8 of the best credit card offers this month — including 2 huge hotel bonuses that end soon

Business Insider may receive a commission from The Points Guy Affiliate Network if you apply for a credit card, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.Credit cards frequently offer large sign-up bonuses to try and entice new customers.Opening a new credit card and earning these bonuses is the fastest way to build your stocks of credit card rewards, hotel loyalty points, and frequent-flyer miles.There are a few limited-time offers this month, including on several top hotel cards and the main United Airlines card.Plus, there are a only a few days left to get the introductory bonus on the mainstream Marriott Bonvoy rewards credit card — the offer ends on May 2. The IHG Rewards Card's bonus ends the same day.The fastest way to earn rewards points, cash back, and frequent-flyer miles is to open a new credit card and earn its sign-up or welcome bonus.Credit card issuers like Chase and AmEx offer huge bonuses to attract customers, while designing card features with long-term, continuing value in an effort to keep them. This offers consumers a chance to take advantage of these bonuses, perks, and features.You can read more about earning new card-member bonuses and how that will affect your credit score here, or scroll down to find some of the best offers available this month.Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these credit cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which can far outweigh the value of any rewards.When you're working to earn credit card rewards, it's important to practice financial discipline, like paying your balances off in full each month, making payments on time, and not spending more than you can afford to pay back. Basically, treat your credit card like a debit card.1. Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit CardSign-up bonus: 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy points (after spending $5,000 in the first three months). Offer ends May 2.While the limited-time offer on Marriott's premium card, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card — is over, there are still a few more days to snag it on the mainstream version of the personal card: The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless credit card, which is issued by Chase.The Bonvoy Boundless offer — 100,000 Marriott points if you spend $5,000 in the first three months — ends on May 2.Learn more: The best credit card rewards, bonuses, and benefits of 2019Like the Brilliant, the Boundless offers a free night award each year on your cardholder anniversary; the difference is that it's only good on rooms that would cost up to 35,000 points per night, rather than 50,000. Fortunately, that still includes plenty of properties.The Boundless card comes with complimentary Silver elite status. Silver doesn't get you as much as Gold, but it's still something. You'll get a 10% bonus on points earned, priority for late checkout, access to a dedicated customer service line, free Wi-Fi, and more. While it's not a published benefit, you may also be given preferential rooms. You can get Gold status if you spend $35,000 or more in a calendar year. You'll also get 15 qualifying nights' worth of elite