

Annual fee: $450
Sign-on bonus: 50,000 points when you lot spend $4,000 in the first three months

The Hunt Sapphire Reserve card is a perennial leader among travel rewards credit cards because no other card offers perks on par with what you get here. The 50,000-point sign-on bonus will get you back and forth between many major US airports, or knock off a good chunk of the bill should you lot head to a far-flung destination like Southeast Asia. A standard offer past itself, Hunt kicks it up past tripling your points on all travel and dining purchases AND offering an annual $300 travel credit. It also has its ain in-house plan for members called Hunt Ultimate Rewards, essentially a cross between an online travel agency (OTA) and extended bonus programme. Your points are worth more when you book and redeem through them directly. Take reward of the credit Chase offers for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, and the gratuitous premium membership to Priority Pass, which volition get you into hundreds of airport lounges.

This is a "premium" rewards card, meaning it'southward tougher to qualify for than many others. Merely if y'all travel frequently and are consistent virtually paying your bill off each month, you tin significantly hack your travel costs with this carte. Just attempt non to bound out of your seat when that $450 charge hits your account each twelvemonth.

Boosted perks:

  • Travel protection insurance upwardly to $ten,000 per trip
  • An included damage waiver on auto rental insurance policies
  • No strange transaction fees

Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card

Annual fee: $149
Sign-on bonus: xl,000 points after you spend $i,000 in the first iii months, and an boosted 35,000 points if y'all spend $5,000 in the start six months

Every rule has an exception. Southwest'due south popular Rapid Rewards program is the foam of the airline credit carte du jour ingather. Every year on the ceremony of your sign-upwardly date, Southwest will say thanks with 7,500 points on the house. Southwest flight purchases kick dorsum at two points per dollar spent and, in a sign of progress for airline cards, offers no foreign transaction fees. Redeem points for hotel stays and other travel costs with Southwest'southward partners, and take advantage of the new buy protection and coverage for incidences including lost luggage and roadside assistance.

Additional perks:

  • $75 annual travel credit
  • Four upgraded boardings per year, and so yous can snag the prime overhead bin infinite that's actually higher up your seat
  • 20 percent back on a bunch of in-flight purchases

American Express Platinum Menu

Annual fee: $550
Sign-on bonus: 70,000 points after you spend $five,000 in the starting time iii months

American Express Platinum'due south seventy,000 advantage is the cream of the crop, making even the high minimum spend seem worth it. The annual fee is quite high — but Amex makes up for this by hosting some of the most gorgeous drome lounges in the world, under the moniker Centurion Lounge, and giving cardholders access. Amex offsets function of the annual fee by passing you $200 per year to utilise on your favorite airline. As well included in the almanac fee is the best purchase protection plan of any travel rewards credit card, keeping you confident that you'll get the virtually from both the products and experiences you buy. The downside is that American Express generally isn't preferred by retailers, so you can't count on using it everywhere you shop.

Additional perks:

  • Earn five times the points on flights booked with the menu.
  • Up to $200 in annual Uber cash
  • Opportunities for hotel room upgrades and occasional credits through Amex'due south Hotel Collection program
  • $100 fee credit for Global Entry and $85 for TSA PreCheck

Capital One Venture Rewards

Almanac fee: $95
Sign-on bonus: 50,000 miles later you spend $3,000 in the first three months

Capital One's Venture Rewards program takes the trophy for most consistently awesome rewards program — it has remained as easy to understand equally it is to join for more than a decade running. If y'all're new to travel rewards credit cards, this is an ideal way to get started. The sign-on bonus offered is great considering the low annual fee. Capital letter One also makes information technology super easy to zap travel-related charges from your card. You lot only log in and choose the charges you want to utilise your points to offset from the statement it has prepared for you — the weight falls correct off your shoulders instantly.

Additional perks:

  • No foreign transaction fees and easy transfer of miles to Capital Ane'south airline partners, significant you optimize your points when buying future flights — in essence, this combines the perks of both airline-specific and bank-issued cards
  • $100 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
  • An included damage waiver on car rental insurance policies
  • Ten times the miles on hotel rooms when you book through Hotels.com

Bank of America Premium Rewards

Annual fee: $95
Sign-on bonus: fifty,000 points after you spend $iii,000 within xc days

Depository financial institution of America kicked upwardly its Premium Rewards card to include a sign-on bonus that offsets the annual fee for the kickoff five years of membership. Information technology also gives you $100 per year to spend on "incidentals" — defined as seat upgrades, in-flight purchases, baggage fees, or lounge access, providing the perfect excuse to splurge in one case all in, or simply a niggling each time over multiple trips. That gratis gin and tonic is guaranteed to taste even better when sipped from an upgraded window seat with a view.

Additional perks:

  • $100 credit for TSA Precheck and Global Entry every four years
  • three.5 points per dollar spent on travel purchases
  • Considering it's a bank credit menu, you lot can employ points for credit to eligible Merrill Lynch accounts or to pay off your statement residuum

Editor'due south note: This article was originally published in February 2019 and was updated in 2020 with new information.

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