Best Rewards Credit Cards
Taking good advantage of the great rewards credit cards, people can earn a variety of benefits including the cash back, travel rewards, bonus points, a certain discount with each purchase they make or other perks. Rewards credit cards will be an excellent option for people without the monthly credit card balance. Such rewards credit cards require individuals with a good-to-excellent credit score to get approved, and it often comes with a higher interest rate. People with a balance monthly will pay interest many times which surpasses what they get back in rewards.
We’ve offered the top picks of best rewards credit card of 2017 to help you narrow down the choices based on the annual fee, signup bonus, ongoing rewards rate and other credit card perks. Check out the list of best rewards credit card if you’re in need of a new rewards credit card.
- No.1 Chase Freedom®
- No.2 Discover it® Cashback Match™
- No.3 Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
- No.4 Citi® Double Cash Card
- No.5 Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- No.6 Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express
- No.7 BankAmericard Travel Rewards® Credit Card
- No.8 Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Credit Card
- No.9 Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®
- No.10 Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express
No.1 Chase Freedom®
- No annual fee
- Cash sign-up bonus
- Cash back bonus
- Rotating bonus categories
Pros
With Chase Freedom rewards credit card, people can get 5% cash back on rotating bonus categories, like restaurants, gas, wholesale clubs, groceries and 1% on other purchases. Besides, you will earn a cash sign-up bonus of which people get a $150 bonus after they spend $500 on purchases in the first three months the moment the account is opened.
Cons
It requires cardholders of Chase Freedom to opt into the bonus category each quarter to get the perks for the entire quarter. You cannot get the 5% cash back if you forget to do in that way. Meanwhile, you might earn more rewards with another card if you don’t spend much to maximize the bonus categories.
Summary
Rated as one of the best rewards credit cards, the Chase Freedom is available to people without an annual fee or the complicated redemption program. The cardholder will easily earn substantial cash back if they spend on the items in the 5% bonus categories as most people do.
No.2 Discover it® Cashback Match™
- No annual fee
- Free FICO score
- Cash back bonus
- Rotating bonus categories
- New cardmember bonus
Pros
With broad rewards bonus categories, Discover it Cashback Match rewards credit card enables to get 5% bonus on online retailer, restaurants, gas stations and more others. Meanwhile, the bonus changes each quarter. This credit card gives people access to the Discover Deals online bonus mall, which makes people enjoy 5%-20% cash back on purchases at popular online stores in the condition of signing up the credit card. Furthermore, this card with no foreign transaction fee offers people a distinctive sign-up bonus, that is, the one dollar-for-dollar match all the cash back you’ve got at the end of your first year automatically.
Cons
Cardholders need to remember that what kind of spending will maximize the reward bonus each quarter. Aside from that, you won’t get the 5% cash back if you forget to opt into the bonus categories.
Summary
Discover credit card helps you save a lot to buy things from popular retailers at the Discover Deals online mall with the high cash back rates. You will be the last winner with multiple bonuses of Discover credit card including the 0 annual fee, rotating 5% bonus categories, a new cardmember bonus, and a solid intro APR.
No.3 Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
- No foreign transaction fees
- Flexible rewards
- Simple redemption process
- Simple earning structure
Pros
As one of the most flexible travel credit cards available, Capital One rewards credit card enables users to earn 2 miles per $1 spent on purchases. Miles can be redeemed for a credit against the expenses related to most travel. This card apart from the miles rewards also comes with low annual fee compared to other travel cards. Furthermore, people can take it abroad easily since there are no foreign transaction costs. Cardholders can enjoy a one-time sign-up bonus of 40,000 miles once spending $3,000 on items bought within three months the moment the account was opened, which equals to $400 in travel.
Cons
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card doesn’t provide the perks related to airline-specific items. You had better choose an airline’s co-branded card if you’re loyal to one particular airline.
Summary
Capital One rewards credit cards will defeat other cards when it comes to redemption and easy earning. Pick this card you will enjoy multiple benefits including miles for hotel stays, cab rides or cruises or flights.
No.4 Citi® Double Cash Card
- No annual fee
- Free FICO score
- High rewards rate
- Balance transfers
- Simple rewards
Pros
As one of the highest cash back rates available, Citi Double Cash Card enables people to earn 1% cash back making purchases and an additional 1% paying them off. Users can redeem cash back as a gift card, a check or a statement credit by mail.
Cons
What may disappoint users will be the 3% foreign transaction fee compared to most cards without such cost, which makes it a bad choice for spending abroad. Besides, other cards have higher cash back proportions in some particular categories.
Summary
On the whole, the Citi Double Cash Card will be one of the best rewards cards which have a simple cash back earning process. People will get 1% cash back on each dollar they spend and another 1% paying off.
