The best credit cards for a diversified wallet

You will hear this advert nauseam at TPG: With regards to the best credit card, there is not one. And by that, I imply there is not any single card that magically matches each particular person’s particular wants.

For instance, one in every of my largest bills is groceries, so I’ve a card that earns a excessive reward fee on this class.

Then again, one in every of my buddy’s largest month-to-month bills is her hire, so she has the Bilt Mastercard®* in her pockets to web Bilt Factors (as much as 100,000 factors in a calendar 12 months; use the cardboard 5 occasions every assertion interval to earn factors) on each hire fee she makes with out incurring a transaction price (see rates and fees).

Although the Bilt card could be an asset for nonrenters, it isn’t in my pockets as a result of I do not hire and select to prioritize different merchandise that present me extra worth.

I might inform you that among the best playing cards you will get is the American Express® Gold Card as a result of it earns glorious charges in two of my high bonus classes. My buddy would say the identical in regards to the Bilt card — and that is what I like about bank card rewards. There’s a perfect product for each type of price range and spender.

In the event you’re desirous about your first — or subsequent — card, take a look at the 4 that I like and suggest essentially the most.

*TPG founder Brian Kelly is a Bilt adviser and investor.

Associated: Should you pay your rent with Bilt? We crunch the numbers

Reward your inbox with the TPG Day by day e-newsletter

Be a part of over 700,000 readers for breaking information, in-depth guides and unique offers from TPG’s specialists

By signing up, you’ll obtain newsletters and promotional content material and conform to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the information practices in our Privacy Policy. You might unsubscribe at any time.

The Sapphire Reserve stays my all-time favourite card, even after the annual fee increased from $550 to $795.

First, this card earns my favourite reward foreign money: Chase Ultimate Rewards factors. I like that this foreign money is transferable, and I usually transfer factors from my Sapphire Reserve account to loyalty applications like Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, United MileagePlus and World of Hyatt.

In reality, earlier this 12 months, I used 15,000 Chase Final Rewards factors to fly again dwelling to Pennsylvania after a fast jaunt to Oahu, Hawaii, saving me over $300. Although this redemption was roughly on par with TPG’s October 2025 valuation of Final Rewards factors at 2.05 cents apiece, I all the time favor reserving a flight when there is a switch bonus since meaning I get to maintain extra of my factors for future travels.

Sadly, no bonuses had been accessible once I booked my flight, so I nonetheless used my factors to keep away from paying greater than $300 for a one-way ticket.

Apart from providing high-value factors, the Sapphire Reserve additionally options stable incomes charges in a few of my high spend classes (Lyft, flights, inns and eating) and is the proper journey companion because of world-class insurance coverage and protections, together with primary rental car insurance and trip delay reimbursement. Plus, there aren’t any overseas transaction charges whenever you make purchases overseas.

Then there are the assertion credit, which, if used of their entirety, greater than offset the cardboard’s annual price.

Three of my favorites embrace:

• A beneficiant $300 annual journey credit score (in case you’re saving this credit score for a particular buy, take into account that it kicks in robotically for any buy that codes as travel)
• As much as $120 in annual in-app Lyft credits disbursed as as much as $10 every month (by means of Sept. 30, 2027; excludes Wait & Save, bike and scooter rides)
• As much as $120 for World Entry, TSA PreCheck or Nexus each 4 years.

Associated: 6 lesser-known Chase Sapphire Reserve benefits that pay off big

For extra data, take a look at our review of the Chase Sapphire Reserve.

Apply right here: Chase Sapphire Reserve

American Specific Gold Card

Relying on the week, the Amex Gold fluctuates between being my most-used and second-most-used card.

My Sapphire Reserve is usually my catchall card except I am looking for groceries or eating out, during which case my Amex Gold is the star of the present. I like to host and prepare dinner for family and friends, and whether or not I am retaining it easy with hen, rice and beans or zhuzhing it up with a rib-eye steak and lobster, the Amex Gold earns me one other favourite reward foreign money every time I faucet to pay: American Express Membership Rewards factors.

I’ve transferred Membership Rewards factors to airline companions, together with Delta SkyMiles and JetBlue TrueBlue (although I usually do not use this particular accomplice if I can keep away from doing so, for the reason that switch ratio is 250 Membership Rewards factors to 200 JetBlue TrueBlue factors).

I really used some Membership Rewards factors for my Oahu journey along with the Chase Final Rewards factors I beforehand talked about. The Amex factors acquired my mother from New York to Seattle, the place we rendezvoused earlier than flying all the way down to Honolulu collectively for a stunning mother-daughter weekend. With out transferable factors, I would not have been in a position to share this expertise with my mother.

