Which travel credits are the easiest to redeem?

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Nov. 01, 2024

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10 min read

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Editor's Note

This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers.

It's becoming increasingly common these days to see cards charging annual fees in the range of $450 (or more). In many ways, premium is the new normal.

To convince customers to shell out hundreds of dollars a year, most of these cards offer some type of annual travel statement credit, but they're certainly not all created equal. Some will range from automatic and easy to use to much more restrictive, with strict guidelines you need to follow to redeem those travel credits.

At TPG, we want to equip you with information that empowers your decision-making. So, we've created this chart to help you easily maneuver between some of the most popular travel credit cards that offer easy-to-use travel credits:

Card	Welcome bonus	Travel credit	Annual fee
Chase Sapphire Reserve®	Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months of account opening.	$300 annual travel credit	$550
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® (see rates and fees)	Earn 70,000 bonus miles after spending $7,000 within the first three months of account opening.	Up to $120 in Lyft credits Up to $120 in statement credits on Grubhub purchases Up to $120 in statement credits on prepaid Avis or Budget car rentals	$595
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card	Earn 95,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 in purchases within the first six months of cardmembership.	Up-to-$300 dining statement credits at restaurants worldwide (up to $25 per month) each calendar year Up-to-$100 luxury property credit on select stays of two nights or longer at Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis hotels Enrollment is required for select benefits; terms apply	$650 (see rates and fees)
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card	Earn 175,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first six months of cardmembership. Terms apply. Offer ends Jan. 8, 2025	Up to $200 annual airline credit each calendar year (up to $50 in statement credits each quarter) Up to $400 annual Hilton resort statement credit valid at participating resorts per calendar year (up to $200 in statement credits semi-annually) Up to $100 property credit on eligible stays of two or more nights at Waldorf Astoria and Conrad hotels Up to a $199 credit per calendar year toward a Clear Plus membership (excluding taxes and fees, subject to auto-renewal) Enrollment is required for select benefits; terms apply	$550
The Platinum Card® from American Express	Earn 80,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 on purchases on the card in the first six months of cardmembership. You may be targeted for a higher offer through the CardMatch tool; not everyone will be targeted for the same offers, and offers may change at any time.	Up-to-$200 annual credit each calendar year for airline incidental fees Up to $200 hotel credit on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts or Hotel Collection property (minimum two-night stay for Hotel Collection properties) Up-to-$200 annual Uber Cash each calendar year (up to $15 a month and an up to $20 bonus in December). Add your Amex Platinum Card to your Uber account and pay with any Amex card. Up to $199 Clear Plus credit per calendar year Enrollment required for select benefits; terms apply	$695 (see rates and fees)
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card	Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in the first three months of account opening	$300 annual travel credit for bookings through Capital One travel	$395

The information for the Hilton Aspire Amex card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Chase Sapphire Reserve

Travel credit: $300 annual travel credit

Standout perks: The Chase Sapphire Reserve is one of the most popular travel rewards credit cards. Despite its $550 annual fee, the $300 annual travel credit is incredibly convincing to encourage people to apply.

Finally, the Sapphire Reserve rounds out with 3 points per dollar on non-Chase Travel℠ bookings and dining (bonus-earning on travel received after the first $300 is spent on travel annually), a Priority Pass Select membership, access to a premium concierge service and a host of other perks.

To learn more, check out our full review of the Chase Sapphire Reserve.

Apply here: Chase Sapphire Reserve

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Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard

Travel credits: Up to $120 in Lyft credits, up to $120 in statement credits on Grubhub purchases and up to $120 in statement credits on Avis or Budget car rentals. (The car rental credit was restricted in July 2024.)

Standout perks: The Citi / AAdvantage Executive card has several statement credits and impressive earning rates. It stands out thanks to its complimentary Admirals Club membership.

The AAdvantage Executive offers fantastic rewards rates, with 4 miles per dollar on American Airlines purchases and 10 miles per dollar on hotels and cars booked through AA's travel portal.

