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A credit card sign-up bonus is one of the best deals you can get from a card company. You're basically getting paid -- in cash back or travel rewards -- to open a new credit card and meet any bonus requirements. And since credit card bonuses are so popular, there are plenty of opportunities to cash in.
The best credit card sign-up bonus has competitive rewards and reasonable requirements to earn the bonus. While it's natural to look for the biggest bonus amount first, the credit card bonus offer that's right for you will also have requirements you can easily handle, and earn the type of rewards you want. On our list of the best sign-up bonus credit cards, you'll find a variety of options with one thing in common -- they're the most lucrative bonuses on the market.
Great for: Travel and points transfers
Bottom Line
With a leading sign-up bonus, the sky’s the limit for this top-rated travel rewards card. Plus, the premium points program for travel and dining make it a no brainer for travel enthusiasts everywhere. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
2x points on travel and dining, 1x points on all other purchases. 25% more points for travel booked through Chase's portal.
Annual Fee
$95
Intro APR
Purchases: N/A, N/A
Balance Transfers: N/A, N/A
Ongoing APR
15.99% - 22.99% Variable
Welcome Bonus
60,000 points after spending $4,000 within 3 months
Highlights
Great for: Bonus cash rewards and no annual fee
Bottom Line
Earn up to 5% cash back in rotating quarterly categories, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Somehow this card also packs in a 0% intro APR offer for no annual fee. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
Cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like Amazon.com, grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations and when you pay using PayPal, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Unlimited cash back on all other purchases - automatically
Annual Fee
$0
Intro APR
Purchases: 0%, 14 months
Balance Transfers: 0%, 14 months
Ongoing APR
11.99% - 22.99% Variable APR
Welcome Bonus
Dollar-for-dollar match of all cash back earned the first year
Highlights
Great for: For premium travel
Bottom Line
The sign-up bonus, premium rewards for travel & dining, and wide array of valuable travel credits make this a compelling offer that will offset the cost of the annual fee for many. The array of limited time offers make it even more compelling. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
3X points on travel immediately after earning your $300 travel credit. 3X points on dining at restaurants & 1 point on all other purchases.
Annual Fee
$550
Intro APR
Purchases: N/A
Balance Transfers: N/A
Ongoing APR
16.99%-23.99% Variable
Welcome Bonus
50,000 points after spending $4,000 within 3 months
Highlights
Great for: Unlimited travel rewards
Bottom Line
No-annual-fee travel cards typically skimp on the sign-up bonus, but this card delivers with its market-leading intro bonus offer, unlimited rewards on purchases, and other wallet-friendly perks. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
Unlimited 1.5 points per $1 on purchases, 25%-75% more points for Bank of America Preferred Rewards members
Annual Fee
$0
Intro APR
Purchases: 0%, 12 billing cycles
Balance Transfers: N/A
Ongoing APR
14.99% - 22.99% Variable
Welcome Bonus
25,000 points after making at least $1,000 in purchases within 90 days of account opening
Highlights
Great for: Flexible cash rewards program
Bottom Line
This card includes a lineup of features that makes it a great option for one-card-wallet simplicity. The unlimited cash back makes it easy to earn rewards. The sign-up bonus and long 0% intro APR offer are the cherries on top. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
Unlimited 1.5% cash back, 5% cash back on travel through Chase
Annual Fee
$0
Intro APR
Purchases: 0%, 15 months
Balance Transfers: N/A, N/A
Ongoing APR
14.99% - 23.74% Variable
Welcome Bonus
$200 after spending $500 within 3 months
Highlights
Great for: Cash rewards program
Bottom Line
Includes a market-leading bonus in the no-annual fee category and a flexible cash rewards program that enables you to earn premium cash back in a category of your choice. Plus, the long intro APR offer makes this card a standout among its peers. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
3% cash back in your choice category, 2% at grocery stores & wholesale clubs (up to $2,500 in combined choice category/grocery store/wholesale club quarterly purchases), 1% on all other purchases.
