Getting ahead with travel credit cards is all about timing: Opening a card when the welcome bonus is at its highest is what it’s all about. If you’re in the market for a new travel credit card, this is the place to start.
Just as we do every month, we’ve assembled a list of the best currently available credit card offers for December 2025 – and everything you need to know if you are thinking about taking advantage.
But remember: Credit cards are serious business. You should never apply for a credit card if you’re already in debt, and never charge more to a credit card than you can afford to pay off immediately. However many points and miles you can earn, they’re not worth it.
Not sure which card is best for you? Check out CardPilot, our brand-new tool designed to help beginners and experts alike choose the right card to fuel their travels!
1. Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Current Offer
For a limited time, you can earn bonus_miles_full. This is the biggest bonus we’ve ever seen on the popular *capital one venture x*!
Considering you earn at least 2x miles for every dollar you spend on the Venture X Card, you’ll have at least 120,000 miles (worth at least $1,200 towards travel) right off the bat.
Annual Fee: $395
Learn more about the *capital one venture x*
Why This Offer Makes the List
The Venture X is a souped-up version of the ever-popular *capital one venture card* that’s chock full of extra benefits like access to Capital One Lounges, Priority Pass lounges. It also includes an annual $300 Capital One Travel credit, a statement credit of up to $120 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, great travel and rental car protections, and more.
Sure, the card’s $395 annual fee may immediately turn off some travelers, but in practice, the card is actually far cheaper. Consider this: You get an automatic $300 credit towards travel booked through the Capital One Travel portal each year – and then, starting in year two, you get a 10,000-mile anniversary bonus (worth a minimum of $100).
Are you the kind of person who plans to spend $400 a year or more on travel? If so, do the math, and you’ll see your real out-of-pocket cost isn’t much. And it’s an even better deal when you add in all the other perks and welcome bonus, which you can use to cover nearly any travel purchase.
Read More: A Full Review of the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
2. American Express® Gold Card
Current Offer
bonus_miles_full
Annual Fee: $325 (see rates & fees)
Learn more about the *amex gold*
Why This Offer Makes the List
The *amex gold card* is one of our favorite travel rewards cards, period.
With the new offer on the Amex Gold, you can now earn as high as 100,000 points after spending $6,000 in the first six months. After you submit your application – but before you accept the card (if you are approved) and your credit score is pulled – Amex will let you know the exact welcome offer you are eligible for.
The Gold Card earns 4x points for every dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 annually, then 1x) and 4x points per dollar spent at restaurants worldwide (up to $50,000 annually, then 1x), making it arguably the best card to use for all your food purchases.
You’ll also get up to $120 in dining credits each year (doled out in $10 monthly increments) to spend at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, or Five Guys, up to $84 in Dunkin’ Credit each year (up to $7 per month), up to $100 in Resy Credit per year (up to $50 semi-annually), and up to $120 annually in Uber Cash ($10 per month) to use on both Uber and Uber Eats in the U.S. All of these credits are use-them-or-lose-them benefits, any unused amount won’t roll over from month-to-month.
Maximizing these credits alone will cover all your $325 annual fee and then some. These credits and bonus categories are a big reason why we feel the card is easily worth the $325 annual fee.
Read our full review of the American Express Gold Card.
3. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Current Offer
We’ve long considered the *chase sapphire preferred* to be one of the best cards for anyone just getting started with points and miles … and that still hasn’t changed.
Its current sign-up bonus is a big reason why: You can currently earn 75,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 in your first three months from account opening.
Annual Fee: $95
Learn more about the *csp*
Why This Offer Makes the List
So, what can 75,000 points get you? In two words: A lot.
Those points are worth a minimum of $750 toward flights, hotels, and other travel expenses booked through Chase Travel℠. They can also be redeemed for $750 in cash straight to your bank account … or for a number of third-party gift cards.
But you can probably do even better by leveraging Chase’s transfer partners and sending those points to airlines like Air Canada Aeroplan, Air France/KLM Flying Blue, British Airways Avios – or even a top-notch hotel partner like Hyatt – instead.
The value of the Chase Sapphire Preferred goes well beyond its initial welcome bonus, though. When you use the card for purchases, you’ll earn 3x points on dining, online grocery orders and streaming services, 2x on travel (even more through Chase Travel), and 1x on all other purchases. Add in the card’s annual $50 hotel credit for bookings made through Chase Travel, and it’s clear why this card is such a favorite among beginners and experts alike.
Not to mention, the Sapphire Preferred seems ripe for an annual fee hike. Grab it now and lock in at least one year at the current $95 annual fee price point.
4. The American Express Platinum Card®
Current Offer
bonus_miles_full
Annual Fee: annual_fees (see rates & fees)
Learn more about the *amex platinum*.
Why This Offer Makes the List
With the new “as high as” offer on the *amex platinum* you might be eligible for a big welcome offer! Exactly what bonus offer you’re eligible for will vary, but you can now earn as high as 175,000 points after spending $8,000 in the first six months.
After you submit your application – but before you accept the card (if you are approved) and your credit score is pulled – Amex will let you know the exact welcome offer you are eligible for.
There’s a reason why the *amex platinum* comes with such a high price tag … after the latest round of changes last month, the card is chock-full of new benefits. But with a huge welcome offer bonus and unbeatable travel perks, now is as good of a time as ever to get the Platinum Card.
