2025 Travel Rewards Strategy
Money with Katie's Travel Credit Cards Guide
Listen To The Deep Dive
How to make incredible trips more affordable (or free) by wielding your credit card points and miles wisely.
Disclaimer
The following cards were highlighted, in this order, in our travel rewards episode of The Money with Katie Show. This content is not sponsored or endorsed by any of the card brands described here and is accurate as of the posting date, but some of the offers mentioned may have expired. Money with Katie is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as MileValue.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
Personal Finance For Women
Personal Finance For Women
Traveling for free is possible with credit card points & miles.
Travel can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. Over the years, I’ve gone on dozens of trips and saved tens of thousands of dollars using my credit card points and miles. A good strategy can go the distance.
After a lot of trial and error, I’ve determined my favorite combination of cards that are worth the annual fee many times over. Consider this an 80/20 solution to travel rewards: You’ll get 80% of the value from 20% of the effort.
Get started earning points and miles for free travel
Starting from scratch? Here’s the order I recommend.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
This Card’s Role:
Still establishing your credit, or need a great cash back card that’ll help set the foundation for the rest of your strategy? This is my pick, because you’ll begin earning Ultimate Rewards points on your spending.
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Learn More
Annual fee: $0
- 5x points on travel booked through Chase Travel℠
- 3x points on restaurants, streaming, and online groceries
- 2x points on travel outside the travel portal
- 1x points on everything else
- 10% annual points bonus based on your spending
- $50 annual statement credit on hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel℠
- Complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027
02.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited®
This Card’s Role:
Still establishing your credit, or need a great cash back card that’ll help set the foundation for the rest of your strategy? This is my pick, because you’ll begin earning Ultimate Rewards points on your spending.
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn $200 after spending $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.
Annual fee: $0
4.5% cash back on dining
and drugstores
6.5% cash back booked on
Chase Travel℠
3% cash back on all other purchases
01.
An Airline Card, like…The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Card
This Card’s Role:
If you’re going to fly Southwest frequently, this card is a great one to snag for its sign-up bonus and its recurring annual benefits.
Annual fee: $149
3x points on Southwest travel
4 Upgraded Boardings per year
$75 annual Southwest travel credit
7,500 anniversary points
20% back on inflight purchases
Learn More
Current Welcome Bonus:
03.
The United Explorer Card
This Card’s Role:
If you’re going to fly United frequently, this card is my pick for getting a valuable sign-up bonus as well as solid recurring perks.
Annual fee: $0 in year 1, then $95
First free checked bag (or free carry-on bag in Economy Plus)
2 United Club one-time passes per year
$100 TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credit
Priority boarding
Learn More
Current Welcome Bonus:
or...
℠
A Hotel Card. I recommend…
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless®
This Card’s Role:
The ubiquity of Marriott hotels as well as the annual free night award make this card valuable for anyone who regularly stays in hotels.
Annual fee: $95
Silver status
Free premium wifi
Annual free night credit worth up to 35,000 points
Learn More
Current Welcome Bonus:
04.
A premium card, like… The Platinum Card® from American Express
This Card’s Role:
This is my pick for the best premium card, which offers a slew of benefits that you won’t find anywhere else. Additionally, this grants access to the American Express Membership Rewards travel portal (also accessible via the Gold card on our list below).
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
Learn More
Annual fee: $695 (Rates & Fees)
- Up to $100 TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credit
- Up to $200 in annual statement credits for airline incidentals for your chosen airline
- Up to $200 in annual statement credits on Fine Hotels & Resorts or Hotel Collection bookings
- Up to $200 in annual statement credits for Uber and Uber Eats ($15/month and $35/month in December). To receive this benefit you must have downloaded the latest version of the Uber App and your eligible Platinum card must be a method of payment on your Uber account. The Amex Benefit may only be used in the United States.
- Up to $300 Equinox credit (enrollment required)
- Up to $199 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR® Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $199 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues
- Up to $20/month in monthly statement credits when you pay for eligible purchases with the Platinum Card® at one or more of the following providers: Peacock, Audible, SiriusXM, Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, and The New York Times (enrollment required)
- Priority Pass (enrollment required) and Centurion Lounge access (though notably, free access for guests has been removed)
05.
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
This Card’s Role:
This is Henah’s pick (my executive producer) for the best premium card, which offers a broad array of travel and dining benefits. If you get this card, you’d want to pair it with The Gold Card from American Express for access to AmEx’s portal.
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 60,000 points after you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months from account opening.
Learn More
Annual fee: $695 (Rates & Fees)
- $300 annual travel credit
- Priority Pass lounge membership (1,000+ lounges worldwide)
- Up to $100 TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credit
- Complimentary Lyft Pink, Instacart+, and DashPass subscriptions (complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027)
or...
