A welcome bonus, or sign-on bonus, could be a compelling motive to use for a brand new bank card. Welcome bonus gives sometimes reward new cardholders with a one-time lump sum of money again, bonus factors or additional miles once you meet a sure spending threshold inside a chosen time-frame. It’s a straightforward solution to earn additional rewards, however provided that it would not result in overspending.
Still, what might initially look like a tempting supply of free cash can as a substitute go away you with mediocre rewards and hefty annual charges. To enable you to keep away from these pitfalls, we have listed our favourite welcome bonus bank cards under. Note that we periodically replace these associate gives to make sure you discover the most effective alternatives.
Intro OfferIntro Offer: Earn an extra 1.5% money again on every little thing you purchase (on as much as $20,000 spent within the first 12 months) – value as much as $300 money again!
APR14.99% – 23.74% Variable
Recommended Credit Excellent/Good
Reward Rates
Enjoy 5% money again on journey bought by means of Chase Ultimate Rewards®, our premier rewards program that permits you to redeem rewards for money again, journey, reward playing cards and extra;
3% money again on drugstore purchases and eating at eating places, together with takeout and eligible supply service
1.5% on all different purchases
Annual Fee$0
Intro Purchase APR0% Intro APR on Purchases for 15 months
Intro Balance Transfer APR0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers for 15 months
Balance Transfer Fee Either $5 or 5% of the quantity of every switch, whichever is bigger.
Balance Transfer APR14.99% – 23.74% Variable
Foreign Transaction Fees 3% of every transaction in U.S. {dollars}
Penalty APR Up to 29.99%
Enjoy 5% money again on journey bought by means of Chase Ultimate Rewards®, our premier rewards program that permits you to redeem rewards for money again, journey, reward playing cards and extra;
3% money again on drugstore purchases and eating at eating places, together with takeout and eligible supply service
1.5% on all different purchases
Our Take
One of our high cash-back bank cards, the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, gives a sign-up bonus within the type of more money again, not like most different sign-on bonuses, for as much as a worth of $300. You earn an extra 1.5% money again on all purchases on your first 12 months, on as much as $20,000 of spending. Most bank cards have a minimal spending threshold to earn a welcome bonus, so this card gives extra flexibility. The Chase Freedom Unlimited additionally options top-notch rewards with 5% money again on journey booked by means of Chase, 3% on eating at eating places and drugstores, and 1.5% on different purchases.
Intro OfferIntro Offer: Unlimited Cashback Match – solely from Discover. Discover will robotically match all of the money again you’ve got earned on the finish of your first 12 months. There’s no minimal spending or most rewards. You may flip $150 money again into $300.
APR11.99% – 22.99% Variable
Recommended Credit Excellent/Good
Reward Rates
Earn 5% money again on on a regular basis purchases at completely different locations every quarter like Amazon.com, grocery shops, eating places, gasoline stations and once you pay utilizing PayPal, as much as the quarterly most once you activate.
Earn 1% limitless money again on all different purchases – robotically.
Annual Fee$0
Intro Purchase APR0% for 15 months
Intro Balance Transfer APR0% for 15 months
Balance Transfer Fee 3% intro steadiness switch charge, as much as 5% charge on future steadiness transfers (see phrases)*
Balance Transfer APR11.99% – 22.99% Variable
Late Payment Fee None the primary time you pay late. After that, as much as $40.
Foreign Transaction Fees None
Earn 5% money again on on a regular basis purchases at completely different locations every quarter like Amazon.com, grocery shops, eating places, gasoline stations and once you pay utilizing PayPal, as much as the quarterly most once you activate.
Earn 1% limitless money again on all different purchases – robotically.
Our Take
The Discover it® Cash Back* card gives a novel proposition: The sign-on bonus is a vast cash-back match for the primary 12 months the account is open. Not solely do you earn 5% money again on rotating quarterly classes upon activation (on as much as $1,500 in quarterly purchases, then 1%) and 1% on all different purchases, however on the finish of your first 12 months Discover will match — greenback for greenback — all of the money you’ve got earned again within the earlier 12 months. Effectively, this implies you may earn 10% money again on the rotating quarterly classes, and a couple of% on all different purchases for the primary 12 months. The pupil model of this bank card, featured amongst our greatest pupil bank cards, gives the identical sign-on bonus.
Intro Offer25,000 on-line bonus factors after you make a minimum of $1,000 in purchases within the first 90 days of account opening – that may be a $250 assertion credit score towards journey purchases.
APR13.99% – 23.99% Variable APR on purchases and steadiness transfers
Recommended Credit Excellent/Good
Reward Rates
Earn limitless 1.5 factors per $1 spent on all purchases, with no annual charge and no international transaction charges and your factors do not expire
Annual Fee$0
Intro Purchase APR0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases
Balance Transfer Fee Either $10 or 3% of the quantity of every transaction, whichever is bigger.
Balance Transfer APR13.99% – 23.99% Variable APR on purchases and steadiness transfers
Late Payment Fee Up to $40
Foreign Transaction Fees None
Penalty APR as much as 29.99% APR
Earn limitless 1.5 factors per $1 spent on all purchases, with no annual charge and no international transaction charges and your factors do not expire
Our Take
The Bank of America® Travel Rewards bank card* gives a considerable welcome bonus redeemable for assertion credit for journey or eating purchases. You should make $1,000 value of purchases inside the first 90 days of account opening to safe this bonus, which can come within the type of 25,000 bonus factors posted to your account. While there are higher-value welcome bonuses out there on premium journey playing cards, they often additionally carry a hefty annual charge. For the traveler on a price range, that is the precise card to maximise your welcome bonus worth.
