Best Banks For Points

Chase is hands down the best bank for points and they know it, that’s probably why they started putting limits and rules on how many cards you can have out at one time. There are incentives throughout the year for sign up bonuses on all of their cards. Redeeming can be done a number of different ways. You can redeem for cash back or travel. Some of the best redemptions come through the Chase Portal where points can be worth 1.25 or 1.5 depending on what card you’re holding in your hand at the time. One of the best things about these points are the transfer partners which include some of the most diverse airlines and hotel brands. Basically, the value and ability to accumulate Chase points puts it at the top because they will get you, literally, anywhere in the world you want to go.

American Express is fantastic for point accumulation and utilizing. Earning is fast and virtually pain-free other than the fact that, listen up, currently Amex offers a once in a lifetime sign-up bonus, so you do want to be picky about which card to get and when. Points are very versatile, with easy transfer to all of the major airline alliances. Transferring for hotel stays through Choice Hotels is an option as well, while it’s not going to stretch your points the furthest, it can be a great option for specific cities and countries such as Stockholm or New Zealand. Something special about Amex is that the most value comes from redeeming for international business or first class flights, which is how we want to be travelling internationally anyways, am I right?

Capital One gets bulldozed over by some of the more known brands but in reality they are actually some of the simplest miles to use. There’s tons of flexibility when used towards a purchase eraser, meaning you just buy your vacation, any travel expense and erase it with your miles, that includes small travel purchases like Uber, hotel meals even tickets to Disney World. But an even better way to stretch those miles is transferring them to some not-so-normal airlines like Etihad Guest, or LifeMiles to fly THAI, ANA, Air New Zealand, South African Airways or SWISS Air. This is where you can take advantage of some excellent coach seats or even roundtrip business seats to exotic locations around the globe.

Citi offers a vast array of redemption for it’s ThankYou points or you can go for one of their AmericanAirline brand specific cards getting you strictly very valuable AA points. Earning can be done through a number of their cards. The most valuable for ThankYou Points, earning and redeeming, done primarily through the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige cards. You will notice that there is no hotel transfer partners but you can get around that by booking through the Citi ThankYou portal that offers boutique options all the way down to a simple place to lay your head for the night. Should you decide to go for one of their AA cards, the sign up bonus alone is super valuable getting you to over 1,000 destinations worldwide.

Barclay is kind of like the little brother bank that surprises you when they can actually throw the ball harder than you. Most points and miles are specifically for flights, hotels or car rentals, but what if your a cruiser or an all inclusive kinda person? This is where Barclay shines where you can redeem points for travel expenses. Don’t get me wrong, you can still book your flight, hotel and rental car with Arrival Miles but you can also book those other important vacationing needs like cruises, exersions, airbnb, theme parks, buses, ferries even campgrounds. These are really great miles to stock up on for all those extras that are outside of your normal travel plans. Plus, they offer some really great bonus’ throughout the year to keep an eye out for.

US Bank does not have transfer partners for there FlexPoints, which some people love because they don’t want to sort through the partners and the routes and find the right one, then transfer the correct amount of points and hope the tickets are still there by the end of the transfer. U.S. Bank FlexPerks brings you to one place and one place only and that’s the FlexPerks portal where you’re points are worth 1.5 cents each. Which is kind of great for some people because that means you know exactly where to go and exactly the value you’ll get out of your points. You can also redeem for statement credits and gift cards as well but it will be a lower redemption. If you’re looking for other options, they do have a Radisson brand card and a cash specific card. Basically if you like specifics, like specifically Radisson brand, or cash, or one specific place to redeem for travel, this is the bank to specifically go to.

Discover does something unique that no other bank does and that is it matches your reward at the end of 12 months. There is no sign-up bonus or I guess we can say, that is your sign up bonus, if you’re a big spender, obviously, your reward will be bigger, see how smart I am? There also aren’t a lot of perks, Discover has decided to remove a lot of the “normal” perks that come with the heavier banks and focus on less perks and no annual fee plus most of their cards offer a 0% APR for the first year and no limit on money / miles matched for the first year. Basically, this is one of those things where either way you’re actually earning without any investment.

Bank of America offers Travel Rewards and you’ll want to use these awards for exactly that, travel, and thankfully, they have a wide interpretation of what constitutes as travel, meaning renting that RV to drive around Iceland or getting that weekend away at the happiest place on earth, it’s all “travel” as far as Bank of America is concerned. BofA also offers a Premium Rewards credit card that comes with a good size bonus with a discreet annual fee, a $100 airline credit and your points have a hassle-free fixed value of 1 cent each. I guess with all of these yes’s Bank of America had to throw out some no’s, so, no you can’t get approved for 2 cards in a 2 month period, 2 cards in a 12 month period and 4 cards in a 24 month period.