Rewards Cards 101: Get to Know the Best Rewards Cards for Free Travel
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If you’re picking your first rewards card, start with a transferable card, and the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is the one we point beginners to most. One welcome offer can cover the flights for a trip you’ve been putting off for years. You don’t need to understand the whole points world to get there, and there’s no penalty for starting today instead of five years ago.
Two quick things first. This only works if you pay your balance in full and on time, every month, so if that’s not where your finances are right now, bookmark this and come back to it later. And when you apply through our links, Travel Freely earns a commission at no cost to you. That’s what keeps the app free, and we still post the best public offer first, even when it pays us nothing.
If you’re ready to sign up for your next card, you’re probably wondering: which card is right for me?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred is our #1 favorite card for beginners. But beyond this card, there are several other cards out there that will get you on your way to free travel.
While all rewards credit cards come with different advantages, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all in the credit card world.
And more importantly, as long as your card is earning you points, there’s not really a wrong card.
But picking your first card (or your next card) with your travel goals in mind will help make sure you maximize your rewards and get the most out of your points.
We’ve narrowed it down to two different types of rewards cards:
- Transferable cards (we call these “wildcards”)
- Co-branded cards (the ones you’re probably most familiar with)
Transferable “Wildcard” Cards
What Are They?
Transferable cards are our favorite in the world of points and miles. They’re also the type we recommend most to beginners, because they’re the most valuable and the most flexible.
The rewards on these cards are tied to the bank’s own rewards program, not to a specific airline or hotel. That means you aren’t locked into one brand, and you have more say in how your points get used.
You get to choose how to redeem your points.
Probably our favorite part of these cards is that the banks let you move your points into other rewards programs. Those other programs are called “transfer partners,” and they differ from bank to bank.
So the points you earn on a transferable card can be redeemed for almost any type of travel.
Our top 3 favorite transferable cards are:
- The Chase Sapphire Preferred
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (or the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card)
- American Express® Gold Card
Transferable cards often come with welcome offers worth somewhere between $750 and $1,000, and sometimes more.
What does that mean for you?
A transferable card will get you to your next free vacation, fast.
A Quick Word on Annual Fees
Each of the cards below carries an annual fee, and we’d rather say that out loud here than have you find it in the fine print.
We understand how you feel about paying a fee just to hold a credit card. We felt the same way when we started. Here’s what we found: the Chase Sapphire Preferred carries a $95 annual fee, and its welcome offer alone has typically been worth $750 or more in travel. Pay $95, get several hundred dollars of travel back in your first year. That math is the reason we stopped flinching at the number.
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is worth calling out separately, because at $395 it’s an ultra-premium card. It earns that fee back for people who travel often enough to actually use the annual travel credit and the lounge access. If that’s not you yet, the standard Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card does the same core job for $95, and Venture X will still be an option down the road.
The American Express® Gold Card sits in between at $325, and it earns that fee back mostly through dining and grocery credits you have to remember to use each month. Those credits are real, but they aren’t automatic. If tracking a monthly credit sounds like a chore, that’s a fair reason to pass.
Why We Like Them for Free Travel
Besides getting you to your first free vacation, there’s another reason we love transferable cards.
Think of one like a gift card that works at almost any store. It isn’t tied to a single brand, so you get to decide where it’s spent, and you get to decide later, once you actually know where you want to go. That’s why we call these “wildcards”: they aren’t locked to one airline or one hotel chain.
With a wildcard in your wallet, you have more options.
With the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you can move your points to a wide range of transfer partners to book your dream trip.
What does that look like?
You could transfer the points you earn on your Chase Sapphire Preferred to United Airlines and book a business class seat to Europe for free, either on United or on one of their alliance partners.
Or stay at an all-inclusive luxury resort in the Caribbean for free by transferring those same points to Hyatt.
A few of our favorite transfer partners are:
- Southwest
- JetBlue
- United
- Hyatt
- Marriott
See the full list of transfer partners here.
Here’s why that flexibility matters. If all of your miles sit with one specific program, you may have a hard time redeeming them for the travel you actually want.
What if your preferred airline stops flying to your dream destination before you’re ready to book?
If every point you have is locked into that one airline, you’re the one making the unfortunate travel adjustments.
With the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you could pick a different airline and still take the trip (we walk you through how in our easy-to-read E-book).
Did we mention you can redeem your points for cash back?
If you find yourself in a pinch, or you don’t see yourself traveling in the near future, you can always cash out your points as a statement credit.
