The Top 25 Credit Cards

(If you see any errors or missing cards, please let me know. I try to keep a full list, but it’s a lot of information and I do make mistakes).

Time for the monthly edition of my Top 25 Credit Cards. Again, if you’re a newbie, make sure you read The Newbie Guide. Many of your questions will be answered there. Basic things like not applying for 3 Chase cards at the same time should be known before you continue. For people running out of cards, remember there’s often a Business card option. I listed a few here but not many, so it might be worth exploring more Business cards. Also, “churning” might be an option. The dates here were a guideline but things always tend to vary individually.

Miles and points aren’t an equal currency. 50,000 Delta Skymiles are worth less to me than 50,000 miles from pretty much any other airline. 25,000 Hyatt points are worth a ton more than 25,000 Hilton points. And so on. These links work right now (April 10th at midnight). If you read this later, many of the offers will have changed. Things move fast in this game so read the offer details before applying. Here we go! My Top 25 current credit cards in order are…

 

  • Business Gold Rewards (Amex)
    • Spend $5,000 in 3 months. Get 50,000 points.
    • This offer comes and goes all the time. Back for now.
    • Possibly 75,000 points? That’s why it’s #1.
    • A better 75,000-point method here?
    • Premier Rewards Gold is up to 50,000 too.
    • Amex Platinum Business card is still a 100,000-point possibility.
  • Ink Plus (Chase)
    • Spend $5,000 in 3 months. Get 50,000 points.
    • The points transfer to United, Southwest, British, Hyatt, etc.
    • 5 times the points on purchases at office stores.
    • Ink Cash at the same link is also 5X at office stores.
    • Worth seeing if you can still get a 70,000-point offer in your local branch.
  • Sapphire (Chase)
    • Spend $4,000 in 3 months. Get 40,000 points.
    • Still very valuable points. See Ink cards above.
    • One of my favorite cards to use when I don’t have spends to meet.
  • Starwood Preferred Guest aka SPG (American Express)
    • Spend $5,000 in 6 months. Get 25,000 points.
    • Incredible card. I really, really love cash + points for hotel stays.
    • I’m also a big fan of some of their 3,000-point properties.
    • Possible 30,000 points.
    • The Business version of the card is here.
  • Barclay Arrival (Barclays)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 40,000 miles.
    • One of the best cards for actual spending, as discussed here.
  • American Airlines cards (Citibank)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 50,000 miles.
    • Better public offers with lower spend and lounge passes here.
  • United Airlines (Chase)
    • Log in and see if you are targeted for the 50,000-mile offer.
    • This offer is also being pushed heavily in airports.
    • No luck? You can also try this link.
    • Here’s a 50,000-mile Business link.
  • Southwest (Chase)
    • Spend $2,000 in 3 months. Get 50,000 points.
    • Getting late in the year if you’re shooting for a companion pass.
    • Plus version of this card is still possible too.
    • 60,000-point Business version if you call 1-888-883-2721.
    • Personal with $100 credit is here.
  • Ritz Carlton (Chase)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 2 free nights.
    • Big $395 annual fee. But a travel credit of $300 makes that much better.
  • Mercedes Benz Platinum (American Express)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 50,000 Amex Membership Rewards points.
    • Big $475 fee but benefits like global entry credit and $200 credit.
    • A no-fee for the first year Platinum card is here.
    • Look for MUCH better targeted Amex offers in your mailbox or here.
  • Hilton Honors Reserve (Citibank)
    • Spend $2,500 in 4 months. Get 2 weekend nights. Best Hilton card.
    • Gold status while you have the card. Upgrades, breakfast, internet, etc.
  • British Airways (Chase)
    • Spend $2,000 in 3 months. Get 50,000 points.
    • If I were guessing, I’d say the 100,000-point offer will be back.
  • Club Carlson Premier (US Bank)
    • Spend $2,500 in 90 days. Get 85,000 points.
    • Great hotel card and not from the usual issuers.
  • InterContinental Hotel aka IHG aka Priority Club (Chase)
    • Spend $1,000. Get 80,000 points.
    • Another method to get that bonus is here.
    • One of the most underrated hotel cards out there.
    • If/when this goes away, there’s a 70,000-point offer too.
  • Hyatt (Chase)
    • Spend $1,000 in 3 months. Get 2 nights at any Hyatt.
    • Even more valuable after the point devaluation.
    • Offer with $50 statement credit may be available.
  • Marriott (Chase)
    • Spend $2,000 in 3 months. Get 70,000 points.
    • Business card links are here.
    • Another offer here for 40,000 points and $100.
    • Targeted 80,000-point offers around if you want to call/message Chase.
  • Fairmont Hotel (Chase)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 2 nights and breakfast at any Fairmont.
