The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Advertiser disclosure
The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Guides
If you work for an airline or have a buddy pass, which credit card should you get?
Ryan is a former TPG credit cards writer who has been around points and miles for several years and has published content at Miles to Memories, AwardWallet and The Points Guy. His wife joins him on many of his trips, and they enjoy snowboarding, diving, and seeing animals in the wild. When not traveling, Ryan is probably answering questions from his family about how he travels so much and whether this points & miles stuff is illegal.
Credit card writer Danyal Ahmed is an avid traveler, averaging about 100,000 aeronautical miles per year. He regularly applies that knowledge and his expertise in credit cards to his role as a credit card writer at TPG.
also contributed to this story
September 11, 2024 • 20 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
Related stories
Quick summary
The article addresses credit card strategies for those who already receive complimentary flights, such as airline employees or those with buddy passes.
It emphasizes focusing on cards that provide value for hotels, cruises, trains and ride-hailing services, as well as those offering travel protections like trip delay or lost luggage coverage.
Transferable points are highlighted as especially valuable due to their flexibility and broad range of redemption options, while fixed-value cards can help offset expenses not easily covered by points.
Hotel credit cards are recommended for maximizing perks and free nights, especially when traveling with companions.
What to consider
Some travel expenses, such as certain transfers or local transit, may not be covered by points and require cards with statement credit features.
Choosing between transferable points, fixed-value points or hotel-specific cards depends on your travel goals, style and who you typically travel with.
Some offers mentioned in the article are no longer available.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed guide to tailoring your credit card strategy if you regularly fly for free, including how to maximize value for other travel needs.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
A lot of our articles about credit card strategies discuss earning miles that you can use for free flights to get where you want to go — the beach, a family reunion or even a cruise port. But what if you already get free flights and don’t care about this aspect?
Anyone who works for an airline or has a buddy pass falls into this segment, and we admittedly haven’t covered this topic previously. TPG reader Kenzie reached out to us asking about credit cards for people who already have free flights at their disposal, and it deserves coverage.
Let’s look at how to build a credit card strategy if you work in or are connected to the airline industry and regularly fly for free.
Master the basics first
Before we talk about the unique credit card strategy for people who already receive free flights, there are some basic concepts from our beginners guide to keep top of mind:
To map out your credit card strategy, start by thinking about these questions:
What are your travel goals? Do you want to backpack across Southeast Asia, stay in an overwater bungalow on a remote island, rent an Airbnb with friends in a European capital, take a cruise to Antarctica or something else?
What is your travel style? This is similar to the above question, but consider whether you want to spend a few nights at an ultra-luxury property or prefer to stretch your points by staying at cheaper hotels, backpacker hostels or vacation rentals.
Who will go on these trips with you, and how will they contribute? If your travel is primarily with co-workers — who also get free flights thanks to working for an airline — your strategies will probably align well. You could all chip in some points for a hotel together or take turns redeeming points for different aspects of an upcoming trip together.
Then, look at what points can help you achieve your goals. More often than not, transferable points will help you the most since these offer terrific value and the greatest range of redemption options. For travel expenses that require paying with cash, a fixed-value card or a card with a “purchase eraser” feature can help you out.
Transferable-points credit cards
Transferable points are points that you can transfer to travel partners. Rather than simply using these points like cash in a booking portal or as a statement credit, you can transfer them to airline and hotel partners for high-value redemptions.
ALEXANDER SPATARI/GETTY IMAGES
Several credit cards offer transferable points, including:
Card name
Welcome offer
Key benefits
Annual fee
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Find out your offer and see if you are eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards Points after spending $8,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.
Up to $120 in Uber Cash each year ($10 each month) on U.S. purchases, Uber Cash will only be deposited into one Uber account when you add the Amex Gold as a payment method and redeem with any Amex card
Up to $100 in Resy credits each year (up to $50 bi-annually) at U.S. Resy restaurants
Up to $84 in Dunkin' credits each year (up to $7 each month) at U.S. Dunkin Donuts
Up to $100 in hotel on-property credits when booking with The Hotel Collection* (minimum 2-night stay required) *Eligible charges vary by property.
Find out your offer and see if you are eligible for as high as 175,000 Membership Rewards Points after spending $12,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.
