Welcome to my wallet. This is the page where I am going to share with you my top credit card picks for earning points and miles and great benefits like airport lounge access. I run mainly a Chase and American Express setup so all the cards I am going to recommend are from these two issuers. These offers do come from our partners, feel free to read our advertiser disclosure policy.
Check out Card Match (TM) for personalized offers and higher bonuses on some cards.
Best Cashback No Annual Fee Credit Card Offer
Recommended Card: Chase Freedom Flex℠
The Freedom Flex is a great card for your first or second credit card. It earns 5% cash back on $1500 worth of spending in rotating categories per quarter (activation required). This cash back can also be converted into Chase UR points and transferred to other Chase Cards where it can be used to book travel at higher value per point. The card also earns 3% on dining and at drugstores and 5% through Chase travel. Just be aware Chase usually likes to see a year of credit history to approve you and this card is subject to the 5/24 rule.
Current welcome bonus: $200 for spending $500 in first 3 months
Annual Fee: $0
Large Welcome-Up Bonus mid-tier Credit Cards Offers
Large Sign-Up Bonus Recommended Card – Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
When your credit score is around 700 and you have over a year of credit history, you can apply for Chase Sapphire Preferred. This card offers a host of benefits, such as 5x points per dollar on travel through Chase, 3x on dining, 3x on online grocery, 3x on select streaming services, 2x on travel (except through
Chase) and most importantly, points take on 25% more value when you redeem them for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards. You can also transfer points out to transfer partners which gives you better value when booking business and first class flights.
Again, it’s a good idea to get chase cards early because of the 5/24 rule.You can upgrade to Chase Sapphire Reserve® after one year or go for that card instead if you prefer.
Current welcome bonus: 60,000 points (for spending $4000 on purchases in the first 3 months). Worth $750 in travel through the Chase travel portal and potentially more if you transfer to airline or hotel partners.
Annual Fee: $95
Amex Credit Cards Offers
Recommended Everyday Spending Rewards Card – The American Express Gold Card
If your credit score is over 700 and you dine often and/or spend a lot on your groceries, check out American Express Gold credit card. It offers 4X Membership Rewards points on every $1 spent at restaurants and at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X). You can also earn
up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Gold Belly, wine.com, Milk Bar and participating Shake Shack locations. That is an annual saving of up to $120. In addition to that there is now an Uber credit for up to $10 per month ($120 per year). So those two credits together add up to $240, almost offsetting the $250 annual fee.
The American Express Membership Rewards program features 17 airline and hotel transfer partners.
Current welcome bonus: 60,000 points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases with your new Gold Card within the first 6 months.
Annual Fee: $250 – see American Express® Gold Card – Rates & Fees
Terms Apply and enrollment required for select benefits.
Recommended Premium Card – The Platinum Card® from American Express
This is a great premium card for those who would like to have airport lounge access. With the Platinum Card you can access eligible Delta, Centurion, and Priority Pass lounges all around the world. The popular Amex Centurion lounges, for example, offer a locally-inspired menu, signature cocktails, fully equipped workspaces with high-speed Wi-Fi, family rooms, shower suites and more.
With the Platinum Card, you will earn 5X points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (up to $500,000 in spending per year), as well as pre-paid hotels on Amex Travel. You can also enjoy Uber VIP status and free rides in the U.S. up to $15 each month, plus a bonus $20 in December, which can add up to $200 in annual Uber savings, there is also an up to $240 digital entertainment credit and an up to $200 statement credit for the Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts collection and Hotel Collection (which requires a two-night stay).
Current Welcome Bonus: 80,000 points (spend $8000 in first 6 months from card opening)
Annual fee: $695 – see rates and fees: The Platinum Card® from American Express – Rates & Fees
Terms Apply and enrollment required for select benefits.
Top Hotel Card Offers
Recommended Hotel Credit Card – World of Hyatt Credit Card
Hyatt is one of the best hotel loyalty programs in my opinion and the points are worth considerably more than the points currencies of Hilton or Marriott. So not only is Hyatt a great transfer option from Chase, but their credit card also offers a great opportunity to earn and redeem points. The card earns up to 9x on Hyatt spending and 2x at restaurants, on airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines, on local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships. 20k to 25k points will get you one night a one of the Hyatt all inclusive resorts such as Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos or Hyatt Ziva Cancun. You can check out my reviews of those two properties on YouTube.
Current Welcome Bonus: 60k points (spend $3000 for 30k points in first three months, then earn 2 points per dollar on all purchases that normally only earn 1 point on $15,000 of spending in first 6 months)
Annual Fee: $95
Recommended Hotel Credit Card – Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
This is a card I personally use, it gives you Hilton Gold status just for holding the card, so you are getting gold for a way lower annual fee than the Amex Platinum. Gold status gets you free breakfast, room upgrades etc… The card also earns a Hilton free night after $15k in spending per year, thus I use this card to pay my taxes, and it also earns 12x points per dollar on eligible purchases at Hilton hotels and 6x points per dollar on eligible purchases at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations and U.S. supermarkets. There is now one new earning category of 4x points on U.S. online retail purchases, which was added in a recent refresh along with National Car Rental Executive status.
Current Welcome Bonus: 130k Hilton points (spend $3000 in first 6 months)
Annual Fee: $150 – – Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card – Rates & Fees
Terms Apply and enrollment required for select benefits.
Business Credit Cards Offers
Recommended Business Card – Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
This a great travel rewards card for business owners. Ink Business Preferred offers 3X points on the first $150,000 on combined travel and select business categories per year and you can add employee cards Free of charge. With Ink Business Preferred you will earn 1 point per $1 on all other purchases–with no limit to the amount you can earn and will have access to the same transfer partners as Sapphire. Points are worth 25% more when you redeem for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards, but worth 50% more if you transfer them to a Sapphire Reserve card. I use this card to earn 3x points per dollar on all my shipping purchases and I have used the trip delay insurance when my flight was delayed in 2020.
Current Welcome Bonus: 120,000 points (spend $8,000 in first 3 months)
Annual Fee: $95
Another Great Business Card – Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
This is kind of like the Chase Freedom Unlimited, but for small businesses. So it earns 1.5 points per dollar spent on everything with no cap. But another really cool feature of this card is the 0% promotional APR that it offers for 12 months. So if you want to use a card for an interest free loan for your business, then this could be the card for you. I personally used this card to buy all the furniture for my Air Bnb, spending about $10,000 out of my $11,500 credit limit, and paying it back over the 12 months. And remember, Chase business cards do not show up on your personal credit report, so maxing out a business card wont hurt your personal credit. Just remember only to do that for legitimate business expenses or education so you can earn more money in the future. I do not support going into debt for luxury items etc…
Current Welcome Bonus: $750 cash back (75k Chase Points) for spending $6000 in three months.
Annual Fee: $0
