Credit Card Tips

My Personal Credit Card Strategy for 2026

by Kyle BurbankJan 2, 2026

Each year for the past several years, I’ve shared a look at “what’s in my wallet” and how I’ll be using each of the rewards credit cards. Well, it turns out that 2025 was the most disruptive year for my rewards strategy to date. Cards were added, some were closed (sometimes against my will), and others were refreshed. For that reason, as we look to my 2026 credit card approach, I’m going to revamp the formula a bit and share a look at my top cards, the cards I’m not canceling but don’t intend to use much this year, and the cards that I’m leaving back in 2025.

Let’s jump in!

My Top 5 Credit Cards for 2026 (And Why)

American Express® Platinum Card

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Flight bookings, Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts bookings, other credits, lounge access, and maybe cash back?

2025 brought a major refresh for the American Express Platinum Card. To be honest, when Amex teased this update, I was really worried. Yet, once all was revealed, I was absolutely delighted. Sure, paying $895 is no fun, but the benefits they brought to this card should more than make up for it. Plus, as a current cardholder, my card renewed at the old $695 rate in September.

As for how I’ll be using the card in the new year, well, that’s already started as I used my last Fine Hotels & Resorts Credit of 2025 to book a room in Las Vegas next week (I also used up my 2025 Airline Incidental Credit to select seats on my flights). Meanwhile, although I only have two Resy restaurants in town, my wife and I have enjoyed going out and using our quarterly credit. I could go on and on about how I’m using all of the credits the card now offers — but, needless to say, I find that the value I get exceeds what I pay.

With all of that said, I am considering making a switch to my Plainum card this year. You see, I’m currently sitting on more than 400,000 American Express Membership Rewards Points. As more time goes by (and more devaluations to various point currencies arrive), I’m starting to think that holding onto this many points without a redemption plan is silly. So, I’m seriously looking at opening a Charles Schwab Amex Platinum in 2026 and then canceling my “vanilla” version.

Why? Well, with the Schwab edition, I can cash out my points to my Schwab account at a value of 1.1¢ per point. If I were to cashout to my American Express Rewards Checking, I’d only get 0.8¢ per point. Running the math, that’s amounts to a $1,200 difference based on my current points — not to mention that, in theory, I’d be able to claim a welcome bonus from the Schwab card I could convert to cash as well. Frankly, I’m pretty sure that this is the route I’m going to take and it’s all just a matter of timing now. But, we’ll see.

Capital One Savor

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Entertainment, streaming, and groceries.

In the past, I’ve cited the Capital One Savor as one of my most recommended rewards credit cards. With no annual fee and some great 3x categories. I think it’s a solid pick for beginners and experts alike. It’s no wonder, then, that this card holds a prominent place in my wallet.

What I love about this card is that it covers some key categories. That not only includes practical purchases, such as groceries, but also the broad category of Entertainment. Dining is also a 3x category, so I use it for that often as well (at least I have traditionally). I’ll say that, of the three cards that live in my phone case — meaning they’re with me 100% of the time — there’s this, the Platinum, and the next card we’re about to discuss.

Capital One Venture

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Most purchases that aren’t covered by multipiers on other cards

Now we’ve come to the first new card on my 2026 list. I won’t completely rehash the story of how I came to be a Venture cardholder — but the bottom line is that I applied mostly for the welcome bonus. Nevertheless, the card’s 2x base does make it suitable for purchases that would otherwise earn 1x on any other card.

While I like this card overall, there are some downsides. For one, as I learned, the Capital One Venture‘s miles are only worth a full 1¢ when redeemed toward travel purchases. The good news is that these can be any travel purchase (versus having to use a specific portal), but redeeming for cashback cuts the value in half. That’s less than ideal, but it’s workable.

The other bit of bad news is that the card carries a $95 annual fee. Clearly, that’s far from the highest fee I’ve paid, but I do wonder if this card is really worth it. In other words, while I’ll give it a shot to start 2026, don’t be too surprised if it falls off my 2027 list.

