Top 5 Premium and Mid-Tier Credit Cards
Each cards in this list serves a specific pupose like dining, grocery, travel etc. And usually you need a good credit score to get approved for these cards (730+). These cards comes with an annual fee and if you dont know how to take advantage of the benefits from these cards, then you might end up loosing money. But if you know how to utulize each cards, the rewards and benefits outweight the annual fee by a large amount. So these cards are only meant for experinced credit card users. Without further a do, let start the list.
AMEX Platinum Card ($695 Annual Fee)
Rewards and benefits summary:
- Welcome Bonus: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $8,000 in the first 6 months.
- Rewards Earning:
- 5X points on flights booked directly or via Amex Travel (up to $500K/year) and on prepaid hotels booked through Amex Travel.
- Annual Credits & Key Perks:
- $200 Airline Fee Credit
- $200 Hotel Credit
- $200 Uber Cash
- $240 Digital Entertainment Credit
- Access to over 1,400 airport lounges worldwide
- Complimentary hotel elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors
- CLEAR® and Global Entry/TSA PreCheck fee credits
- Additional Benefits: No foreign transaction fees, purchase protection, and extended warranty coverage.
- Ideal Spending Category: Travel
Capital One Venture X ($395 Annual Fee)
Rewards and benefits summary:
- Welcome Bonus: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months.
- Rewards Earning:
- 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked via Capital One Travel
- 5X miles on flights booked via Capital One Travel
- 2X miles on all other purchases
- Annual Credits & Bonuses:
- $300 annual travel credit
- 10,000 bonus miles every account anniversary
- Travel Perks:
- Complimentary access to Capital One Lounges and 1,300+ partner lounges (cardholder plus two guests)
- Complimentary Hertz President’s Circle® status
- Additional Benefits: No foreign transaction fees, cellphone protection, trip cancellation/interruption insurance, and extended warranty protection.
- Ideal Spending Category: Travel
AMEX Gold Card ($325 Annual Fee)
Rewards and benefits summary:
- Welcome Bonus: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $6,000 in the first 6 months.
- Rewards Earning:
- 4X points at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets
- 3X points on flights booked directly or through Amex Travel
- 1X point on other purchases
- Annual Credits:
- $120 Dining Credit
- $120 Uber Cash
- $100 Hotel Credit
- Additional credits at Dunkin’ and Resy
- Travel Perks:
- Baggage insurance
- Car rental loss & damage insurance
- No foreign transaction fees
- Additional Benefits: Purchase protection, extended warranty, and complimentary ShopRunner membership.
- Ideal Spending Category: Dining (with added benefits for travel and everyday purchases)
Chase Sapphire Reserve ($550 Annual Fee)
Rewards and benefits summary:
- Welcome Bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months.
- Rewards Earning:
- 10x points on hotels and car rentals via Chase Travel
- 5x points on flights booked through Chase Travel
- 3x points on other travel worldwide and on dining
- 1x point on all other purchases
- Annual Travel Credit: Up to $300 in statement credits for travel purchases.
- Point Redemption & Transfers:
- Points are worth 50% more when redeemed for travel via Chase Ultimate Rewards®
- Transfer points 1:1 to major airline and hotel loyalty programs (e.g., United, Southwest, Marriott, World of Hyatt)
- Additional Benefits: No foreign transaction fees, plus trip cancellation/interruption insurance, auto rental collision damage waiver, purchase protection, and extended warranty protection.
- Ideal Spending Category: Travel (with added benefits for dining).
Chase Sapphire Preferred ($95 Annual Fee)
Rewards and benefits summary:
- Welcome Bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months.
- Rewards Earning:
- 5x points on travel booked through Chase Travel℠
- 3x points on dining, select streaming services, and online grocery purchases
- 2x points on other travel purchases
- 1x point on all other purchases
- Point Redemption & Transfers:
- Points are worth 25% more when redeemed for travel through Chase Travel℠
- Transfer points 1:1 to major airline and hotel loyalty programs (e.g., United, Southwest, Marriott, World of Hyatt)
- Travel & Purchase Protections: Trip cancellation/interruption insurance, primary auto rental collision damage waiver, baggage delay insurance, purchase protection, and extended warranty protection.
- Additional Benefits: No foreign transaction fees, DashPass
- Ideal Spending Category: Travel and dining.