Best Credit Card Deals

A reader recently left a comment about the Discover More card's 5% cash back offer:

Remember, you only get 5% cash back on gas 3 months of each year (for 2009 that has already passed). Also, until you spend $3000, you only get 0.25% to 0.50% cash back (specifically, you get $3.75 cash back if you spend exactly $1500, or $11.25 cash back if you spend exactly $3000). Compare that to a true (tierless) 1% cash back card, where you would have earned $30.00 if you spent exactly $3000, almost 3 times more!

The analysis is interesting, although it assumes that none of the $3,000 charged to the Discover More Card qualifies for the 5% cash back. In response to the comment, I began researching credit card deals that pay out cash, gift cards, or miles just for signing up or making an initial purchase. Here are the current deals I uncovered:

Chase Freedom--$50 Cash Sign Up Bonus

The Chase Freedom credit card offers a $50 cash bonus after your first purchase with the card. Here are the details:

You will receive $50 in bonus rebates with this bonus offer, which can be redeemed for a $50 check. You will qualify for and receive your bonus after your first purchase/first use of the card. First purchase/first use includes purchases, balance transfers, or any checks that are used to access your account, and excludes cash advances. After qualifying, please allow 6 to 8 weeks for bonus rebates to post to your account. This one-time bonus offer is valid only for first-time cardmembers with new accounts. Existing cardmembers/accounts are not eligible for this bonus offer.

The $50 bonus is in addition to the 1% to 3% cash back rewards and 0% on purchase for up to 12 months. For more information, you can read this Chase Freedom review or get more details from Chase at www.chase.com/freedom.

Citi Forward--11,000 Points Worth Nearly $100

Citi Forward offers two ways to earn up to a total of 11,000 bonus points. First, you can earn 6,000 bonus points by making just $250 worth of purchases in the first three months of card membership. Second, you can earn 5,000 bonus points when you sign up for paperless statements within three months of account opening. The combined 11,000 bonus points can then be redeemed for gift cards at popular retailers such as Lowe's, The Gap, JCPenney, and Kohl's.

For most gift cards, they can be redeemed in $25 increments in exchange for 3,500 points. Several retailers, however, offer special deals where you can redeem about 10,000 points for $100 gift cards. L.L. Bean and Land's End offer this deal, for example. On top of the bonus points, Citi Forward also offers 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for 6 months. To get more information on the card, you can read this Citi Forward review or get more information from Citi at www.citi.com/forward.

Starwood Preferred Guest Card by American Express--25,000 Bonus StarPoints Good for Up To 3 Free Nights

The Starwood Preferred Amex is one of the most rewarding all around travel reward credit card deals. And the card has two was to earn bonus Starpoints. First, earn 10,000 Starpoints® with your first purchase, wich is enough for up to 3 free nights at a Category 1 or 2 hotel. And second, earn an additional 15,000 Starpoints when you spend $15,000 in 6 months, enough for up to 3 free nights at a Category 1 or 2 hotel.

You can also redeem your Starpoints for gift cards at popular retailers. For example, 25,000 Starpoints are enough for a $250 Amazon gift card. Starpoints can be redeemed for gift cards at other retailers, including Banana Republic, Nordstrom, Pottery Barn, and iTunes. For more information about this card,check out our Starwood Preferred Guest Amex review or visit www.americanexpress.com/starwood.

Discover Escape Card--25,000 Bonus Miles

The Discover Escape card offers 1,000 bonus miles each month the card is use for a purchase for the first 25 months. These miles can be redeemed for everything from travel to gift cards to cash. The value of the points varies depending on what you redeem them for. Travel rewards can be redeemed at a rate of 1% (10,000 miles = $100). In addition to the bonus miles, this card offers 0% APR on balance transfers for 6 months. There is a $60 annual fee for the card. You can check out our review of the Discover Escape card or go to Discover to get more information and apply for the card at www.discover.com/escape.

If you don't like paying an annual fee, check out the Miles card by Discover. There is no annual fee, but the card offers only 12,000 bonus miles.

Citi PremierPass Card - Elite Level--20,000 Bonus Points

The Citi PremierPass credit card is an award winning rewards points card. Points earned can be redeemed through the Citi ThankYou Points program for just about anything, include gift cards, statement credits, or even to pay on a student loan. The Citi PremierPass offers 20,000 points ThankYou points after $600 in purchases in the first three months. Note that Citi PremierPass offers almost twice the number of bonus ThankYou points than the Citi Forward. Keep in mind, however, that there is a $75 annual fee for the PremierPass card; there is no annual fee for Citi Forward. You can check out more details about the Citi PremierPass card or apply online at www.citi.com/premierpass.

TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express--$25 Bonus

For my money, the TrueEarnings card is one of the best credit card deals around. The card pays 3% cash back on gas, making it one of the top gas reward credit cards available. The Costco card also pays 3% cash back on travel, 2% cash back at restaurants, and 1% cash back on everything else, including purchases at Costco. And as for the bonus, cardholders get a $25 statement credit after their first purchase with the card. For more details on the card, you can read our review of the True Earnings card or visit the American Express TrueEarnings page.

Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express--$150 Bonus

American Express recently launched the Premier edition of its well known Rewards Gold Card. With the Premier, you can earn substantial rewards points:

• Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards® bonus points when you spend $1,000 in your first 3 months of Card membership – redeemable for up to $150 in gift Cards upon point credit at participating retail, dining, and entertainment partners.
• Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards bonus points when you spend $30,000 per calendar year
• Earn Membership Rewards® points up to three times as fast: You can earn 3X points on airfare, 2X points on gas and groceries, and 1X points on everything else.

There is no annual fee for this card during the first year, then $175 per year. You can get more information about this card and apply online at the American Express Premier Gold Card page.