Our credit card strategy has changed from travel to earning more points while not traveling during this pandemic. One thing we did while quarantined and ordering online is we collected points and miles in order to save money in the future. Our strategy has changed wanting more benefits with travel and high cash back on Gas.
That space in your wallet or purse is valuable, and you should be the one to get that value. Selected banks are offering strong perks and $500+ value for a single card during the first year to encourage you to apply and try it out. These are the top 10 credit card offers that I would personally apply for right now, if I didn’t already have most of them. Notable changes:
IHG Hotels 140k/75k – 140k still highest ever, new 75k traveler offer.
Chase Freedom Unlimited raised to $200 Bonus plus extra cashback on groceries and gas stations
AmEx Blue Cash Preferred to Add Streaming, Transit Bonus Categories
If you pay off your balances every month, then you can join me and many others in funding a huge chunk of your annual travel budget with cash credits, points, and miles. You don’t need to be a “I only fly business class” world traveler. I mostly use my rewards points on domestic economy flights, mid-class hotels, and cheap car rentals. If you have credit card debt, you should focus on paying that off first as the interest charges could offset most of the perks.
This is a companion post to my Top 5 Best Business Card Offers. Small business bonuses are on average even higher than those on consumer cards.
A top travel card is now offering 100,000 bonus points after $5,000 in spending. That’s enough for a dozen short-haul trips, lie-flat seats, or five-star stays.
✔️ 1:1 transfers to major airline and hotel programs ✔️ 5x points on travel portal, 3x on dining ✔️ $50 annual hotel credit ✔️ No foreign transaction fees
$300 in statement credits every cardmember year for bookings made through Capital One Travel; this can be applied toward any type of travel booked through Capital One Travel, including flights, hotels, rental cars, etc. 10,000 bonus Venture miles on the account anniversary every year; there’s no spending requirement to unlock this, and it’s worth a minimum of $100 toward a travel purchase, or could get you up to 10,000 airline miles (which I value at $170)
$200 Bonus when you make a purchase for spending $500 in the first 3 months
5% cash back on Lyft rides
5% cash back on Amazon, Hotels, & Restaurants starting in April 2024! 5% back on GAS is coming back for another quarter but for now Discover offers 5% back.
1.5% cash back on all other purchases
0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers
No annual fee
No minimum to redeem for cash back
Standard offer on both has typically been $150/$500, so this is a small boost. There are occasionally targeted or branch offers of $300 for either of the cards.
Up to 50,000 Hyatt points. 25,000 Bonus Points after $3,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. Plus an additional 25,000 Bonus Points after a total of $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months. See link for details and rough valuation of points.
$95 annual fee, free night award upon card anniversary.
INTRO OFFER: Discover will match ALL the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year, automatically. There’s no signing up. And no limit to how much is matched.
Earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, select rideshares and online shopping, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate.
Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases – automatically.
Redeem cash back any amount, any time. Rewards never expire.
Use your rewards at Amazon.com checkout.
Get an alert if we find your Social Security number on any of thousands of Dark Web sites.* Activate for free.
Marriott credit cards from Chase and American Express now earn an elevated 6X Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent on eligible grocery purchases amid coronavirus.
60,000 American Airlines miles after $3,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
First checked bag free on domestic AA flights ($60 value per roundtrip, per person).
$0 annual fee for the first year, then $99.
Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard
60,000 American Airlines miles after any purchase in the first 90 days and paying the $99 annual fee. See link for details.
$99 Companion certificate offer. Earn a certificate good for 1 guest at $99 (plus taxes and fees) after making your first purchase and paying the $99 annual fee in the first 90 days.
First checked bag free on domestic AA flights ($60 value per roundtrip, per person).
$99 annual fee.
Citi Premier Card
60,000 points (worth $750 towards travel booked at ThankYou.com) after $4,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
3X points for every $1 spent on travel including gas stations.
Must not have gotten bonus from or closed a Citi Rewards+, ThankYou Preferred, Premier, or Prestige card in the past 24 months.
$95 annual fee.
