This is especially good for those who have very varied spending, and don't shop at traditional credit
card rewards categories.
To help narrow the field of options, we conducted a study of over 100 + credit cards that analyzes the value proposition of all credit
card rewards categories to see which type provided consumers with the best value.
Anyone with varied spending that doesn't conform to traditional credit
card rewards categories
A company with major business expenses that align with most business credit
card reward categories.
This is particularly useful for people with varied spending, not captured by the typical credit
card reward categories.
Check out
your card reward categories.
The fixed 1.5 % rewards rate makes the card much better for people with a wide array of expenses that don't always conform to the standard credit
card reward categories — dining, gas, groceries and travel.
Not exact matches
If you already have Ultimate
Rewards - earning
cards like the Sapphire Preferred, the Sapphire Reserve, or the Ink Business Preferred, this is the best way to maximize your points earning on all your spend that doesn't fall into the other
card's bonus
categories.
Get
rewarded on business - specific purchases A business credit
card can help you reap substantial
rewards on your business purchases, with bonus
categories targeted to common business purchases.
Rewards Categories: Merchants who accept Visa / MasterCard credit
cards are assigned a merchant code, which is determined by the merchant or its processor in accordance with Visa / MasterCard procedures based on the kinds of products and services they primarily sell.
Purchases submitted by you, an authorized user, or the merchant through third - party payment accounts, mobile or wireless
card readers, online or mobile digital wallets, or similar technology will not qualify in a
rewards category if the technology is not set up to process the purchase in that
rewards category.
Signing up for multiple
rewards cards and juggling them to earn extra points in the
cards» bonus
categories can be a great way to maximize your
rewards.
This is a very valuable
card for businesses who like to choose their own bonus
categories and earn valuable Membership
Rewards points with American Express.
The
rewards for this
card include double or triple points in the
category of your choice, which is a great perk for business owners who spend a large portion of their credit on one
category, such as gas or groceries.
Chase credit
cards with Ultimate
Rewards earn points quickly in bonus
categories, which can be seen in the table below.
Therefore, while this
card offers very high
rewards rates on the aforementioned
categories, it should be noted that they can only be used towards stays at the 150 participating hotels across the nation.
‡ Cash back
rewards for similar
cards of compared issuers: Chase Freedom: 5 % in rotating
categories each quarter, up to a quarterly max each time you activate; 1 % on other purchases.
We can divide
rewards credit
cards into two general
categories: travel and cash - back
cards.
Travel
rewards credit
cards come in two main
categories.
It fits all the
categories of what a traveler should look for in a travel
rewards credit
card.
It's legit, and a great way to double dip if your Ultimate
Rewards card gets a
category bonus already.
With this
card you will earn 3 points per $ 1 in the select
rewards categories: shipping; advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines; travel; internet, cable, and phone service.
After they've maximized the
rewards and spending limits on their special category cards, then these users can return to the Capital One ® Quicksilver ® Cash Rewards Credit Card as the base credit card for 1.5 % r
rewards and spending limits on their special
category cards, then these users can return to the Capital One ® Quicksilver ® Cash
Rewards Credit Card as the base credit card for 1.5 % r
Rewards Credit
Card as the base credit card for 1.5 % rewa
Card as the base credit
card for 1.5 % rewa
card for 1.5 %
rewardsrewards.
I know there are
cards that pay 2 % on groceries and 3 % on gas or whatever, but being a widow, I don't spend a lot of money on either one of those
categories, so my Capital One Cash
Rewards card is the best one for me.
But other people may be looking for a
card that offers higher
reward rates on specific
categories.
The Citi ® Double Cash
Card — 18 month BT offer is one of the best
rewards cards on the market, partly because it's so simple: straight cash back — no points, no bonus
categories to keep track of.
If 50 % of your credit
card purchases fall into dining and travel categories, the Barclays Arrival ™ World MasterCard ® is the better long - term deal - otherwise opt for the BankAmericard Travel Rewards ® Credit
card purchases fall into dining and travel
categories, the Barclays Arrival ™ World MasterCard ® is the better long - term deal - otherwise opt for the BankAmericard Travel
Rewards ® Credit
CardCard
The highest
rewards rate you can achieve with the Citi ThankYou ® Preferred
Card is 2 % (which is competitive)- to get this rate you must spend exclusively on dining and entertainment
categories.
Credit
cards that earn Chase Ultimate
Rewards have lucrative bonus
categories on top of their sign - up bonuses, which make them ideal for earning points for your next trip to Hawaii.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred ®
Card doesn't perform quite as well in the general
rewards category, only offering 1 point for every dollar spent.
With 2x points on every $ 1 spent in those
categories, the Chase Sapphire Preferred ®
Card offers a
rewards rate of up to 2 % (and 1 % on all other spending).
If your business needs a good travel
card, the Ink Business Preferred ℠ Credit Card offers great rewards in common spending categories, and the sign - up bonus is outstand
card, the Ink Business Preferred ℠ Credit
Card offers great rewards in common spending categories, and the sign - up bonus is outstand
Card offers great
rewards in common spending
categories, and the sign - up bonus is outstanding.
While they are technically hotel credit
cards, the following
cards belong to the travel
rewards category as well because they have such an amazing opportunity with travel partners:
The
rewards system for this
card allows cardholders to earn Earn 5 % cash back in select business
categories., like phone, internet, and cable.
You could come close to that
rewards levels with many other
cards, but only if you spent on specific
categories, or by using the
rewards at a particular chain of airlines or hotels.
Most credit
cards can match or beat that 2 %
rewards rate in one or two
categories, but not across the board, for all spending.
Savvy
rewards card users can use the Discover it Cashback Match
card to earn cash back on rotating quarterly
categories.
Tip # 1: Use a
card that earns Chase Ultimate
Rewards points when making a purchase in one of the relevant bonus
categories.
Tip # 2: Use the United MileagePlus ® Club
Card to earn 1.5 X United miles per dollar on purchases that don't fall under a bonus
category of one of the Chase Ultimate
Rewards credit
cards.
This benefit compares to most other premium travel
rewards cards, but this
card gives an extended range and applies to purchases made worldwide — and provides a wide variety of options to earn extra points in the specific
categories that qualify for this double point bonus.
Outside of the different caps ($ 25k vs $ 50k), you will find that the other major differentiator between the two
cards is their 2 %
rewards rate
category.
By entering your estimated monthly spending, into the
categories below, we will calculate for you the
reward rates you can expect out of the following credit
cards.
All the
card's features make the Barclays Arrival Plus ® World Elite Mastercard ® one of our «editor's pick» in
categories like Best
Rewards Credit
Cards, Best Airline Credit
Cards and Best Hotel Credit
Cards.
To maximize earning
rewards at 5 %, you'll have to use the
card just for the bonus
categories.
The Chase Freedom ® gives some of the highest
rewards out of all credit
cards, on
categories that change on a quarterly basis.
The most obvious way to get more
rewards for your buck is to use a
card that offers accelerated earnings for specific
categories of purchases like groceries, gas or dining out.
Other
cards offer more or fewer
rewards points for spending in different
categories.
If you want to maximize your earnings, you can even carry a number of
cards, each offering optimal
rewards in a different purchase
category.
Most travel
rewards credit
cards will offer bonus points or miles for spending in travel
categories, like airfare, car rentals, hotel stays, dining, and entertainment.
The one caveat is that maximizing your
rewards rate with the Chase Freedom ® requires you to stay on top of which
categories are currently eligible for the bonus and using the
card accordingly.