OUR TOP THREE CARD RECOMMENDATIONS
Chase Sapphire Preferred®
BEST STARTER TRAVEL CARD
The best starter travel card for beginners looking to get the top all-around travel card which earns our #1 favorite points! This card earns 3x points on dining, 2x points on travel, and 1x points on everything else. While there is a $95 annual fee, it is easily offset by $170 in credits, including a $50 yearly hotel credit for any booking in the Chase Travel Portal and a $10 per month credit to DoorDash for convenience stores, which can be used on pickup orders to avoid fees.
$95 annual fee
Current Offer: 60,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 in 3 months
Commissioned link below
Capital One® Venture X
TOP PREMIUM TRAVEL CARD
The best premium travel card on the market! Easy earning structure: 2x points on every purchase, every day. While there is a $395 annual fee, it is easily offset by a yearly $300 travel credit for any booking in the Capital One Travel Portal, plus 10,000 anniversary points per year (worth a minimum of $100). This card also comes with AIRPORT LOUNGE ACCESS to all Capital One Lounges and over 1,300 Priority Pass and Plaza Premium airport lounges worldwide. It also includes a benefit for free Global Entry/TSA Pre-check.
$395 annual fee
Current offer: 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 in 3 months
Commissioned link below
American Express® Gold
American Express® Gold
BEST CARD FOR FAMILIES:
4X DINING AND GROCERIES
A card designed for foodies and families alike! You get 4x points at all restaurants worldwide (up to $50,000 spend per year), plus 4x points at all U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 spend per year). Plus, you get 3x points on all flights booked directly with an airline. While there is a $325 annual fee, it is offset by $424 value in credits, including $10 per month to Uber/Uber Eats ($120 value per year), $10 per month to a selection of restaurants (including Grubhub) ($120 value per year), $7 per month to Dunkin Donuts ($84 value per year), and $50 every six months to restaurants within the Resy network ($100 value per year). The Uber Eats and Grubhub benefits can be used on pickup orders to avoid fees.
$325 annual fee
Current offer: 60,000 bonus points after you spend $6,000 in 6 months
Commissioned link below
BEST STARTER TRAVEL CARD
Chase Sapphire Preferred®
BEST STARTER TRAVEL CARD
The best starter travel card for beginners looking to get the top all-around travel card which earns our #1 favorite points! This card earns 3x points on dining, 2x points on travel, and 1x points on everything else. While there is a $95 annual fee, it is easily offset by $170 in credits, including a $50 yearly hotel credit for any booking in the Chase Travel Portal and a $10 per month to DoorDash for convenience stores, which can be used on pickup orders to avoid fees.
$95 annual fee
Current Offer: 60,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 in 3 months
Commissioned link below
BEST PREMIUM TRAVEL CARDS
Capital One® Venture X
TOP PREMIUM TRAVEL CARD
The best premium travel card on the market! Easy earning structure: 2x points on every purchase, every day. While there is a $395 annual fee, it is easily offset by a yearly $300 travel credit for any booking in the Capital One Travel Portal, plus 10,000 anniversary points per year (worth a minimum of $100). This card also comes with AIRPORT LOUNGE ACCESS to all Capital One Lounges and over 1,300 Priority Pass and Plaza Premium airport lounges worldwide. It also includes a benefit for free Global Entry/TSA Pre-check.
$395 annual fee
Current offer: 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 in 3 months
Commissioned link below
Chase® Sapphire Reserve JUNE 2025 HIGHEST OFFER EVER
LOUNGE ACCESS PLUS OUR #1 FAVORITE POINTS
A premium all-around travel card which earns our #1 favorite points! This card was just refreshed in June 2025 and while it now has a higher annual fee of $795, they've added a ton of benefits to outweigh the increase. More than one third of the fee is easily offset by an annual $300 travel credit that can be used on a variety of travel expenses, including airlines, hotels, rideshare, EZPass tolls, and even parking. Then consider that you get $500 in credits to Chase's new high-end hotel portal named "The Edit," $120 in credits to Peloton, $250 in credits to Apple TV+ and Apple Music, $300 in credits to StubHub, $300 in credits to Chase's new restaurant program named "Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables," plus 8x points on travel booked through the portal and 4x points on hotel stays and airline stays booked directly with the hotel/airline. This card also comes with AIRPORT LOUNGE ACCESS to all Chase Sapphire Lounges and over 1,300 Priority Pass and Plaza Premium airport lounges worldwide.
$795 annual fee.
Current offer: 100,000 bonus points AND a one-time $500 travel credit after you spend $5,000 in 3 months
Commissioned link below
BEST CO-BRANDED CARDS
Chase® Marriott® Boundless Card - ELEVATED OFFER JUNE 2025
AUTOMATIC ANNUAL FREE NIGHT UP TO 35,000 POINTS
Here at The Points Podcast, we only like hotel cards that come with an automatic free night with no spending requirements. Of the three Marriott cards (Bold, Bountiful, and Boundless), only the Boundless comes with an automatic free night every year, so that's the card we like. The free night can be used at any property with available nights up to 35,000 points, plus you can "top off" by adding up to 15,000 of your own Marriott points (can be transferred from a bank) on top of the certificate, which means the certificate could then be used for a free night of up to 50,000 points. When you consider that the free night is almost always worth more than $95 annual fee, this card is a fan favorite. While Marriott points are not the most valuable points out there, the Boundless offers 6x points on any Marriott purchase, which, when you consider that you'll also get an additional 1x points with the automatic Marriott Silver status you get with this card, plus the 10x points all Marriott Bonvoy loyalty guests get, is like getting 17x total points at Marriott. The card also gets 3x points on the first $6,000 spent each year on grocery, dining, and gas stations, and then 2x points on everything else.
