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The 5 Cards with a Permanent Spot in my Wallet
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Opening new cards strategically to cash in big welcome offers of points to get your fam cheaper vacations is KEY to this whole points strategy.
Yet, when not working on a new minimum spend, I find myself using some tried and true cards…these guys will NEVER leave my wallet and help me earn the most travel ongoing via our normal everyday spend and have an INVALUABLE “homebase” with each bank long term.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
If I could only pick ONE of these four cards to keep forever- this Sapphire wins. Chase points are UNMATCHED in their flexibility and value.
And the Sapphire is always rewarding me for doing what we do best – eat and eat (responsibly of course:)).
We’re talking a 3x points on things like online groceries and dining out…this is hugeeee for our larger family!
I personally like to keep a fair amount of our ongoing monthly expenses on the Sapphire, for two reasons:
- Chase points are the MOST value points to me
- I want Chase to continue to think I am a very valuable customer (i.e. increase odds of future card approvals)
The points earned on our Sapphire transfer to SO many clutch airline and hotel partners. Like Air France for dirt cheap flights to Europe. Or Hyatt for luxury hotel stays for $0 and soooo many less points than if you were to use those points in your travel portal.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is our “homebase” card and a KEY part of our big picture saving on family vacations strategy!
→ Either the Sapphire OR the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is a good choice depending on your family’s priorities, budget, and preferences! With the new refreshed credits and the 2x Points Boost feature with the Reserve, long term I think one of the two is a non-negotiable!
DO NOT skip on this one…if you are just starting out – don’t be overwhelmed with all this, just get this #1 card and then I’ll show you where to go step-by-step from there!
💳 Learn how to apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card HERE!
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
2x points on EVERYTHING! This is my “catch all” card for higher value purchases that don’t fit into a high multiplier category on other cards. Gymnastics tuition, Car Insurance etc.
I LOVE using my Capital One MILES specifically for flights (their airline transfer partners are amazing!) and also to have on hand to reimburse ourselves for any of those “harder to save on” travel expenses – like Airbnbs!
And the lounge access! This card gets you unlimited entry to all Capital One Lounges and over 1300+ participating Priority Pass™ lounges worldwide…although the Venture X changed their guest access rules in 2026 – this perk is still a huge win when I am traveling solo.
Yes, at first glance the annual fee on this one is steep. HOWEVER, if you look at the yearly credits, it truly does nullify that annual fee and then some.
- $300 annual very easy to use travel credit
- 10,000 yearly anniversary points (worth a MINIMUM of $100 in travel)
If you spend at least $300 on travel a year on average, the Venture X is a no brainer.
→ With Capital One’s eligibility rules you will want to earn the bonus on the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card BEFORE the X!
💳 Learn how to apply for the Capital One Venture X HERE!
American Express® Gold Card
Terms Apply,
Rates and Fees
I love having a long term strategy for diversified stashes of points – this ensure we are getting the very LOWEST rates on travel at all times.
The American Express Gold is without question my top pick for my “homebase” with American Express and the best entry point to this bank.
HERE’S WHY:
- 4X points on groceries and dining out (highest multiplier on these categories of ANY card!)
- The ability to earn points instead of cash back via Rakuten!
- Fairly easy to use annual credit to offset the annual fee!
This card easily puts enough affordable travel BACK in our pockets for the spend we are going to have to do anyway – that we really would be losing money to not keep this one in our forever wallet!
💳 Learn how to apply for the American Express® Gold Card HERE!
Citi Strata Elite℠ Card or Citi Strata Premier® Card
Now TBH these cards were notttt on my “forever keeper” list up until 2025. But then everythingggg changed, when Citi added American Airlines as a transfer partner.
(NO other bank transfers to American….so this is huge!)
Living in a DFW a major, AA hub, this is really valuable to us. Also of note-
- On the Elite, I love the 1.5x points on ALL purchases makes this another great “catch-all” card
- The two free guests Priority Pass lounge access with the Elite is also GOLD!
→ This may not be a keeper card for EVERY family, BUT if you live in an American Airlines hub and value lounge access (with the kids!) it’s worth a strong “forever keeper” consideration!
Chase Freedom Flex®
Then there’s my unsung hero- the Chase Freedom Flex®.
(Referral Link. All information about the Chase Freedom Flex® has been collected independently by Wayfaren. The Chase Freedom Flex® is no longer available through Wayfaren.)
I say this card isn’t a great REDEEMING card, but it is a fantastic EARNING card.
Meaning there is no value when it comes to redeeming points for travel (no airline or hotel transfers), buttttt this card is a phenomenal way to EARN points.
***Here’s the KEY: Every quarter, you get 5x points on rotating categories.
There is a $1,500 cap each quarter on this 5x bonus, but when possible we really try to max that out EVERY quarter!
These Chase points can then be moved over to our #1 “homebase” Sapphire above and thennnnn transferred out for some WILD value on family vacations!
💳 Learn how to apply for the Chase Freedom Flex® HERE!
(Referral Link. All information about the Chase Freedom Flex® has been collected independently by Wayfaren. The Chase Freedom Flex® is no longer available through Wayfaren.)
Honorable Mentions
With all the recent changes to domestic airlines (lookin’ at you Southwest), I DO think it could be valuable long-term to hold an card with an airline that either you fly frequently or live in a major hub of.
Things like free bags and getting to pick preferred seats etc can save you a lot of money in the long run, if you are a regular on any of the major airlines!
- Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®
How this all fits together
When we aren’t working on a minimum spend, THESE are the cards that are strategically earning us the most valuable points for nearly free vacations and serving as our “homebases” with each bank!
SIMPLY, for us it may look like this (but simplify this AS MUCH as your family wants and needs!):
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: All lower value everyday autopay type expenses (even though it may only earn me 1x point, I need simplicity in this season, and of ANY bank I want Chase to think I am a valuable customer most!). Some dining out goes on this card too.
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: All higher value “don’t fit in a category” everyday expenses
- American Express Gold: All online grocery orders + dining out
- Citi Strata Elite℠ Card: Love the ability to earn valuable American miles on everyday purchases
- Chase Freedom Flex®: Switch to this card if an expense fits into a 5x quarterly category (i.e. all Gas on this card for Quarter 1)
(Referral Link. All information about the Chase Freedom Flex® has been collected independently by Wayfaren. The Chase Freedom Flex® is no longer available through Wayfaren.)
I get a wholleeeee lot of DMs about cancelling and downgrading cards once they are no longer serving you beyond that welcome bonus.
→ SIMPLY: If it’s not one of these 4 cards, it is very likely getting a HARD look at the value to annual fee cost ratio! (to downgrade or cancel after the one year mark!)
ADVERTISER DISCLOSURE:
Wayfaren is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites such as MileValue.com and Bankrate.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. We appreciate it when you use our affiliate links as it supports our content at no cost to you!
EDITORIAL NOTE:
Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included with the post.
