Difference between revisions of "Best credit cards for restaurant spending"
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Revision as of 17:20, 19 June 2018
Make sure to read the tips and general advice in our Optimize Rewards by Using Different Cards for Different Purchases guide.
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Card suggestions
- If you have the Sapphire Reserve card, you should use it for your restaurant spending. It earns the highest possible reward rate on restaurant spending, valued at 5.1 cents per dollar. Depending on how much you spend eating out (or ordering in), the Sapphire Reserve's extremely high reward rate on restaurant spending can help justify paying the card's effective annual fee of $150.
- If you have the Altitude Reserve card, and don't have the Sapphire Reserve card, you should use the Altitude Reserve whenever you can pay with your mobile wallet. The Altitude Reserve card earns 4.5%, but only on restaurants that accept Apple Pay and other mobile wallet payments. This is higher reward rate than you can get from any other card. But, you won't be able to use it on all of your restaurant purchases.
- Otherwise, the Uber Visa card is your best option. It earns 4% back on dining, and has no annual fee. The only cards that earn higher rewards on restaurant spending are the Sapphire Reserve and the Altitude Reserve (on electronic wallet purchases). However, several other cards that you might already have, such as the Citi Prestige card, only earn slightly less than the Uber card. If you have one of the cards that already earns at least 3 cents per dollar, you might not want to bother getting the Uber card as well.
Quick comparison
The point values used in the table below are estimates based on a typical traveler. They may need to be adjusted for your individual preferences and travel patterns. For example, if you highly value premium cabin award tickets and are willing and able to build up large point balances, Ultimate Rewards, Membership Rewards, and ThankYou points are much more valuable and you should earn as many of those types of points as you can. If you have trouble finding good frequent flyer redemptions, you might want to focus on cards that earn points that can be used more like cash. Deciding What Type of Points to Earn
The annual costs in the table below reflect the annual fee minus any travel credits. For travel credits that are harder to redeem, we value the credit at 50% of the maximum credit amount. We value the Amex Airlines Incidental Credit at only 25% of the maximum credit amount. If you are willing to do the work or are otherwise able to get full value from these credits, the effective annual fee can be considerably lower.
Some cards waive the annual fee for the first year. But the table focuses on what you would pay in the longer term.
| Card | Value | Earns | Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sapphire Reserve Card | 5.1% | 3x UR | $150 |
| US Bank Altitude Reserve (on mobile wallet purchases only) |
4.5% | 3x | $75 |
| US Bank Flexperks Gold | 4.5% | 3x FP | $85 |
| Uber | 4% | 4% | $0 |
| CNB Crystal Infinite* | 3.6% | 3x | $150 |
| BOA Premium Rewards | 2-3.5%† | 2-3.5x | $45 |
| Ink Cash (business card) | 3.4% | 2x UR | $0 |
| Chase Sapphire Preferred | 3.4% | 2x UR | $95 |
| Hyatt Card | 3.4% | 2x | $75 |
| Morgan Stanley* (for Morgan Stanley customers only) |
3% | 2x MR | $0 |
| Amex Gold* | 3% | 2x MR | $145 |
| Capital One Savor Card | 3% | 3% | $0 |
| Costco / Sam's Club Credit Card | 3% | 3% | $0 |
| AARP | 3% | 3% | $0 |
| Citi Preferred | 3% | 2x TY | $0 |
| Citi Premier | 3% | 2x TY | $95 |
| Citi Prestige | 3% | 2x TY | $200‡ |
| Hilton Surpass | 2.7% | 6x | $75 |
* Cardholders with more than $20,000 in combined balances at BOA / Merrill Lynch earn bonus rewards, maxing out at 3.5 points, or 5.25 cents on travel purchases.
† Bonus rewards on US Restaurants only.
‡ Citigold customers save an extra $100 on the annual-fee.
Supercharge your dining rewards with a credit card dining program
By taking advantage of credit card based dining programs, you can earn even more points from using your credit card at some restaurants. You simply register your card with the dining program, and you’ll earn extra points each time you use it at a participating restaurant. Earn Extra Rewards by Enrolling in Credit Card Dining Programs
