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Dining out is a necessity, a convenience, and a luxury wrapped into one. It’s pretty great when someone else takes care of the cooking and cleaning up.
The average family spends nearly 6% of their monthly budget on food away from home, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture For the average family’s annual income of $74,580, that’s $372.90 per month, or $4,474.80 per year on dining purchases. Whether you eat out once a year or once a day, you might as well earn some rewards for it.
If you use a credit card that earns rewards on everything you spend on dining or take out, that’s a fair amount of that money back in your pocket. But which cards are best for maximizing your rewards on dining, delivery, and takeout?
Our recommendations for the best cards for restaurants are as follows:
| Card | Best for | Welcome offer | APR | Annual fees | Credit score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sign-up bonus | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed | |
U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card | No annual fee | 20,000 points | 18.24% to 29.24% | $0 | Excellent |
Up to 5% cash back | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed | |
Food delivery | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed | |
Fast Food | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed | |
3% dining rewards | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed | |
card_name | Business card for dining | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed |
Travel rewards | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed | |
card_name | Earning Chase Ultimate Rewards Points | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed |
card_name | Rich perks for low fee | bonus_miles | reg_apr,reg_apr_type | annual_fees | credit_score_needed |
Our recommendations for the best credit card for restaurants for November 2023
The best credit cards for restaurants offer bonus points, restaurant credits, delivery memberships, and special offers for spending money at restaurants, take-out, and delivery.
Best for sign-up bonus: card_name
American Express® Business Gold Card
American Express® Business Gold Card
The card_name offers a lot for dining purchases. The card earns 4x points in the top two earning categories, which may include dining purchases. The elevated sign-up bonus will make new cardholders bonus_miles_full - a generous way to start earning rewards.
Best for no annual fee:
U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card
U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card
The offers 4x points on dining, takeout and restaurant delivery. In addition, the card earns 2x points on grocery purchases, streaming subscriptions, gas, and EV charging stations. There is no annual fee and you can earn a 20,000 point bonus by spending $1,000 in the first 90 days of account ownership.
Best for up to 5% cash back: card_name
Citi Custom Cash® Card
Citi Custom Cash® Card
The card_name earns 5% on your top eligible earning category. If you use the card primarily for dining purchases, you’ll be sure to earn the full 5% cash back. The card doesn’t charge an annual fee and even has a balance_transfer_intro_apr,balance_transfer_intro_duration.
Best for food delivery: card_name
The Platinum Card from American Express
The Platinum Card from American Express
The card_name has a steep annual_fees annual fee, but it’s also packed with benefits—one of which is a generous $200 in Uber Cash. It comes as $15 credit each month, plus a $20 bonus in December for orders in the U.S.
This card also comes with a $200 hotel credit, $200 airline credit, $240 digital entertainment credit, $100 in statement credits for Saks Fifth Avenue, lounge access, $155 Walmart Plus credit, and many other benefits.
Best for fast food: card_name
Capital One® SavorOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card
Capital One® SavorOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card
The cash back for restaurant purchases on the card_name is 3%. And, it’s unlimited. Whenever you need to eat on the go, it’s always earning rewards.
The card also earns 3% back on entertainment, grocery stores, and streaming services. There is a annual_fees annual fee and new cardholders bonus_miles_full.
Best for 3% dining rewards: card_name
Citi Premier® Card
Citi Premier® Card
The card_name is a strong earner for a number of categories. The card earns 3x points on restaurants, gas, flights, supermarkets, and hotels. The annual fee is annual_fees and the card bonus_miles_full.
Best business card for dining: card_name
Ink Business Cash® Card
Ink Business Cash® Card
The card_name isn’t known for its dining bonus, but it still earns 2x points on all dining expenses. The big plus is that you can also earn 5% back at office supply stores on the first $25,000 spent. It doesn't have an annual fee and you bonus_miles_full.
Best for travel rewards: card_name
American Express® Gold Card
American Express® Gold Card
The card_name is an impressive rewards earner for travel and everyday purchases. It earns 4x points on restaurants, groceries, and flights, and 1x on all other purchases. The new member will bonus_miles_full. It also comes with $120 in dining credits, which can be used on purchases at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar, and select Shake Shack locations.
Best for earning Chase Ultimate Rewards: card_name
Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
The card_name is one of the top rewards cards for its earning potential and valuable redemptions. With the card_name, cardholders earn 3x points on dining and delivery services, and 10x points when dining is purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards program. The DoorDash benefits include $0 deliveries and $5 in statement credit each month. Other benefits include a $300 annual travel credit, airport lounge access, statement credit for TSA PreCheck® or Global Entry, 10x points on Lyft rides and Peloton equipment, and free membership for Instacart for a year.
Best for rich perks for low fee: card_name
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The card_name (annual_fees annual fee) offers a rich rewards package for much less than the card_name (annual_fees). As far as dining purchases go, the card earns 3x points on dining, takeout, and delivery. It earns 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 3x points on online grocery purchases, 3x on select streaming services, and 2x points on all other travel purchases. It also delivers DoorDash benefits (though no statement credits).
Our Methodology
The best credit cards for restaurants were chosen for their elevated rewards earned on purchases made at restaurants, and for takeout and delivery. Other benefits, such as statement credits or free memberships, were also taken into account.
How to pick the best credit card for restaurants
When deciding on the best credit card for restaurants, look for the following perks:
Bonus points
Many cards offer bonus points in the dining category. Look for one that earns 3x points (or more) on dining, which you can find even on cards with no annual fee.
Statement credits
Some cards offer money back when you use a meal delivery service or eat at particular restaurants. Premium travel rewards cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve or The Platinum Card from American Express have these kinds of offers.
Delivery memberships
You can get a lot of value out of a DashPass or a GrubHub membership when you have food delivered regularly. Such memberships are often included with certain credit cards.
Redemptions you’ll use
You don’t want to earn rewards that can’t be redeemed for something cool. A good rewards card also needs to have the redemption side dialed in.
TIME Stamp: Not all dining rewards cards are created equal
Many cards offer rewards for eating at your favorite restaurant, but they’re not all created equal. Some credit cards have better earning rates and redemption options. Others may also offer statement credits, discounts, and other promotions for restaurant purchases.
With all the rewards available, it makes sense to pick a card (or two) that can earn a lot of rewards. Be sure that the bonus categories are a good match for your spending habits and the annual fee lines up with how many rewards you can earn.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Which credit card gives you the most points for dining?
The Citi Custom Cash allows customers to earn 5% cash-back earnings in two categories, including the dining category.
Which Amex card is best for restaurants?
As far as earning rewards, the Amex Gold earns 4x points on dining purchases worldwide and 4x points on delivery and takeout at U.S. restaurants. This is one of the best rates for an Amex card.
Is Chase Sapphire Preferred good for dining?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred earns 3x points on all dining purchases, which is a great rate for earning rewards.
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