27

Feb

The general advice about which credit card is best is going to vary somewhat by individual circumstances — what rewards do you want and just as importantly, what do you spend money on?

Because different card products reward different kinds of spending differently.

It’s been more than six months since I’ve looked at the best credit cards for different types or categories of spending. Since that time American Express has announced changes to their bonus categories for the Hilton cards, and has also capped the cash back earning in bonus categories for Blue Cash (making its 6% rebate far less rewarding at grocery stores).

So as you read this post, consider what you spend the most on? If you drive a ton you want a card that maximizes gas spend. If you eat out a lot, there are cards that bonus restaurant spend. If you buy office supplies (or gift cards at office supply stores), you want a card that gives you the biggest rewards for that category of spending.

So I’ve compiled a list of what I consider to be the best card for several spend:

For the purpose of ‘best’ in each category I’m ignoring limited-time promotions like Chase Freedom quarterly bonuses. I’m asking the question of which card’s fundamental features are best.

I welcome vigorous challenge, so please let me know in the comments where you disagree with my list, it will help me build an even better list going forward or at least help to flesh out the reasons behind our disagreements which will help readers to figure out what works best for their own circumstances.

Note that some of the cards on the list above do offer me referral credit if you use the links provided. As always I only offer the best offers I’m aware of. And I do very much appreciate it when you use these links, so thank you in advance.

78 Comments

  1. bf said,

    I would add PenFed Cashback Visa to gas category. It gives straight 5% cash back on purchases at the pump.

  2. InACents said,

    Curious why no love for the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, offering 6% cashback at groceries?

  3. bf said,

    I would also add Amex Blue Cash Preferred to the grocery category. Straight 6% cash back, unlimited for up to a year if you had the card before Nov. 2012. If activated more recently, it’s 6% cash back for first $6000, then 1% thereafter. It also gives 3% cash back at “select” department stores, which can be useful.

  4. gloreglabert said,

    Not clear if it’s intentional or not, but you’re excluding cashback cards that are almost undeniably better than some of your recommendations. The 6% grocery Amex is way better than 6x hilton (which are most certainly not worth 1 cpp), and the 5% PenFed for gas is better than 2x Ink unless you value Chase points higher than 2.5 cpp.

  5. Michael said,

    Just to add additional options:
    Gas- Costco AMEX business 4% cash back
    Office Supply – AMEX Open 5% cash back

  6. NB said,

    As for “General Purchases,” you conspicuously leave out the United Club Card, which gives 1.5 points on everything (and 2 points on united). The only advantage SPG has is that the points are more flexible, but of course, you can’t transfer them to United.

    Yes, the card carries a significant annual fee ($395), but if you are spending $100-200k a year on business expenses that otherwise would not be bonused, its more than worth it. Additionally, that fee buys you a United Club membership, which gets you into A* lounges around the world. Finally, there are current offers out there offering this card with no fee for the first year.

  7. toomanybooks said,

    The 6x Amex Blue Preferred is capped at $360 cashback per year at supermarkets, which if you buy gift cards is nothing. So use that card up to $6K spend, then switch.

    I also get Fuel Rewards for my supermarket spend, which make it even better. If you have never investigated those, it’s worth a look.

    Doesn’t the Amex BRG also give 3 MR per dollar on airfare?

  8. Loweeel said,

    Similarly, the US Bank Cash+ Rewards card is good for 5% cash back (uncapped) at Restaurants OR Fast Food (2 different categories). If you want a dedicated dining card, you can choose both as your 2 5% categories, and then use that earning rate to buy miles during sales or promotions at an effective rate of better than 2.14% from the sapphire.

    For couples, you can each get one, put your spouse’s name as an authorized user, and pick different categories. So if mine is the restaurant card, my wife’s can be the travel card, and she can get 5% back on both hotels and airfare, with each of us using both cards.

  9. Dave F said,

    links to the Amex Gold card are all broken

  10. bluecat said,

    jcb card is three percent back on everything

  11. jeanne said,

    Thanks for this list very much!

  12. bluto said,

    If you buy groceries at target, their Target credit card offering 5% cash back is pretty good.

  13. Adam said,

    How about Hyatt stays, especially abroad? I am inclined to use my Sapphire, but interested to hear your take on the Chase Hyatt card for those stays?

  14. Grant said,

    Where do you stand on the Hyatt card vs Amex OPEN cards?

  15. ChineseScouse said,

    Great article. Great summary. I have even bookmarked it!

  16. Nick @ PFDigest said,

    I think there’s a PenFed card that offers 5% cashback on gas.