Bank of America Premium Rewards Card
50,000 points (worth $500 towards travel) after $3,000 in purchases within the first 90 days. See link for details.
2 points for every $1 spent on travel and dining purchases and 1.5 points for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
$100 annual Airline Incidental Statement Credit.
Up to $100 credit towards TSA PreCheck or Global Entry application fee.
$95 annual fee.
Hawaiian Airlines World Elite MasterCard (Soon to be Alaska Airlines)
50,000 Hawaiian miles after $2,000 in purchases within 90 days. See link for details.
Free first checked bag for primary cardmember when using your card to purchase eligible tickets directly from Hawaiian Airlines.
Receive a one-time 50% off companion discount for roundtrip coach travel between Hawaii and The Mainland on Hawaiian Airlines.
$99 annual fee.
During this Coronavirus pandemic your credit card rewards can help you pay for groceries, food delivery and essentials. This is by using points, gift cards, or statement credits from existing cards or new ones with bonuses.
Note: Certain Chase cards have a “5/24 rule” which is an unofficial rule that they will automatically deny approval on new credit cards if you have 5 or more new credit cards from any issuer on your credit report within the past 2 years. This rule applies on a per-person basis, so if you are new, you might want to start with those Chase cards.
If you have a big family to feed you most likely spend tons of money at the grocery store. You can add up coupons all day long but this card will save you the most. A 6% discount on groceries is basically what you are getting with this cash back card at grocery stores. The card has an annual fee but it pays for itself with the generous cash back and the $250 bonus.
Earn $250 after spending $1,000 in first 3 months.
Earn 6% cash back at US supermarkets; 3% cash back at US gas station and select US department stores; 1% cash back on other purchases.
With this credit card, you can get access to Amex Offers, which often offers very good discounts at some stores. In the past we have seen offers like: Spend $15 or more and get $5 back at Walmart; Spend $75 or more and get $25 back on Amazon
This is also a great card to have to buy Christmas Gift Cards for the stores that you visit frequently (such as Shell, Amazon, Uber, etc) or Visa Gift Cards in supermarkets, use your Blue Cash Preferred to buy them and you can get 6% cash back (up to $6000 per year)! If you use the card this way than you can make anything 6% back.
Disadvantages
$95 annual fee but the bonus pays for this.
Only first $6,000 purchases per Annual Reward Year (12 billing periods in a row beginning with the one that includes January 1st) at US supermarkets can earn 6% cash back, after that you can only earn 1%.
According to American Express; Target, Walmart, and Costco do not count as supermarkets, and you can only get 1x when shopping there.
This credit card is on the American Express Network, not Visa or MasterCard, so some small stores may not accept it.
Bottom Line
This is a great card for those who do lots of grocery shopping. Personally, I used the card for the bonus and plan to downgrade to the non-annual fee card when the annual fee comes due. AMEX actually prorates the annual fee for those that apply before the end of the year so you can cancel in January and keep most of the $250 bonus. Pretty simple stuff to make some easy money and get 6% back on buying Christmas gift cards for relatives.
After you apply you may check with the AmEx reconsideration backdoor number: 877-399-3083.
American Express recently rolled out a new limited time offer on the no annual fee Hilton Honors Card from American Express, which is valid for a limited time. This is Hilton’s starter co-branded credit card, and it’s currently offering a welcome bonus of 75,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $1,000 within the first three months.
The welcome bonus offered 50,000 Honors points in the past upon completing minimum spend, so this bonus is a 50% increase compared to before. Past increased bonuses had a higher spend requirement to earn the bonus. Since you have no annual fee to pay with this card it’s a no-brainer for a free stay at Hilton.
Click Here to Apply for the 75K Bonus on the No Annual Fee Hilton Honors Card From American Express.
This Hilton Honors AMEX Card offers:
7x Honors points for spend directly with Hilton, 5x points for spend at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations, and 3x points for all other eligible purchases
Hilton Honors Silver status for as long as you have the card; Hilton Honors Silver members receive a fifth night free on award redemptions, so you’d receive that by virtue of having this card
Hilton Honors Gold status when you spend at least $20,000 on the card in a calendar year
No foreign transaction fees
Rental Car Protection option
Having this card gives you access to Amex Offers, which can save you money with many retailers. I save hundreds a year on this benefit. They normally offer Hilton Hotel offers such as “stay at the Hampton Inn spend $150 get $35 back.”
