You’ll hear this ad nauseam at TPG: When it comes to the best credit card, there isn’t one. And by that, I mean there’s no single card that magically fits every individual’s specific needs.
In truth, the best card you can get depends on myriad factors, including what reward currency you want to earn, how often you travel, your typical expenses, whether you’re willing to pay an annual fee and more.
If you’re considering your first — or next — card, take a look at four that are absolute powerhouses and ones I frequently recommend.
Related: Should you pay your rent with Bilt? We crunch the numbers
Comparing my top picks for the best credit cards
My top four credit cards earn points and cash back, the reward currencies I currently find most valuable. Here’s how they stack up.
Card nameWelcome offerEarning ratesAnnual feeChase Freedom Unlimited® (see rates and fees)Earn $200 cash back after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
- 5% cash back on all travel booked via Chase Travel℠
- 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery services)
- 1.5% cash back on all other purchases
$0Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American ExpressEarn a $250 statement credit after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership.
- 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions
- 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets (up to $6,000 per calendar year, then 1%)
- 3% cash back on transit (parking, tolls, ride-hailing apps, subway rides, etc.)
- 3% cash back at U.S. gas stations
- 1% cash back on all other purchases
Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit and at amazon.com checkout.
$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $95 (see rates and fees)Hilton Honors American Express Aspire CardEarn 175,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership.
- 14 points per dollar spent at hotels in the Hilton portfolio
- 7 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or through Amex Travel, car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies and dining at U.S. restaurants
- 3 points per dollar spent on all other eligible spending with the card
$550 (see rates and fees)Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees)Earn 125,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.
- 10 points per dollar spent on Peloton equipment and accessory purchases of $150 or more (through Dec. 31, 2027), with a maximum of 50,000 points
- 8 points per dollar spent on all purchases made via Chase Travel (including The Edit)
- 5 points per dollar spent on Lyft rides (through Sept. 30, 2027)
- 4 points per dollar spent on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3 points per dollar spent on dining worldwide
- 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases
$795
Chase Freedom Unlimited
This card is most powerful when paired with a Chase Sapphire card, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) or the Chase Sapphire Reserve because you can convert your cash back to valuable — and transferable — Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
THE POINTS GUY
In addition to being a great starter card, the Freedom Unlimited earns solid reward rates in popular categories that so many of us already spend in (think dining and drugstore purchases). Additionally, it offers a decent welcome bonus and earns a flat rate of 1.5% cash back on all nonbonus spending.
Best of all? The Freedom Unlimited doesn’t charge an annual fee, but still offers perks like purchase protection, extended warranty protection, rental car coverage and trip cancellation and interruption insurance. I also like that there’s no minimum amount requirement to redeem your cash back and cash back doesn’t expire as long as your account remains open.
For more information, check out our review of the Chase Freedom Unlimited.
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Apply here: Chase Freedom Unlimited
Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express
If you’re a fan of a multipurpose card, you might just love the Amex Blue Cash Preferred as much as I do.
THE POINTS GUY
In fact, this is one of the cards I most often recommend to those looking to get into credit card rewards if they’re willing to pay an annual fee. It helps that the Blue Cash Preferred features an introductory $0 annual fee for the first year, which gives you plenty of time to decide if this card is a good fit for you before you incur its $95 annual fee in year two.
Besides earning solid reward rates in popular categories like U.S. streaming (6% cash back), transit (3% cash back) and at U.S. gas stations (3% cash back), this card earns a whopping 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets until you hit a $6,000 spend cap each year. If this happens, you go from 6% to a 1% cash-back rate for subsequent purchases.
This was one of my first cards and remains one of my oldest credit card accounts. I initially got it when I realized I could earn more than a flat 1% cash-back rate on grocery store runs.
I still use this card for smaller supermarket purchases, and every year, thanks to the elevated reward rates mentioned above, it nets me about $200 in cash back. When this was my grocery store go-to (before my Amex Gold), I easily earned at least $400 in cash back with this card.
Note: Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit and at amazon.com checkout.
D3SIGN/GETTY IMAGES
Related: 2 grocery cards, twice the rewards: Why I double up at supermarkets
And that’s not even the best part. The cherry on top is the up to $120 Disney Streaming statement credit each calendar year (up to $10 each month; valid for U.S. websites only; enrollment is required; subject to auto-renewal). This includes Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu.
If you max this credit out, it completely offsets the card’s annual fee and then some. That’s a big win in my book, especially if you already pay a subscription to stream content on any of these platforms, like I do.
For more information, check out our review of the Blue Cash Preferred.
