You don’t have to get a high annual fee credit card just to reap exceptional travel rewards. It’s understandable, spending $450 for luxury perks that you don’t even know you can fully maximize is completely normal,Top Low Fee Travel Credit Cards – 2018 which is why it’s completely necessary to compile a list of cards that we believe to fully give you a pretty nice rewards structure and features for a low annual fee to even no annual fee. If you’re interested, be sure to read on, to find a suitable 2018 travel rewards credit card for the low!
| BONUS LINK | OFFER | REVIEW |
| Chase Business Complete Checking® | $300 or $500 Cash | Review |
| Chase Private Client | $3,000 Cash | Review |
| Chase Total Checking® | $300 Cash | Review |
| Chase College CheckingSM | $100 Cash | Review |
| J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing | Up To $700 Cash | Review |
| Chase Secure BankingSM | $100 Cash | Review |
Earn 50,000 bonus points ($625 in travel) when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening worth approximately $625 when redeemed via UR portals with a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. With it’s 2X rewards on all travel purchases, 20% discount on travel bookings through Ultimate Rewards and various travel partners, making it one of the most balanced mid-ranged annual fee travel cards out there.
Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Summary:
- Learn More
- Maximum Bonus: 50,000 bonus points + Additional 5,000 points
- Spending Requirement: You must spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening, and add an authorized user (no annual fee) within the first 3 months and they make a purchase.
- Annual Fee: $0 introductory annual fee for the first year ($95 thereafter)
- Bonus Worth: The 50K points alone is worth $625 towards airfare/hotel.
- Expiration Date: No expiration
- Additional Advice: Be sure to redeem your points through UR travel portal in order to reap 2.1 cent per point.
The Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express is a must-have on our list with attractive perks that includes 5 Starpoints for every eligible dollar spent at participating Starwood hotels and 2 Starpoints on participating Marriott Rewards hotels. More over, this card offers a generously lucrative point value ranging from 2.3-2.5 cents on top of redemption on over 30 airlines transfer partners on top of a low $95 annual fee that is waived for the first year.
Editor’s Note: This card’s value is all depending on how much you value SPG points.
Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card Summary:
- Apply Now
- Maximum Bonus: 25,000 Starpoints
- Spending Requirement: You must spend $5,000 within 3 months of account opening
- Annual Fee: $95 (but first year is waived)
- Bonus Worth: The 25,000 bonus points is worth about $600 in hotel night stays
- Expiration Date: None
- Additional Advice: The Starpoints are worth a lot more if you redeem them for free hotel night stays!
The Citi ThankYou® Premier Card is one of the most balanced rewards travel credit cards with a mid-range annual fee to drop in the market. You should expect an annual fee of $95, waived for the first year, but the rewards rate of 3x on travel including gas purchases, 2x on restaurant and entertainment surely compensates. There’s no limit and no expiration of your points and through Points Transfer you will be allowed to transfer points to airline and hotel loyalty programs.
Editor’s Note: Earn 30,000 bonus points after $3,000 in purchases made with your card in the first 3 months the account is open
Citi ThankYou Premier Summary:
- Learn more
- Maximum Bonus: 30,000 Bonus Points
- Spending Requirement: $3,000 in purchases within 3 months of account opening
- Annual Fee: $95 (waived for the first year)
- Bonus Worth: Depends on how much you value TY Points.
- Expiration Date: None
- Additional Advice: ThankYou® Points are worth 25% more when redeemed for travel through thankyou.com, as compared to gift cards
The Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard® is quite the promising card being one of the best everyday credit cards you can get your hands on because of it’s higher rewards rate (2%-2.1%). With an annual fee of $89, waived for the first year, you’d get 2X the miles on all your purchases, 5% miles back to use towards your next redemption every time you redeem and a beautiful 40,000 Bonus Miles after you make a spend of $3,000 in the first 90 days.
Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard Summary:
- Apply Now
- Maximum Bonus: 40,000 Bonus Miles
- Spending Requirement: Must spend $3,000 within first 90 days
- Annual Fee: $89 (waived for first year)
- Expiration Date: None
- Additional Advice: There is no cap on bonuses so earn as much as you can!
One of the more subtle cards in the industry, the Capital One Venture Rewards and it’s flexible 2x the miles per dollar with easy redemptions is really one of the cards you can’t go wrong with if you’re a moderate spender. With a low annual fee of $59, waived for the first year, it could really expand your travel experience. Also, be sure to keep in mind that there’s no foreign transaction fees and you’ll be able to reap 40,000 bonus miles once you spend $3,000 on purchases within 3 months
Capital One Venture Summary:
- Learn more about Capital One VentureOne Rewards and apply here
- Maximum Bonus: 40,000 bonus miles
- Spending Requirement: None
- Annual Fee: $59 (but first year is waived)
- Bonus Worth: 40,000 bonus miles is worth $400
- Expiration Date: None
- Additional Advice: This card is only meant for people with excellent credit!