The American Express® Gold Card
This Card’s Role:
This is a great card for food spending, especially if you get the Sapphire Reserve instead of the Platinum Card or if most of your discretionary spending is on food & dining (like mine is!).
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.
Annual fee: $325 (Rates & Fees)
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- 84 Dunkin’ Credit: With the $84 Dunkin’ Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Dunkin’ locations.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That’s up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
06.
Learn More
Get started earning points and miles for free travel
Starting from scratch? Here’s the order I recommend.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited®
This Card’s Role:
Still establishing your credit, or need a great cash back card that’ll help set the foundation for the rest of your strategy? This is my pick, because you’ll begin earning Ultimate Rewards points on your spending.
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn $200 after spending $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.
Annual fee: $0
4.5% cash back on dining
and drugstores
6.5% cash back booked on
Chase Travel℠
3% cash back on all other purchases
01.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
This Card’s Role:
Get extremely inexpensive access to the best travel portal (and transfer eligibility) out there. Remember, you can only get one Sapphire product at a time, so choose this or the Sapphire Reserve (more on that below).
Annual fee: $0
- 5x points on travel booked through Chase Travel℠
- 3x points on restaurants, streaming, and online groceries
- 2x points on travel outside the travel portal
- 1x points on everything else
- 10% annual points bonus based on your spending
- $50 annual statement credit on hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel℠
- Complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027
Learn More
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
02.
An Airline Card, like…The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Card
This Card’s Role:
If you’re going to fly Southwest frequently, this card is a great one to snag for its sign-up bonus and its recurring annual benefits.
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 85,000 points after you spend $3,000 in the first 3 months from account opening.
Learn More
Annual fee: $149
3x points on Southwest travel
4 Upgraded Boardings per year
$75 annual Southwest travel credit
7,500 anniversary points
20% back on inflight purchases
03.
or...
The United Explorer Card
This Card’s Role:
If you’re going to fly United frequently, this card is my pick for getting a valuable sign-up bonus as well as solid recurring perks.
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 50,000 points after you spend $3,000 in the first 3 months from account opening.
Learn More
Annual fee: $0 in year 1, then $95
First free checked bag (or free carry-on bag in Economy Plus)
2 United Club one-time passes per year
$100 TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credit
Priority boarding
℠
A Hotel Card. I recommend…
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless®
This Card’s Role:
The ubiquity of Marriott hotels as well as the annual free night award make this card valuable for anyone who regularly stays in hotels.
Current Welcome Bonus:
Learn More
Annual fee: $95
Silver status
Free premium wifi
Annual free night credit worth up to 35,000 points
04.
A premium card, like… The Platinum Card® from American Express
This Card’s Role:
This is my pick for the best premium card, which offers a slew of benefits that you won’t find anywhere else. Additionally, this grants access to the American Express Membership Rewards travel portal (also accessible via the Gold card on our list below).
Annual fee: $695 (Rates & Fees)
- Up to $100 TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credit
- Up to $200 in annual statement credits for airline incidentals for your chosen airline
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
Learn More
05.
- Up to $200 in annual statement credits on Fine Hotels & Resorts or Hotel Collection bookings
- Up to $200 in annual statement credits for Uber and Uber Eats ($15/month and $35/month in December). To receive this benefit you must have downloaded the latest version of the Uber App and your eligible Platinum card must be a method of payment on your Uber account. The Amex Benefit may only be used in the United States.
- Up to $300 Equinox credit (enrollment required)
- Up to $199 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR® Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $199 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues
- Up to $20/month in monthly statement credits when you pay for eligible purchases with the Platinum Card® at one or more of the following providers: Peacock, Audible, SiriusXM, Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, and The New York Times (enrollment required)
- Priority Pass (enrollment required) and Centurion Lounge access (though notably, free access for guests has been removed)
or...
Annual fee: $550
- $300 annual travel credit
- Priority Pass lounge membership (1,000+ lounges worldwide)
- Up to $100 TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credit
- Complimentary Lyft Pink, Instacart+, and DashPass subscriptions (complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027)
Learn More
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
This Card’s Role:
This is Henah’s pick (my executive producer) for the best premium card, which offers a broad array of travel and dining benefits. If you get this card, you’d want to pair it with The Gold Card from American Express for access to AmEx’s portal.
Annual fee: $695 (Rates & Fees)
The American Express® Gold Card
This Card’s Role:
This is a great card for food spending, especially if you get the Sapphire Reserve instead of the Platinum Card or if most of your discretionary spending is on food & dining (like mine is!).
Annual fee: $325 (Rates & Fees)
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- 84 Dunkin’ Credit: With the $84 Dunkin’ Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Dunkin’ locations.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That’s up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
Learn More
Current Welcome Bonus:
Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.