  17. Gary said,

    Re the Blue Cash Preferred card the cap of earning o more than $360 if you don’t already have it caused me to leave it off the list.

    Re the United Club card I take 1.25 miles in most airline programs, you get to pick later, over 1.5 United miles.

  18. Paul said,

    Hyatt card at restaurants and tickets?

  19. Paul said,

    Good summary.

    I would think Citi Hilton Reserve over Sapphire Preferred for Hilton stays outside the U.S.

  20. Ram said,

    Thanks for the summary. I believe you were trying to list ONLY the points/miles benefit giving cards and not including the cash back cards, which readers some have taken offense to.

    Not trying to ‘vigorously challenge’ your list, but if Hilton points are mentioned, then for Marriott points, the Chase Marriott CC too gives double points on some purchases and there is no foreign transaction fee, which is another beast to tackle.

  21. Len said,

    Thanks Gary, very helpful, as I’ve been struggling with determining the best card for my wife, who simply will not think about which card to use when she reaches into her wallet. Seems as though Sapphire is the best catch-all (especially as dining is likely the largest chunk of her spend, though some groceries, gas and retail as well). Do you agree? Any reason that SPG is a better choice here?

  22. Jolly Brown said,

    Excellent analysis……..really makes the case to back into Hyatt through Ink Bold and Sapphire Preferred……

  23. Chris B. said,

    Thanks for updating the list, Gary. Since we were invited, I have a suggestion and an observation.

    First, I would recommend the standard Hilton AMEX over the Surpass version, since the former has no annual fee and only loose 1 HHonors point per dollar on the same categories. I would think the loss on 1 HHonors point may be more economical than payign the annual fee?

    Next, an observation. In the recent hotel devaluation discussions, SPG came out as a better program than Hilton due to the cost of stays. Given that the only way to earn SPG points is through stay credit and the SPG AMEX, I find it intriguing that the best use of SPG points (in aggregate) is to transfer to airline programs, vs hotel stays. Your hotel cost analysis in a previous blog post explains why, nicely! That said, maybe HHonors is bolstered even more with the credit card by it’s side, more so than SPG? Just thought it interesting that SPG points are worth more as airline miles vs HHonors points used for hotel stays.

  24. chemist661 said,

    I had the Penfed Visa for several years. Last year, I was offered 20K bonus points to switch to 5 pts/$ for fuel (instead of 5% cash back). Each pt is worth a penny. My points didn’t post right away and I sent them a e-mail. They gave me 25K pts and I cashed those points for a $250 Visa gift card. No hard pull on credit and I just had to only spend $1000 within 3 months. Easiest $250 without a hard pull on credit.

  25. Lucy G said,

    For airline tickets you missed Sapphire preferred x 2 , which i think is more valuable than x 3 MR, though I have both cards.

  26. Benjamin said,

    Pitch, pitch, pitch, and pitch. This is just as pathetic as Chris Elliot’s begging for money.

  27. Violet said,

    Interesting. You and TPG both today. Are there some end-of-month quotas that need to be met or something?

  28. Gow said,

    Why are the ink’s posted over the sapphire for gas? Inks get 2x, and sapphire gets 2.14x. Am I wrong?

  29. Becky @ New Girl in the Air said,

    Thanks for the heads up on Citi Forward reducing to 2x on restaurant spend. Will have to confirm if old cards are grandfathered in to old rates or if I’m out of luck.

  30. Gary said,

    @Gow Sapphire does not earn a bonus for gas

  31. Gary said,

    @Violet not sure I follow, I don’t think The Points Guy covered this topic today though if he had it would have been a coincidence. I don’t write about credit cards nearly as often as he does, but I have never had any sort of quota.

  32. Violet said,

    Oh, there was a topic here? My bad…I had trouble finding it in the sea of (affiliate) hyperlinks.

  33. Boraxo said,

    Surprised to see exclusion of the Chase BA card, which like Amex SPG offers $1=1.25 points and no forex fee. Of course, Avios are not as flexible as Chase Sapphire points, but the signup bonus is good and the 2-for-1 cert is a good redemption option for those who want to use miles for premium TATL service, or alternatively can use 9k miles for short hops.

    For people who don’t need miles, the BofA cash rewards card (no annual fee) offers 3% back on gas and 2% on groceries, plus a 10% bonus for depositing rewards in a BofA bank account (which is very useful for international travelers due to its no forex fee partnerships with Barclays, Westpac, Santander, etc.)

