Three Different Types of Credit Card Sign-On Bonus Offers

A bonus offer is a great way to save even more on your credit card purchases. With a sign-on bonus offer, you typically have to make a certain number of purchases within a specific amount of time. Then, you’ll get an extra bonus. The bonuses, amounts of time, and other requirements may vary significantly. Most often, they vary between multiple different types of cards. Here’s what you need to know about the best credit card bonus offers in three different categories.



1. Rewards Credit Cards



Rewards credit cards are often geared heavily toward giving people actual dollar benefits when they make purchases. Although it’s possible to see points and miles offered with a rewards credit card, you’re more frequently going to see an actual cashback bonus. If you do see points, it will often be for a Rewards Program, which you may be able to change into actual cashback through your Rewards Program portal. This can be great because it gives you an actual dollar amount that your sign-on bonus is worth, and because you can spend it however you want as a statement credit, but the dollar amount may be lower than the value of some benefits that you can get through other cards.



2. Business Credit Cards



Business credit cards most frequently tend to offer significantly higher sign-on bonuses, but that will typically also come with much higher sign-on bonus requirements. The Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card, for example, gives you an incredible 100,000 points as a sign-on bonus, equivalent to up to $1,250, but to get it, you need to spend at least $15,000 in the first three months, which is about $5,000 per month. If you have a business that regularly makes these kinds of purchases, it can be a great choice, but if your business doesn’t make a lot of purchases, it’s probably not a card that will work well for you.


3. Travel Credit Cards


The last type of credit card is travel credit cards. Travel credit cards include both airline and hotel credit cards, and they typically offer the sign-on bonus as points or miles rather than as an actual statement credit. If you really love traveling, especially with very specific airline and hotel companies, travel credit cards can absolutely offer you the best bang for your buck. The requirements typically aren’t very high, and when you pair them with other methods of value shopping, you can end up saving a surprising amount on your travel.


Conclusion


Today, most credit cards offer some kind of sign-on bonus. Although it’s not completely universal, it’s incredibly common to see a sign-on bonus of some type with just about any credit card that you sign up for. However, you need to make sure that you’re able to take advantage of it and that it works for your specific needs. Knowing about these three different types of credit card sign-on bonuses will allow you to save more when you do get your credit card.