Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses Worth at Least $500

Team Clark has spent hours reviewing the market for credit card sign-up bonuses.

This article contains a list of our favorite cards that have a welcome offer with a redemption value of at least $500.

In addition to sign-up bonuses, we considered factors like rewards programs, introductory APR, annual fees and bonus categories when assembling this list. You can read our methodology here.

This article was updated in August 2023 and I review it every three months. Detailed notes on all updates can be found here.

Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses Worth at Least $500 Right Now

card_name → Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 75,000 bonus miles Welcome Bonus Disclaimer: when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening Annual Fee: $395 (See Rates & Fees)

card_name → Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Welcome Bonus Offer: Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 Miles Welcome Bonus Disclaimer: once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening Annual Fee: $95 (See Rates & Fees)

card_name → The Platinum Card® from American Express Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points Welcome Bonus Disclaimer: after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Annual Fee: $695 (See Rates & Fees)

card_name → Chase Sapphire Reserve® Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 60,000 bonus points Welcome Bonus Disclaimer: after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $900 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards® Annual Fee: $550

card_name → Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 60,000 bonus points Welcome Bonus Disclaimer: after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $750 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®. Annual Fee: $95

card_name → Citi Premier® Card Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points Welcome Bonus Disclaimer: after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 ThankYou® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through June 30, 2024. Annual Fee: $95 (See Rates & Fees)

Are you looking for a new rewards credit card with a nice sign-up bonus attached?

Credit card issuers like to lure new customers with the promise of a great welcome offer to get the relationship off on the right foot.

But many of the very best bonus offers are attached to cards with an annual fee.

So, you’ll want to make sure you study the everyday rewards and benefits of the card to ensure it’s something you’ll find useful long after the welcome offer is gone.

In this article, we highlighted some of the best credit cards that are offering at least $500 worth of incentive with a sign-up bonus.

More on Credit Cards with Sign-Up Bonuses Worth at Least $500:

• Best Credit Cards with Sign-up Bonuses Worth at Least $500
• Methodology
• Clark Howard on Sign-up Bonus Credit Cards

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

card_name Annual Fee: $395 (See Rates & Fees) Rewards Program Details: 2 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day. 10 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. 5 Miles per dollar on flights booked through Capital One Travel. This Is the Card for You If: You are a frequent traveler who wants airport lounge access and can easily claim the annual $300 travel credit and anniversary miles provided. Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card Review

Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

card_name Annual Fee: $95 (See Rates & Fees) Rewards Program Details: 2 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day. 5 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. This Is the Card for You If: You want a travel credit card that rewards everyday purchases with an easy-to-understand structure. Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Review

Welcome Bonus Offer: Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 Miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening

The Platinum Card® from American Express

card_name Annual Fee: $695 (See Rates & Fees) Rewards Program Details: Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. This Is the Card for You If: You are a high-volume traveler who will get more benefit out of the long list of perks, which includes airport lounge access, than the annual fee will cost you. The Platinum Card® from American Express Review

Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms apply.

Chase Sapphire Reserve®

card_name Annual Fee: $550 Rewards Program Details: Earn 5x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards® immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. Earn 3x points on other travel and dining & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases This Is the Card for You If: You are a high-volume traveler who will earn the $300 annual travel credit and can maximize the value of rewards points by using the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal to book travel. Chase Sapphire Reserve® Review

Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $900 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

card_name Annual Fee: $95 Rewards Program Details: Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3x on dining, and 2x on all other travel purchases, and $50 annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit, plus more. This Is the Card for You If: You are looking for a travel rewards card with a modest annual fee that has bonus rewards for popular spending categories. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Review

Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $750 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.

Citi Premier® Card

card_name Annual Fee: $95 (See Rates & Fees) Rewards Program Details: Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants and Supermarkets. Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Gas Stations, Air Travel and Other Hotels. Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on all other purchases. This Is the Card for You If: You are looking for a travel rewards card with a modest annual fee that has bonus rewards for popular spending categories.

Welcome Bonus Offer: Earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 ThankYou® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through June 30, 2024.

Sign-Up Bonus Selection Methodology

1. I considered cards with high annual fees. Unlike our best sign-up bonus credit cards roundup, I did NOT limit the credit cards on this list to cards with an annual fee of $100 or less. The goal of this article is to show you where you can earn a large sign-up bonus. Most of those are found attached to credit cards with annual fees. Keep in mind that money expert Clark Howard believes most consumers are best served by avoiding large annual fees.
2. I included both cash back and rewards points bonuses. Sometimes it can be confusing to find an actual value for rewards points because the cash-equivalent value of those points can fluctuate based on how you redeem them. In the case of rewards points bonuses, note that there sometimes is no cash value.
3. Hotel and airline co-branded credit card welcome offers were not included. You may be able to get a great “free night” or “free flight” opportunity from a co-branded card, but it requires intense loyalty to one hotel chain or airline. Money expert Clark Howard says most people are better off being a “travel free agent” so they can take advantage of the best deals. If you’re the type of person who stays at Marriott exclusively or only flies Delta, you may want to consider these bonus offers.
4. You may get a welcome offer offer for a card that’s different from the offer listed in this article. Welcome offers can vary based on a number of factors, such as date and location. I checked these offers in various web browsers over multiple days to get the most recent and accurate information possible, but please note that your results may vary.
5. Clark’s philosophy is that you should never carry a balance on a rewards credit card. All welcome offer advice issued here is given with the assumption that you’ll pay your bill in full each month as part of following Clark’s seven rules for using credit cards.

Clark Howard on Sign-Up Bonuses for Credit Cards

If you’re in the market for a new credit card in 2023, you may be hoping to cash in on the hundreds of dollars in sign-up bonuses offered to new customers.

Welcome offers and offers are a marketing tool that credit card issuers use to lure new customers: They offer the chance to score extra rewards points or get cash back for a limited time. Some are easy to get if you spend a relatively small amount on your new card. Others offer a greater cash reward but may carry an annual fee and require that you spend heavily right away.

Money expert Clark Howard cautions against making a long-term decision for a short-term reward.

“I never want people to be so enamored with the sign-up bonus that they end up with a card that over time will ultimately under-reward,” Clark says. “The credit card issuers are making an assumption that you’re going to be really profitable over time for them. So often the bonus will be really generous, but the card itself will be pretty rotten.”

Clark acknowledges that shrewd credit card customers can “game the system” by jumping from one welcome offer to another, but he believes that most consumers are going to find themselves unable to keep up.

“If you’re the kind of person who will get hooked by a signing bonus but won’t do anything about switching credit cards later — you’ve got to make sure that moving forward the card is still a good deal for you,” Clark says.

A welcome offer can be a great way to pocket a few hundred bucks during your honeymoon period with a new card. But it’s important to remember there are many other factors that determine whether a credit card is the right long-term fit for you. Clark believes you should focus on long-term factors: your APR, annual fees and rewards programs.

To see the rates and fees for the American Express cards featured, please visit the following links: The Platinum Card® from American Express: See Rates and Fees