    Also consider those of us who need hotel points rather than miles, and have high everyday spend that doesn’t fall into bonus categories. This is a big hole for Chase Sapphire, no hotel partners. Aside from SPG Amex and Chase Sapphire, are there any other cards that works? Maybe Chase Hyatt, which also offers 2 points per $1 for dining.

    Finally it might be nice to list cards that offer 2% for everyday spend (if any) – consider how many people who spend $100k can get $2000 hotel value v. 100k hotel points.

  34. Steve said,

    Michael touched on it, but got it wrong.
    Office Supply – AMEX OPEN – 10% off + points at officemax.com for purchases over $250 (5% for under $250).

    I would take 10% cash + 1 SPG point over 5x UR points anyday.

  35. Mike said,

    Another category I feel is relevant: withdrawing cash while traveling abroad.

    I recently looked across all of my cards and the best value was my Chase Hyatt with no FTF and a max of 3% /$10 for cash advances. None of my Chase cards have FTF but many do as high as 5% on cash advances. My Citi and Barclay cards are 3% FTF + 5% cash advance!

  36. MAJ said,

    what about paying utility bills?

  37. Deltaflyer said,

    Great post. Doesn’t the Chase Sapphire preferred offer primary collision as well?

  38. Dave said,

    Foreign cash abroad = Bluebird.

    I think SPG w/OPEN is a strong contender for Hyatts and low end Marriotts. Its on my summer wishlist.

    Forward for dining + amazon

    BCP is a nifty gas card @ 3% cashback, but I don’t buy enough gas to make Pen Fed’s 5% card worth the bother.

  39. zonker said,

    You forgot to mention a popular category…

    Drug stores

  40. Scott S said,

    Wouldn’t the best “Strategy” for gas be 5x gas gift cards @ Office Supply Stores with an Ink card? I appreciate that this is talking specifically about credit cards, but it ignores the best actual strategy. Buying gas gift cards limits your purchasing to a certain brand, but if that doesn’t cause you to go out of your way, then it’s the best overall deal, because I’d value 5x UR points over 5% cash back.

  41. Steve said,

    Foreign Cash Abroad = ALL PenFed cards- 0 cash advance, 0 FOREX

  42. Points on the Dollar said,

    Sure there’s a cap on the 6% bonus on groceries for the Amex Blue Cash Preferred, but the cap is at $6,000 worth of groceries! That’s a LOT of groceries!

  43. Mike said,

    Actually I don’t know what I was thinking regarding cash abroad. I forgot that I had recently been using my Fidelity ATM which has a 1% FTF and reimburses ATM fees. I’ll check out Bluebird but given that my existing Fidelity checking account has this pretty painless option that’s probably what I’ll continue to use.

    https://www.fidelity.com/cash-management/fidelity-cash-management-account/overview

  44. Kelly N said,

    @Gary – If you have the Chase Freedom with Exclusives (a linked checking account) this card becomes the one to use for all small domestic transactions. It gives you an extra 10 pts per transaction, and 10% bonus on all spending.
    Different categories would have different tipping points. Like for Gas it rewards better than ink bold on transactions up to ~$10. But on everyday spend it beats Amex SPG on all transactions up to ~$80 (valuing spg points at 2.2cents and UR at 1.9).
    So for people with this card in a sock drawer, it is worth moving it into the wallet for most small transactions.

  45. Mitty said,

    I feel like there should be a footnote or mention somewhere under the gas category that it is *SO* much more lucrative to leverage the Ink card and just buy Shell, Chevron, or Arco (whichever you prefer) gas cards at your local staples/officemax/officedepot. 5x points all the time.

  46. Robert Hanson said,

    Cash advance abroad? Just say no to fees and interest. Citibank ATM card has no fees at all. Even found a Citi branded ATM in the Prague train station.

  47. toomanybooks said,

    @Points on the Dollar: I buy 10x the amount of gift cards at the grocery as I do groceries. Maybe more. There are ways to buy and liquidate. $6K annually ain’t much for a lot of people. The new cap is very painful.
    .
    @Steve: 10% back with OPEN at Officemax.com for $250+, but I don’t think that applies to gift cards, right?

  48. Michael H. said,

    Shell/Chevron/arco gift cards via Ink Bold are not always the most lucrative because these stores are frequently more expensive for gas.

  49. Gary said,

    @Deltaflyer no it does not

  50. CW said,

    Best card for spending: Whatever card I am trying to meet minimum spend on at the moment! :D

    Best card for withdrawing cash abroad (or domestically): Schwab Investor Checking.

