Glossary

The words on the terms sheet, in plain English.

Every definition links to the page where the word cost us money.

Points (and miles): The currency a rewards card pays you in. Bank points (Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One, Bilt) can usually be redeemed for cash or travel or transferred to partners; hotel and airline miles are that program's own currency and are worth whatever its award pricing says.; Programs and where the points go →
Cents per point (cpp): What one point actually bought, in cents: the cash price of the thing divided by the points you paid. It is the only number that lets you compare two redemptions, and the only number card marketing never prints.; Our 1.00¢ receipt →
Redemption floor: The lowest, easiest value a currency reliably redeems at — typically a cash-back or pay-with-points rate. Anything above it takes work (an award search, a transfer); anything below it is a mistake.; Floor versus transfer, worked →
Transfer partner: An airline or hotel program that a bank lets you move points into. The ceiling on a currency's value lives here, because award tickets and nights are priced in the partner's miles, not in dollars.; How transfer partners work →
Transfer ratio: How many partner miles you get per bank point, written like 1:1 or 2:1.5. A worse ratio isn't automatically a worse deal — it's the award price on the other side that decides.; Capital One's ratios, as listed →
Annual fee: The cash you pay every year to hold the card. It comes off the top of whatever the card earns, which is why every ranking on this site is net of it.; Cards ranked net of fee →
Foreign transaction fee: A percentage the issuer adds to purchases made outside the U.S. or in a foreign currency. A card that charges one is a poor travel card no matter what it earns.; Travel cards with the fee shown →
Earn rate (multiplier): Points per dollar in a spending category — 3X, 4X, 2%. The issuer's page defines the category; the definition matters as much as the number (dining at a hotel restaurant billed to the room is lodging, not dining).; Resort dining that posted as lodging →
Category cap: A ceiling on how much spend earns the bonus rate in a year (or a quarter) before it drops to the base rate. Divide the cap by twelve to see the monthly spend the rate really covers.; Grocery rates with their caps →
Base rate: What everything outside the bonus categories earns — usually 1X or 1%. On most budgets it is where the largest share of spend lands, so it moves the total more than the headline multiplier.; See how much rides on the base rate →
Rotating categories: Bonus categories that change each quarter and usually require activation. Useful if you'll manage them; not modeled in our rankings because next quarter's list isn't published yet.; A card with rotating categories →
Issuer travel portal: The bank's own booking site (Chase Travel, Capital One Travel, Amex Travel). Cards often pay their highest rate there — and the portal sets the price, so compare the cash fare elsewhere before you count the points.; Portal versus direct rates →
Statement credit: Money the issuer refunds to your account after a qualifying purchase — a monthly dining credit, an annual travel credit. It is only worth face value if you would have spent that money anyway.; What a $10-a-month credit is worth →
Breakage: Credit value that goes unused because the window closed — a monthly credit you forgot in March is gone in April. It's how a card with "$400 in credits" can be worth much less than that to you.; Breakage, with the math →
Welcome offer (sign-up bonus): Points paid for hitting a spend target in the first months. Offers are often personalised and change without notice, which is why our card pages quote only what the public page stated on the date we read it.; Welcome offers, as stated →
Minimum spend: The purchase total you must reach, in a set window, to earn a welcome offer. Spend you'd have done anyway counts; spend you did to hit the number is a cost.; Which currency to earn first →
Co-brand card: A card issued by a bank for one airline or hotel that earns that program's currency directly. Its perks are specific (free bags, a free night); its points have no cash floor, so we don't put a dollar value on them unless you set one.; Why co-brand cards start unranked →
Elite status: A loyalty tier that unlocks upgrades, late checkout or bonus earning. Some cards grant it outright. Note the fine print on third-party bookings — a package rate can void it.; Status on a third-party booking →
Award chart: A published table of how many points a flight or night costs. Programs that keep one are predictable; programs that dropped it price awards dynamically, so the value swings with demand.; A program that still publishes one →
Third-party booking: A stay or flight bought through someone other than the hotel or airline — a package, an online travel agency, a warehouse club. Usually cheaper up front; usually no points, no status credit, and no changes at the front desk.; What a package booking gave up →
Folio: The hotel's itemised bill at checkout: room, taxes, resort fee, every charge posted to the room. The one document that says what a stay really cost.; Our folio, line by line →
Resort fee: A mandatory daily charge added to the room rate for amenities you may not use. It's on the folio whether you swam or not, and it rarely earns points at the hotel rate.; The fee on our folio →
Twilight rate: A reduced late-afternoon green fee at a golf course. The headline price rarely includes the cart, clubs, or the fact that you may only finish nine holes before dark.; The $69 round that cost $321.78 →
Verified · Directional · Estimate: Our stamps. Verified: we paid it and can show the statement or folio. Directional: from a public source or our own measurement, not a receipt. Estimate: our arithmetic on published terms — labelled so you can argue with it.; How numbers are labelled →

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