Travel

Best credit card for travel

Every card in our verified catalog that multiplies travel, ranked by what a dollar of travel spending actually earns. Points and miles are valued at their program’s typical worth (transferable bank points 1.25¢, hotel points as little as 0.5¢), so a big multiplier on a weak currency doesn’t outrank honest cash back. Caps and annual fees are part of the math, not footnotes.

Card	Rate	Per $100	Cap	Annual fee
World of HyattChase · 4 Bonus Points per $1 on qualifying purchases at Hyatt hotels/resorts participating in World of Hyatt and on World of Hyatt Experiences. Hyatt-branded properties only, not hotels generally. Excludes the separate up-to-5 Base Points earned from Hyatt as a loyalty member (marketing 'up to 9x' figure combines card + program earning).	4×	$6.80	None	$95
Hilton Honors SurpassAmerican Express · Eligible purchases made directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio only; not general travel	12×	$6.00	None	$150
Platinum CardAmerican Express · Flights only: booked directly with the airline OR through American Express Travel. 5X applies to up to $500,000 of these flight purchases per calendar year, then 1X.	5×	$5.75	$500,000/yr	$895
Sapphire ReserveChase · flights and hotels booked direct	4×	$5.00	None	$795
IHG One Rewards PremierChase · Card-earned rate at hotels participating in IHG One Rewards. Chase markets 'up to 26X total' at IHG stays, but that includes up to 10X from IHG for being a member and up to 6X from Platinum Elite status — those are program/status points, not card earn.	10×	$5.00	None	$99
Alaska Airlines Visa SignatureBank of America · Eligible Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines purchases only (airfare/airline-direct spend), not general travel	3×	$4.35	None	$95
Marriott Bonvoy BoundlessChase · Card-earned 6X at over 7,000 participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels only; advertised 'up to 17X' includes the 10X Bonvoy member base earn plus 1X Silver Elite bonus paid by Marriott, not by the card. Not portal-restricted (earned on stays booked with Marriott).	6×	$4.20	None	$95
Delta SkyMiles PlatinumAmerican Express · 3X on eligible Delta purchases (including Delta Vacations) and on purchases made directly with hotels; booking direct, not through Amex Travel	3×	$3.60	None	$350
United ExplorerChase · 3x on eligible United purchases (airfare, in-flight food/beverage/Wi-Fi, Economy Plus, etc.); this is the card's own earn portion. Marketed 9x on eligible United flights includes 6x earned as a MileagePlus member, which is not card earn. Mileage earning differs on Basic Economy/base fares.	3×	$3.60	None	$150
Hilton HonorsAmerican Express · Eligible purchases made directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio only; not a general travel category and not portal-booked	7×	$3.50	None	None
Gold CardAmerican Express · flights direct or via Amex Travel	3×	$3.45	None	$325
Customized Cash RewardsBank of America · Only if selected as the single 'choice category'. Not portal-restricted. Shares the $2,500/quarter combined bonus cap.	3%	$3.00	$2,500/qtr	None
AutographWells Fargo · Airlines, hotels/motels, timeshares, car rentals, cruise lines, travel agencies, discount travel sites and campgrounds. Not portal-restricted; earns anywhere in category. Unlimited, no cap.	3×	$3.00	None	None
Costco Anywhere VisaCiti · Eligible travel worldwide: airfare, hotels, car rentals, travel agencies, cruise lines, and Costco Travel. Not restricted to a booking portal, so not portalOnly.	3%	$3.00	None	None
AAdvantage Platinum SelectCiti · Eligible American Airlines purchases only; not general travel. Booked directly with AA, not an issuer portal.	2×	$3.00	None	$99
Southwest Rapid Rewards PlusChase · Purchases made directly with Southwest Airlines only (flights, inflight, Southwest gift cards, Getaways by Southwest packages); Southwest Cruises, Charters and Cargo excluded. Not portal-restricted.	2×	$2.70	None	$99
Sapphire PreferredChase	2×	$2.50	None	$95
Delta SkyMiles GoldAmerican Express · Eligible purchases made directly with Delta only (flights, upgrades, in-flight purchases, bag fees); not general travel	2×	$2.40	None	$150
Premium RewardsBank of America · 2x on travel purchases; earned on travel merchants generally, not restricted to the Bank of America Travel Center	2×	$2.00	None	$95

Portal-only rates — documented, excluded from the ranking

Venture X pays 10× (hotels/cars via Capital One Travel) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Sapphire Reserve pays 8× — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Sapphire Preferred pays 5× — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Gold Card pays 5× (prepaid hotels via Amex Travel) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Double Cash pays 5× (Citi Travel; 2% base + 3% bonus) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Freedom Unlimited pays 5× — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Venture X pays 5× (flights via Capital One Travel) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Freedom Flex pays 5× — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Platinum Card pays 5× (Prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel (AmexTravel.com / Amex Travel app), including Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection; also applies to Select Homes + Retreats bookings. 'Pay Now' prepaid bookings only - pay-at-checkout stays earn 1X.) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Venture pays 5× (Hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel; issuer comparison pages also list activities booked through the portal at 5X. Flights booked via the portal earn only the 2X base rate.) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Savor pays 5× (Hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Quicksilver pays 5× (Hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel (issuer's own portal); issuer content also lists activities booked via Capital One Travel. No flights.) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Cash+ pays 5× (Prepaid air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the U.S. Bank Rewards Travel Center only; documented as separate from (in addition to) the $2,000/quarter 5% category cap and not documented as capped.) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
it Miles pays 5× (5x miles only on hotels, vacation rentals, rental cars and activities booked through Capital One Travel; added benefit for accounts migrated to Capital One's platform (waves began July 27, 2026). Airfare is not included in this 5x rate; ordinary travel spend earns the 1.5x base.) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Amazon Prime Visa pays 5× (Chase Travel bookings only (chasetravel.com or by phone); requires an eligible Amazon Prime membership, otherwise 3%. Portions paid with points do not earn.) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Gold Card pays 2× (prepaid car rentals via Amex Travel) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.
Platinum Card pays 2× (Prepaid car rentals and cruises booked and paid through American Express Travel.) — only through the issuer’s own booking portal, which is why it doesn’t rank above.

The real answer depends on what else you spend

This table ranks cards in isolation. Connect your bank and WhatCard ranks them against your actual spending, net of every fee, including when the answer is “keep the cards you have.”

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