With the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® Card, you could earn yourself Alaska Miles redeemable on award flights towards a wide variety of partners. You should expect a rewards rate of 3 miles for every $1 spent on qualifying purchases of Alaska Airlines tickets and Vacation packages, cargo and inflight purchases. For a $75 annual fee, you’ll essentially be getting you and up to six traveling companions on the same reservation get a free checked bag on Alaska flights on top of no foreign transaction fees and no point cap. Points are worth a good 1.8 cent each through the Alaska MileagePlan, so it really all depends on how much you value Alaska Miles.
Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Card Summary:
- Apply Now
- Maximum Bonus: 30,000 bonus miles
- Spending Requirement: $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months
- Annual Fee: $75
- Bonus Worth: 30,000 bonus miles is worth about $300
- Expiration Date: None
- Additional Advice: As long as you keep your account active by earning or spending at least one mile every 24 months, you’ll keep all the miles that you earn.
Those who travel around the United States quite frequently might want to check out the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards® Premier Card. Expect to earn 2 Rapid Rewards points per $1 when you make Southwest Airlines purchases directly with the airline, and whenever you book Rapid Rewards Hotel and car rentals. Depending on how much you value Rapid Rewards points, Wanna Get Away tickets at $0.016, which puts the your rewards rates at between 1.5% and 3%. On top of that, a 50,000 Bonus for just a $2,000 spend if more than enough to compensate for the annual fee.
Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Premier Card Summary:
- Learn More
- Maximum Bonus: 50,000 Bonus Points
- Spending Requirement: You must spend $2,000 on purchases in the first 3 months of opening your account.
- Annual Fee: $99
- Bonus Worth: Depending on where you fly from and to, we estimate the 50,000 points can have a value of up to $700 in Wanna Get Away Fares, which can be redeemed for one roundtrip flight.
- Expiration Date: No expiration
- Additional Advice: In order to receive Southwest Companion Pass, you need to earn 110k points in a year. You can either complete 100 qualifying one-way flights on Southwest in a year or earn 110,000 qualifying Rapid Rewards points in a year. Remember that rewards earned with the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card are considered “qualifying” points, so every time you swipe, you’re getting closer to two-for-one tickets.
The IHG Rewards Club Select Credit Card is one of the lowest-costing hotel rewards credit card out there that offers exceptionally-tuned features like 5x points at IHG hotels, 2x points for purchases at gas stations, grocery stores and restaurants and 1 point per dollar spent elsewhere. on top of that, you get 1 free night anniversaries and automatic Platinum Elite status as long as you remain a credit cardmember. Take advantage of 10% rebate on your points redeemed, up to 100,000 points per year.
IHG Rewards Club Select Credit Card Summary:
- Learn More
- Maximum Bonus: 60,000 Bonus Points and $50 Statement Credit
- Spending Requirement: Spend $1,000 within 3 months and make at least one purchase
- Annual Fee: $0 for first year, then $49
- Bonus Worth: Valuing the hotels at $50 a night including taxes, you’d be getting $600 value from 60,000 points. Including the $50 Statement Credit, we estimate this promotion is worth about $650.
- Expiration Date: None
- Additional Advice: The value of points are lower than other cards, so I recommend only using this card for your IGH stays.
Business Cards:
- Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express – Earn 25,000 bonus Starpoints® after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. For each dollar of eligible purchases at participating SPG® hotels‡ – that’s 2 Starpoints for which you may be eligible as a Card Member in addition to the 2 or 3 Starpoints for which you may be eligible as an SPG member.‡
- Marriott Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card – Receive 80,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from your account opening with your Marriott Rewards Premier Business credit card. Earn 5 points for every $1 spent at over 4,000 participating Marriott locations worldwide. Earn 2 points for every $1 spent on airline tickets purchased directly with the airline, and at car rental agencies, restaurants, office supply stores, and for Internet, cable and phone services purchases.
Conclusion:
Now, there are tons of travel reward credit cards out there that are just way to expensive for you to fully maximize. It’s fully understandable, which is why it’s all the more necessary to provide you with a list of our “Top Low Fee Travel Credit Cards – 2018.” To provide you with the most optimal rewards to maximize your travel spending on a low annual fee budget is our mission! The list will go over cards within a mid-ranged annual fee to no annual fee cards and it’s towards your best decision what exactly you want in a travel credit card. The most versatile credit card I can recommend is definitely theChase Sapphire Preferred® Card. Also be sure to check out our complete list of Credit Card Promotions today!