Up to $600 in annual statement credits (up to $300 semiannually) for bookings with Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection properties (minimum 2-night stay required for The Hotel Collection)
Up to $120 in statement credits each calendar year (up to $10 per month) for Uber One Membership (subject to auto-renewal) and up to $200 in Uber Cash each year ($15 per month, with a $20 bonus in December) on U.S. purchases, Uber Cash will only be deposited into one Uber account when you add the Amex Platinum as a payment method and redeem with any Amex card
Up to $209 in reimbursement for Clear+ membership (subject to auto-renewal)
$120 in reimbursement for your Global Entry every 4 years or up to $85 for TSA PreCheck application fee every 4.5 years
The information for the American Express Green Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
*Upon enrollment, accessible through the Capital One website or mobile app, eligible cardholders will remain at that status level through the duration of the offer. Please note, enrolling through the normal Hertz Gold Plus Rewards enrollment process (e.g. at Hertz.com) will not automatically detect a cardholder as being eligible for the program and cardholders will not be automatically upgraded to the applicable status tier. Additional terms apply
**Eligible Platinum Card Members will receive 10 Visits per Eligible Platinum Card per year to the Delta Sky Club or to Grab and Go when traveling on a same-day Delta-operated flight.
If you won’t get as much use out of transferable points, perhaps a fixed-value card is the better way to go.
Fixed-value-points credit cards
There are, unfortunately, travel expenses that you can’t cover in advance with points, such as seaplane transfers to an island resort in the Maldives, rail passes in Europe and daily subway tickets needed to explore a major city.
SUMMER HULL/THE POINTS GUY
Luckily, several cards can reimburse you for these kinds of purchases with fixed-value points. You can use them to pay yourself back for purchases in the form of credit card statement credits.
The following are some examples of credit cards that offer fixed-value points:
Card name
Welcome offer
Key benefits
Annual fee
Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
Earn 25,000 bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.
The information for the Altitude Go, Altitude Connect and Altitude Reserve cards has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
With Bank of America and U.S. Bank, options for transferring your points to partner programs aren't possible. Instead, you can redeem your points in the form of a statement credit to cover travel expenses.
The good news about a hotel room is that, unlike a seat on an airplane, the room can be shared by you and a friend, spouse or significant other. Because of this, your hotel points and free night certificates can go further when you’re both earning points and free nights.
BILL FINK/THE POINTS GUY
Adding hotel credit cards to your wallet is also a great way to garner extra perks, such as upgrades or shortcuts to elite status.
Here are some of the currently available hotel credit cards worth considering:
Card name
Welcome offer
Key benefits
Annual fee
World of Hyatt Credit Card
Earn up to 60,000 points: 30,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening and up to 30,000 more bonus points by earning 2 bonus points total per $1 spent in the first six months from account opening on up to $15,000 spent.
Earn three free night awards* after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Plus, earn an additional free night award* after spending a total of $4,000 on purchases in the first four months from account opening. Additionally, earn up to $100 in statement credits (up to $50 biannually) after spending $500 on eligible airline purchases.
*Nights are valued at up to 50,000 points each. Certain hotels have resort fees.
Earn up to 185,000 bonus points: 150,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening, plus an additional 35,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first six months from account opening.
Receive a free night award (worth up to 40,000 points, but you can add more points to it for higher-value redemptions) each year on your cardmember anniversary
Earn up to 150,000 bonus points: 100,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first six months of card membership, plus an additional 50,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 on purchases (for a total of $8,000) in the first six months of card membership.
In order to determine which card you should get, it’s important to understand your priorities. Are you looking for a card with a low fee and moderate perks? Or do you want top-tier elite status to enjoy suite upgrades upon arrival at the hotel?
Should you get other credit cards for specific types of travel?
You may be wondering whether you should get credit cards for specific types of travel, such as cruise lines.
REGENT SEVEN SEAS CRUISES
In nearly every case, you’re better off paying for a cruise with a general travel credit card than a cruise-specific card. That’s because the cards we highlighted above — those that earn transferable points — will earn much greater value in rewards when paying for your cruise.
If you get free flights already, you’ve already eliminated the most expensive part of travel for most people and the largest drain on points and miles for those of us who collect them. If you have a buddy pass and get free flights, a tailored credit card strategy is needed for your particular situation. By considering your travel goals and then earning the points that will help you accomplish them, you should be able to combine your access to complimentary flights with free travel in multiple other forms.
For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the benefits may be provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum, click here. For rates and fees of the Amex Gold, click here. For rates and fees of the Amex Bonvoy Brilliant, click here. For rates and fees of the Amex Hilton Surpass, click here.
For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Aspire Card, click here.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