credit each calendar year, making it easier to earn Gold status or higher through hotel stays.The card earns 6x points per dollar spent at Marriott hotels, and 2x points per dollar on everything else.Click here to learn more about the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card from Insider Picks' partner, The Points Guy.2. IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit CardSign-up bonus: Up to 120,000 points (80,000 points after spending $2,000 in the first three months; an additional 40,000 points after spending a total of $5,000 in the first six months). Offer ends May 2.IHG is the parent company of a handful of hotel chains, including Holiday Inn. The company has more than 5,600 properties around the world, making it the second-largest hotel brand, behind Marriott. IHG has a wide range of properties from budget options like the Holiday Inn Express, to luxurious Regent and InterContinental hotels and resorts. IHG's Rewards Club program is often overlooked — I know I'm guilty of passing it over without a second look in favor of Hilton Honors or Marriott Bonvoy (and back in the day, Starwood Preferred Guest).However, the program is worth a second look, and a newly increased sign-up bonus on its primary credit card offers a perfect opportunity.Right now, the IHG Rewards Club Premier card has a sign-up bonus of up to 120,000 points that is broken up into two parts. First, you'll earn 80,000 points if you spend $2,000 in the first three months. Then, you'll earn the remaining 40,000 points when you spend an additional $3,000 within the first six months (for a total of $5,000).IHG recently shared that this bonus will only be around for a limited time, and the end date has been announced: May 2.Rooms can cost as little at 10,000 points per night, depending on the property and its location within a city. The bonus is enough to cover almost two weeks' worth of nights at a Holiday Inn Express — even some in prime markets — or two to four nights at top InterContinental locations.The card earns 10x points per dollar spent at IHG hotels, 2x points per dollar spent at gas stations, grocery stores, and restaurants, and 1x point on everything else. It also comes with automatic Platinum elite status, which entitles you to a 50% bonus on points earned during a stay, complimentary room upgrades, late checkout when available, and guaranteed room availability with 72 hours' notice — helpful if you have a last-minute trip.The Premier card offers an annual anniversary free night certificate that can be used at any category 1-7 hotel (hotels that cost 40,000 points per night or less). While that means that some of IHG's most premium locations are excluded, the certificate is still valid at a ton of locations all around the world.For instance, I didn't have trouble finding properties in major cities like New York and Chicago during peak travel season — all charging well upward of $200 — that accept the free night certificate. That more than makes up for the card's $89 annual fee.Click here to learn more about the IHG Rewards Club Premier from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.3. United Explorer CardSign-up bonus: Up to 60,000 United miles (40,000 after spending $2,000 in the first three months, and an additional 20,000 