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Advertiser Disclosure Updated: Sep 24, 2019, 5:33am

Best Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses (August 2019)

Updated: Sep 24, 2019, 5:33am
Alexandra Talty
Alexandra Talty contributor
Editorial Note: Forbes may earn a commission on sales made from partner links on this page.- test default

Our Verdict

Credit card issuers sure want your business. As the competition among card issuers has intensified in recent years, they’ve offered an array of incentives, including 0% APR introductory rates and most notably, sign-up bonuses in the form of cash, miles or points.

Over the past several weeks we evaluated dozens of credit cards that are currently offering welcome bonuses. Our analysis revealed several things:

  • Miles and Points Beat Cash: The richest bonuses come in the form of miles or points.
  • Valuing Miles and Points is Challenging: We’ve found plenty of “studies” on the value of points and miles. The fact is, the value changes based on how and when the rewards are used.
  • Business Cards Beat Personal Credit Cards: By and large, the best sign-up bonuses are tied to small business credit cards. Personal credit cards offer enticing bonuses, but they tend to fall short when compared to business cards.
  • Offers Change Frequently: As we prepared this story, several cards changed their sign-up bonus offers. We’ve found that card issuers will run special promotions with elevated rewards.
  • There Are Spend Requirements: To receive a promised sign-up bonus, a new card holder must meet a set spending requirement, typically $500 to $3,000, within a set period, typically 3 months.

We’ve categorized these sign-off offers into the following bonus types:

  • Cash Back
  • General Travel
  • Airline Miles
  • Hotel Points
  • Small Business

As you look at the list and consider which card or cards you want, remember to look for a credit card that fits your lifestyle. If you don’t travel much, then a travel credit card with a high annual fee might be a waste of your money, even with an attractive sign-up bonus. On the other hand, we all can use cash. So, if you’re looking for a new card, check out the attractive cash-back bonuses.

It’s important to mention that you may not be eligible for certain sign-up rewards if you have received a bonus offer from an institution before. TD Bank clearly states in its Terms and Conditions brochure that if you’ve already received a promotion with them, then you will not receive the current promotion (even if it’s a new and different account).

Table of Contents

Methodology

We have a simple process at Forbes Advisor. We looked for credit card sign-up bonuses that were high in value and attached to practical and usable rewards programs. We made sure you could redeem your bonus mileage for at least a one-way flight. We translated points and miles into dollars using our own estimates of value, along with information provided by the issuers and other sources.

Best Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses (August 2019)

Featured Credit Card Featured Card

Best Sign Up Bonus for General Travel

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Forbes Review)

Welcome Bonus
60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Regular APR
15.99%-22.99% Variable
Credit Score
Excellent/Good (700 - 749)

Best Sign Up Bonus for General Travel

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Forbes Review)
Click Here To Apply Now

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Forbes Review)

Apply Now
On Chase's Secure Website
On Chase's Secure Website

With its rare mix of high rewards rates and redemption flexibility, this card is a dream for frequent spenders on travel & dining.

Pros

  • 2X Points on travel and dining
  • Transfer points to travel partners at 1:1 rate
  • No points limits, points never expire

Cons

  • $95 annual fee, not waived in first year
  • No intro APR offer
  • High regular APR
  • Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
  • 2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
  • Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards. For example, 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel
  • Get unlimited deliveries with a $0 delivery fee and reduced service fees on orders over $12 for a minimum of one year on qualifying food purchases with DashPass, DoorDash’s subscription service. Activate by 12/31/21.
  • Earn 5X points on Lyft rides through March 2022. That’s 3X points in addition to the 2X points you already earn on travel.
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.

Sign Up Bonus: 60,000 points ($750 in travel rewards)

Review: Chase’s travel cards are well-known among American travelers. For $95 a year you get the ability to earn frequent flyer miles on your purchases and then put those miles towards select mileage programs like Jet Blue or British Airways, or towards hotel reward programs such as those from IHG, Marriott and Hyatt. Even though Chase is popular with globe trotters, it’s still offering a welcome bonus. Newcomers who spend at least $4,000 in three months will get 60,000 points, which can get you a few nights in a hotel or a roundtrip domestic flight.

Annual fee: $95

APR: No introductory rate

How Do You Get the Bonus: Spend $4,000 within three months after opening the account and Chase will give you 60,000 points. For someone interested in using this card for travel rewards, those bonus points can be redeemed for up to $750 in travel. Normally, 100 points would equal .01 cents. When points are redeemed for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards, cardholders get 25% more in value, raising the redemption value for 100 points to .0125.

Redeem Rewards: You can transfer points to frequent flyer miles as a 1-point-to-1-mile value. Frequent flyer programs that accept this include Aer Lingus, AerClub, British Airways Executive Club, Flying Blue Air France KLM, Iberia Plus, JetBlue TrueBlue, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, United MileagePlus and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. Hotel reward programs that accept this include IHG Rewards Club, Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt. You can also use points towards Apple products and to shop Chase’s online store.