And while that big annual fee may be hard to stomach, you can still come out way ahead in your first year, thanks in part to the huge welcome offer. Better yet, you can double-dip by opening the card now: Use up a bunch of money-saving credits before the year ends, then get another round of perks come Jan. 1 when everything resets for the New Year.
Just know that if you don’t already have an American Express Membership Rewards-earning card, it may be better to start at the bottom and work your way up. With changes to Amex application rules, going straight to Amex’s best card could cost you additional new card welcome offers down the road.
5. Chase Sapphire Reserve®
Current Offer
After nearly a decade, the *chase sapphire reserve* got a refresh back in June and a big new offer to go with it.
Here’s what you can currently get: bonus_miles_full
Before applying, be sure to check to see if you’re targeted for an even bigger 175,000-point bonus with Chase’s pre-approved offers!
Annual Fee: $795
Learn more about the *chase sapphire reserve*.
Why This Offer Makes the List
This bonus is worth a minimum of $1,250 towards flights, hotels, and other travel expenses booked through Chase Travel℠. But once again, you can probably do even better by leveraging Chase’s transfer partners instead.
The card’s new, higher annual fee unlocks a slew of premium travel benefits, starting with an easy-to-use $300 annual travel credit that effectively cuts the annual fee down to $495. You also get access to Chase’s growing list of Sapphire Lounges, an annual $500 hotel credit through Chase’s “The Edit℠” portfolio of properties, an annual $300 Chase Dining credit at “Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables” restaurants, up to a $120 credit for NEXUS, Global Entry, or TSA PreCheck®, top-notch travel insurance, and much more.
This is the type of card you get for the big bonus offer and keep around year after year for the ongoing travel perks and offsetting statement credits.
Heads up:rumblings that Chase is working on There are a record-busting 200,000-point welcome offer, though that likely involves making a trip to Chase Bank branch and some luck.
6. Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Current Offer
Right now, you can earn bonus_miles_full.
Annual Fee: $95
Learn more about the *capital one venture card*
Why This Offer Makes the List
Considering Capital One miles can be used to cover nearly any travel purchase at a rate of 1 cent per mile, the current 75,000-mile bonus you’ll earn after spending $4,000 in the first three months is worth a minimum of $750 towards travel.
While you won’t get all the perks that come with the premium *venture x* , you also won’t be on the hook for a $395 annual fee each year. And you’ll be earning the same unlimited 2x miles on every purchase, just like the Venture X. This means it’ll be easy to keep racking up miles well after you earn the big bonus.
The Venture Card includes a statement credit of up to $120 every four years to cover the cost of a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck membership – making it one of the most cost-effective ways to get this benefit from a credit card.
With a big offer like this, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better card for someone just getting started with points and miles.
Read More: All About the Capital One Venture Card
7. A Mystery Card
Current Offer
You can currently earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 in the first three months on this card.
Which card, exactly? We can’t say here thanks to some silly bank rules, but it’s the biggest bonus we’ve ever seen on this new card, making it worth your attention.
If you’re looking for an easy way to score 100,000 credit card points that can be transferred directly to American Airlines (or a dozen-plus other airline and hotel programs), this is worth a look.
Annual Fee: $595
Learn more about this great new offer.
8. Chase Freedom Unlimited
Current Offer
bonus_miles_full.
It’s rare to see a bonus this big on a no-annual-fee card!
Annual Fee: No annual fee
Learn more about the *chase freedom unlimited*
Why This Offer Makes the List
In the world of travel rewards credit cards, the best things don’t come free. Want great travel perks like lounge access, statement credits for TSA PreCheck, or Global Entry? Those benefits are typically reserved for cards with big annual fees.
But while cards like Amex Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve are loaded with big benefits, that doesn’t mean those are the cards you should be swiping day in and day out to earn points. That’s where a card like the no-annual-fee *chase freedom unlimited* really shines, earning unlimited 1.5% cashback on all purchases.
On its own, it’s a great no-annual-fee cashback credit card, but when you pair it with a Chase Sapphire card, you can turn that cash back into valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards points – and it helps you earn them even faster, too.
9. & 10. No Annual Fee Chase Ink Business Cards
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card
Current Offer
bonus_miles_full
Annual Fee: $0
Learn more about the *Ink Cash*.
Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Current Offer
bonus_miles_full
Annual Fee: $0
Learn more about the *chase ink unlimited*.
Why These Offers Make the List
The *Ink Cash* and the *Ink Unlimited* are two no-annual fee cash back business cards that pack a huge punch.
Small business owners who already have a card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points like the *chase sapphire preferred*, or even the *chase sapphire reserve* should give these two Ink Business cards a long, hard look. With one of those cards in your wallet, the cash back these cards earn can be turned into Ultimate Rewards points, making the rewards much more valuable – especially if your ultimate goal is travel.
Wondering if you are eligible to open a small business credit card to earn more travel rewards? You might be surprised by the answer. And trust us, it’s less intimidating than you may think.
If you’re unsure which one to pick, Chase doesn’t restrict you from having both … but a recent change may mean you’re ineligible for a bonus. Chase quietly updated the terms on all of its Ink business cards by slipping new language into the fine print that disqualifies many would-be applicants.
Read More: Chase Ink Cash vs Ink Unlimited: Which Offers the Best Return for Your Business?
Bottom Line
December is yet another big month in terms of elevated credit card offers. While there are plenty of cards and bonuses to choose from, we think these are the best travel rewards card offers currently available.
Be sure to check our Top Credit Cards Page, as offers are always changing.