miles after spending a total of $8,000 in the first six months). Offer ends May 16.Last year, United and Chase re-launched their co-branded credit card, slightly changing the name, but more importantly, tweaking the benefits and improving how the card earns points. Previously, the card earned 2x miles on every dollar spent with United Airlines and 1x dollar on everything else. Now, the card also earns 2x points at restaurants and hotels.This sign-up bonus is one of the better public offers we've seen on this card, given the spending requirement, but it's only available until May 16.The card offers a free checked bag when you use your card to purchase your tickets, priority boarding as long as you have the open card attached to your MileagePlus account, 25% off in-flight purchases, and a fee credit to cover your application to Global Entry or TSA PreCheck.The United Explorer also has two benefits that are unique among US airline credit cards in the same class.First, you'll get two complimentary United Club lounge passes each year. In the lounges, you can enjoy comfortable seating, Wi-Fi, free food and drinks, and more before your flight. Normally, one-time entry to a United Club would cost $59 if you didn't have a membership.Second, although this is an unpublished benefit, United cardholders also get access to more saver award space than other United members — that makes it easier to find good flights when it's time to use your miles.The card has a $95 annual fee, which is waived the first year.Click here to learn more about the United Explorer Card from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.4. Chase Sapphire Preferred CardSign-up bonus: 60,000 points (after spending $4,000 in the first three months)The Sapphire Preferred is one of the most popular all-around rewards credit cards, and it's easy to see why. This card earns 2x points per dollar spent on just about all travel and dining purchases, and 1x point on everything else. It also comes with a ton of travel and purchase protections, such as rental car insurance, trip delay coverage, and extended warranty.The card's sign-up bonus was just raised for the first time since 2015 — it's now 60,000 Ultimate Rewards (UR) points. That's worth, at the very least, $600 as cash back or gift cards. However, if you book travel through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and use points to pay, you'll get a 25% bonus, making points worth 1.25 cents each. That means that the sign-up bonus would be worth $750.Even more lucrative — the Chase Sapphire Preferred lets you transfer your UR points to a few different frequent-flyer and hotel-loyalty programs. This comes in handy because in many cases it costs fewer points to book a trip if you go through one of those programs, as opposed to using the points as cash. You can read more about why transferring points to frequent-flyer programs gets you more value here.This all comes for a fairly standard annual fee of $95, which is not waived the first year.Click here to learn more about the Sapphire Preferred from Insider Picks' partner, The Points Guy.5. Platinum Card® from American ExpressWelcome Offer: 60,000 points (after spending $5,000 in the first three months).The American Express Platinum card has one of the highest