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best-for5 min read

The best credit card for dining, by the numbers.

The contenders

Amex Gold Card®
American Express
Annual fee
$325
Sign-up bonus
60,000 bonus points
Base rate
1x on everything else
Top bonuses
  • 4xDining
  • 4xGroceries
  • 3xFlights
FX fee
None
Chase Sapphire Preferred®
Chase
Annual fee
$95
Sign-up bonus
75,000 bonus points
Base rate
1x on everything else
Top bonuses
  • 3xDining
  • 3xGas Stations
  • 3xEV Charging
FX fee
None
Capital One Savor
Capital One
Annual fee
No fee
Sign-up bonus
$250 bonus
Base rate
1x on everything else
Top bonuses
  • 3xDining
  • 3xGroceries
  • 3xStreaming
FX fee
None
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
Chase
Annual fee
$795
Sign-up bonus
100,000 bonus points
Base rate
1x on everything else
Top bonuses
  • 4xFlights
  • 4xHotels
  • 3xCar Rental
FX fee
None
Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Chase
Annual fee
No fee
Sign-up bonus
$200 bonus
Base rate
1.5x on everything else
Top bonuses
  • 3xDining
  • 3xDrugstores
  • 1.5xFlights
FX fee
3%

Earn across three dining budgets

Amex Gold Card®Chase Sapphire Preferred®Capital One SavorChase Sapphire Reserve®Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Occasional diner ($1,800/yr)$1,800/yr
$-282/yr
$-41/yr
$54/yr
$-741/yr
$54/yr
Regular diner ($4,800/yr)$4,800/yr
$-210/yr
$49/yr
$144/yr
$-651/yr
$144/yr
Frequent diner ($10,000/yr)$10,000/yr
$-85/yr
$205/yr
$300/yr
$-495/yr
$300/yr

The three real questions

  • Are you willing to babysit monthly credits? Yes = Amex Gold pencils out. No = Savor or CSP.
  • Do you want travel points from the same card? Yes = CSP (3x dining + 2x travel + Hyatt transfers). No = Savor (simpler, no fee, still 3%).
  • Do you dine mostly in Q1/Q2 or spread evenly across the year? Even spread = any works. Front-loaded = Amex Gold's monthly credits waste value.

The card most "best of" lists miss

If you already carry a Chase Sapphire Preferred, adding a Chase Freedom Unlimited gives you 3x on dining too (technically 3% cashback that converts to Chase points if paired with a Sapphire card). It's no fee, so you effectively get 3x on dining plus the Sapphire's travel earning without paying extra.

See the winner for your dining habits

Enter your monthly dining spend along with your other categories and we'll rank every dining-friendly card by what it earns for you.

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