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If you’re looking for a way to earn cash back from your everyday spending, or want to stock up on travel points for a future trip, it’s a great time to open a new rewards credit card.
Chase, American Express, Citi, Capital One, and other banks are currently offering elevated credit card bonuses, and there are dozens of other lucrative offers available. These include increased offers and even brand-new cards from major card issuers.
A few of these credit cards are offering record-high welcome bonuses of 100,000 points or more — but some are only available for a limited time.
We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.
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Credit card news this week
Citi rolled out a rarely seen welcome bonus offer on the Citi® Double Cash Card last week, so it’s a great time to apply if you’ve been on the fence about opening the card. For a limited time, it’s offering Citi® Double Cash Card. The bonus (and rewards from the card) comes in the form of Citi ThankYou points, which you can redeem for cash back, travel booked through Citi, and gift cards at a rate of 1 cent each.
The Citi® Double Cash Card becomes even more compelling when you pair it with the Citi Premier® Card. Having the Citi Premier® Card allows you to pool your points and transfer them to Citi’s airline and hotel partners, which can get you an even higher value from your rewards.
Small-business owners who fly United can once again earn a record-high welcome bonus offer from the United℠ Business Card. For a limited time, it’s offering United℠ Business Card. While the minimum spending requirement to unlock the full bonus is steep, if you can achieve it the bonus can be worth around United℠ Business Card in flights, based on Insider’s valuation of United miles at 1.3 cents apiece. Here’s our full United Business card review with all the details.
How to pick a credit card bonus
Credit card limited time offers
Credit card welcome bonuses aren’t always the same. In fact, certain cards are known for increasing their bonuses from the “standard” offer at least once or twice a year, but usually only for a limited time.
The trick to earning the most rewards is timing your credit card applications to coincide with these elevated offers. For instance, the Citi Premier® Card normally offers 60,000 points after meeting minimum spending requirements, but right now it’s got an increased offer of Citi Premier® Card (worth around Citi Premier® Card in travel based on Insider’s valuations).
Just because a card has an increased bonus doesn’t mean you should apply. Be sure to consider if the rewards it earns are useful to you, as well as factors like the card’s bonus categories, additional benefits, and annual fee. For example, there are terrific welcome bonus offers available right now on the IHG® Rewards Premier Credit Card and IHG® Rewards Premier Business Credit Card — but if you rarely stay at IHG brand hotels, opening one of these cards isn’t a practical move.
We list the top deals available each month in our guide to the best current credit card offers — and every Monday, we publish a weekly roundup (like this one!) of card news and updates to make sure you’ve got the scoop on the very latest deals.
Read our guides to learn more:
Cash back credit cards
The best cash-back credit cards can earn you anywhere from 1% to 6% back on your spending, depending on the card and its bonus categories. Using a cash-back card is a great way to take the sting out of everyday expenses, and because you can use cash back for anything, you’ve got the ultimate flexibility in redeeming your rewards.
Most of the top credit cards in this category have no annual fee, which is important if you’re trying to keep expenses down. However, that usually means you won’t see the outsized welcome bonuses that more premium cards offer.
Our pick right now for the best cash back bonus is the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, which is offering a Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express but charges a Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express. Paying that fee is worth it if you can take advantage of the card’s extra-generous bonus categories: 6% back on your first $6,000 in U.S. supermarket spending each year (then 1% back), 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming services, 3% back on U.S. gas stations and transit, and 1% back on all other eligible purchases (cash back is earned in the form of Rewards Dollars).
That said, if paying an annual fee is a turnoff for you, there are plenty of no-annual-fee cash back cards like the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card or Chase Freedom Unlimited® with solid welcome bonuses, benefits, and earning rates.
Read our guides to learn more:
Best no-annual-fee credit cardsBest rewards credit cardsBlue Cash Preferred card review
Flexible points credit cards
Opening a card that earns flexible or transferable points is a smart move if you don’t have immediate plans for redeeming rewards and don’t want to be locked into a specific airline or hotel loyalty program. These travel rewards credit cards typically offer a multitude of redemption options, from cash back and gift cards to transferring points to airline and hotel partners for award travel.