Annual Fee
$0
Intro APR
Purchases: 0%, 12 billing cycles
Balance Transfers: 0% Intro APR for 12 billing cycles for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days
Ongoing APR
13.99% - 23.99% Variable
Welcome Bonus
$200 after making at least $1,000 in purchases within 90 days of account opening
Highlights
Great for: Hotels
IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card
What We Like About The Card
This card has a very lucrative bonus you can earn after opening an account, and allows you to rack up tons of point on hotel stays. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
25X points per dollar spent at IHG®, 2X points for gas stations, grocery stores, and restaurants purchases,1 point per dollar on all else.
Annual Fee
$0 intro, then $89 annually
Intro APR
Purchases: N/A
Balance Transfers: N/A
Ongoing APR
15.99% - 22.99%, variable
Welcome Bonus
125,000 points after spending $3,000 within 3 months
Highlights
Great for: Unlimited travel miles
Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
What We Like About The Card
Unlimited 2X miles, TSA Pre✓® credits, and a big, limited time sign-up bonus make this credit card one of the best travel companions on the market. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
Unlimited 2x miles on all purchases
Annual Fee
$95, annually
Intro APR
Purchases: N/A
Balance Transfers: N/A
Ongoing APR
17.24% - 24.49%, variable
Welcome Bonus
60,000 miles after spending $3,000 within 3 months
Highlights
Great for: Travel and dining
Wells Fargo Propel American Express® card
Bottom Line
This no-annual-fee rewards card enables you to earn 3X points for dining out, travel, gas stations, and more, plus a big sign-up bonus. The addition of a 0% Intro APR offer makes it even more surprising that there's no annual fee. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
3X points for eating out and ordering in, gas stations, rideshares, transit, flights, hotels, and more, 1x points on all else
Annual Fee
$0
Intro APR
Purchases: 0%, 12 months
Balance Transfers: 0%, 12 months
Ongoing APR
14.49% - 24.99%, variable
Welcome Bonus
20,000 points after spending $1,000 within 3 months
Highlights
Great for: U.S. supermarkets
Bottom Line
The U.S. supermarkets and gas stations rewards are clear standouts, in addition to a leading welcome offer and a nice 0% intro APR offer. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets ($6,000 spending cap per year), 3% cash back at U.S. gas stations and on transit, 1% back on all else
Annual Fee
$0 for the first year, then $95.
Foreign Transaction Fee
2.7% of each transaction after conversion to US dollars.
Intro APR
Purchases: 0%, 12 months
Balance Transfers: N/A
Ongoing APR
13.99%-23.99% Variable
Welcome Bonus
$300 after spending $3,000 within 6 months
Highlights
Great for: One-card wallet
Bottom Line
Deserves to be top of wallet for many cardholders due to some of the highest cash back rates for essentials like groceries and dining, a leading sign-up bonus, and no annual fee. Read Full Review
Credit Rating Requirement:
Rewards
5% cash back ($1,500 spending cap for bonus categories each quarter you activate), 1% back on all else
Annual Fee
$0
Intro APR
Purchases: 0%, 15 months
Balance Transfers: N/A, N/A
Ongoing APR
14.99% - 23.74% Variable
Welcome Bonus
$200 after spending $500 in the first 3 months
Highlights
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If you want a fast start towards earning rewards, you can't do better than a sign-up bonus credit card. The best credit card bonus offers are worth hundreds of dollars or more, and getting one is as simple as opening a credit card account and making purchases.
There are some risks to credit cards with a sign-up bonus, though. If you pick a credit card bonus with a high spending minimum, you may have trouble making enough purchases. You might miss out by not spending enough, or you could end up in debt from overspending. To avoid issues, you'll need to find the best sign-up bonus credit card for you.
Credit card bonus offers are extra rewards for opening a new credit card and completing the card's bonus requirements. Most of the best credit card bonuses require you to spend a minimum amount with the card within a set timeframe.
Credit card intro offers last for a certain amount of time, and the length of the offer is called the introductory period. When a credit card sign-up bonus offers $500 for spending $3,000 in three months, the intro offer is the $500, and the introductory period is three months.
A credit card bonus is simple enough to get. Here's how to get new credit card bonus offers:
After you've finished all the bonus requirements, the card issuer will send you the bonus. This usually isn't instantaneous, but most credit card sign-up bonuses process within one to two billing cycles.
You generally need a FICO® Score of 670 or above to qualify for a credit card sign-up bonus. The best welcome bonus credit cards are aimed at consumers with good to excellent credit scores. There are some exceptions, and it's possible to get approved for these top credit cards even without good credit, but it's more difficult.
