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When used responsibly, a good credit card can give you fantastic side benefits on money that you would have spent anyway.
Traders are always looking for ways to uncover good deals in the markets and in everyday life…and this is a good deal for me.
Although this page is titled Best Credit Cards, there is only one card that I currently recommend. There may be more in the future and that's why I decided to future-proof this page by making the title plural.
As you probably know, my Heroic List has a lot of travel related goals, so I want to rack up as many airline miles as possible. Therefore, I prefer to use a credit card with airline miles rewards.
But if that's not your goal, then there might be better credit cards out there. Do your own research and find out what works best for you.
This is what works best for me…
Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa
When I was looking around for a credit card, this was the best travel credit card available…and probably still is. A lot of rewards programs are slashing their benefits, so it's great to see that Chase has kept their benefits intact.
The Benefits
Here are some of the benefits:
- 2X points on travel and dining purchases
- 1:1 point transfers
- $0 foreign transaction fees
- 25% bonus on rewards redeemed for travel
- And more!
Keep in mind that the benefits may have changed since this was written, so be sure to check the the current benefits here. The rewards might be better or worse since I signed up.
Beyond the benefits listed above, I personally like this card because Chase customer service has always been responsive and I haven't had any issues.
I do travel overseas quite a bit, so the $0 foreign transaction fees are particularly useful.
…and since Visa is accepted almost everywhere, I never have a problem using my card.
On average, I earn about 2 free one-way flights a year, just by charging everyday expenses on the card. I could probably earn an extra 1-2 more one-way flights a year if I really optimized my spending through the card, but I'll have to see if the benefits outweigh the extra work.
You can currently transfer points to the following rewards programs:
- Aer Lingus,
- British Airways
- Air France KLM
- JetBlue
- Singapore Airlines
- Southwest
- United
- Virgin Atlantic
- Iberia
- Emirates
- World of Hyatt
- IHG
- Marriott Bonvoy
Again, that list might change, so be sure to double check before you sign up. Transferring Chase points to rewards programs that you don't use often can also prevent you from losing your points…if the program has an expiration date on points.
You can also earn bonus miles by shopping with program partners.
The Costs
This card does cost $95 per year, but so do most mid to upper range rewards cards. Then obviously, the interest is really high, like most cards (currently 17.99%-24.99%, at the time this was written).
So you shouldn't carry a balance…like with any other credit card. But if you use it responsibly, it can be a great way to start accumulating miles for your next trip, without spending any additional money.
You will need an “excellent” credit score to qualify for the card, so only apply if you think you'll qualify.
Bonus
Sign up through my special affiliate link below and get up to 50,000 miles for free (check the current offer and read the conditions to get the free miles here).
Depending on where you fly, that can be worth up to 4 one-way domestic US tickets.