Until you are new to the factors and miles sport, you are in all probability all too accustomed to the truth that these “free” award flights — whereas steeply discounted due to factors, miles and switch bonuses — often do price one thing.
Though there are methods to chop them down, you will virtually all the time face the unlucky addition of taxes and costs. These can vary from $5.60 to upward of $800 one-way for some aspirational awards.
In the case of paying these charges, the most effective bank card for airfare purchases is not all the time the most suitable choice. Not like money tickets, there is a extra necessary issue to contemplate than simply what number of additional factors you will earn: journey protections.
Coverages similar to baggage and journey delay reimbursement might be massively priceless, and a few card insurance policies stand out greater than others.
With all that in thoughts, this is a rundown of the most effective bank cards for paying taxes and costs on award tickets.
Finest playing cards for paying taxes and costs on award tickets and journey protections
| Card | Bonus for Airfare Purchases / Return* |
Safety Notes | Annual Charge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Sapphire Reserve |
|
Provides the best financial maximums of protection for journey delay, misplaced baggage, rental automotive and journey accident insurance coverage, general greatest protections all-around. | $550 |
| Chase Sapphire Most popular |
|
Weaker throughout the board than the Chase Sapphire Reserve in journey delay and buy safety protection, however ok for many conditions. | $95 |
| The Platinum Card from American Categorical |
|
Sturdy protections, does require that you simply ebook round-trip journey. | $695 (see charges and costs) |
| Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Credit score Card |
|
Decrease journey cancellation/interruption protection than Chase Sapphire Reserve. | $395 |
| Ink Enterprise Most popular Credit score Card |
|
Weaker journey delay and misplaced baggage insurance coverage than the Chase Sapphire Reserve, however ok for many conditions. | $95 |
*Return is an estimated worth based mostly on TPG’s April 2025 valuations and never the cardboard issuer.
On airfare bought immediately with the airline or by way of American Categorical Journey (as much as $500,000 every calendar 12 months, then 1 level per greenback).
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Welcome bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus factors after spending $5,000 within the first three months from account opening.
Annual payment: $550.
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Rewards: Earn 5 factors per greenback spent on Lyft rides (by way of Sept. 2027), 3 factors per greenback spent on journey (excluding the annual $300 journey credit score), eating at eating places and 1 level per greenback spent on all the things else.
Evaluation: The Sapphire Reserve affords probably the most complete journey protections. By paying for a minimum of a portion of your ticket with this card, you will be lined by a plethora of protections, together with baggage delay, misplaced/broken baggage, journey delay reimbursement, journey cancellation and interruption safety, medical evacuation profit, journey accident insurance coverage and emergency medical and dental profit.
Of those, a very powerful advantages are journey delay reimbursement, which gives as much as $500 per lined ticket if you happen to’re delayed greater than 6 hours or require an in a single day keep, and baggage delay safety, which gives as much as $100 reimbursed per day for as much as 5 days in case your baggage is delayed greater than 6 hours.
Different advantages embrace an annual $300 journey assertion credit score, a World Entry/TSA PreCheck utility payment credit score and a Precedence Move Choose membership that features company. You will additionally obtain a complimentary Door Sprint DashPass membership (activate by Dec. 31, 2027) and a $10 month-to-month Lyft credit score (by way of Sept. 2027).
For extra info on the Chase Sapphire Reserve, try the next guides:
Apply right here: Chase Sapphire Reserve
Chase Sapphire Most popular Card
Welcome bonus: Earn 100,000 bonus factors after spending $5,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.
Annual payment: $95.
Rewards: Earn 5 factors per greenback spent on all journey bought by way of Chase Journey, 3 factors per greenback spent on eating, together with eligible supply companies, takeout and eating out, 3 factors per greenback spent on choose streaming companies, 3 factors per greenback spent on on-line grocery purchases (excluding Goal®, Walmart® and wholesale golf equipment), 2 factors per greenback spent on all different journey and 1 level per greenback spent on all different purchases.
Evaluation: The Chase Sapphire Most popular is good for infrequent vacationers seeking to get an honest return on their journey and eating purchases. It gives related journey protections as Chase’s Ink Enterprise Most popular, together with journey and baggage delay safety, and has the identical modest $95 annual payment.
With this card, you will earn 5 Chase Final Rewards factors per greenback spent whenever you ebook journey by way of Chase Journey and a pair of Final Rewards factors per greenback spent on different journey and eating purchases. You will have the peace of thoughts understanding you are insured and nonetheless earn a good quantity of bonus factors on any taxes and costs.
For extra info on the Chase Sapphire Most popular, try the next guides:
Apply right here: Chase Sapphire Most popular
The Platinum Card from American Categorical
Welcome bonus: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards factors after spending $8,000 on purchases within the first six months of cardmembership. You may as well test to see if you happen to’re focused for a better welcome bonus by way of the CardMatch software.
Annual payment: $695 (see charges and costs).
Rewards: Earn 5 factors per greenback spent on airfare bought immediately with an airline or by way of AmexTravel.com (as much as $500,000 per calendar 12 months, then 1 level per greenback).