  51. Robert said,

    Man, you and Lucky are not even subtle anymore. Constantly plugging each other’s blogs, each of you fishing for credit card referral bonuses every 3 or 4 days, and now shamelessly promoting another member of the tribe, Justin Ross Lee, whose exact claim to fame is what? He will somehow magically make his way to fame and fortune now. Funny how that works.

  52. Gary said,

    @Robert – I gain nothing by linking to Lucky, and I simply got a good laugh reading his post on Justin Ross Lee

  53. easy victor said,

    @Robert- I find Gary’s stuff interesting. And it sparks informative banter in the comments that help clarify the many options that we have.

    On top of all that, it’s free. As in no charge to you or me.

    If Gary can make a few bucks on referrals for CC (or anything else), I have absolutely NO issues with that. The return on investment that I get is infinite and appreciated.

    Here’s a suggestion- why don’t you ignore any posts that are credit card related, and then you won’t have to lose sleep that night over someone giving you free advice that might help you fly and stay cheaply around the world?

  54. chemist661 said,

    To the previous poster, I have the Penfed Visa & Amex cards. No annual fee plus no Forex fees. I do not buy alot of fuel but over time, it adds up.

    Penfed gave me 20K CL’s on each card and they are conservative!! I had no EQ inquiries when I applied (no recent new accounts in 2007/2009 when I applied for those cards).

    I keep these cards for the 5pt/$ airline tickets (AMEX) and 5 pts/$ on the Visa. I keep the cards forever and build credit history. (My FICo’s are close to 800 with mild churning).

  55. Gary said,

    I actually wonder what Robert meamt by’ another member of the tribe’.. ie if it was intended as an antisemitic thing? (though I do not know lucky to be Jewish, not that I have ever asked)

  56. Rick C said,

    Of course wrt to gas cards, and more specifically gas prices, you must get the Gas Buddy app. I typically carry around Shell and Exxon/Mobil GCs thru Ink and then use them strategically. Turns out a Mobil near me I otherwise didn’t think about is usually lowest priced per Gas Buddy. And Shell and Exxon/Mobil participate in Giant Food and Safeway gas rewards programs respectively.

  57. Rick C said,

    Gary, re: the M.o.T. commect, I wondered the same thing. The most benign reading would be a member of the frequent flyer or social media/blog community – but otherwise …

  58. Russ said,

    Gary, I think you are mistaken. Surpass card from AMEX does not offer 6 points for dining.

  59. Steve said,

    @toomanybooks – “@Steve: 10% back with OPEN at Officemax.com for $250+, but I don’t think that applies to gift cards, right? – See more at: http://boardingarea.com/blogs/viewfromthewing/2013/02/27/the-most-rewarding-credit-cards-depending-on-what-you-spend-money-on/#sthash.YrfDykvJ.dpuf”

    yes
    it does.

  60. Ram said,

    Gary, I must take issue with you on that.

    “if it was intended as an antisemitic thing?”

    Why in the world do you try to jump to this conclusion all the time and try to somehow accuse people of being antisemite. There are many ethnic/religious/racial groups in the US. You just go off the handle on this issue. We are not politicians running for any office who would get scared with this label. Overplaying the race/ethnicity/religiosity card is a weakness when it is used merely to feel others bad about a non-existent thing. Tribe in this case is a tribe of frequent flyer bloggers, nothing more and nothing else. How did you read antisemitism here? For God’s sake don’t be so jumpy!

  61. Gary said,

    @Ram – Jews are often referred to as “The Tribe” and two of the people mentioned were Jewish, it’s an odd choice of phrase is all

  62. Gary said,

    @Russ – it will come May per the link in the post..

  63. easy victor said,

    @Ram- I read it the same way Gary did. Its not an anomoly.

  64. CW said,

    I think that this is a really fascinating, interesting, and informative blog, but once in a while the comments on certain stories do sadly remind me that yes, this is indeed still the Internet.

  65. Ram said,

    @Gary and easy victor, I am sorry that some reader’s remarks hurt you guys. I would just ignore stuff like that, rather than heighten the level of the unpleasantness. After all this is the internet, and the people bent on making negative/hurtful remarks would not stop just with labeling. After today’s lesson, I will desist from ever using the T-word.