No.5 Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- Large sign-up bonus
- Flexible rewards
- Foreign travel
Pros
Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, different from other cards tied to a specific airline or hotel brand, can be used in many places. Users will earn 2 points per $1 spent on dining and travel and 1 point per $1 devoted to other purchases. Plus, people will get 50,000 bonus points when spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months the account opens. Meanwhile, Chase Sapphire Preferred Card comes with the sign-up bonus.
Cons
What makes Chase Card no better than the airline-specific co-branded cards is that it lacks the perks, like free checked bags and priority boarding. This card may be not worth you own if you don’t frequently spend on travel and restaurants though its annual fee is not too much.
Summary
Chase Sapphire Preferred Card will be the best card around if you want the flexibility in redeeming and earning rewards. However, people who’d like to travel had better choose some other co-branded cards since Chase lack such specific benefits.
No.6 Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express
- Cash sign-up bonus
- Everyday rewards
- Simple redemption
Pros
Rated as one of the highest rewards rates cards at US supermarkets, Blue Cash Preferred Card returns cardholders 6% cash on up to $6,000 of expenses per year. It offers an unlimited 1% back on all other purchases. Besides, cardholders can use the 6% cash back not only on groceries but also at the supermarket or restaurants.
Cons
The disadvantage of the Blue Cash Preferred Card is that it has a high annual fee, which makes the cash back got from the expenditure limitation offset with the annual fee. Besides, this card may be limited to use in some places. And people who like go abroad had better not choose this card due to its foreign transaction fee.
Summary
The Blue Cash Preferred Card will be a good choice if you’d like to spend money on gas stations, department stores, and supermarkets. However, the similar Blue Cash Everyday Card will be a better choice compared with the Blue Cash Preferred Card if you spend less than $3175 per year at the supermarket. It has no annual fee though its rewards rates are low.
No.7 BankAmericard Travel Rewards® Credit Card
- No foreign transaction fees
- Great miles bonus
- Travel rewards
- No annual fee for the first year
Pros
BankAmericard Travel Rewards Credit Card will be a great choice for international travelers who don’t want to pay for a bunch of additional expenses when abroad due to no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees. Besides, it offers great perks for people who have the Bank of America account to receive a 10% rewards bonus automatically.
Cons
For people who are not a Bank of America customer, the rewards-earning will be not as good as most travel cards. With this card, people earn 1.5 points per dollar spent. However, several cards provide 2 points per dollar spent on selected purchases.
Summary
The BankAmericard Travel Rewards Credit Card will have the great potential for people with the Bank of America accounts to earn significant rewards. However, for people who are not the Bank of America customer had better choose another travel card which may create more bonuses.
No.8 Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Credit Card
- No foreign transaction fees
- Great redeem points
- Preferred rewards client with 25%-75% bonus
- No annual fee
Pros
Cardholders will enjoy 1.25% cash back towards transportation, travel and vacation-type expenses along with no annual fee and no foreign transactions fees which will save 3% additional charges made abroad. Furthermore, customers of this card will get 20,000 miles bonus once spent $1,000 on purchases within the first 90 days.
Cons
Compared with the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card which gives customers 1.5% cash back on all expenses, Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is not the best card to maximize rewards return. Meanwhile, it has the lower cash back returns on no-travel related purchases.
Summary
For people with good to excellent credit, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card which offers a quite flexible travel rewards will be the best choice. The cardholder will earn 2 miles for each dollar spent on purchases. Meanwhile, they can get 40,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 within the first 90 days from the account opening. Besides, the rewards won’t expire all the time as long as the account is open.
No.9 Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®
- No foreign transaction fees
- $0 fraud liability protection
- Complimentary online FICO score access
- Sign-up bonus
Pros
Cardholders will earn 50,000 bonus miles when spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 90 days, which equals about $500 expenses on travel. Given the great sign-up bonus, Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard will be one of the most excellent choices for people who like to travel. This card especially is proper for the international travelers due to the 0 foreign transaction fees.
Cons
People who prefer a card with a lower annual fee had better choose another card, like Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. Besides, compared with the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, the sign-up bonus of the Barclaycard Credit Card is about $125 less when transferring the bonus points into the travel statement credit.
Summary
Users can use the miles on any purchases related to travel with the Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard. What outshines this credit card is the high rewards rate, with which cardholders can enjoy 5% redemption bonus that boosts the effective rate to 2.1%.
No.10 Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- Sign-up bonus
- Cash back bonus
- Great rewards rate towards travel expenses
Pros
The Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express will be the best choice if you like to travel since this the rewards points offered by this card can be redeemed for flights on several major carriers domestic and abroad. Aside from the high rewards rate, this card also has a flashy sign-up bonus, as well.
Cons
The only disadvantage of the Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express is that it has a higher annual fee. People who prefer the lower annual fee had better choose a different card.
Summary
The Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express is suitable for people who are looking for a card with great and flexible travel redemption options, the flashy sign-up bonus and the ongoing competitive value. This card will be a great choice for people who travel frequently and regard the airline tickets a significant ongoing expense, however, this card is well worth its annual fee.