The three card names are similar, so be careful to select the correct one!
"Bold"
$0 annual fee
Current offer: 30,000 points if you spend $1,000 in the first three months
"Boundless"
$95 annual fee
Current ELEVATED offer: FIVE free night awards (up to 50,000 points per night each) if you spend $5,000 in the first 3 months
THE "BOUNDLESS" IS THE CARD WITH AN AUTOMATIC FREE NIGHT WORTH UP TO 35,000 POINTS EVERY YEAR ON YOUR CARD ANNIVERSARY
"Bountiful"
$250 annual fee
Current offer: 85,000 points if you spend $4,000 in the first three months
Commissioned link for all three cards below below
Chase® Southwest® Rapid Rewards Cards
THREE GREAT CARD OPTIONS THAT ALL HELP YOUR PATH TO SOUTHWEST COMPANION PASS, OUR #1 CO-BRANDED BENEFIT
Even with the recently announced changes at Southwest, the Southwest credit cards maintain their value! There are three options with annual fees ranging from $69-$149, but each come with credits and points that offset those fees. Best of all, the sign-up bonus counts towards Southwest Companion Pass, our #1 benefit related to a co-branded card! Plus, just for holding one of these cards, it takes 10,000 fewer points to earn Companion Pass. And, Southwest recently announced that cardholders will get one free bag when Southwest starts charging for bags!
The three card names are similar, so be careful to select the correct one! Here at The Points Podcast, we like the "Priority Card." While it has the highest fee ($149), its fee is most easily offset, including a $75 annual Southwest travel credit which automatically comes off of any Southwest purchase, 7,500 anniversary points (valued at approximately $97), plus four upgrades per year to boarding position A1-15 (these upgrades normally sell for $30-$80 each).
"Plus"
$69 annual fee
2x points on Southwest, internet, cable, and select streaming services
2 annual Early Bird Check-ins
3,000 anniversary points
"Premier"
$99 annual fee
3x points on Southwest
2x points on internet, cable, and select streaming services
2 annual Early Bird Check-ins
6,000 anniversary points
"Priority"
$149 annual fee
3x points on Southwest
2x points on internet, cable, and select streaming services
$75 annual Southwest travel credit
4 annual Upgrades to A1-15 (if available)
7,500 anniversary points
Current offer: 30,000 bonus points plus Companion Pass through 2/28/2026 if you spend $4,000 in three months
Commissioned link below for all three cards
OUR TOP NO ANNUAL FEE CARDS
Chase® Freedom Flex
Chase® Freedom Unlimited
Chase® Freedom Unlimited
BEST STARTER NO-FEE CARD TO EARN ULTIMATE REWARDS, WITH ROTATING 5X POINTS CATEGORIES
One of the two great options to get into the Chase ecosystem, the Freedom Unlimited is advertised as earning cash back, it really earns our #1 points currency: Ultimate Rewards! Although initially those points will just remain in your points balance, once you also get either the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve, you will unlock your points' full potential and make them to transferable to amazing transfer partners such as Hyatt. This card earns 5x points on a series of rotating categories which change every quarter, which in the past have included easy-to-earn categories such as PayPal, Amazon, grocery stores, and gas stations. It also earns 3x points on dining, 3x points at drug stores, and 5x points on purchases in the Chase Travel portal. Pretty great for a card with no annual fee!
$0 annual fee
Current offer: $200 back after you spend $500 in the first three months, received in the form of 20,000 points
Commissioned link below
Chase® Freedom Unlimited
Chase® Freedom Unlimited
Chase® Freedom Unlimited
NO FEE PLUS 1.5X ULTIMATE REWARDS ON EVERY PURCHASE
The other of the the two great options to get into the Chase ecosystem, the Freedom Unlimited is advertised as earning cash back, it really earns our #1 points currency: Ultimate Rewards! Although initially those points will just remain in your points balance, once you also get either the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve, you will unlock your points' full potential and make them to transferable to amazing transfer partners such as Hyatt. This card has a simple earning structure: it earns unlimited 1.5x points on every purchase, every day. It also earns 3x points on dining, 3x points at drug stores, and 5x points on purchases in the Chase Travel portal. Pretty great for a card with no annual fee!
$0 annual fee
Current offer: $200 back after you spend $500 in the first three months, received in the form of 20,000 points
Commissioned link below
SIGN UP FOR RAKUTEN
SIGN UP FOR OUR #1 SHOPPING PORTAL AND GET $30 BACK ON YOUR FIRST ORDER OF $30 OR MORE
Rakuten is our #1 favorite shopping portal!
Sign up for Rakuten (formerly known as Ebates) with the commissioned link below and get $30 back after your first purchase of $30 or more! Payments arrive quarterly and can be paid via check or directly into your PayPal account.
Shopping portals like Rakuten are card-agnostic, meaning you can use ANY credit card you wish when you check out. You will earn whatever points you normally get from your credit card PLUS the Rakuten money back!
Plus, if you have a Membership Rewards-earning American Express Card, like the Gold, Green, or Platinum card, you can switch your payout method from cash to Membership Rewards points, and instead of getting $30, you'll get 3,000 Amex points! And best of all, since Rakuten is card-agnostic, you don't even need to use your Amex card to get the points. You can use any credit card to pay and you'll get the Membership Rewards points plus whatever points you normally earn with that card!