  66. bex said,

    Any opinions on the Capital One Cash Back versus the Chase Sapphire Preferred? I spend over 9 months of the year outside of the USA and need a foreign transaction fee free card. The 50% bonus cash seems to put it in the lead over Chase Sapphire Preferred …

  67. Gary said,

    @bex not even a close call Sapphire Preferred is better

  68. Gary said,

    @Ram – I wasn’t hurt, my comment was really just a question, sharing my reaction and wondering if that’s what the commenter meant

  69. Jeremy said,

    Gary, as I read this post yesterday it got me thinking that you should do a series on using a specific hotel/airline card vs the best alternative travel card. By this I mean it’d be a good thing to have a comparison for each chain of hotels and airline with a branded card vs a card like CSP/Amex Gold. You could do this for domestic and international since some cards have foreign transaction fees.

    So for starters here are a few examples.

    Club Carlson Visa vs Sapphire Preferred: domestic its 10X for the CC Visa vs 2.14X for the CSP. So you could discuss the merits of which is better. Internationally you add in a forex fee so if domestically CC Visa was better then does the forex fee make offset the 10x to the point where CSP is better.

    A simpler example is United where its own cards are only 2 points vs 2.14X on CSP and 3X on AMEX PRG.

    Hyatt is another simpler example. 3X on Hyatt card both domestically and abroad with no fees vs 2.14X on CSP. Here you’d be taking less UR points for flexibility, whether it is worth it depends probably on the amount spent.

  70. Hobo13 said,

    So yesterday Gary’s political allegiance is debated and today it’s his religion. If tomorrow he comes out and announces he’s a Miami Heat fan, that’s it, I’m DONE with this blog! There are some things of which I have zero tolerance for in this world…..

  71. Adam said,

    Gary, I’m very curious to know why you value 2.14 Chase points over 5 TYP. I’ve been using TYP to pay off my student loan (100TYP=$1) and unless you think you can reliably get >2 cents per point out of CSP, then I’m confused. That said, for some international redemptions, I guess it’s quite possible, eh? (at least looking at official value vs. personal value).

    And to those slagging Gary over affiliate links: cut it out. If you feel that his posts are valueless, go vote with your feet, er, mouse and subscribe to other blogs. But I believe the rest of us are adults here and are far more annoyed by your incessant whining than the alleged sin.

  72. RJ Brown said,

    Another analysis that would be helpful is to put a price on the various airlines and hotels to compare the value of their points/miles…………and don’t forget British Air as their companion ticket for annual 30k in spending is a sweetheart deal from where I am sitting……….especially considering the 100k sign up bonus as you get there…………
    Note: I get no referral bonus for plugging BA……………

  73. Chrysostom said,

    @Becky:

    I called Citi as soon as I saw this and a first-line CSR said my Forward card “is not affected by changes that may be happening to other cards”, and repeatedly confirmed that I would continue to receive 5 TYP per dollar in the categories. I take this to mean old cards are probably grandfathered in, since the Forward has been undergoing some pretty massive revamping recently. However, he may have been wrong, as sometimes CSRs (and even supervisors) don’t know which end is up when cards are changing.

    If it is, the Forward card just became crap, as 2x TYP are just about useless, as TYP are worth a maximum of about 0.8cpp, so even the SPG (or, for that matter, the GECRB PayPal card with 3x points that are worth about the same as TYP) would be better for restaurant spend.

    Citi wants 90k points for a DOMESTIC, COACH, round-trip flight… Jesus Christ! TYP are useless for travel, but they’re okay to spend on Amazon (0.79-0.83cpp) or for gift cards. I’ve yet to find other redemptions that are worth it.

  74. MaryE said,

    Thanks for the advice. It definitely depends on focus. Living overseas with a great subway and cheap taxi transportation system, I don’t have to worry about buying gas, office supplies, or many of the items often discussed on how to maximize spend. My focus is no foreign transaction fees, hotel points and airline points when and where I need it. I often can’t afford the time to wait for transfers, so I get the cards I need and put the spend there.

  75. Brad said,

    I’m surprised about the airline tickets. Don’t you value 2.14 Ultimate Rewards more than 3 Membership Rewards? I would think Sapphire Preferred is a clear winner in this category.

  76. christianj said,

    Any particular reason you did not include the Club Carlson Visa in this analysis? Based on earnings and redemption rates it seems like a good (if not best) alternative in several categories?

  77. Gary said,

    @christianj – while it’s a useful card for some (if you are interested in staying at their properties) this post is all about category bonuses and not benefits for simply holding the card. club carlson visa is a great card to hold for the final night free on award redemtpions not though for spend in specific categories

  78. Interesting posts from around the blogosphere | The Flying Consultant said,

    [...] Looking at getting a new credit card? Check out this post on which credit cards are the best, depending on what you spend money on: http://boardingarea.com/blogs/viewfromthewing/2013/02/27/the-most-rewarding-credit-cards-depending-o… [...]

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