Intro OfferEarn 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases inside the first 3 months of account opening
APR15.99% – 23.99% (Variable)
Recommended Credit Excellent, Good
Reward Rates
Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants and Supermarkets
Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Gas Stations, Air Travel and Hotels
Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on all different purchases
Annual Fee$95
Intro Purchase APRN/A
Balance Transfer Fee Balance switch charge applies with this supply 5% of every steadiness switch; $5 minimal.
Balance Transfer APR15.99% – 23.99% (Variable)
Late Payment Fee Up to $40
Foreign Transaction Fees 0%
Penalty APR Up to 29.99% (Variable)
Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants and Supermarkets
Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Gas Stations, Air Travel and Hotels
Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on all different purchases
Our Take
The Citi Premier® Card gives the most effective sign-on bonus worth with respect to annual charge, factors worth and spending threshold. The sign-on bonus nets you 60,000 ThankYou® factors once you spend $4,000 inside the first three months of opening the account — this may be redeemed for journey rewards or $600 in reward playing cards at Thankyou.com. Alternatively, these factors are additionally valued at $0.01 per level for assertion credit, and so are value the identical quantity within the type of “money again.” This card can also be a powerful contender for our greatest gasoline bank cards, as nicely, and has a $95 annual charge. See our full overview of the Citi Premier Card for extra particulars and advantages.
Intro Offer$150 Amazon Gift Card immediately upon approval
APR14.24% to 22.24% Variable
Recommended Credit N/A
Reward Rates
5% again at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market with eligible Prime membership*
2% again at eating places, gasoline stations, and drugstores*
1% again on all different purchases*
Annual Fee$0
Intro Purchase APRN/A
Balance Transfer Fee Either $5 or 5% of the quantity of every switch, whichever is bigger.
Balance Transfer APR14.24% to 22.24% Variable
Late Payment Fee Up to $39
Foreign Transaction Fees None
5% again at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market with eligible Prime membership*
2% again at eating places, gasoline stations, and drugstores*
1% again on all different purchases*
Our Take
The Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature card* is exclusive in that there isn’t a minimal spending threshold to earn the bonus. Upon approval of your utility, you may obtain an Amazon reward card for as much as $150 with out ever even utilizing the cardboard. The catch is that this welcome bonus is not redeemable for assertion credit or journey like with many different rewards playing cards. It is just a present card to be used on Amazon.com. Note that you could have Amazon Prime account ($119 yearly, growing to $139 after March 25, 2022) to get this bank card.
Read extra: Best Credit Cards for Shopping at Amazon
FAQs
What is a sign-on bonus/welcome bonus?
An indication-on bonus, or welcome bonus, is a one-time reward supplied to card holders after signing up for a brand new card. Bonuses at all times require customers to spend a specific amount inside a set time interval, like $500 in purchases within the first three months, as a way to “unlock” the bonus.
So ought to I join plenty of bank cards to reap the benefits of welcome bonuses?
This is a dangerous and time-consuming gambit that might adversely have an effect on your credit score. Though a welcome bonus is value contemplating, we advocate taking a complete take a look at the general worth of a bank card and selecting one that matches your spending habits and monetary state of affairs.
What is taken into account a ‘good’ welcome bonus?
In our view, a very good welcome bonus is one that does not require you to contort your current spending habits and gives a return that is greater than the cardboard’s annual charge. Many rewards bank cards supply a welcome bonus of $200, so something greater than that’s noteworthy.
We additionally desire playing cards with bonuses that characteristic different perks or a number of rewards tiers, growing the usefulness of the cardboard past the bonus.
What does the ‘x’ imply in reward charges?
The x means “occasions” — a method of referring to the a number of rewards factors or miles you may get for each greenback spent. For instance, a 2x mile card offers you 2 miles for each greenback spent. A 10x level card offers you 10 factors for each greenback spent.
Our methodology
CNET evaluations bank cards by exhaustively evaluating them throughout set standards developed for every main class, together with cash-back, welcome bonus, journey rewards and steadiness switch bank cards. We consider the everyday spending habits of a spread of shopper profiles — with the understanding that everybody’s monetary state of affairs is completely different — and the designated operate of a card.
For cash-back bank cards, for instance, key elements embrace the annual charge, the “welcome bonus” and the cash-back price (or charges, in the event that they differ by spending class). For rewards and miles playing cards, we calculate and weigh the online financial worth of a card’s respective perks. And with steadiness switch bank cards, we analyze specs such because the length of the introductory 0% APR interval and the steadiness switch charge, whereas acknowledging secondary elements similar to the usual APR and the size of time you need to make a steadiness switch after you open the account.
Read extra: Best Credit Cards for Good Credit
A direct deposit of reports and recommendation that will help you make the neatest choices together with your cash.
*All details about the Bank of America Travel Rewards bank card, Discover it Cash Back and Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card has been collected independently by CNET and has not been reviewed by the issuer.
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