Here’s what you should look for:
Credit card bonuses come in three variations. Here's how each type works:
You receive your bonus as credit card points you can redeem via travel purchases. These points are sometimes referred to as miles, especially with airline credit cards, but this is simply a branding decision made by the card issuer. Travel rewards cards often have the largest bonus amounts, making them some of the best bonus credit cards.
You receive your bonus as cash back. Redemption methods vary depending on the card, but most cash back cards let you redeem your cash back as a statement credit towards your credit card bill, in a check, or possibly as a direct deposit to a bank account. A big perk of cash bonus credit cards is that you can easily use your bonus, and there's no learning curve like there can be with redeeming points.
You receive your bonus as a discount on a purchase. This type of bonus is most common with store credit cards, which may offer 20% off or more if you apply and get approved for a credit card at checkout. Although a discount bonus can be tempting because it offers instant savings, it usually doesn't get you nearly as much value as the credit cards with the best sign-up bonus offers.
The type of bonus you should pick depends on what you want in a credit card. For most consumers, the best credit card welcome bonus will be in points or cash back.
You can open multiple sign-up bonus credit cards at the same time, and this can be a good way to maximize your rewards. However, you should be careful about the number of credit cards you get and their bonus requirements. When you have multiple new credit cards, there's a greater risk of missing bonus requirements or making unnecessary purchases to reach spending minimums.
Here's a quick, three-step process you can follow to choose the best sign-up bonus credit card:
1) Decide what type of credit card bonus you want. The most effective way to narrow down the best credit cards with sign-up bonus offers is by the type. Once you choose between travel points or cash back, you'll just about cut your list in half. As mentioned earlier, discount bonus offers rarely offer as much value, so avoid these unless you're set on a store credit card.
2) Check out sign-up bonus details with different cards. The details you're looking for are each credit card's bonus amount and its requirements to earn that bonus. Since you're looking for the credit card with the best sign-up bonus for you, rule out any with spending minimums you can't reach.
3) Pick the best intro offer credit card for your financial needs. This will likely be the card offering the largest bonus amount with a spending minimum you can handle. But if you plan to go for multiple bonuses, then the best intro bonus credit card may be one with a lower spending minimum. This way, you can reach the requirements on two or more bonuses simultaneously.
This is a credit card that earns rewards on each purchase, typically in the form of cash back or travel points. There's quite a bit of overlap between the best credit cards with bonus offers and rewards credit cards, meaning you can often get a card that has both features. Not every rewards card has a sign-up bonus, though, and sometimes a high-quality rewards card is still worth considering even without that benefit.
A style of sign-up bonus in which the card issuer matches all the rewards you earn over a set timeframe (often a year) using the card. It gets the name "one-card wallet" because it encourages you to use one credit card for all your purchases. This is the standard bonus offer with Discover credit cards. If you plan to stick with one card, then a rewards match is probably the best credit card sign-up bonus of 2020 for you.
An intro offer for a low APR on balances you transfer from other credit cards. The best balance transfer credit cards typically have 0% intro APRs, and these can last for over a year. If you have credit card debt, this can save you a lot of money on interest.
A credit card sign-up bonus is a reward you receive for opening the card and completing any bonus requirements. With most bonuses, you must spend a minimum amount within a time limit. When you do, you'll receive a lump sum of cash back or travel points, depending on the type of credit card.
The most important things to look for in a sign-up bonus credit card are the bonus amount and the requirements to earn the bonus. Choose a card with requirements you're confident you can meet and the best bonus amount you can find.
To qualify for a credit card sign-up bonus, you must get approved for the card and meet all the terms of the bonus. Sign-up bonus credit cards are usually aimed at consumers with good credit, which means you should have a FICO® Score of 670 or higher.
Card | Rating | Great For |
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Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Travel and points transfers |
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Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Bonus cash rewards and no annual fee |
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Rating image, 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: For premium travel |
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Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Unlimited travel rewards |
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Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Flexible cash rewards program |
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Rating image, 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Cash rewards program |
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Rating image, 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Hotels |
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Rating image, 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Unlimited travel miles |
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Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: Travel and dining |
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Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: U.S. supermarkets |
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Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars.
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Great For: One-card wallet |
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