One of life’s small pleasures is visiting your favorite restaurant or coffee shop, whether you’re arranging an excursion with your buddies or it’s your lunch break. However, dining out or getting takeout quickly mounts up to become one of the largest bills for a large number of Americans. What could be better than using the appropriate credit cards to reward all that spending?
There are hundreds of different travel credit cards available, but not all of them are made equal: When it comes time to settle the restaurant bill, some are unquestionably superior to others. With a return of three times (or more) your dinner expenditure, the best credit cards for dining out enable you to accrue extra cash back or points to use against future travel expenses.
Come explore our selection of the best credit cards to use to pay for your upcoming dinner.
AMEX Gold Card
On our selection of the greatest travel cards overall, the American Express® Gold Card comes in first place. And one of the main reasons is the points you’ll accrue from eating. Per dollar spent at restaurants across the globe, cardholders receive an endless multiplier of four Membership Rewards points. Every dollar you spend will get you four times as many points, whether it’s at your favorite fast-food joint, five-star Michelin restaurants, or just stopping for coffee. For most Americans, especially the younger generation, it’s one of their largest out-of-pocket payments.
Do you prefer cooking for yourself than going out to eat? Additionally, the Amex Gold Card rewards 4x points for every dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets up to $25,000 annually (1x points beyond that amount), which makes it a popular choice for home grocery shopping.
Travelers aiming to accumulate more Amex Membership Rewards points—which are immensely valuable for securing inexpensive flights—will find the Amex Gold to be a reliable option thanks to both categories.
Additionally, the Amex Gold Card comes with a monthly benefit of $10 in Uber Cash, with an annual benefit of $120 in Uber Cash. The card also includes a monthly $10 eating credit for expenditures at GrubHub, The Cheesecake Factory, Wine.com, Goldbelly, Milk Bar, and certain Shake Shack locations. Simply make sure your Uber account is linked to your Gold Card to start receiving $10 in Uber Cash every month for ordering Uber Eats or taking an Uber ride in the United States.
I have the card for these reasons, mostly, and I think the $250 annual price is well worth it.
- Welcome bonus deal: During the first six months of your new card membership, spend $6,000 on eligible purchases to earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points.
- Gain 4 times the points at restaurants and US supermarkets (up to $25,000 per year, after which 1x).
- Up to a $120 monthly ($10 year) eating credit
- Uber Cash is available for up to $120 ($10 monthly).
The Preferred Card from Chase Sapphire
When it comes to travel credit cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is among the greatest options for earning points and miles. Plus, you’ll make a ton of them when you pay for supper. For every dollar spent at any restaurant in the world, you will receive three times as many Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
In addition to earning double Ultimate Rewards points for meals, the card also earns double points for other travel-related spending, including airline, hotels, parking, Uber, and other expenses. When you reserve a hotel stay using the Chase travel site, you can also receive a $50 annual hotel credit.
All of it for the amazingly low annual cost of just $95 per year. Although it may not have the same premium travel advantages as the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, it does have the same welcome bonus and offers 3x points per dollar when eating.
Citi Premier Card
With a cheap yearly fee, the Citi Premier® Card is an excellent alternative that can assist you in accruing additional points. Everyday purchases at grocery stores, restaurants, petrol stations, and airplanes earn you three times as many ThankYou Points. Having this card in your wallet is quite beneficial, especially if you want to do grocery shopping or eat out. The annual fee is just $95 for this card.
What distinguishes this card from the others on this list, in one way? Gas stations also award you with three times the points. Booking travel also earns 3x points for hotel and airfare purchases. Alternatively, you can earn ten times as many points by using the Citi Travel platform to book hotels and rent cars through June 30, 2024. You might think about carrying this card in your wallet so you may accrue points for practically all of your regular purchases.
- Welcome bonus deal: Within the first three months of creating your account, spend $4,000 in purchases to receive 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points. Additionally, through June 30, 2024, book hotels, car rentals, and attractions (but not flights) through the Citi TravelTM platform to receive a total of 10 ThankYou® Points for a short period.
- Get three times as many points at grocery stores and eateries.
- At fueling stations, get triple points.
The Credit Card Capital One Venture X Rewards
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is one of the most popular travel credit cards available today. With every dollar you spend, you’ll receive twice as many Venture Miles.
Although the Venture X earns fewer points than other cards on your list, it’s still a great option for earning double points when paying bills, dining out, going to the movies, and pretty much anything else. Having many credit cards and keeping track of which ones to use to maximize your expenditure is not necessary: You can proceed by simply placing your Venture X Card down.
Use your Venture X card (or any Capital One card) to receive 50% off on handcrafted coffees and other beverages at Capital One Cafes. When you make hotel and rental car reservations through the Capital One Travel platform, you may accrue up to 10x miles. Flying through the portal will earn you five times as many miles.
Yes, it costs a whopping $395 a year. Nevertheless, with so many travel incentives, like a $300 yearly travel credit, a $100 TSA PreCheck and Global Entry credit, and a 10,000 Venture Mile anniversary bonus, the charge essentially pays for itself.
- Welcome bonus deal: Within the first three months of opening your account, spend $4,000 on purchases to earn 75,000 bonus miles.
- Earn double miles for every dollar spent.
- With Capital One Travel, you may earn ten times as many miles on lodging and rental cars.
- Get five times the mileage on flights made via Capital One Travel.
- A $300 yearly travel credit
- The credit of $100 for Global Entry and TSA PreCheck
Savor Capital One’s Rewards
Should accumulating credit card points are not your primary priority, consider using a cashback credit card such as the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards for Good Credit, which offers additional cashback to help you save money on dining out and grocery shopping.
When using the card to pay for meals, entertainment, subscription services, and groceries, you can receive 3% cashback (not on superstores like Walmart and Target). Additionally, there is no annual charge for this card, in contrast to others on this list.
You are effectively receiving a 3% discount in the form of direct deposit cash or statement credit when you receive a 3% return on the aforementioned categories. For those who just want to cut costs on supper or groceries, this card is a smart option because of this.
Furthermore, it gets better when you order Uber meals or rides: Using your Savor Rewards card, you can collect 10% cash back on purchases made through the app. You should think about keeping this card by itself. not to be used in conjunction with a travel credit card, such as the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, which enables you to combine cashback from your Savor Card and convert it into Venture miles.
This card offers travel benefits in addition to cashback. First off, as an annual fee-free card, this one is unusual in that it waives overseas transaction costs.
- Welcome bonus deal: $200 Cash Back after three months of qualifying purchases totaling $500.
- Get three percent cashback in restaurants and grocery stores (not at superstores like Walmart and Target).
- Get paid 3% back on entertainment and well-known streaming providers.
- Get 5% back when you use the Capital One Travel platform to book hotels and rental vehicles.