For travelers hoping to cash in on their daily spending with exciting trips, finding the right credit card rewards program is key.
Personal finance website WalletHub recently compared every non-cobranded consumer rewards credit card from the 19 largest issuers—for a total of 83—evaluating each card’s eligibility requirements, rewards earning and redemption policies and expected rewards value.
WalletHub found that redeeming credit card rewards for travel is the best deal, yielding 9 percent more value than merchandise, which is the worst option.
For the seventh year in a row, Capital One has the best credit card rewards program, earning an average WalletHub score of 92 percent to edge out Wells Fargo (90.5 percent), Synchrony Bank (89 percent), Chase (86.9 percent) and Discover (86.2 percent).
Travelers should know that Capital One and Wells Fargo have the best rewards-earning policies as cardmembers have no earning limits and won't lose their rewards if they miss a payment.
However, in terms of eligibility and transparency, Discover, PNC Bank, Navy Federal Credit Union and Synchrony were determined to have set the clearest expectations by stating rewards terms and restrictions up front.
Of the Capital One cards, the Venture Rewards Credit Card is the best, yielding up to $2,020 on average in the first two years of use.
Other top-performing credit cards based on average two-year value include the Navy Federal Credit Union Visa Signature Flagship Rewards Credit Card ($1,795), the Evergreen by FNBO Credit Card ($1,660), the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card ($1,660), the Bank of America Premium Rewards credit card ($1,656) and the Discover it Miles ($1,643).
Click here to view a complete breakdown of WalletHub's research.
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