    • Again, many of these hotels are very expensive.
  • Delta (Amex)
    • 50,000 could still be alive.
    • Or check if you’re targeted here or here.
  • Alaska Airlines (Bank of America)
    • Spend $1. Get 25,000 miles.
    • Offer with statement credit here.
    • Bank of America cards can be MUCH more “churnable” than most.
    • Here’s a great trick to get the most out of this.
  • Prestige (Citibank)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 50,000 points.
    • Nice benefits including $200 credit, but huge $450 annual fee.
    • There is also a 60,000-point offer possible if you go into your local branch. That would put this much higher on the list.
    • A tool on Citibank’s site shows what cards you are prequalified for. You can also get a 50,000-point offer there.
  • Premier Gold (Amex)
    • Possible 50,000 points, rather than the usual 25,000.
    • A bit of a pain, but you can see if you’re targeted.
    • Some people are seeing 100,000-point offers.
    • Here’s another link for 50,000 points after spending $1,000.
  • Propel (Wells Fargo)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 40,000 points.
    • It’s always good to see cards from different banks.
    • A note on this one from reader Adam.
    • Here’s a decent Business card from Wells Fargo.
  • Wyndham (Barclays)
    • Spend $1. Get 30,000 miles.
    • Offer just dropped from 45,000. But any hotel for 15,000 a night moves it up.
  • Hawaiian Airlines (Barclays)
    • Spend $1,000 in 3 months. Get 35,000 miles.
    • Business version is here.
  • FlexPerks (US Bank)
    • Spend $3,500. Get 20,000 points.
    • Many different card options for FlexPerks.
  • Venture (Capital One)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 40,000 miles.
    • Up from 20,000 miles.
  • Thank You (Citibank)
    • Weird offer. 20,000 points for spending $2,000 in 3 months. Then 30,000 more points for spending $3,000 in first 3 months of 2nd year.
    • Bonuses on this card go up/down often.
    • Another version is here.
  • JetBlue (American Express)
    • Spend $1,000 in 3 months. Get 20,000 points.
    • Get the points before it switches to Barclays. Then get them again.
    • Thanks to reader Adam.
  • Korean (US Bank)
    • Spend $1. Get 15,000 miles.
    • Down from 30,000-mile offer.
    • Business card is here.
  • Hilton Honors (American Express)
    • Spend $750 in 3 months. Get 40,000 points (60,000 temporarily).
    • Go to Hilton.com, begin making a reservation, and you can also see a 50,000-point offer on the payment page.
    • Hilton points are definitely not what they used to be.
  • Hilton Honors Surpass (American Express)
    • Spend $3,000 in 3 months. Get 60,000 points (80,000 temporarily).
    • Get the previous card, and you’ll get tons of offers to upgrade to this one.
    • Back up to 80,000 points for now.
  • Hilton Honors (Citibank)
    • Spend $1,000 in 4 months. Get 40,000 points.
    • 60,000 points right now.
  • Diners Club Elite (BMO Harris Bank)
    • 3x points at gas station, grocery stores, and pharmacies.
    • Killer way to pick up Starwood points.
    • Big annual fee.
  • Aeroplan (TD Bank)
    • Spend $1,000 in 3 billing statements. Get 25,000 miles.
    • Not spectacular, but low spend and not the usual issuer.
  • Virgin America (Comenity)
    • 2 different card offers I discussed here.
    • Issued by Comenity Bank, which is the best thing about these cards.
    • Oh, and flights to Hawaii now!
  • Freedom (Chase)
    • Worth having in your collection for the 5% quarterly bonuses.
    • No reason to close this one.
    • Another semi-decent quarterly bonus cards is Discover It.
    • Here’s the old Amazon link for the Discover.
  • LAN (US Bank)
    • 20,000 miles after first use. Was 25,000 before March 1.
    • 30,000 temporarily here.
    • Down from a 40,000-mile offer.
  • Frontier Airlines (Barclays)
    • Spend $500 in 3 months. Get 40,000 miles.
    • Moved way down. These miles suck. Expire after 6 months of no activity.
    • Interesting use for the miles here.
  • Expedia (Citibank)
    • Spend $2,000 in 3 months. Get 25,000 points.
    • Also a 15,000-point version with no annual fee.
  • Virgin Atlantic (Bank of America)
    • Skip this 25,000-mile offer and wait for 50,000 to return.
    • Again, Bank of America is more churnable than most.
    • Global Entry credit might still be working if you’re looking to save the TSA PreCheck fee.
    • Big 90,000 miles available here but a huge amount of spending needed.
  • Everyday (Amex)
    • Spend $1,000 in 3 months. Get 10,000 Membership Rewards points.
    • No annual fee. Preferred has a 15,000-point bonus with a $95 fee.
    • Free Amazon Prime for a year.
  • Sun Country (First National Bank of Omaha)
    • Spend $500 in 3 billing cycles. Get 40,000 points.
    • Not the most popular airline in the world.
  • NFL (Barclays)
    • Spend $500 in 90 days. Get $100 credit.
    • Offer has been higher in the past.
  • Choice Hotel (Barclays)
    • Get the card and stay a night. Earn 4 free stays.
    • I keep this as the last card mostly out of tradition.