99% of merchants in the U.S. who accept credit cards now take American Express. Just a fact here if you are wondering if AMEX is accepted as widely as VISA or Mastercard. The most recent Nilson Report found that 10.6 million U.S. merchant locations accepted American Express at the end of 2025.
IHG (International Hotel Group) is a global hotel chain that has a hotel in most cities you travel from Holiday Inn to boutique Kimpton hotels. They also partner with Las Vegas strip hotels for perks and free nights. The IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card is a newish card that everyone should have because they have hotels everywhere and you get a free night each year along with elite perks. This rewards card not only has a great sign up bonus but great benefits year after year making it one of those cards where the benefits surpass the annual fee.
IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card
Earn 80,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening. $89 annual fee. GO here to apply!
Top 6 Reasons We Love the IHG Rewards Premier Rewards Card:
1. Free Night Every Single Year
With this credit card you’ll receive a free night certificate with every anniversary year at eligible hotels. This perk pays for the small annual fee and then some! You just need to book the free night certificate before it expires at the end of the year. For example, you can use this free night certificate at the Z Ocean in South Beach Miami which is right on the beach and can easily go for a free $300+ a night.
2. 4th Night Free on Award Stays
When you book with your IHG points, you’ll receive your 4th night free just by being a cardmember. With many other chains, such as Marriott and Hilton, your free night doesn’t appear until the 5th night. There is no maximum number of times you can take advantage of this benefit.
3. Global Entry or TSA Precheck Fee Credit
You normally have to pay a $400+ annual fee for a credit card that gives you this perk. When you pay for your Global Entry application fee you’ll receive a $100 statement credit — ultimately giving you free Global Entry to avoid lines at airports. This also gives you TSA Precheck. If you already have Global Entry all you have to do is pay for another friend or family members application and you’ll still get the $100 statement credit. You can receive this statement credit every 4 years.
4. Platinum Elite Status
One of my favorite benefits of this card from Chase is the included IHG Platinum status, such as:
Your points will never expire. Typically IHG points expire if there is no activity in the account for a 12 month period. When you have Platinum status (even if it is just earned from having the credit card), your points will not expire even if there has not been any activity in 12 months. This is definitely one of the shorter expiration periods amongst hotel chains, so not having to remember to keep your account active is nice.
Raid the Bar Credit. Platinum status also matches to Kimpton’s “Tier 3” status which will get you a $10 Raid the Bar credit when staying at Kimpton properties. Who doesn’t love a mini-bar they can raid?
Discount at Shell Gas stations. You’ll save 6 cents per gallon at Shell Gas stations due to the Fuel Rewards partnership.
5. Chase Offers
This is a new thing going on with Chase cards that no one is really talking about. Chase has offers in the Chase App or on the Chase Pay app where you can order food and pick it up and get freebies or save in cash back at certain retailers. For example, I had a Chase offer where it saved me $10 after making 3 purchases from any of the order ahead restaurants near me using the Chase Pay app which is better than calling ahead. The other version of Chase offers may include Starbucks at 10% back or Applebee’s at 8% you just have to look in the app to see what comes up! This perk alone adds up to huge savings if you use it often.
6. 20% Discount on Purchasing Points
This is yet another benefit to get more bang for your buck when it comes to booking stays at IHG ran hotels. Sometimes it may be better to book buying points than paying directly. Note this discount is not on top of any other purchasing points promotions that might be running at the time but if you need a last minute hotel it sometimes helps to go this route.
There’s More: 10,000 Extra Points a Year for Big Spending
This is a benefit many of us will not use but it’s nice to have if you use it as your only card and want a annual bonus without having to sign up for a new card. If you spend $20,000 on your card within the year, you’ll receive 10,000 bonus points. Although for everyday spending such as groceries we have other cards that we recommend with better cash back.
