The Points Pro

Best card for travel (ground only)

The cards we track, ranked by what they earn on travel (ground only), with the credits and perks that sweeten the category.

Cards that cover Chase Travel

  • American Express Business Platinum Card $600/yr
    Statement credits up to $300 semi-annually on prepaid bookings through Amex Travel with Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection.
    $300 semiannual
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  • Chase Sapphire Reserve $500/yr
    Statement credit of up to $250 per prepaid booking with The Edit, up to $500 annually, two-night minimum required.
    $500 calendar year
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  • Chase Sapphire Reserve Business Card $500/yr
    Up to $500 in automatic statement credits annually for bookings made with The Edit (2-night minimum), max $250 per transaction.
    $500 calendar year
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  • Capital One Venture Rewards Card $300/yr
    One-time $300 Capital One Travel Stays credit to use toward hotel and vacation rental bookings through Capital One Travel in your first cardholder year.
    $300 one-time/annual
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  • Capital One Venture X Card $300/yr
    Receive a $300 annual credit for hotels, flights, vacation rentals and more through Capital One Travel.
    $300 anniversary
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  • Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card $200/yr
    Up to $50 in statement credits each quarter, for a total of up to $200 back each year, on flight purchases made directly with an airline, through AmexTravel.com, or through the Amex Travel App.
    $50 quarterly
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  • United Quest Card $200/yr
    Automatically receive $200 in United TravelBank cash after account opening and annually on your account anniversary, for a future United- or United Express-operated flight.
    $200 anniversary
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  • United Business Card $125/yr
    Receive $125 in United TravelBank cash after making 5 United flight purchases of $100 or more each calendar year.
    $125 calendar year
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  • Chase Sapphire Preferred $100/yr
    Earn up to $100 in statement credits each account anniversary year for hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel.
    $100 anniversary
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  • United Club Business Card $100/yr
    Receive $50 in United TravelBank cash, up to $100 each anniversary year, for 1st and 2nd Avis or Budget car rentals booked directly through cars.united.com and paid with the card.
    $100 anniversary
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  • United Club Infinite Card $100/yr
    Receive $50 in United TravelBank cash on each of your first and second Avis or Budget car rental bookings through cars.united.com, up to $100 each anniversary year.
    $100 anniversary
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  • United Explorer Card $50/yr
    $25 in United TravelBank cash for each of the 1st and 2nd Avis or Budget rentals booked directly through cars.united.com, up to $50 each anniversary year.
    $50 anniversary
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  • IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card $25/yr
    Receive $25 United TravelBank Cash deposited around January 5 and another $25 around July 5 each year (up to $50 annually) after registering with MileagePlus account.
    $25 calendar year
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  • American Express Gold Card
    Take advantage of a $100 credit towards eligible charges at over 1,300 upscale hotels worldwide when booking The Hotel Collection through AmexTravel.com or Amex Travel App. Requires two-night minimum stay.
    $100 per use
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  • Venture X Business
    Elevate your stay at luxury hotels, resorts and vacation rentals from the Premier Collection with a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits on every booking.
    $100 per use
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Perks for Chase Travel

  • Capital One SavorOne
    Capital One Travel
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  • Venture Business
    Lifestyle Collection (Capital One Travel)
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  • VentureOne Rewards
    Capital One Travel
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Which card

  • Marriott Bonvoy Bold Card
    $750 credit (Calendar Year)
    Redeem Marriott Bonvoy points for a statement credit on qualifying travel purchases made directly with airlines or at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy, up to $750 total in redemptions per year, at a value of $100 for every 12,500 points.
    View
  • American Express Platinum Card
    $300 credit (Semiannual)
    Get up to $300 back in statement credits semi-annually on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel.
    View
  • American Express Business Platinum Card
    $300 credit (Semiannual)
    Statement credits up to $300 semi-annually on prepaid bookings through Amex Travel with Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection.
    View
  • AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard
    $250 credit (Semiannual)
    Every calendar year, earn up to $500 in statement credits on eligible American Airlines Vacations℠ travel packages or experiences, up to $250 January through June and up to $250 July through December.
    View
  • Bilt Palladium Card
    $200 credit (Semiannual)
    $400 Bilt Travel Hotel credit applied twice a year as $200 statement credits for qualifying Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.
    View
  • Chase Sapphire Reserve
    8.00x Travel
    ~16.40¢/$ in Chase's rewards currency
    View
  • Chase Sapphire Reserve Business Card
    8.00x Travel
    ~16.40¢/$ in Chase's rewards currency
    View
  • Capital One Venture X Card
    $300 credit (Anniversary)
    Receive a $300 annual credit for hotels, flights, vacation rentals and more through Capital One Travel.
    View
  • Capital One Venture Rewards Card
    $300 credit (one-time/annual)
    One-time $300 Capital One Travel Stays credit to use toward hotel and vacation rental bookings through Capital One Travel in your first cardholder year.
    View
  • Citi Strata Elite Card
    $300 credit (Calendar Year)
    Each calendar year, enjoy up to $300 off a hotel stay of 2 nights or more when booked through cititravel.com.
    View
  • The Ritz Carlton Card
    $300 credit (Calendar Year)
    Up to $300 in statement credits per calendar year for qualifying airline purchases such as baggage fees, seat upgrades, in-flight purchases, and lounge memberships or passes.
    View
  • Venture X Business
    $300 credit (Calendar Year)
    Receive an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
    View

Learn

  • Travel Portals vs. Transfer Partners Lesson, phase 3: Redemption
    A bank portal prices your points at a fixed rate. A transfer partner prices them by its own award chart, and that is where the outsized value lives.
    Read the lesson

Which card is best for travel (ground only)? The ranking below scores each card's travel (ground only) rate in cents per dollar at published point valuations; the calculator does the same across your whole monthly spend.

Good to know

  • Rates apply to the issuer's definition of the category, which can be narrower than the everyday word (a warehouse club is rarely "groceries").
  • Enter your actual monthly travel (ground only) spend in the best card finder to see the value in dollars, alongside every other category you spend in.

Related

Hold any of these cards? Ask your own wallet about Travel (ground only) and Find answers from your cards, cycle state included.