Recently Dropped:

  • Amtrak (Chase) – Great flexible currency. Card should be back soon.
  • Asiana (B of A) – Down from 25,000.
  • Business Platinum (Amex) – Was #1 on the list with old 100,000 point deal.
  • Lufthansa (Barclays) – Just dropped from 50,000 again. Should be back soon.
  • LifeMiles (US Bank) – Dropped from 40,000 to 20,000 miles.
  • AirTran (Chase) – This one is gone for good.
  • Best Western (Barclays) – Again, who really cares?

Beyond this mile/point list, the following are some great cashback cards:

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Cheapish Hyatt Points

This is the first (and last) reminder about Daily Getaways. I don’t see anything left I’d call a deal. Except for this Friday at 1:00 EST. Those Friday options are:

  • 24,000 Hyatt points for $260.
  • 30,000 Hyatt points for $330.
  • 40,000 Hyatt points for $415.
  • 72,000 Hyatt points for $775.

This has definitely been the worst year of “deals” from Daily Getaways. No more posts about it to follow…there’s just nothing else worth talking about. That being said, Friday’s Hyatt prices will be fairly priced for some people. If you have a specific use for those points, do the math and see if it’s worth a click.

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Frontier Airlines = Terrible

I’ve heard a lot more about Frontier from you guys lately. This seems to be for one of the following reasons…

  • You have miles from their credit card. 40,000-ish or 50,000-ish,
  • You have trouble using these miles (unless you’re going to Denver),
  • You can’t believe you have to pay for carry-on baggage.

Lately, the issue is that these miles now expire after 6 months of inactivity. Wow, that’s not just bad. It’s an unfunny joke. So, yeah, I decided to make a call. AwardWallet didn’t even have an expiration date for my Frontier miles. I dialed the number for this craptastic airline…

Terrible Customer Service Rep:
“Thank you for calling Frontier Airlines. How may I help you?”

Me:
“Hi, I wanted to see when my miles are going to expire.”

Terrible Customer Service Rep:
“6 months after last activity.”

Me:
“Can you give me that exact date please?”

Terrible Customer Service Rep:
“I can’t do that. But it’s 6 months after the last activity.”

Me:
“You realize every other mile and point program in the world gives exact expiration dates, right?”

Terrible Customer Service Rep:
“I’m sorry but we can’t do that.”

Me:
“Can I speak to a supervisor who would know the answer please?”

Terrible Customer Service Rep:
“Hold please.”

 

(I then hold for a few minutes. The supervisor picks up).

 

Even Worse Supervisor:
“Yes, can I help you?”

Me:
“Hi, can you tell me when my miles expire? Exact date please?”

Even Worse Supervisor:
“6 months after last activity.”

Me:
“Can you tell me what that date is?”

Even Worse Supervisor (sighing):
“August.”

Me:
“Ok. This is getting frustrating. Can I just transfer my miles to another program…hotel points, car rentals, anything?”

Even Worse Supervisor:
“No.”

Me:
“I’m seeing here on the internet that I can do it. Can I speak to someone who knows more about this?”

Even Worse Supervisor:
“I am the supervisor.”

Me:
“I understand that. But since you’re the supervisor and don’t have an answer, can I speak to someone who does?”

Even Worse Supervisor:
“Hold please.”

 

(He then hangs up on me).

 

Ok, so where did that leave me?

First, Frontier is near the top of my shit list. Terrible customer service, crazy miles that expire every 6 months, carry-on bag fees, hard to find flights, etc. Clearly, they are bad.

So, what did I do with my 50,000 miles?

This isn’t for everyone, but…

…I went to points.com and exchanged 50,000 Frontier miles for 12,500 Audience Rewards points.

(wait for it)

AUDIENCE REWARDS POINTS???!???!?!!?!????????!!!!!!!!!!??????

I know. But here’s the math. Again, this isn’t for everyone. Probably just for people who live in New York or LA and like theater. But, here’s why I did it…

  • For 500 points + $24, I can get an Orchestra seat here in LA for Phantom of the Opera. Among other shows.
  • These seats are on Stubhub for $200 to $300+ each.
  • If I burned all of my 12,500 points, I would get tickets worth $5,000+.

Again, it isn’t for everyone.

But, really, does anyone think 50,000 Frontier miles are worth more than this?

(Hint: They’re not)

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Oops

Sorry guys…had this one ready, but it never got posted. Still not dead (for now), so (hopefully) this is better late than never…

Office Depot and Office Max aren’t charging their normal $5.95 fees on $100 – $200 Visa gift cards. Not sure why that is, but no fees is great news for those with Chase Ink cards. 5 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent at office stores is worth a trip.