Cards that earn Chase Ultimate Rewards®, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Capital One miles are among the most popular picks in this category. Beyond choosing a card with a high welcome bonus offer, be sure to consider how you prefer to redeem rewards and which transfer partners are useful to you (not all programs partner with the same airlines and hotels).
Many of these cards offer bonus points in certain categories, so picking a card that lines up with your spending habits can help you maximize rewards. But if you don’t want to fuss with bonus categories, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is a great pick because it earns 2x miles on all purchases (except hotels and car rentals booked through Capital One, which earn 5x miles). It’s also offering one of its highest welcome bonuses ever: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (worth Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card in travel, based on Insider’s valuations).
Some flexible points cards also offer upscale benefits, like airport lounge access and statement credits, but for those, you’ll typically pay a high annual fee (you can read more about them in our guide to the best premium credit cards).
For instance, The Platinum Card® from American Express offers The Platinum Card® from American Express (worth The Platinum Card® from American Express in travel based on Insider’s points and miles valuations) and it comes with an array of perks worth potentially thousands of dollars each year. But it also charges a The Platinum Card® from American Express annual fee, so it’s not practical for many folks.
Read our guides to learn more:
Best Chase credit cardsBest American Express credit cardsBest Citi credit cardsBest Capital One credit cardsCapital One Venture Rewards card review
Airline credit cards
If you’re loyal to a particular airline, opening a co-branded airline credit card can make a lot of sense, particularly if you can use perks like free checked bags, priority boarding, or inflight discounts.
Choosing the best airline card for you really depends on how often you fly a particular carrier, which benefits you’re looking for, and how high an annual fee you’re willing to pay. Travelers who only fly a few times a year typically do the best with a mid-tier airline card that offers elite-like perks for a moderate annual fee.
Let’s look at United credit cards as an example. One of the best of these is the United℠ Explorer Card, which charges a United℠ Explorer Card, and comes with a free checked bag (when you use the card to pay for your ticket) and priority boarding on United flights, two United Club one-time passes each year, and excellent travel and purchase protections. However, it’s currently offering United℠ Explorer Card — one of the lower welcome bonuses we’ve seen this year.
Its bigger sibling, the United Quest℠ Card, has a higher bonus and more benefits (including a $125 annual United credit and two free checked bags instead of one). It’s offering United Quest℠ Card, and charges a United Quest℠ Card annual fee. So in this case, you’d have to decide if the card’s higher bonus and additional perks make it worth paying a much higher annual fee.
And, if you’re a very frequent United flyer, you might want to look at the premium United Club℠ Infinite Card, which adds United Club airport lounge access and other upscale perks to the mix. It comes with yet a higher welcome bonus offer: United Club℠ Infinite Card. But this card is only worth it if you can take advantage of the additional benefits, because it charges a United Club℠ Infinite Card annual fee.
Read our guides to learn more:
Best United credit cardsBest American Airlines credit cardsBest Delta credit cardsBest Southwest credit cardsUnited Quest card review
Hotel credit cards
Most of the major hotel chains offer co-branded credit cards, ranging from basic no-annual-fee cards with a handful of benefits to premium cards with automatic top-tier elite status and statement credits. The best hotel credit card for you again depends mostly on your preferred hotel brand and the benefits you’re looking for, as well as how high of an annual fee you’re willing to pay.
Marriott is a good example, because it offers four co-branded cards issued by both Chase and American Express at various levels of annual fee and with different welcome bonuses and perks:
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card (Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card annual fee, premium benefits)Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card: Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card (Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card annual fee, good benefits)Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card: Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card (Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card annual fee, good benefits, for small-business owners)Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card: Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card (Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card annual fee, basic benefits)
The most expensive of these is the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, and while it comes with a ton of fancy perks, it’s really only worth the annual fee if you can take advantage of all the benefits. Most average Marriott travelers will do just fine with the mid-tier Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card — which also happens to be offering an excellent welcome bonus right now.