Our Advice to You
Once you have a transferable “wildcard” in your wallet, you’ll earn a big welcome offer after opening the card. Then you’ll earn 2-3x more on your everyday spending than you would on the co-branded cards most people use.
We’ve mentioned it already, but it’s worth one more line:
The Chase Sapphire Preferred is our #1 beginner card, and it happens to be a transferable card.
Check out why we love this card and why we think it’s the right first card for most beginners.
Travel Freely member Megan traveled to Rome and Croatia for 11 days using her Chase Ultimate Rewards points
Already have the Chase Sapphire Preferred?
There are plenty of cards worth considering after the Chase Sapphire Preferred, but the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (or the ultra-premium Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card) is the natural complement. In fact, we often recommend the Venture as our #2 card for beginners. The exceptions: if you have a business and want more Chase Ultimate Rewards points with an Ink card, or if you want to start earning 4x at U.S. supermarkets with an Amex Gold.
Why?
Because these cards take the guesswork out of earning free travel.
And who doesn’t love simple?
By opening a Capital One Venture or Capital One Venture X shortly after the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you widen your options for redeeming flexible rewards for free travel.
The Venture cards also have a feature the Chase Sapphire Preferred doesn’t.
You can use Capital One Venture Miles to cover other travel expenses, like rental cars, hotels, or even train tickets. Pay for any travel-related purchase with your Venture card, and you can use the miles you’ve earned to cover that charge on your statement.
Pro tip: this works when you find a great hotel on Expedia or Hotels.com, and it works for an Airbnb too.
Our favorite ways to use the Capital One Venture card for free travel?
Airbnb and rental cars.
Sometimes an Airbnb is a better fit than a hotel. You can pay for it with your Venture card and cover the purchase with miles.
We also love booking rental cars through Costco for a great price. Pay for that rental with your Venture card, and you can reimburse yourself for the charge on your statement.
You also have a window to work with: miles can cover any travel purchase from the last 90 days.
The strength of this type of card is that there isn’t much to figure out. You buy your travel with the card, then reimburse yourself later with miles.
Check out why we love the Capital One Venture cards here.
Travel Freely members Andy and Katelyn used their Capital One Venture Card to reimburse for their Airbnbs on their 3-week trip to Italy.
Co-Branded Credit Cards (Airline and Hotel Cards)
What Are They?
Co-branded cards are tied to one specific airline or hotel. Airlines and hotels partner with credit card companies (like Chase and American Express) to offer them.
With a co-branded card, you earn points or miles directly in that loyalty program. They often come with benefits exclusive to that brand, like a free night stay or free checked bags.
You’ve probably heard of these. We’re talking about cards like a Southwest or Delta credit card that earn miles with every dollar spent.
Sound familiar?
If you already have one of our recommended transferable cards, these can be a good next option.
Check out the best hotel card offers here.
Check out the best airline card offers here.
Why We Like Co-Branded Cards
If you always fly Southwest, or you love staying at Hyatt or Marriott, it makes sense to pick up a card with a strong bonus and build points with that one brand. Most brands also give you extra points when you use their card to buy their flights or hotel stays, and many premium hotel cards hand you higher status right away.
Unlike transferable cards, the rewards you earn on a co-branded card go straight into your loyalty account.
Our Advice on Co-Branded Cards
If you’re going to pick up a co-branded card, go with the airline or hotel brand you actually fly or stay with the most. You won’t earn as flexibly, and you can’t move those points to partner programs, but the card can be genuinely helpful for earning status or perks like free night certificates.
Then decide whether the spending required to earn those perks is worth it, or whether you’re still better off with a flexible rewards card.
There’s definitely a place for co-branded cards, but they should come after a flexible card. And only if you find yourself consistently flying one airline or staying with one hotel chain.
Earning points in a single program might sound simpler, but it usually won’t give you the best free travel opportunities.
Transferable “wildcards” often include your favorite airlines and hotels as transfer partners. Choosing a transferable card over a co-branded card could earn you an extra 100,000 points.
Like videos? We have a free 12-min “Rewards Cards 101” webinar replay available.
So, here’s the question: what kind of cards do YOU want in your wallet?
Just remember, no card is a bad card to get. But there are cards out there that fit your circumstances and travel goals better than others.
If you’re still deciding, start with a transferable card. The Chase Sapphire Preferred is where we send most beginners, and it’s the shortest path from “I’ve never done this before” to “we’re booked.”
Want to see everything that’s out there? Browse all of the best current offers and filter by what matters to you: transferable points, airline, hotel, no annual fee, or business.