One of the most underrated credit cards and loyalty programs is Hyatt. You don’t hear as much about hotel credit cards but just like airline cards if you stay at one chain over another you definitely need one when you travel.. They can offer huge perks that more offset the annual fees, ranging from free elite status to free night certificates, all of which can get you a lot of value. You basically pay an annual fee and get a free night that includes the taxes and all making a profit plus all these other benefits.
What makes this card one of the best hotel credit cards is that it’s worth having regardless of whether you want to keep it just for the ongoing perks, or whether you want to spend money on it. Let’s take a closer look at what you need to know about this card.
Welcome Bonus: Up To 60,000 Points The World of Hyatt Credit Card is offering a welcome bonus where you can earn up to 60,000 World of Hyatt points:
Earn 30,000 World of Hyatt bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months
Earn an additional one bonus point per dollar on purchases that earn one point per dollar on up to $15,000 spent in the first six months of account opening, for an additional 30,000 points
Earn up to 60,000 Bonus Points with the World of Hyatt Credit Card or 75,000 Bonus Points with the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card. I can be rewarded,
Annual Fee But Not Really The World of Hyatt Credit Card has a $95 annual fee, and it isn’t waived for the first year. You can add additional cardmembers to your account at no extra cost. This annual fee is so worth it even if you don’t spend money on the card, since you get an anniversary free night certificate.
Earning Points With The Hyatt Credit Card The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers pretty good points earning opportunities. While this isn’t the card that I use for all of my spending, I strategically spend money on the card, and it works great for for me.
How good are the points earning rates?
4x Points At Hyatt Properties The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers 4x points for spending at Hyatt hotels and resorts. While I use the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card for hotel spending at most other hotel brands (as the card earns 3x points), I always use the World of Hyatt Card for spending at Hyatt hotels.
The 4x points apply at all Hyatt properties, and even at Small Luxury Hotels of the World properties that are affiliated with Hyatt.
2x Points At Restaurants The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers 2x points for restaurant spending globally, though personally this still isn’t a card I’d use for restaurants, given that other cards offer 3-5x points.
2x Points On Airline Tickets The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers 2x points on airline tickets purchased directly from airlines. Again, this isn’t the card I’d use for airline tickets, given that other cards offer 3-5x points.
2x Points On Fitness Clubs & Gym Memberships Hyatt has a focus on wellness, so one of the cool bonus categories they have is offering 2x points on fitness clubs and gym memberships. For anyone wondering, this also includes group fitness businesses, like Barry’s Bootcamp, SoulCycle, etc.
This is an area where the card’s bonus category is industry-leading, as I can’t think of any other card that offers such a good return on fitness spending.
2x Points On Local Transit & Commuting The World of Hyatt Card offers 2x points on local transit and commuting, which includes ride share services such as Lyft and Uber. Other cards still offer a better return on spending than this card does, though.
Earn 1x Points On Other Purchases For categories in which you can’t earn 2-4x points, the World of Hyatt Card offers one World of Hyatt point per dollar spent. Generally speaking there are better cards for everyday spending.
No Foreign Transaction Fees The World of Hyatt Credit Card has no foreign transaction fees, so it’s an excellent card for purchases abroad. That’s especially true when staying at Hyatts abroad, as well as for dining and commuting outside the US.
Contactless Pay The World of Hyatt Credit Card features contactless pay technology. This means you can pay using your card without even swiping it whenever you see the contactless pay symbol.
World Of Hyatt Credit Card Benefits The area where the World of Hyatt Credit Card really excels is when it comes to the benefits it offers. In my opinion, these benefits more than justify the annual fee, regardless of whether you’re spending nothing on the card, or are spending a significant amount.
The first three benefits below are perks that you get just for having the card, while the two after that can be earned for putting spending on the card.
Free Night Every Year Just for having the World of Hyatt Credit Card you get a Category 1-4 free night certificate on your account anniversary every year. This will be issued shortly after your anniversary and is valid for 12 months.
Categories 1-4 cover a majority of Hyatt’s properties, and I’ve consistently been able to redeem this for hotels that retail for $250+ per night. This alone justifies the annual fee on the card.
