Best Reward Credit Cards

If your estimated annual spending is less than $10,000, the beest reward credit cards are as follows

1. BP Visa Card
2. Shell MasterCard
3. Hess Rewards Visa Card
4. Marathon Platinum MasterCard
5. Citi Driver's Edge Platinum Select Card
6. TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express

BP Visa Card is ranked #1 for its 5%-2%-1% tier structure is the best in the industry. Shell MasterCard, Hess Rewards Visa Card, and Marathon Platinum MasterCard are pretty much all on par with one another. All three offer a 5%-1% reward structure. The ranking among the three is hence determined by which one has the best introductory offer, and it comes out to be Shell, Hess, and Maraton, in that order.

Cards ranked 1-4 are all gas cards. One problem with gas cards is that if these brands are not near your home, you cannot take advantage of them. For example, there is no BP, Hess, or Marathon station near my home, so the only one I can use is Shell MasterCard. For credit cards not tied to a specific gasoline brand, Citi Driver's Edge Platinum Select Card offers the best reward rate. In fact, based on pure numbers, this card is better than Shell, Hess, and Marathon, due to its extended bonus period (12 months versus 2-3 months for all other credit cards). I only rank it as #5 because the rebate process is not as simple -- others won't require you to do much, while you'll need to be proactive here to receive the rebate. In addition, there is a $500 reward cap on this card.

TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express is closely behind the top 5. In fact, if you spend a lot on dining and travel, this card may actually turn out to be the best for you.

If your estimated annual spending is over $10,000, the best rewards credit cards are:

1. Blue Cash from American Express
2. BP Visa Card
3. Shell MasterCard
4. Hess Rewards Visa Card
5. Marathon Platinum MasterCard
6. Citi Driver's Edge Platinum Select Card
7. TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express

Here, the ranking mostly reflect the one above, with one major exception: Blue Cash from American Express takes the top spot. This credit card offers a minimum of 1.5% on all purchases over once the annual purchase is more than $6,000 while the best all other cards have is 1%. In our study, we find that it only takes $3,292 in spending to earn the second $100 in rebate. This is significantly lower than the #2 credit card (BP Visa Card), which requires $5,264 to get the same amount of rebate. This makes Blue Cash from American Express the best reward credit card if you spend a lot using your credit card.

Disclaimer: Even though benefits for each credit card are checked on a regular basis, credit card issuers often changes the terms of the program without our knowlege. Please check with the official site for benefits details before applying.