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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.
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11 major mistakes people make with travel rewards credit cards
TPG's director of travel content Eric Rosen has used points and miles to visit some of the world's most remote corners, including swimming with whale sharks off Western Australia's Ningaloo Coast, exploring the wilds of Botswana's Okavango Delta and tasting the high-altitude wines of Argentina's Mendoza region.
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
January 17, 2025 • 12 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.
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Quick summary
Travel rewards cards offer points or miles for use at airlines and hotels, plus perks like lounge access and application fee reimbursements for expedited airport screening programs.
Common mistakes include missing welcome bonuses due to not meeting spending requirements or miscalculating the qualification period, and redeeming points for low-value rewards such as merchandise or cash back.
Applying for too many cards at once can make it difficult to meet spending thresholds and may affect eligibility for future products due to certain issuer rules.
Other pitfalls include letting points expire, paying high fees for unused perks, missing out on transfer bonuses, and incurring foreign transaction fees.
What to consider
Welcome bonuses require meeting specific spending amounts within a set timeframe, which starts upon card approval.
Points and miles may expire if accounts are inactive or if you downgrade or close an account without transferring rewards.
Some cards still charge foreign transaction fees, so review terms before making international purchases.
What you'll miss from the article
Detailed strategies to avoid costly errors and maximize the value of your travel rewards cards.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
We all make mistakes, but when it comes to your travel credit cards, errors can be costly.
Tracking which cards offer certain perks during which times can be tricky. Especially if you also plan to simultaneously adjust your spending habits to earn the biggest bonuses and take advantage of a card's various other benefits and protections.
This is where TPG's team of experts comes in — we can help you avoid some of the most common and costly travel credit card mistakes. First, let's talk about welcome bonuses.
Not earning the welcome bonus
It seems basic, but one of the biggest mistakes you can make with a travel rewards card is not taking advantage of the welcome bonus. Many of us are wowed by bonuses worth tens or even hundreds of thousands of points, but you typically have to meet certain criteria to earn them. Here are a couple of reasons why you might not hit the mark.
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The first is that welcome bonuses typically require you to spend a certain amount of money on your card within a specific time frame, like $1,000 within three months or $5,000 within six months — it varies from card to card. If you apply for a card (or several cards at once) and the minimum-spending threshold is too high for you to hit (responsibly), you risk not earning the bonus.
We'd also like to point out that spending unnecessarily to bag a welcome bonus isn't financially savvy if that means ending up with a lot of credit card debt, so be sure you can comfortably achieve the spending requirement before applying.
Miscalculating the time window in which you must hit that spending requirement could also cause you to miss out on a welcome bonus. The spending clock starts when you are approved, not when you receive your card. So you could find yourself with fewer days, or even weeks, to get all those purchases in. If in doubt, call your card issuer and ask for the deadline.
Missing a decent welcome bonus offer because you didn't apply at the right time is another mistake that could cost you valuable perks, points and miles.
As mentioned above, applying for too many cards in a short period of time can mean that you miss hitting the minimum spending requirements for welcome bonuses. This may present an issue with Chase as it can also exclude you from being eligible for some of the issuer's best credit cards.
To check how many accounts you've opened recently, you can create a free account with Experian or Credit Karma and track your accounts' age.
The information for the Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Redeeming for low-value rewards
We post points valuations on TPG every month to give you a rough idea of how much value you should get from specific types of points and miles at any given time based on various factors, including award availability, transfer options and more.
Unfortunately, far too many consumers redeem their hard-earned points at below-average values for things like merchandise or cash-back propositions. Credit cards, airlines and hotels tend to make it easy to cash in your points for low-value items or redemptions for a reason: It's cheaper for them.
SUMMER HULL / THE POINTS GUY
Remember, even if you're interested in earning cash-back points at a fixed rate, not all points are created equal, and the same goes for redemptions.
Carrying a balance
Speaking of points valuations, even the most valuable points — ones that you can transfer to hotels or airlines for otherwise high-priced rewards — are not likely to be worth anywhere near the interest rate you'll be paying on balances that you carry. So before you use a points-earning card with a high interest rate to make big purchases that you might not be able to pay off quickly, consider using a card with a low (or no) annual percentage rate instead.
Though they are hard to predict and offered only for limited times, don't miss out on the chance to maximize your points with transfer bonuses. Some transfer bonuses in the past have included 25% bonus points when transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards to Air France-KLM Flying Blue or 25% bonus points when transferring Citi ThankYou points to Avianca LifeMiles.
Letting points expire
At this point, there's simply no reason your points or miles should expire. Most airline and hotel loyalty programs still enforce expiration policies, but many are lax enough that you need to earn just a single point or mile every 18-36 months, including miles you earn with credit card spending.
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The less obvious way that you might lose a whole haul of points or miles, or their ability to transfer to travel partners, is if you downgrade or close a particular account and do not transfer the points first.
First, let's say you downgrade from a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) to a Chase Freedom Unlimited® (see rates and fees). With the Sapphire Preferred, your points would transfer to the Ultimate Rewards program's travel partners, including British Airways, United, Hyatt and Marriott. With just the Freedom Unlimited, those points are only good for fixed-value redemptions of 1 cent apiece.
With the variety of credit cards out there and the bonus-earning opportunities they afford, you should be earning multiple points per dollar on nearly every purchase. Not doing so is basically leaving points, and thus huge potential value, on the table.
Paying a high annual fee for perks you're not actually using
The annual fees on travel rewards credit cards range from no annual fees whatsoever, like the Chase Freedom Unlimited, to charging several hundred dollars — even several thousand dollars, like the Amex Centurion (Black) Card. The information for the Amex Centurion 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.
Likewise, some fantastic premium travel rewards cards charge higher annual fees that can be well worth it — but only if you maximize their benefits. For instance, cards that charge $795 a year, like the Chase Sapphire Reserve or $895 a year for the American Express Platinum Card® (see rates and fees), offer a range of value-added benefits that can help offset their annual fees.
These two, in particular, include Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee reimbursements worth up to $120. They also offer annual travel credits for various purchases worth between $200-$300 per year and get cardholders into various Priority Pass lounges (enrollment required for select benefits). But if you're not using these benefits, it's not worth paying that high annual fee.
Many travel rewards credit cards offer cardmember anniversary perks, like free nights at hotels or companion travel tickets, and the opportunity to earn additional benefits by hitting certain spending thresholds each year.
For instance, the World of Hyatt Credit Card confers a free night each anniversary at a Category 1-4 property and an additional Category 1-4 free night for hitting $15,000 in spend in the cardmember year.
It doesn't make sense to spend money on things you wouldn't otherwise purchase to hit these thresholds, but you should maximize the bonuses your credit card offers if they are within your normal expenditures.
Paying foreign transaction fees
Many issuers have realized that people who want travel rewards credit cards actually, you know, travel. That includes trips abroad. Issuers once levied 2-3% extra on purchases made abroad, but many credit cards now charge no foreign transaction fees for international shoppers. Not all cards waive these charges, however. Notable exceptions include the Chase Freedom Unlimited (3%). Before you travel internationally or even make a purchase from a foreign company without leaving the U.S., read your card's pricing terms to see whether you might be dinged with extra fees.
Rewards credit cards can be powerful tools to help you maximize your travel strategy, but only if you can leverage benefits like category, transfer and spending bonuses, along with fee waivers, lounge access and more.
Be sure you are getting enough value from your travel credit cards to justify their annual fees and that you know the terms and conditions of each so you are not hit with fees and other penalties, which might erase the value of any points you earn. That way, you'll reach your travel goals faster and get that much more value from your credit cards.
For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum Card, please 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.