Additional Card Benefits:

  • Cardholders can transfer their points to a frequent flyer program with 1 point equaling 1 mile/point.
  • No foreign transaction fees.
  • Earn 2 points per dollar spent on travel and dining, and 1 point for all other purchases.
  • Redeeming travel rewards is 25% increase through Chase Ultimate Rewards program
  • Trip cancellation or interruption insurance.
  • Purchase protection and extended warranty
  • Get 15,000 reward points for referring a friend (up to 75,000 points)

Additional SignUp Bonuses

These cards didn’t make our list but they are worth mentioning. They are listed in alphabetical order along with the welcome offer (sign-up bonus) and the spending requirement.

Name of Credit Card Sign-Up Bonus Spending Requirement (for bonus miles/points)
AADvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard 50,000 miles, 1 Companion Certificate and Make any purchase within 90 days
AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard 50,000 miles $5,000 in 3 months
Avianca Vuela Visa 40,000 miles and a 0% introductory APR for 12 months Make any purchase within 90 days
Capital One Venture Rewards 50,000 miles and a waived annual fee the first year $3,000 in 3 months
 Chase Freedom Unlimited 3% cashback in the first year and 0% APR in the first 15 months For every dollar charged to the card, you will get 3% back
HSBC Gold Mastercard 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for 18 months None
SunTrust Prime Rewards Credit Card $100 statement credit and also get 5.50% APR on balance transfers for 3 years $500 in 3 months
Wells Fargo Cash Wise Visa $150 cashback and 0% APR during the first 12 months

$500 in 3 months

Why You Should Consider Welcome Offers

When you comparison shop, you’re looking for the best deal for whatever product you’re in the market for. If Macy’s has a better sale on a pair of slacks than Nordstrom’s, why not save a few dollars at Macy’s and use the savings towards something else you want. Credit card comparison shopping should be similar. Well-known credit card issuers offer competitive rates, features and fees that don’t differ much, at times, but you can break a tie with how welcoming their sign-up bonuses are.

Welcome offers in the form of points or miles help you get a head start in using the rewards program. Without them, it might take a year or more to accumulate enough rewards points/miles to use. Also consider how you’ll be able to use the bonus rewards. Some offers look generous until you try to redeem the cashback, points or miles and find out you’ve been duped into opening a new line of credit.

The Cards We Reviewed

Amex EveryDay® Credit Card
Amex EveryDay® Credit Card
Apply Now →
Apply Now
On Amex's Secure Website
See Rates & Fees
Best For
If you are looking for a solid intro APR offer, and frequently spend at US supermarkets, this card is hard to beat.
Regular APR
16.24 - 26.24 variable APR on purchases and balance transfers
Annual Fee
$10
Welcome Bonus
Custom Bonus Offer Text
Credit Score
Good/Excellent
Long Bonus Offer Text
Bank of America® Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students NA
Bank of America® Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students NA
Learn More →
Best For
-
Regular APR
16.24 - 26.24 variable APR on purchases and balance transfers
Annual Fee
$0
Welcome Bonus
-
Credit Score
Fair/Good
Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.
-

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Forbes adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. To the best of our knowledge, all content is accurate as of the date posted, though offers contained herein may no longer be available. The opinions expressed are the author’s alone and have not been provided, approved, or otherwise endorsed by our partners.
Alexandra Talty
Alexandra Talty
contributor

Based in Lebanon, I cover travel and personal finance topics for millennials. I'm committed to a life of adventure and have lived in four countries before turning 30. My work appears regularly in Playboy Magazine, Outside Magazine and AFAR Magazine, among others. Before becoming a full-time writer, I was the founding Editor-in-Chief of StepFeed in the Middle East.

First Published: Aug 5, 2019, 4:41pm
Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.
The Forbes Advisor editorial team is independent and objective. To help support our reporting work, and to continue our ability to provide this content for free to our readers, we receive compensation from the companies that advertise on the Forbes Advisor site. This compensation comes from two main sources. First, we provide paid placements to advertisers to present their offers. The compensation we receive for those placements affects how and where advertisers’ offers appear on the site. This site does not include all companies or products available within the market. Second, we also include links to advertisers’ offers in some of our articles; these “affiliate links” may generate income for our site when you click on them. The compensation we receive from advertisers does not influence the recommendations or advice our editorial team provides in our articles or otherwise impact any of the editorial content on Forbes Advisor. While we work hard to provide accurate and up to date information that we think you will find relevant, Forbes Advisor does not and cannot guarantee that any information provided is complete and makes no representations or warranties in connection thereto, nor to the accuracy or applicability thereof. Here is a list of our partners who offer products that we have affiliate links for.
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