06.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
Overwhelmed? Do I have something special for you…
Check out our travel rewards greatest hits.
Still have questions?
Still have questions?
It happens to the best of us. If you get rejected for a card you want, you have options. I detail my own experience navigating this here.
If your credit score is low or you've struggled with credit card debt, you probably don't want to be approved for more cards yet. If you need a breakdown on paying off credit card debt and building your credit back up, this primer is a good place to start.
If your credit score is low or you've struggled with credit card debt, you probably don't want to be approved for more cards yet. If you need a breakdown on paying off credit card debt and building your credit back up, this primer is a good place to start.
No. At least, not if you do it correctly. Having more credit cards is a good thing. When you have more credit cards, you have more credit available to you, thereby driving your credit utilization down.
Effectively, the more lenders who are like, “Yeah, we’re willing to give this person a few grand and we trust they’re good for it,” the higher your credit score goes. Think about it like a trust barometer between you and the lenders. Low credit utilization—only using a small percentage of the credit available to you—accounts for 30% of your credit score.
Effectively, the more lenders who are like, “Yeah, we’re willing to give this person a few grand and we trust they’re good for it,” the higher your credit score goes. Think about it like a trust barometer between you and the lenders. Low credit utilization—only using a small percentage of the credit available to you—accounts for 30% of your credit score.
New credit is minimally impactful. Having “new” credit (from a new credit card) only accounts for 10% of your overall score. Granted, credit age is important, so try not to cancel old cards (even if you aren’t using them!) because they make your credit “older” and therefore more established—you adult, you!
Every card featured in this strategy breakdown is valuable enough year-over-year to warrant paying the annual fee on an ongoing basis (that is, if you’re using the benefits!). Some cards have high sign-up bonuses, but aren’t worthwhile afterward. Those cards aren’t on this page. Everything you see here is a card that I recommend keeping.
Every card featured in this strategy breakdown is valuable enough year-over-year to warrant paying the annual fee on an ongoing basis (that is, if you’re using the benefits!). Some cards have high sign-up bonuses, but aren’t worthwhile afterward. Those cards aren’t on this page. Everything you see here is a card that I recommend keeping.
This isn’t a best practice, as card companies are getting more savvy about noticing and shutting it down. Churning is when you get a card for the sign-up bonus, use it, then close the card. It’s not great for your credit, as it lowers your available credit line. I don’t recommend churning cards.
You can always downgrade a card in the second year to a no (or low) annual fee card (e.g., getting the Chase Sapphire Reserve and then downgrading it to a Chase Freedom Unlimited). Credit "age" is a critical part of your credit score, so downgrading—as opposed to closing—is a good alternative. Plus, they may end up waiving the fee anyway when you call and ask!
You can always downgrade a card in the second year to a no (or low) annual fee card (e.g., getting the Chase Sapphire Reserve and then downgrading it to a Chase Freedom Unlimited). Credit "age" is a critical part of your credit score, so downgrading—as opposed to closing—is a good alternative. Plus, they may end up waiving the fee anyway when you call and ask!
Timing-wise, I recommend loosely following a “one card every 90 days” cadence. Most spend thresholds are three months long, which means you’ll have to hit minimum spend thresholds for the sign-up bonuses before your third statement closes. Besides that, too many applications for new credit in short periods of time send up a red flag to the card companies and may result in a rejection.
Chase, otherwise known as the granddaddy of travel rewards, got wise to the credit card churning game. In an effort to prevent people from doing so, they now only allow you to be approved for 5 cards total in 24 months, regardless of the issuer (for example, if you got three AmEx cards then started applying for Chase cards, they’d only approve you for two). This is why people suggest getting the Chase-issued cards first, then moving onto other banks. (This is known as the "Chase 5/24" rule.)
Chase, otherwise known as the granddaddy of travel rewards, got wise to the credit card churning game. In an effort to prevent people from doing so, they now only allow you to be approved for 5 cards total in 24 months, regardless of the issuer (for example, if you got three AmEx cards then started applying for Chase cards, they’d only approve you for two). This is why people suggest getting the Chase-issued cards first, then moving onto other banks. (This is known as the "Chase 5/24" rule.)
“Spend $4,000 in three months.” What does that mean, functionally? Here’s an example: If you get a credit card today (April 10th) and your first statement closes on May 20th, you'd have until the end of your July 20th statement (May 20th, June 20th, July 20th) to hit the spend threshold necessary to get the points.
No problem, I got you. If I were you, I'd just get the low-fee Chase Sapphire Preferred card that gets you access to a high-value points program and move on with your life.
No problem, I got you. If I were you, I'd just get the low-fee Chase Sapphire Preferred card that gets you access to a high-value points program and move on with your life.