Complimentary Discoverist Status You receive Hyatt’s entry-level Discoverist status for as long as you have the World of Hyatt Card. The status will post for the primary cardmember shortly after you are approved. Discoverist status comes with the following benefits:
Upgrade to a preferred room, when available 2 PM check-out, when available Premium internet Daily bottled water
Five Elite Nights Towards Status Annually Just for having the World of Hyatt Card you receive five elite qualifying nights towards status annually. You will receive these within eight weeks of being approved for the card (though usually much faster), and in subsequent years they will post within eight weeks of January 1.
This will be useful if you’re hoping to earn Hyatt’s Explorist status, Globalist status, and/or Milestone Rewards. Ordinarily, Explorist requires 30 elite nights and Globalist requires 60 elite nights, however for 2021 elite requirements have been cut in half, so you need just 15 elite nights for Explorist, or 30 elite nights for Globalist.
A Second Free Night When You Spend $15,000 While you receive a Category 1-4 free night certificate annually just for having the card, you can earn a second one if you spend $15,000 on the card in a year.
Currently you earn this based on spending that amount in a cardmember year (which consists of 12 statements following when you opened your card), while starting on January 1, 2022, you’ll earn it based on spending that amount in a calendar year (which consists of January 1 through December 31).
Two Elite Nights For Every $5,000 Spent In addition to the five elite nights you get just for having the card, you earn a further two elite qualifying nights for every $5,000 you spend on the card. This means that in theory, you could spend your way all the way to Explorist or Globalist status, if you wanted to.
Reaching the $5,000 threshold has nothing to do with the calendar or cardmember year — the counter simply resets every time you spend $5,000, and then you start earning towards your next two elite nights.
Further Promotions While there’s no guarantee this will continue to be offered in future years, historically Hyatt has offered additional promotions for those with the World of Hyatt Card, particularly when redeeming points. For example, in the past we’ve seen World of Hyatt offer summer promotions, whereby card members can earn a partial refund on award nights.
Chase Offers One of the great features of Chase cards is access to Chase Offers, which provides savings on purchases with all kinds of retailers. The program has saved me a significant amount of money. For example, once in a while we see Chase Offers deals for 10% savings on Hyatt hotel stays.
Secondary Car Rental Coverage The World of Hyatt Card offers auto rental collision damage waiver coverage. Decline the rental company’s collision insurance and charge the entire rental cost to your card.
Coverage is provided for theft and collision damage for most cars in the United States and abroad. Do note that in the US, the coverage is secondary to your personal insurance, though.
Protection With Trip Delays, Lost Luggage, And More The World of Hyatt Card offers a variety of other protection when traveling, including:
Trip Cancellation & Trip Interruption Insurance — be reimbursed up to $5,000 per trip when your trip is canceled or cut short due to sickness, severe weather, etc. Trip Delay Reimbursement — if your flight is delayed by more than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay, you and your family are covered for unreimbursed expenses, such as meals and lodging, up to $500 per ticket Lost Luggage Reimbursement — be reimbursed up to $3,000 per passenger if you or your immediate family member check or carry on luggage that is damaged or lost by an airline Baggage Delay Insurance — be reimbursed up to $100 per day for five days for essential purchases when your bag is delayed by over six hours Make sure you check your cardmember agreement for all of the details, since there are terms & conditions.
Redeeming World Of Hyatt Points The best value for redeeming World of Hyatt points is using the free night award chart. The great thing is that you earn elite nights for your stay even if you’re redeeming points or using a free night certificate.
Hyatt’s award chart looks as follows:
There’s value to be had at all levels of the chart. As a general rule of thumb, I try to redeem at properties where I’m getting more than two cents of value per point. That’s because personally I value World of Hyatt points at ~1.5 cents each.
In other words, I’d redeem points at a Category 1 hotel when the paid rate is $100+, I’d redeem points at a Category 7 hotel when the paid rate is $600+, etc.
Is The World Of Hyatt Credit Card Worth It? Let me answer this very simply — if you’re eligible for the card and have any interest in staying at Hyatt properties then yes, the World of Hyatt Credit Card is absolutely worth it. This is a card I personally have, and that I wholeheartedly recommend.