annual fees of any consumer credit or charge card — $550 — but as AmEx's flagship product, this premium credit card offers a tremendous amount of value to offset that fee. For example, I got more than $2,000 worth of value in my first year with the card.The card earns Membership Rewards points, the currency in AmEx's loyalty program, which can be exchanged for statement credits or cash back, used to book travel through AmEx's travel website, or, to get the most value, transferred to any of 17 airline and three hotel transfer partners (transferable points are among the best). Travel website The Points Guy lists a valuation of 2¢ per membership rewards point; based on that, the welcome offer is worth about $1,200.The Platinum Card earns an incredible 5x points on airfare purchased directly from the airline, and offers an airline fee credit of up to $200 each calendar year, and up to $200 in Uber credits each card member year.It also grants the cardholder access to more than 1,200 airport lounges around the world, including Delta Sky Clubs and AmEx's own Centurion Lounges.Other benefits include automatic Gold elite status in the Marriott and Hilton loyalty programs, a statement credit up to $100 to cover enrollment in Global Entry/TSA PreCheck, concierge service, access to exclusive events, and much more.If you're an active military servicemember, you can get the AmEx Platinum Card's fee waived.You can read our complete review of the card here.Click here to learn more about the American Express Platinum from Insider Picks' partner, The Points Guy.7. Wells Fargo Propel American Express® CardWelcome offer: 30,000 Go Far points (after spending $3,000 in the first three months).This card from Wells Fargo has one of the more attractive rewards offerings you'll find from a no-annual-fee card. The current Propel card is a relaunch of an old product — Wells Fargo stopped accepting applications for the old card a year ago, before announcing the new product and reopening applications this summer.The card earns 3x points on all travel, dining, and select streaming services (and 1x point on everything else). If that sounds familiar, it's because it's almost the same as the popular Chase Sapphire Reserve.There are key differences between the cards. The Propel lets you redeem points for 1¢ each toward cash back, merchandise, travel, or more, while the Sapphire Reserve offers a range of more valuable redemption options — it's easy to get at least 50% more value for Chase points. Plus, the Sapphire Reserve offers a number of premium perks that the Propel doesn't, like airport lounge access, a $300 annual travel credit travel delay insurance, and more.Of course, the Sapphire Reserve also comes with a $450 annual fee, while the Wells Fargo Propel doesn't have a fee. Between the new member offer, and the solid earning rate on popular spend categories, the Propel makes a decent option for those who don't travel often, or who aren't comfortable floating a large annual fee.We named the Propel the best no-fee card of 2018.Click here to learn more about the Wells Fargo Propel card from Insider Picks' partner, The Points Guy.8. Chase Sapphire ReserveSign-up bonus: 50,000 points (after spending $4,000 in the first three months).The Sapphire Reserve is basically