Wells Fargo Autograph

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Dining, generic travel purchases

Want to know something kind of funny? I don’t actually have this card yet. However, since Bilt is leaving Wells Fargo and the new issuer (the ironically named Cardless) isn’t buying the backbook, the bank is converting current cardholders to the Autograph card. Although I could opt out of this, looking at what it offers, I’m going to give the card a try.

One particular reason I’m looking forward to the Wells Fargo Autograph card is that it offers 3x on travel and transit purchases. Spoiler: that’s a good replacement for a card that I bid adieu to this year (more on that later). The card also earns 3x on dining — and, while that matches the Capital One Savor, I think I’ll assign that task to the Autograph to start just so I can get a better feel for the card overall.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Business expenses

Another card that I added to my wallet in 2025 was the IHG One Rewards Premier Business. Yes, this marks my very first business credit card (which I qualify for as a freelancer and, thus, sole proprietorship). Once again, this was a card that became particularly attractive because of its bonus at the time, but I do appreciate having a dedicated business expense card overall.

In terms of what the card offers, it earns 10x on IHG purchases, 5x on travel, 5x on dining, 5x on at gas stations, and 5x on “select business purchases” (social media and search engine advertising plus office supply store purchases) as well as 3x on all other purchases. By the way, that may sound amazing… but keep in mind that most don’t value IHG points anywhere near a full cent. Instead, valuations of half a cent to 0.66¢ each are usually cited.

There are some other nice perks to holding this $99 annual fee card, such as an anniversary certificate worth up to 40,000 points and the ability to earn your fourth night free when redeeming points for three nights. That’s probably enough to justify the fee, so I do expect to hold onto this one for a while (and explore some IHG properties in the process). But, mostly, I’m excited to have a dedicated business credit card with some key categories so that I don’t need to do as much work in QuickBooks to figure out my deductions each tax season.

Additional Cards I’ll Be Holding But Not Using As Much

Discover It

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Rotating quarterly categories

I thought long and hard about putting my Discover It card in my top cards section. Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that “top 5” sounds tidier than “top 6,” I very well might have. In any case, although I don’t use this card nearly as often anymore, it does have a very real and important role in my wallet.

With the Discover It earning 5% back in different bonus categories each quarter, there are plenty of times when that rate bests other cards in my wallet for things like dining, groceries, or gas. Additionally, as is the case this quarter, the 5% includes categories not covered by any other product in my mix, such as wholesale clubs. That’s why this will always have a place in my wallet, even if it’s hit or miss from quarter to quarter.

Bilt Mastercard®

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: TBD

The Bilt Mastercard (or whatever it will be called) is the biggest question mark right now. That’s because, in just about two weeks, Bilt will unveil its 2.0 lineup of cards — including a no-annual-fee option plus $95 and $495 cards. Further complicating this card’s placement in my wallet is the fact that, while they will apparently be adding the ability to earn points on mortgage payments (which is key for me as someone who no longer rents), we have no idea how that will work or what you’ll need to do to earn those points.

Basically, as I write this, I haven’t the foggiest idea which card will make the most sense for me. Yet, my feeling is that I’ll end up defaulting to the no annual fee option… and not using it a whole hell of a lot. I’ll admit that this is pessimistic, so I invite Bilt to prove me wrong later this month.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: The hotel credit

Why do I still have this card? When we first got the Chase Sapphire Preferred, I noted that our plan was to downgrade after the first year. Despite that, here we are in 2026.

I don’t want to throw my wife under the bus here… but the card is in her name. And the good news is that we did manage to use the $50 hotel credit last year, so that cuts the effective annual fee down to $45. Plus, if we ever decide to rent a car, the primary auto rental coverage provided by this card will come in clutch.

Besides that, though, we have the rewards categories covered by other cards. Yes, we could technically get a 25% boost to our points by using the Chase Travel portal (and turn the 3x on dining to 3.75x), but I only really see us doing that while also redeeming our annual hotel credit. So, I guess that will remain this card’s one job until I finally move on to something else.

Apple Card

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Occasional non-category spending where Apple Pay is available

Now that I have a “real” 2x card in the Capital One Venture, my Apple Card‘s role has been reduced. Then again, due to the issue I mentioned regarding the value of Capital One miles, I suspect I’ll still pull out the Apple Card when convenient in order to earn that easy 2% cash back. And, of course, this will absolutely be the default for any Apple purchases we make.