Evaluation: The Platinum Card from American Categorical (together with most kinds of the cardboard) is the subsequent best choice for paying award taxes and costs. The protections are a bit extra restrictive than these supplied by the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
The Amex Platinum’s journey delay insurance coverage* additionally kicks in whenever you’re delayed by six or extra hours, but it surely’s capped at two claims per eligible card per 12-month interval and would not cowl delays which are lower than six hours. The profit can be a bit extra restrictive in that it requires round-trip journey, all of which have to be paid for together with your card (paying taxes and costs on award tickets or Pay with Factors tickets are lined).
Notice {that a} mixture of one-way tickets would qualify as round-trip journey for the needs of Amex’s insurance coverage protection if you happen to finally find yourself in your departure metropolis. The Amex Platinum additionally affords misplaced, stolen or broken baggage protection** whenever you use your eligible card to pay in your journey prices.
*Eligibility and Profit degree varies by Card. Phrases, Circumstances and Limitations Apply. Please go to americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for extra particulars. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance coverage Firm, an AIG Firm.
**Eligibility and Profit degree varies by Card. Phrases, Circumstances and Limitations Apply. Please go to americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for extra particulars. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Firm.
Associated: Evaluating built-in journey insurance coverage with the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Amex Platinum
The cardboard affords a number of different advantages to reinforce your journey expertise, similar to a $200 airline payment assertion credit score, World Entry/TSA PreCheck utility payment credit score ($120 each 4 years for World Entry and as much as $85 each 4.5 years for TSA PreCheck), lounge entry, automated Gold standing with Hilton and Gold Elite standing with Marriott and as much as $200 in Uber Money yearly (legitimate on U.S. purchases and you may redeem with any Amex card after including your Amex Plat to your Uber account). Enrollment is required for choose advantages.
For extra info on The Platinum Card From American Categorical, try the next guides:
Apply right here: Amex Platinum
Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Credit score Card
Welcome bonus: Earn 75,000 bonus factors after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.
Annual payment: $395.
Rewards: Earn 2 miles per greenback spent on all purchases.
Evaluation: If you happen to’re seeking to earn a gentle stream of transferable factors and get respectable journey protections, the Enterprise X is an effective alternative. It comes with a decrease annual payment than its premium rivals and affords journey cancellation and interruption protections, major rental automotive protection, reimbursement for misplaced baggage and journey delay reimbursement.
General the cardboard has a beneficiant approved consumer coverage, permitting as much as 4 further customers and not using a payment. This is useful as the cardboard’s Precedence Move lounge membership and Capital One Lounge entry are prolonged to approved customers. Better of all? They’ll herald as much as two company of their very own as properly.
Associated: Why it is best to add approved customers on the Capital One Enterprise X
As well as, Enterprise X affords cardholders a $300 annual journey credit score, although this credit score is proscribed for bookings by way of Capital One Journey.
For extra info on the Capital One Enterprise X, try the next guides:
Be taught extra: Capital One Enterprise X
Ink Enterprise Most popular Credit score Card
Welcome bonus: Earn 90,000 bonus factors after spending $8,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.
Annual payment: $95.
Rewards: Earn 3 factors per greenback on the primary $150,000 spent every cardmember 12 months on journey, delivery purchases, web, cable and cellphone companies and promoting purchases made with social media websites and engines like google.
Evaluation: If you happen to’re a enterprise proprietor, you may get robust journey protections with the Ink Enterprise Most popular, and so they do not require the aim of the journey to be enterprise to qualify. The Enterprise Most popular affords most of the similar advantages because the Chase Sapphire Reserve however at a a lot lower cost level in trade for much less protection. As an example, the cardboard affords journey delay reimbursement, however just for delays which are 12 hours or extra or require an in a single day keep.
What’s distinctive about this card is that though it has a considerably decrease annual payment than the Chase Sapphire Reserve, it affords the identical journey incomes charge of three Chase Final Rewards factors per greenback spent on airfare and all the things else that Chase contains in its journey classification.
For extra info on the Ink Enterprise Most popular Credit score Card, try the next guides:
Apply right here: Ink Enterprise Most popular
Backside line
At first look, it might seem to be the Amex Platinum can be the plain alternative because it affords 5 factors per greenback on all airfare bought by way of Amex Journey (as much as $500,000 every calendar 12 months, then 1 level per greenback), topping all the different playing cards on this checklist. Whereas the cardboard does provide some main journey protections, as you’ll be able to see, it nonetheless is a bit restrictive in comparison with the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
Normally, the taxes and costs on these awards are so low-cost that it is value forgoing the couple additional {dollars} in factors you may get with one other card to give attention to all the additional insurance coverage options that would doubtlessly prevent hundreds if one thing goes mistaken. So on this case, don’t be concerned about dropping a couple of additional factors — as a substitute, purchase your self peace of thoughts with high journey protections simply by placing a couple of {dollars} on one in every of these high playing cards.
For Capital One merchandise listed on this web page, a few of the advantages could also be offered by Visa® or Mastercard® and should range by product. See the respective Information to Advantages for particulars, as phrases and exclusions apply.
For charges and costs of the Amex Platinum, click on right here.
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