a beefier version of the Preferred. While the card comes with the same sign-up bonus, it earns points on everyday spending faster, nabbing a higher 3x points per dollar spent on travel and dining purchases, and 1x on everything else. It also offers similar, though in many cases, enhanced travel and purchase protections.Unlike the Preferred, the Sapphire Reserve comes with a Priority Pass Select membership, which gets you and any travel companions free access to more than 1,000 airport lounges around the world.You can use points from the Reserve the same ways as with the Preferred, except that you'll get a 50% bonus when booking travel through Chase, making your points worth 1.5¢ each.The card carries a higher annual fee than the Preferred: $450. However, it also comes with a $300 travel credit each card member year. Each year, you'll get statement credits for the first $300 in travel-related purchases you make, including things like subway fare, taxis, parking, and tolls, as well as airfare and hotels — naturally, you don't earn points on the purchases covered by that credit. When you subtract this credit from the annual fee, the card is effectively only $150 each year.If you're not sure whether the Preferred or Reserve is the better card for you, take a look at this breakdown. Also keep in mind that you can typically only earn the sign-up bonus for one Sapphire-branded card every two years.Click here to learn more about the Sapphire Reserve from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

如果您申请信用卡，Business Insider可能会收到The Points Guy Affiliate Network的佣金，但我们的报告和建议始终是独立和客观的。信用卡经常提供大额注册奖金以试图吸引新客户。使用新的信用卡赚取这些奖金是建立信用卡奖励，酒店忠诚度积分和常旅客里程的最快方式。本月有几个限时优惠，包括几个顶级酒店卡和主要的联合航空card.Plus，只剩下几天获得主流万豪Bonvoy奖励信用卡的入门奖金 - 优惠于5月2日结束。洲际酒店集团奖励卡的奖金在同一天结束。获得奖励积分，现金返还和常旅客里程的最快方式是打开一张新的信用卡并获得其注册或欢迎奖金。像Chase和AmEx这样的信用卡发行商提供巨额奖金以吸引客户，同时设计ca rd具有长期，持续的价值，以保持它们。这为消费者提供了利用这些奖金，津贴和功能的机会。您可以阅读更多关于获得新卡会员奖金以及这将如何影响您的信用评分的信息，或向下滚动以查找一些可用的最佳优惠请记住，我们专注于使这些信用卡成为很好选择的奖励和津贴，而不是利率和滞纳金，这远远超过任何奖励的价值。当你努力获得信贷时卡奖励，重要的是要实行财务纪律，比如每个月全额支付余额，按时付款，而不是花费超过你能负担得起的回报。基本上，将您的信用卡视为借记卡。万豪Bonvoy无限信用卡报名奖金：100,000万Bonvoy积分（前三个月支出5,000美元）。优惠截止日期为5月2日。虽然万豪优质卡的限时优惠，万豪Bonvoy Brilliant™mericanExpress®卡 - 结束了，还有几天时间可以使用主流版的个人卡：万豪Bonvoy Boundless信用卡，由Chase发行.Bonvoy Boundless优惠 - 100,000万点积分如果你在前三个月花费5,000美元 - 在5月2日结束。了解更多：2019年最佳信用卡奖励，奖金和福利，就像Brilliant一样，Boundless每年在持卡人周年纪念日提供免费夜间奖励;不同之处在于它只对每晚花费高达35,000点的房间有利，而不是50,000。幸运的是，这仍然包括很多属性。无边卡带有免费的银色精英状态。白银不会让你像黄金一样多，但它仍然是一些东西。您将获得10％的积分奖励，延迟结账优先权，专用客户服务热线，免费Wi-Fi等。虽然它不是公布的福利，但您也可以获得优惠房间。如果您在一个日历年内花费35,000美元或更多，您可以获得金币。您还可以在每个日历年获得15个符合条件的晚上精英信用额度，通过酒店住宿可以更轻松地获得金币或更高金额。该卡在万豪酒店每消费一美元可获得6倍积分，在其他所有酒店每消费2美分点击此处了解更多关于Insider Picks的合作伙伴The Points Guy的万豪Bonvoy Boundless卡片。 IHG Rewards Club Premier信用卡筹码奖励：高达120,000点（前三个月消费2,000美元后获得80,000点;前六个月共花费5,000美元后再增加40,000点）。优惠截至5月2日.IHG是少数连锁酒店的母公司，包括Holiday Inn。该公司在全球拥有超过5,600家酒店，使其成为仅次于万豪的第二大酒店品牌。洲际酒店集团拥有众多物业，包括Holiday Inn Express等经济型酒店，以及豪华的Regent和InterContinental酒店及度假村。 IHG的奖励俱乐部计划是ften被忽视了 - 我知道我很遗憾没有第二次看到有利于希尔顿荣誉客会或万豪Bonvoy（并且在当天，喜达屋优先顾客）。但是，这个程序值得再次看，并且是新的增加其主要信用卡上的注册奖金提供了一个绝佳的机会。现在，IHG Rewards Club Premier卡的注册奖金高达120,000点，分为两部分。首先，如果你在前三个月花费2000美元，你将获得80,000分。然后，如果您在前六个月内额外花费3,000美元（总计5,000美元），您将获得剩余的40,000点.IHG最近分享此奖金仅限于有限时间，结束日期已经过去宣布：5月2日。根据房产及其在城市中的位置，客房每晚仅需10,000点积分。奖金足以支付快捷假日酒店近两周的房价 - 即使是一些主要市场 - 或者在洲际顶级酒店住宿两到四晚。