I’d also add that this card might move back up the list if I do part ways with the Venture… but the Apple Card is also in for some possible disruption. Apple and Goldman Sachs have been seeking a breakup for some time now, making me wonder whether we’ll finally see some news on that front in 2026. If we do, will this still be my 2x backup? We’ll see.

PNC Cash Rewards

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: Gas

As I’ve previously explained, the PNC Cash Rewards card represents our oldest credit account. However, this version of the card made its way into the mix in 2024 after PNC converted a long-retired (and non-advantageous) product.

Anyway, while the Cash Rewards card offers decent categories, the only one that it wins out on is gasoline. In turn, it’s been our go-to gas card since we got it. That’s enough to keep our oldest card account active and keep some cashback trickling in.

Barclays View

What I’ll Be Using it For in 2026: My Internet bill

Finally, the Barclays View card is another one I’ve thought about canceling as it does so little for my rewards mix. Moreover, the 2% I get on my internet bill from this card is now made moot by the Venture (at least for now). So why don’t I let it go?

Basically, since it’s a no-annual-fee card, I don’t have a good reason not to just hold onto it. And, similar to the PNC card, it’s a credit account I’ve had for a long time. I doubt that, at this point, losing an older account would really hurt my credit that much — but, again, there’s really no harm in keeping it open.

Cards Not Coming With Me to 2026

American Express® Green Card

Last year, I wrote this about the Amex Green Card:

“If I’m being honest, while I feel pretty good about my choice to downgrade from the Amex Gold to Amex Green, I’m not sure about the latter’s long-term viability for me. Although I have a very complicated idea for using the CLEAR Plus credit to get value from it, I’m not convinced that it will be worth the annual fee otherwise. Because of this, I’ll wait to see if a refresh does arrive before it’s time to renew.”

Sure enough, when it came time to renew, I realized I wasn’t getting $150 in value from this card. So, although I was offered a retention bonus from Amex, I decided to cancel it. Luckily, my annual fee was refunded in full, making me feel good about this move. Nevertheless, I will miss it a bit — and will consider reapplying if that refresh ever does arrive (and it’s good, of course).

Mesa Homeowners Card

Want to hear a funny story? Last year, mere weeks after publishing my 2025 credit card strategy post, I was alerted that I was off the waitlist for a new product called the Mesa Homeowners Card. Just as Bilt allows you to earn points on rent, Mesa would allow me to earn points on my mortgage payments. Plus, it offered multipliers on home-related purchases as well as a variety of credits (up to $120 per year for Lowe’s, a free Costco membership, and more). So, I instantly applied and was approved.

Everything was going great until mid-December, when Mesa announced it was immediately shutting down the Homeowners Card. This was shocking as the card has made a number of improvements over the year and was just two weeks removed from announcing a new partnership with Omni Hotels. There was a kerfuffle involving existing points, but Mesa somewhat made good on this in time (I didn’t have many points anyway, luckily).

I’m still deeply curious what happened to the Mesa card that caused it to implode so quickly. Maybe we’ll get those answers later this year. In the meantime, though, one thing is clear: I won’t be using my Mesa Card in 2026.

And there you have it: my credit card line-up for 2026. Looking ahead, aside from the Bilt swap and a potential (temporary) second Platinum card, I see my number of cards going down from here. Of course, I’ve also said that before and look us now!

I guess we’ll have to wait and see what changes come when we revisit in 2027. See you then.

Author

Kyle Burbank

Head Writer ~ Fioney

Kyle is the head writer for Fioney. He is a personal finance nerd, constantly looking for new apps and services to test and incorporate into his own financial game plan. In addition to his role at Fioney, he's written for other publications including Born2Invest, Lifehack, and Laughing Place, as well as his own site Money@30. He also creates personal finance and travel-related videos for Fioney's YouTube channel, which has garnered more than 2 million views. Currently, Kyle resides in Springfield, Missouri with his wife of 10 years. Together, they enjoy traveling (including visiting Disney Parks around the world), dining, and playing with their dog Rigby.

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