You can also add authorized users, costing $175 for up to three individuals and $175 for each authorized user thereafter.(see rates and fees)

To learn more, check out our full review of the Citi / AAdvantage Executive.

Apply here: Citi / AAdvantage Executive

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card

Travel credits: Up to $300 dining statement credits at restaurants worldwide each calendar year (up to $25 each month) and up to $100 luxury property credit on two nights or more at St. Regis or Ritz-Carlton hotels. Enrollment is required at select benefits; terms apply.

Standout perks: In addition to these credits, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant offers automatic Marriott Platinum Elite status and a valuable annual free night certificate worth up to 85,000 points at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy program (certain hotels have resort fees). Enrollment is required for select benefits; terms apply.

To learn more, check out our full review of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant.

Apply here: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card

Travel credits: Up to $200 annual airline credit each calendar year (up to $50 each quarter), an up to $400 annual Hilton resort statement credit each calendar year valid at participating resorts (up to $200 semi-annually), an up to $100 property credit on two nights or more at Waldorf Astoria and Conrad hotels and an up to $199 credit per calendar year toward a Clear Plus membership (excluding taxes and fees, subject to auto-renewal).

Enrollment required for select benefits; terms apply.

Standout perks: The premium Hilton Aspire offers valuable statement credits to offset its annual fee. Aspire cardmembers will also enjoy a free night certificate upon account opening and each year on their account anniversary, automatic top-tier Hilton Diamond elite status and a whopping 14 points per dollar on eligible Hilton purchases.

Enrollment required for select benefits; terms apply.

Learn more: Hilton Honors Aspire

The Platinum Card from American Express

Travel credits: Up to $200 annual airline incidental fee statement credit each calendar year, up to $200 annual Uber Cash each calendar year (up to $15 a month, plus an up to $20 bonus in December), up to $199 Clear Plus credit each calendar year and up to $200 hotel credit for Fine Hotels + Resorts and Hotel Collection bookings (minimum two-night stay required for Hotel Collection bookings).

For the Uber Cash benefit, you must have downloaded the latest version of the Uber App, and your eligible American Express Platinum Card or any Amex Card must be a method of payment in your Uber account. Enrollment is required for select benefits; terms apply.

Standout perks: The Amex Platinum's high annual fee can be offset by taking advantage of complimentary Marriott and Hilton Gold elite status, access to the Amex Global Lounge Collection and a whole host of other perks. Enrollment is required for select benefits; terms apply.

To learn more, check out our full review of the Amex Platinum.

Apply here: American Express Platinum

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

Travel credit: $300 annual travel credit for bookings through Capital One Travel.

Standout perks: The Capital One Venture X is a phenomenal card that disrupted the travel credit card industry several years back. The Venture X earns 10 miles per dollar on hotels and car rentals booked via Capital One Travel, 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked via Capital One Travel and an unlimited 2 miles per dollar on everything else.

Cardholders are also awarded 10,000 bonus miles on the anniversary date of card opening; however, where the card shines is in lounge access.

Cardholders can add up to four authorized users at no charge, and both the main cardholder and authorized users — in addition to up to two guests — get complimentary Capital One lounge access. Plus, all guests traveling with the main cardholder or an authorized user can also access more than 1,300 Priority Pass lounges worldwide.

To learn more, check out our full review of the Capital One Venture X.

Learn more: Capital One Venture X Rewards

Bottom line

For a long time, it's been easy to brush over the annual fee attached to premium cards due, in part, to multiple annual statement credits that easily offset your upfront cost.

However, recent changes and restrictions in how these credits can be used can affect the value you get from these high annual fee cards. Planning how you'll use these credits before opening a card is important to ensure you can recoup your annual fee.

For rates and fees for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card, click here.
For rates and fees for the Amex Platinum, click here.

Featured image by DISNEY CRUISE LINE

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.