该卡在IHG酒店每消费1美元可获得10倍积分，每次消费2倍在加油站，杂货店和餐馆花费的美元，以及其他一切的1美分。它还具有自动白金精英身份，您可以享受住宿期间获得的积分50％的奖励，免费房间升级，延迟退房时间以及72小时通知的保证房间可用性 - 如果您有最后一个，则有帮助Premier卡.Premier卡提供年度免费住宿证书，可用于1-7类酒店（酒店每晚费用40,000点或以下）。虽然这意味着IHG的一些最优质地点被排除在外，但证书仍然在世界各地的许多地方都有效。例如，我在高峰旅行期间在纽约和芝加哥等主要城市寻找房产时没有遇到任何问题。本季 - 所有收费都高达200美元 - 接受免费住宿证明。这足以弥补该卡的89美元点击此处了解更多关于来自Insider Picks合作伙伴的IHG Rewards Club Premier：The Points Guy.3。 United Explorer CardSign-up奖励：高达60,000英里（前三个月花费2,000美元，前六个月共花费8,000美元后增加20,000英里）。优惠截至5月16日。去年，United和Chase重新推出了他们的联名信用卡，略微改变了名称，但更重要的是，调整了优惠并改善了卡获得积分的方式。以前，该卡在与美联航一起花费的每一美元上花了2英里里程，在其他一切上花了1美元。现在，该卡还可以在餐馆和酒店获得2倍积分。这个注册奖金是我们在这张卡上看到的更好的公开优惠之一，考虑到消费需求，但它只能在5月16日之前使用。该卡提供了当您使用卡购买机票时，免费托运行李，优先登机，只要您的前程万里（MileagePlus）帐户附有开放卡，机上购物可享受25％折扣，以及用于支付全球入境或TSA申请的费用。 PreCheck。在同一级别的美国航空公司信用卡中，United Explorer还有两项独特优势。首先，您每年可获得两张免费的美联航贵宾室通行证。在休息室，您可以在飞行前享受舒适的座位，无线网络连接，免费食物和饮料等。通常情况下，如果您没有会员资格，一次性进入美联航俱乐部需要花费59美元。其次，尽管这是一项未公布的优惠，但联合国持卡人还可以获得比其他联合会会员更多的奖励空间 - 这使得它更容易在使用里程时找到好的航班。这张卡的年费为95美元，第一年免除。点击此处了解更多关于Insider Picks合作伙伴的The United Explorer Card：The Points Guy.4。追逐蓝宝石首选卡额外奖励：60,000分（前三个月消费满$ 4,000）蓝宝石首选是最受欢迎的全能之一ewards信用卡，很容易理解为什么。这张卡在几乎所有的旅行和餐饮购物上花费了2美分，而在其他所有商品上花费了1倍。它还附带了大量的旅行和购买保障，例如租车保险，旅行延误保险和延长保修期。该卡的注册奖金自2015年以来首次上调 - 现在是60,000终极奖励（UR）点。至少600美元的现金返还或礼品卡是值得的。但是，如果您通过Chase Ultimate Rewards门户预订旅行并使用积分支付，您将获得25％的奖金，每个积分价值1.25美分。这意味着注册奖金价值750美元。甚至更有利可图 - Chase Sapphire Preferred让您将UR积分转移到几个不同的常旅客和酒店忠诚度计划。这很方便，因为在许多情况下，如果您通过其中一个程序而不是将积分用作现金，那么预订旅行的费用会更少。您可以阅读更多关于为什么将点数转移到常旅客计划为您带来更多价值的原因。这一切都需要95美元的相当标准的年费，第一年不会放弃。点击这里了解更多关于蓝宝石首选的内幕消息选择合作伙伴The Points Guy.5。来自American ExpressWelcome的PlatinumCard®优惠：60,000积分（前三个月花费5,000美元）。美国运通白金卡是所有消费者信用卡或信用卡年费最高的一张 - 550美元 - 但作为AmEx的旗舰产品，这个优质信用卡提供了巨大的价值来抵消这笔费用。例如，我在卡的第一年就获得了超过2000美元的价值。该卡获得会员奖励积分，这是AmEx忠诚计划中的货币，可用于兑换报表信用或现金返还，用于预订通过AmEx的旅行旅行网站，或者，为了获得最大的价值，转移到17家航空公司和三家酒店转让合作伙伴中的任何一家（可转让积分是最好的。旅游网站The Points Guy列出了每个会员奖励积分2美分的估值;基于此，欢迎优惠价值约1,200美元。白金卡直接从航空公司购买机票，获得令人难以置信的5倍积分，并提供每个日历年最高200美元的航空公司费用，每个优惠最高可达200美元卡会员年。它还允许持卡人访问全球1200多个机场休息室，包括达美航空俱乐部和AmEx自己的Centurion休息室。其他优惠包括万豪和希尔顿忠诚度计划中的自动黄金精英身份，声明信用额度高达100美元可用于报名参加Global Entry / TSA PreCheck，礼宾服务，参加独家活动等等。如果您是活跃的军事会员，您可以免除AmEx白金卡的费用。您可以阅读我们的完整评论。这里点击此处了解更多关于Insider Picks的合作伙伴The Points Guy的美国运通白金版。 Wells Fargo PropelAmericanExpress®CardWelcome提供：30,000 Go Far积分（前三个月消费3,000美元）。富国银行的这张卡片提供了一张非年度收费卡中更具吸引力的奖励。目前的Propel卡是旧产品的重新推出 - Wells Fargo在一年前停止接受旧卡的申请，然后在今年夏天宣布新产品并重新开放申请。该卡在所有旅行，餐饮和选择流媒体上获得3倍积分服务（和其他一切1x点）。如果这听起来很熟悉，那是因为它与流行的Chase Sapphire Reserve几乎相同。卡片之间存在重大差异。 Propel可让您以1美分兑换现金返还，商品，旅行或更多积分，而蓝宝石保护区则提供一系列更有价值的兑换选项 - Chase积分可轻松获得至少50％的价值。此外，蓝宝石保护区还提供许多高级额外津贴，而Propel则没有，例如机场休息室，价格为300美元当然，蓝宝石保护区还提供450美元的年费，而富国银行的费用则不收取费用。在新会员优惠和流行消费类别的稳定收益率之间，Propel为那些不经常旅行，或者不愿意花费大量年费的人提供了一个不错的选择。我们将Propel评为最佳选择2018.点击此处了解更多关于Insider Picks的合作伙伴The Points Guy的Wells Fargo Propel卡片。追逐蓝宝石储备奖励积分：50,000点（在前三个月花费4,000美元后）。蓝宝石储备基本上是首选的更强大的版本。虽然该卡具有相同的注册奖金，但它可以更快地获得日常消费积分，在购买旅行和餐饮时每消费1美元可获得更高的积分，在其他所有内容上获得1倍。它也提供了类似的，但在许多情况下，增强了旅行和购买保护。与首选相比，蓝宝石保护区提供优先通行证选择会员资格，让您和任何旅行同伴免费访问世界各地的1,000多个机场休息室。您可以使用与优惠相同的方式使用预订积分，但在预订Chase旅行时您将获得50％的奖励，每个积分价值1.5美分。此卡的年费高于优惠： $ 450但是，每个卡会员年度还需要300美元的旅行积分。每年，您将获得与旅行相关的首300美元购买的声明积分，包括地铁票价，出租车，停车费和通行费，以及机票和酒店 - 当然，您不会获得积分该信贷所涵盖的购买。当您从年费中扣除此信用额时，该卡实际上每年只有150美元。如果您不确定首选或预订是否适合您，请查看此分类。另请注意，您通常只能获得一张Sapphi的注册奖金每两年一次电子品牌。点击此处了解更多关于Insider Picks的合作伙伴：The Points Guy的蓝宝石保护区。