Each month, I recap the best credit card offers currently available. There are a lot of credit cards out there offering generous signup bonuses. Some bonuses are better than others. Hopefully, this post will give you some ideas if you’re looking for your next credit card.Â
For a list of all the credit cards I recommend, check out my best credit cards page, where you can find out more credit card offers and apply for cards not listed in this post.
It’s important to note that this post is not intended to be an exhaustive list of credit cards and there may be cards that I haven’t listed that are better for you. If you want personalized advice for your situation, consider filling out my free credit card consultation form and I’ll get back to you with specific advice for your situation.
Before you get started, be sure you understand the Chase 5/24 Rule. This is an important rule that will impact your long-term strategy when it comes to credit card rewards. Also, if you have a side hustle or anything that can qualify as a business, consider taking advantage of business credit cards. These are a great way to earn even more points and miles.
With all that said, here are some of the current best credit card offers for March 2023:Â Â
Chase Sapphire ReserveÂ
The Chase Sapphire Reserve is offering 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after spending $4,000 in 3 months. This makes it one of the top cards I recommend for most people. The card comes with a $300 travel credit that works for almost anything related to travel, including things like parking fees and public transit fares, so the $300 travel credit is as good as cash for almost everyone. You can find the 60,000 point signup bonus at this Chase Sapphire Reserve link.
Importantly, it’s possible to double-dip the travel credit if you decide the card isn’t a long-term option for you. That means in the first year, you can always end up with a $50 net gain simply from using the travel credits.Â
If you are considering the Chase Sapphire Reserve, be aware of a few rules. The first is the Chase 5/24 rule, which states that you are not eligible for a new Chase credit card if you’ve opened five (5) or more credit cards in the past 24 months from any bank. This only includes cards that appear on your credit report, so most business cards won’t count towards your 5/24 number. I have an in-depth post that explains how the Chase 5/24 Rule works that you can read here.
The second rule you need to know is the Chase One Sapphire Rule. Chase only allows you to earn the bonus on one Sapphire branded card every 48 months. Thus, if you’ve earned the bonus on either the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Chase Sapphire Reserve in the last 48 months, you won’t be eligible for this bonus.Â
Chase Sapphire PreferredÂ
The Chase Sapphire Preferred is offering 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after spending $4,000 in 3 months.
If you’re thinking about getting the Chase Sapphire Preferred, do not forget the 5/24 rule and the One Sapphire rule.Â
The 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth $750 if redeemed in the Chase travel portal, but can be worth more if transferred to travel partners. Note that the card does come with a $95 annual fee that is not waived in the first year, but the annual fee is easily justified by the signup bonus. After a year, you can product change your card to a Chase Sapphire Reserve, assuming you want the benefits that come with the Chase Sapphire Reserve or if you don’t need the card, then product change to a no-fee card like the Chase Freedom, Chase Freedom Unlimited, or Chase Freedom Flex.Â
Of the two Sapphire branded cards, I’d recommend getting the Chase Sapphire Reserve first since it gives you a travel credit to offset the annual fee. That being said, if the fee is too high for you or you aren’t in a position to get the Chase Sapphire Reserve, you can go with the Preferred instead and consider upgrading later if/when you are ready.
Chase Business CardsÂ
The Chase Ink Cash and Chase Ink Unlimited are both offering 75,000 Chase Ultimate Reward points after spending $6,000 within the first three months. If you’re able to meet the minimum spend requirement and are comfortable getting business credit cards, these are the top cards I recommend.Â
Both the Chase Ink Cash and the Chase Ink Unlimited have no annual fees. The $6,000 spending requirement can be a bit steep for some people, but if you have large expenses coming up or have some other way to hit the minimum spending requirements, these two offers are very appealing (paying taxes is a great way to hit a large minimum spend requirement).
The Chase Ink Preferred has a 100,000 point signup bonus after spending $15,000 within the first three months. This is also an appealing offer, but of course, the $15,000 spending requirement is going to be out of reach for many people. It’s worth getting if you have some large expenses to pay, so consider planning this card around those expenses (think tax payments, home renovations, etc). That being said, at the moment, the Chase Ink Cash and Chase Ink Unlimted are probably the better cards for most people given the high signup bonus and lower spending requirement.
If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a message.Â
Additional Resources
- Chase 5/24 Rule – Maximize Your Travel Hacking
- What You Need To Know About The Chase One Sapphire Rule
- Business Credit Cards: The Ultimate Tool For Travel Hackers
- The “Other” Business Cards That Aren’t From Chase Or American Express
More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes/scooters I've had the chance to do a review for:
- GEN3 Outcross Bike – The GEN3 Outcross is a solid, affordable fat tire ebike that does a good job of doing what I need it to do. It works great for city riding, giving me a smooth ride in all conditions. It’s works really well as a winter ebike since the fat tires give it good traction over snow and ice. Check out my GEN3 Outcross Review.
- Himiway Escape Bike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Bike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($100) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Moomoo (5 free stocks) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 5 free stocks (usually worth around $75-$100) if you open an account using a referral link and deposit $2,000. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Webull (5 free stocks) – Webull also gives you 5 free stock valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free stocks using Webull.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- US Bank Business ($500) – This offer is limited to customers in the following states: AZ, AR, CA, CO, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NM, NC, ND, OH, OR, SD, TN, UT, WA, WI, WY. This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, since there are no direct deposit requirements. In addition, you can open the Silver Business Checking account, which comes with no monthly fees. Check out how to earn this big bonus here.
- SoFi Money ($275) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $250 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($100) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
- Upgrade ($50) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $50 referral bonus if you open an account and complete three debit card transactions. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Importantly, this bonus says that it’s now scheduled to end on April 15, 2023. As long as you get your account opened before April 15th, you should be eligible. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $50 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link.Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- Digital Federal Credit Union ($20) – Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a saving account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000. Check out my in-depth post on how to set this account up.
- Netspend ($20 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $20 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $20 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Varo ($30) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $30 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $250 if you complete a direct deposit.
- US Bank Business. US Bank is currently offering new business customers a $500 signup bonus after opening a new account and meeting certain requirements.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account.
- DCU. Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a savings account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000.
- Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
Hi! Love your card bonus updates. I got a great Ink bonus using your link. 🙂 Can you get a Sapphire Preferred card bonus if you currently have an active Reserve card?
You’d need to downgrade the Chase Sapphire Reserve to a Chase Freedom or Freedom Unlimited, then open the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
But remember, you can only get the Chase Sapphire Preferred bonus if you haven’t gotten a bonus on either the Chase Sapphire Prefered or Chase Sapphire Reserve in the past 48 months. So once every 4 years.
Looks like the Southwest offer has changed. I’m seeing 40,000 points and there’s an annual fee, even for the Plus card.
Oh yeah, that offer ended earlier this month. Need to update the post.
If you’re looking for Southwest Companion Pass, then I’d recommend getting the Southwest biz cards right now.