The best travel credit cards

Of the 20 points cards in the catalogue — bank points you can move to airlines and hotels — American Express Blue Business Plus earns the most in a year once its fee is paid: about $1,058.

Ranked by what each card earns in a year once its annual fee is paid — every rate converted to dollars with a dated point valuation, spending caps honoured, and rotating categories not credited. Priced on an illustrative household spending $2,205 a month on a card — the assumption, in full. Credits and perks are not priced: they are worth their face value only if you would have spent that money anyway.

#	Card	Annual fee	A year, after the fee
1	Blue Business Plus American Express · most from Groceries	none	$1,058
2	Freedom Unlimited Chase · most from Restaurants & Bars	none	$916
3	Venture Rewards Capital One · most from Groceries	$95 a year	$858
4	Double Cash Citi · most from Groceries	none	$847
5	Gold Card American Express · most from Groceries	$325 a year	$828
6	Custom Cash Citi · most from Groceries	none	$807
7	Freedom Rise Chase · most from Groceries	none	$794
8	Strata Premier Citi · most from Groceries	$95 a year	$760
9	Strata Citi · most from Groceries	none	$750
10	Sapphire Preferred Chase · most from Restaurants & Bars	$95 a year	$719
11	Bilt Mastercard Bilt · most from Restaurants & Bars	none	$715
12	Freedom Flex Chase · most from Restaurants & Bars	none	$692
13	Autograph Wells Fargo · most from Restaurants & Bars	none	$690
14	Classic Green Card American Express · most from Restaurants & Bars	$150 a year	$622
15	VentureOne Rewards Capital One · most from Groceries	none	$595
16	Venture X Capital One · most from Groceries	$395 a year	$558
17	Autograph Journey Wells Fargo · most from Restaurants & Bars	$95 a year	$529
18	Strata Elite Citi · most from Restaurants & Bars	$595 a year	$126
19	Sapphire Reserve Chase · most from Restaurants & Bars	$795 a year	$4
20	Platinum Card American Express · most from Groceries	$895 a year	−$270

The best of them for each kind of spending

groceries: Gold Card — $8.00 per $100
dining out: Gold Card — $8.00 per $100
gas: Sapphire Preferred — $6.00 per $100
flights: Platinum Card — $10.00 per $100
hotels: Sapphire Reserve — $8.00 per $100
online shopping: Blue Business Plus — $4.00 per $100
streaming services: Sapphire Preferred — $6.00 per $100
food delivery: Gold Card — $8.00 per $100
Uber and Lyft: Classic Green Card — $6.00 per $100
public transit: Classic Green Card — $6.00 per $100
Target and Walmart: Blue Business Plus — $4.00 per $100
Costco and Sam's Club: Blue Business Plus — $4.00 per $100

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