Best $95 Annual Fee Cards (Updated September 2023)
*Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
Current Offer: 60,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $4,000 within the first three months.
Annual Fee: $95
Why it’s great: The Chase Sapphire Preferred is one of my favorite cards! Ultimate Reward points are very valuable, given their flexibility and ability to make an award booking. The points are worth more when redeemed through the Chase Travel Portal (at 1.25 cents each), so your 60,000 bonus points are worth $750 in free travel! You can also transfer your points at a 1:1 ratio to a handful of airlines. The Chase Sapphire Preferred also nets card holders 5x points on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs), 3x points on streaming services, and 2x points on all other travel spending.
Other Benefits:
- No foreign transaction fees
- $50 credit on Ultimate Rewards Hotels annually
- Discounts on DoorDash with free DashPass subscription for one year (if activated by 12/31/24)
- Car rental insurance
- Travel accident insurance
Current Offer: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in the first three months
Annual Fee: $95
Why it’s great: Capital One Rewards allow users to book travel or cover travel booked in the previous 90 days for one cent per mile. That means this card is would cover over $750 on travel, even retroactively! Capital One miles can also be transferred to a number of airline programs at a ratio of 1:1, allowing for true flexibility in booking the best reward flights.
Other Benefits:
- Up to $100 rebate on Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fees
- 2x the points on all spending
- No foreign transaction fees
Current Offer: Earn 60,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening. Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 ThankYou® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through June 30, 2024.
Annual Fee: $95
Why it’s great: This is a great starter card for anyone looking for a simple, cheap option to start racking up points. The 60,000 points alone are worth at least $600 in value, or even more if you transfer them to travel partners like Emirates, Air France, KLM, JetBlue, or Virgin Atlantic (among others!). To make things even better, you'll earn 3x points at restaurants, grocery stores, gas stations, air travel, and hotels (basically everything you normally spend money on).
Other Benefits:
- $100 annual hotel savings benefit (on a single hotel stay of $500 or more booked through thankyou.com)
- Transfer points to 16 airline programs, from JetBlue to Virgin Atlantic
- No foreign transaction fees
Current Offer: Earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening.
Annual Fee: $95
Why it’s great: This is just a great all around business card. For a low annual fee, the welcome offer is very generous. Chase also just reduced the spending requirement to meet this SUB, so if you're interested in this card, now is a great time. Just keep in mind that in order to reach the minimum spend, you'll need to make an average of around $2,667 in purchases each month. This might be nothing for a small business, but if you're an independent contractor or freelancer, make sure this is doable for you. We also can't forget to mention how valuable earning Chase Ultimate Rewards® are because of the program's transferability to 14 different airline and hotel partners.
Other Benefits:
- No foreign transaction fees
- 3x points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent on total purchases for these categories each year (then 1x point per $1 after): shipping purchases, advertising purchases, internet, cable, and phone services, and travel
- 5x points on Lyft rides (through March 2025)
- Add employee cards at no additional cost (and help earn rewards faster!)
Current Offer: Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $2,000 in the first three months.
Annual Fee: $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95 annual fee.
Why it’s great: This card offers amazing outsized value compared to its low annual fee. In addition to the enormous welcome bonus, you also receive 10 free visits to Priority Pass lounges every year, complimentary Hilton Honors elite status, and some really high earning rates (especially at Hilton properties). From the welcome bonus and lounge passes alone, this card can give you roughly $1,000 of value without even accounting for the elite status, possible free night award and points earning rates. This is what we call a "keeper card" because of the amazing value.
Other Benefits:
- Earn 12x points for every $1 spent on eligible purchases at Hilton properties
- Earn 6x points for every $1 spent on eligible purchases at U.S. gas stations, U.S. supermarkets and U.S. restaurants
- Priority Pass membership with 10 free visits per year
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold elite status
- Earn a Free Night Award every year you spend $15,000
Current Offer: Earn 3 Free Night Awards (each valued up to 50,000 points) after qualifying purchases.
Annual Fee: $95
Why it’s great: The Boundless is the next level up from the no-annual-fee Bold, and it also comes with some next-level perks despite being a card that costs under $100 a year. You’ll receive an additional Free Night Award (valued up to 35,000 points) each year on your account anniversary, and don’t forget you can “top off” your free night with up to 15,000 additional points making it worth 50,000. This card also gives you the ability to work towards Gold Elite status by spending $35,000 in a calendar year, but you’re better off earning this status by utilizing the complimentary 15 elite night credits you’ll get and by booking stays with Marriott. Additionally, you can earn an additional elite night credit for every $5,000 you spend, offering another means of getting closer to Gold.
Other Benefits:
- Earn up to 17x total points at Marriott (6x points for every $1 spent at participating Marriott properties, plus 10x points for being a member, and 1x points for having automatic Marriott Silver Elite status)
- 3x points for every $1 spent on combined gas station, grocery stores, and dining purchases (for the first $6,000)
- 2x points for every $1 spent on all other eligible purchases
Current Offer: Earn 140,000 Bonus Points> after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Plus, earn up to $100 in IHG® statement credits on purchases at IHG® Hotels and Resorts during the first 12 months from account opening.
Annual Fee: $99 (close enough to $95 😊)
Why it’s great: Cardholders can earn a whopping 26 points per dollar when staying at IHG properties and receive a free night award every year after renewing the card (which alone makes this card pay for itself). Given IHG's massive global footprint and attractive new IHG One Rewards program, this card has become a lot more interesting. Plus, the welcome bonus of 140,000 Bonus Points on a $99 card is absolutely bonkers. If you aren't already interested in IHG hotels, you might be after seeing this offer.
Other Benefits:
- 5x points on travel, dining and gas stations
- 3x on all other purchases
- Earn a $100 statement credit and 10,000 points after spending $20,000 in a calendar year
- Receive your fourth night free when booking IHG stays with points
If you're still confused after looking through this list, creditcards.com has a tool that can help give a recommendation based on your personal credit and situation:
Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.