Read our guides to learn more:
Best Marriott credit cardsBest Hilton credit cardsComparison of Hyatt credit cardsMarriott Bonvoy Boundless card review
Intro 0% offer credit cards (balance transfers)
Carrying high-interest credit card balances can make getting ahead of your debt really difficult, especially nowadays. A balance transfer credit card might be just what you need to consolidate debt and give yourself some breathing room while you pay down your balances.
Unfortunately, the very best balance transfer credit cards with the longest intro 0% APR periods don’t typically offer a welcome bonus. Our top pick right now is the Wells Fargo Reflect℠ Card, which offers a Wells Fargo Reflect℠ Card, followed by a Wells Fargo Reflect℠ Card APR (balance transfers must occur within 120 days of account opening to qualify for the intro 0% APR rate). However, it doesn’t earn any rewards.
That said, there are a number of balance transfer cards that do come with a bonus and earn good rewards. Right now, the best of these is the Citi® Double Cash Card, with its limited-time bonus of Citi® Double Cash Card. New cardholders receive a Citi® Double Cash Card (then a Citi® Double Cash Card APR), which is a very generous intro period.
Citi® Double Cash Card cardholders effectively earn 2x points (equal to 2% cash back) on all purchases (1 point per dollar when buy, and 1 point per dollar when you pay).
Read our guides to learn more:
7 mistakes to avoid when using a balance transfer credit cardHow to transfer a credit card balance and buy yourself time to pay off debt4 steps to take if you’re looking to pay down debt with a balance transfer credit cardCiti Double Cash card review
Intro 0% offer credit cards (purchases)
Spending more on a credit card than you can afford to pay off in full is never a good idea, because you’ll get charged interest and could end up accumulating debt. But sometimes, you don’t have a choice but to carry a balance on your credit cards, be it from an unexpected emergency or large purchases you need a little more time to pay off.
A credit card with an introductory 0% APR on purchases can be just the ticket if you know you’ve got big expenses coming up you’ll need to pay for over a longer period. These cards don’t charge interest for a specified time on purchases as long as you make your minimum payment each month, and can be a great tool as long as you have a plan to pay off your balance before the introductory period expires.
Again, the very best 0% APR credit cards for purchases don’t come with a bonus or earn rewards (the Wells Fargo Reflect℠ Card being a good example) but there are many that do. For instance, the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card earns 2% cash rewards on purchases and comes with a Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card. And new Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card cardholders receive a Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card, followed by a Wells Fargo Active Cash℠ Card APR.
Read our guides to learn more:
Using an intro 0% APR credit card can save you money on interest, but be sure to avoid these pitfalls that could hurt you in the long runWells Fargo Active Cash card review
Business credit cards
You might be surprised to learn you don’t need to own a huge corporation or be a full-time business owner to qualify for a small-business credit card. If you have a part-time venture or side gig like driving for Uber, working as a freelancer, or reselling on eBay, you could be eligible to apply.
Some of the top business credit cards come with the most valuable welcome bonuses around, whether you’re looking to earn cash back, airline miles, hotel points, or flexible rewards. One limited-time offer to watch right now is on the United℠ Business Card with its sky-high bonus of United℠ Business Card. But if you don’t fly United, this probably won’t appeal (here’s our United Business card review to help you decide).
For a flexible all-around card with a six-figure bonus and modest annual fee, the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is a terrific choice. New cardholders can earn Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (worth Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card in travel based on Insider’s valuations). Plus, the card has excellent bonus categories for small businesses and comes with solid benefits, including cell phone protection, for a Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card annual fee.
Of course, if you’re willing to shell out a much higher annual fee, you can find cards with bigger welcome bonus offers, such as The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (The Business Platinum Card® from American Express annual fee). And if you’re looking to earn rewards in an airline or hotel program, there are business card options too (like the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard®).
Read our guides to learn more:
The best no-annual-fee business credit cardsThe best rewards business credit cardsThe best cash-back business credit cardsInk Business Preferred card review