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Monday Triple

  • American Express Premier Rewards Gold is back to 50,000 points. If the link doesn’t work, try in an incognito browser.
  • Club Carlson decided to murder a great credit card. We’d been able to book points stays for 2 nights and pay for 1. After June, this is a deal of the past. To “ease the pain,” they’re offering 30,000 bonus points to cardholders who complete a paid stay before September. Blah.
  • To give you guys a glimpse at how great you are (and what some of my email debates look like)…here’s a conversation with reader Matt over the weekend. He was responding to my Friday diss of Hilton:

Matt:

“My two cents rant. Everyone bashes Hilton.  Aside from the card with 2 free weekend nights and one night a year (Hilton Reserve), everyone beats up on them like the geeky kid at school.

Ok, so Hilton has high redemption values… I get it… But man, I’ve done the math and for me, Hilton is actually the best of all the major players when earning through manufactured spending.  Aside the Hyatt card, I’ve had pretty much every hotel credit card from all the players (some twice or more).  If you stay in hotels on points quite a bit, all credit card churning opportunities dry up to a certain degree…so I have to rely on some manufactured spending (and will even more now with the stupid change to the US Bank Club Carlson last night free benefit).
For example.. in a few weeks I am staying in Chicago at a Hilton on Michigan Ave… retail is $250-300 a night (has fluctuated since I booked).  It’s 40k a night, so 120k for 3 nights.  Through manufactured spending, I can get that many points with the Surpass for $238 in spending.  Compare to Starwood where the properties are 12-15k a night in the same area.  I’d need to buy gift cards which would cost me $428.  Now, I do agree that Hilton status is not as good as Hyatt or Starwood.  But unless I am doing a lot of business travel (which I don’t anymore), once the signup bonuses dry up, Hilton is better than those two that everyone loves.  Not to mention, if I want to go on the cheap side in a smaller city, I can stay at a lower tiered Hilton for 15-20k points a night… most cheap Hyatts start around 8k and Starwood around 7k.  Before Starwoods devaluation there were quite a few for 3k or 4.5k, or better deals on cash + points.  Cash + points has slowly been going away (at least when I am booking) and I rarely see a Starwood for less 7k.  In fact, I am staying in OKC in a few weeks for a marathon.  I needed to stay downtown by the starting line and I had two choices that weren’t sold out when I booked:  Hilton for 40k or Starwood for 10k.  $83 worth of gift cards for a $250 Hilton property (So essentially paying 1/3 of retail price) or $119 worth of gift cards for a $150 Aloft room through Starwood.  It was a no brainer.
But now that internet is pretty much free, what is the point of status at hotels aside when you are paying cash and earn more points?  Sure, I might get an upgrade or free breakfast.  What if I didn’t plan to eat that breakfast anyways?  What is the point of a buffet breakfast when I am only hungry in the morning for something the size of an Egg McMuffin?  Or what if I want to try out the local restaurant around the corner?  And when I used to travel on biz it did me no good since I was going to expense it all anyways.”
Me:
“That was awesome! I get your point from your POV, but the value of Hilton signup bonuses are still pretty weak. Especially for nicer properties.”
Matt:
“Yeah, you are right on that account. But the way I look at it, I’ve had:

-Both Chase Marriott cards (slowly churnable, Marriott doesn’t have much value for the non-biz traveler anyways)
-2 Club Carlson cards
-2 Citi, 2 AMEX Hilton cards
-2 Starwood cards
-IHG card (churnable, but hard to cancel and wait to sign up again with the annual free night)
-3 Choice Cards (ugh, I know)
If I throw in the Hyatt which I haven’t signed up for and add all of those signup bonuses together, I could stretch it all for 20-30 nights (maybe more if I go with the cheapest properties).  The Amex Hilton and Starwood cards are one and done now.  I can get the Chase signups every 2 years, probably grab another Club Carlson every year or so, and can get both Citi Hilton cards annually.  So year two and beyond I can add another 15+ nights if I stretch it out, but probably close to 10.  If that is all I am traveling, that is fine…but I am not.  And there really isn’t a good hotel card for everyday spending aside from Starwood. But if you have an Ink, Sapphire, Arrival card, Premier Rewards card you are probably doing a lot of category spending and putting little on the Starwood these days. And I don’t like to transfer Ultimate Rewards or Membership Rewards to hotel programs (aside an occasional UR to Hyatt) because the better value is transferring to airlines.  So, all of that said, eventually if you want to take a lot of trips and you don’t like to pay for hotels…you have to manufacture spend.  I’ve been averaging over 30 nights a year for the past 3+ (had to slow down a for a year when daughter was born) and Hilton has saved me.”
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