For extra data, take a look at our review of the Amex Gold.

Apply right here: American Express Gold Card

Hilton Honors American Specific Aspire Card

In the event you’re contemplating making use of for a cobranded lodge card, let it’s the Hilton Aspire.

Along with glorious incomes charges on Hilton lodge stays, this card is loaded with advantages that offset the $550 annual price and are simple to maximise.

For instance, this card presents one in every of my favourite perks: an as much as $200 annual flight credit score every calendar 12 months. This assertion credit score is disbursed as as much as $50 per quarter for flight purchases made straight with an airline or by means of amextravel.com.

The Hilton Aspire can be a terrific journey card as a result of, just like the Sapphire Reserve, it does not charge foreign transaction fees (see rates and fees), and it comes with an as much as $209 Clear Plus assertion credit score every year whenever you join a membership and pay with this card (topic to auto-renewal; enrollment required).

One of the best perk of being a Hilton Aspire cardholder, nevertheless, is the as much as $400 Hilton resort assertion credit you get every calendar 12 months (as much as $200 biannually) for eligible purchases at eligible properties.

As somebody who maximizes all three of those assertion credit — at properties like Las Vegas Hilton at Resorts World in August 2024 and Hilton Waikiki Seaside Resort & Spa in August 2025— the Hilton Aspire has confirmed its value and greater than earned its spot in my pockets.

I’ve totally maxed out the resort credit score at each properties, and it made an enormous distinction in each journey budgets since I used the credit score to cowl dinners, plus afternoon espresso pick-me-ups after busy morning excursions. Eating out is without doubt one of the pricier features of touring, so anytime I can get a break because of a press release credit score, I benefit from it.

Associated: How to use the up to $400 Hilton Aspire resort credit each year

For extra data, take a look at our review of the Hilton Aspire card.

Apply right here: Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card

Blue Money Most well-liked Card from American Specific

In the event you’re a fan of a multipurpose card, you would possibly simply love the Amex Blue Money Most well-liked as a lot as I do.

In reality, this is without doubt one of the playing cards I most frequently suggest to these trying to get into bank card rewards in the event that they’re keen to pay an annual price. It helps that the Blue Money Most well-liked options an introductory $0 price for the primary 12 months, which supplies you loads of time to resolve if this card is an effective match for you earlier than you incur its $95 annual price in 12 months two.

In addition to incomes stable reward charges in standard classes like U.S. streaming (6% money again), transit (3% money again) and U.S. fuel fill-ups (3% money again), this card earns a whopping 6% money again at U.S. supermarkets till you hit a $6,000 spend cap every year. If this occurs, you go from 6% to a 1% cash-back fee for subsequent purchases.

This was one in every of my first playing cards and stays one in every of my oldest bank card accounts. I initially acquired it once I realized I may earn greater than a flat 1% cash-back fee on grocery retailer runs.

I nonetheless use this card for smaller grocery store purchases, and yearly, because of the elevated reward charges talked about above, it nets me about $200 in money again. When this was my grocery retailer go-to (earlier than my Amex Gold), I simply earned a minimum of $400 in money again with this card.

Word: Money again is obtained within the type of Reward {Dollars} that may be redeemed as a press release credit score and at amazon.com checkout.

Associated: 2 grocery cards, twice the rewards: Why I double up at supermarkets

And that is not even the perfect half. The cherry on high is the as much as $120 Disney Streaming statement credit every calendar 12 months (as much as $10 every month; legitimate for U.S. web sites solely; enrollment is required; topic to auto-renewal). This contains Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu.

In the event you max this credit score out, it utterly offsets the cardboard’s annual price after which some. That is an enormous win in my e book, particularly in case you already pay a subscription to stream content material on any of those platforms, like I do.

For extra data, take a look at our review of the Blue Cash Preferred.

Apply right here: Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express

How I selected my high playing cards

This record contains the playing cards I take advantage of most frequently. I take advantage of my Sapphire Reserve and Amex Gold every day, whereas I take advantage of my Hilton Aspire and Blue Money Most well-liked with barely much less frequency however nonetheless sufficient to earn me my most well-liked reward currencies.

These 4 playing cards present unimaginable worth for my sort of spending — particularly within the journey and eating classes. To be taught extra about how I compiled this record and the way TPG applies rigorous tips to every card we assessment and fee, take a look at our methodology.

For charges and charges of the Bilt Mastercard, click on here.
For rewards and advantages of the Bilt Mastercard, click on here.
For charges and charges of the Amex Gold, click on here.
For charges and charges of the Hilton Aspire Card, click on here.
For charges and charges of the Amex Blue Money Most well-liked, click on here.

Associated: The best rewards credit cards to add to your wallet