Apply here: Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
If you’re considering applying for a cobranded hotel card, let it be the Hilton Aspire.
THE POINTS GUY
In addition to excellent earning rates on Hilton hotel stays, this card is loaded with benefits that offset the $550 annual fee and are easy to maximize.
For example, this card offers one of my favorite perks: an up to $200 annual flight credit each calendar year. This statement credit is disbursed as up to $50 per quarter for flight purchases made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com.
The Hilton Aspire is also a great travel card because, like the Sapphire Reserve, it does not charge foreign transaction fees (see rates and fees), and it comes with an up to $209 Clear Plus statement credit each year when you sign up for a membership and pay with this card (subject to auto-renewal; enrollment required).
The best perk of being a Hilton Aspire cardholder, however, is the up to $400 Hilton resort statement credits you get each calendar year (up to $200 biannually) for eligible purchases at eligible properties.
The entrance to the main pool. DAISY HERNANDEZ/THE POINTS GUY
As someone who maximizes all three of these statement credits — at properties like Las Vegas Hilton at Resorts World in August 2024 and Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa in August 2025— the Hilton Aspire has proven its worth and more than earned its spot in my wallet.
I’ve fully maxed out the resort credit at both properties, and it made a huge difference in both trip budgets since I used the credit to cover dinners, plus afternoon coffee pick-me-ups after busy morning excursions. Dining out is one of the pricier aspects of traveling, so anytime I can get a break thanks to a statement credit, I take advantage of it.
Related: How to use the up to $400 Hilton Aspire resort credit each year
For more information, check out our review of the Hilton Aspire card.
Apply here: Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
Chase Sapphire Reserve
The Sapphire Reserve remains my all-time favorite card, even after the annual fee increased from $550 to $795 earlier this year.
THE POINTS GUY
First, this card earns my favorite reward currency: Chase Ultimate Rewards points. I love that this currency is transferable, and I typically move points from my Sapphire Reserve account to loyalty programs like Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, United MileagePlus and World of Hyatt.
In fact, earlier this year, I used 15,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points to fly back home to Pennsylvania after a quick jaunt to Oahu, Hawaii, saving me over $300. Though this redemption was more or less on par with TPG’s October 2025 valuation of Ultimate Rewards points at 2.05 cents apiece, I always prefer booking a flight when there’s a transfer bonus since that means I get to keep more of my points for future travels.
Unfortunately, no bonuses were available when I booked my flight, so I still used my points to avoid paying more than $300 for a one-way ticket.
CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY
Aside from offering high-value points, the Sapphire Reserve also features solid earning rates in some of my top spend categories (Lyft, flights, hotels and dining) and is the perfect travel companion thanks to world-class insurance and protections, including primary rental car insurance and trip delay reimbursement. Plus, there are no foreign transaction fees when you make purchases abroad.
Then there are the statement credits, which, if used in their entirety, more than offset the card’s annual fee.
Three of my favorites include:
- A generous $300 annual travel credit (if you’re saving this credit for a specific purchase, keep in mind that it kicks in automatically for any purchase that codes as travel).
- Up to $120 in annual in-app Lyft credits disbursed as up to $10 each month (through Sept. 30, 2027; excludes Wait & Save, bike and scooter rides).
- Up to $120 for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or Nexus every four years.
Related: 6 lesser-known Chase Sapphire Reserve benefits that pay off big
For more information, check out our review of the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
Apply here: Chase Sapphire Reserve
How I chose my top cards
This list includes three cards I use often and one I am looking to add to my wallet in the near future (the Freedom Unlimited). I use my Sapphire Reserve daily, while I use my Hilton Aspire and Blue Cash Preferred with slightly less frequency, but still enough to earn me my preferred reward currencies.
ERIC ROSEN/THE POINTS GUY
These cards provide incredible value for my type of spending — especially in the travel and dining categories. To learn more about how I compiled this list and how TPG applies rigorous guidelines to each card we review and rate, check out our methodology.
Bottom line
For me, the best credit cards work double-time, netting me transferable points or cash back, and offer perks such as statement credits I can easily use. I like to diversify my credit card rewards to have various redemption options when I’m ready to book a trip (using points) or complete an online order (using cash back).
While the four cards featured in this list are some of my current favorites because they provide terrific value, I do have additional cards that see less action but still offer benefits I use often enough to make them worth keeping. Whether you’re starting out in your credit card journey or are on your 10th application, remember that the best cards are always the ones that provide you with perks that suit your spending and budget.
For rates and fees of the Amex Gold, click here.
For rates and fees of the Hilton Aspire Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Amex Blue Cash Preferred, click here.
Related: The best rewards credit cards to add to your wallet