How Much Do You Have To Spend For Globalist Status? I’ve had some people ask if it’s worth spending your way to Globalist status with this credit card. Hyatt Globalist status ordinarily requires 60 elite qualifying nights, though in 2021 it only requires 30 elite nights.
Historically you’d need to spend $140,000 on the card to earn Globalist status (you get five elite nights just for having the card, plus spending $140,000 would earn you 56 elite nights). However, in 2021 you don’t need to spend nearly as much:
You get five elite nights towards status just for having the card Then you’d then only need 25 more elite nights, which you could earn with $65,000 of spending While that’s not half bad, personally that’s not the approach I’d take, though. I think the better approach is to better mix-and-match spending. After all, what’s the value in Globalist status if you’re not actually planning on staying at Hyatts with any frequency?
Is Hyatt Globalist Status Worth It? Globalist status is my favorite top-tier hotel status, and it comes with all kinds of awesome perks. Just to share some of the benefits:
Unlimited complimentary suite upgrades, when available
Four confirmed suite upgrades, each of which can be used to confirm a suite upgrade at the time of booking for a stay of up to seven nights, when available
Complimentary breakfast and/or club lounge access
Guaranteed 4PM late check-out, except at resorts
An additional Category 1-4 and Category 1-7 free night certificate
Guest of Honor, where you can redeem your points for a friend or family member, and they get your status
Waived resort/destination fees on all stays, and free parking on award stays
However, do note that some of these benefits are tied to Milestone Rewards, and those in some cases still require earning 60 elite nights.
Room service breakfast & a suite at the Park Hyatt Paris thanks to my status Other Options For Earning Hyatt Points While the World of Hyatt Card is awesome, I’d note that it’s not the only way to earn World of Hyatt points. You can also transfer over points from Chase Ultimate Rewards at a 1:1 ratio, which is one of my favorite uses of those points. There could be value in using:Transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to World of Hyatt
How Does The World Of Hyatt Business Card Compare? The World of Hyatt Business Credit Card (review) was recently introduced, and it’s a new business card issued by Chase and Hyatt. This could be a good option for any small business looking to earn Hyatt points or status. Here are some key aspects of the card:
It offers a huge welcome bonus of 75,000 World of Hyatt points after spending $7,500 within three months, which is better than on the personal card
It has a $199 annual fee, which is more than twice as much as on the personal card
It offers up to $100 in Hyatt credits every anniversary year; receive a $50 statement credit twice when you spend $50 at a Hyatt with the card
It offers five elite nights towards status for every $10,000 spent in a calendar year
It offers Discoverist status for as long as you have the card, for you and five employees
If you spend $50,000 on the card in a calendar year, you can receive 10% back on subsequent award redemptions, up to 20,000 points back per year
Personally I think the personal card is generally more rewarding, though the business version of the card earns you elite nights at an accelerated rate.
Receive an award rebate with the Hyatt Business Card World Of Hyatt Credit Card Summary The World of Hyatt Credit Card is exceptional. It’s a card I have, and also a card I spend at least $15,000 on per year.
The card is worth having even if you don’t plan on putting spending on it — you get an anniversary free night certificate you can use at a hotel that costs significantly more than the annual fee, you get complimentary Discoverist status, and you get five elite nights towards a higher status tier.
Beyond that it can be worth putting spending on the card, thanks to the unique bonus categories (4x points on Hyatt stays and 2x points on fitness and gyms), as well as the additional elite nights and second free night certificate.
Card Eligibility and the Chase 5/24 Rule The welcome bonus on the World of Hyatt Card isn’t available to those who currently have any Hyatt credit card, or have received the new cardmember bonus on any Hyatt credit card in the past 24 months. Chase’s general card application rules apply. Chase has what’s known as the 5/24 rule. This means that if you’ve opened five or more new card accounts in the past 24 months you typically won’t be approved for a Chase card. If you do apply for this card, make sure you’re under that limit. See this post to learn how to check your 5/24 status.
