What Non-Travel Benefits Come With My Travel Credit Cards?

Ben Nickel-D’Andrea
By Ben Nickel-D’Andrea 
Updated
Edited by Mary M. Flory

Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This influences which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money.

As travelers are daydreaming about the places they can’t go to right now, I’m looking at my credit cards and reviewing the perks that I should be taking advantage of — the ones that are normally relegated to the back of my head.

Even if you're starting to travel again, it's useful to keep your cards’ non-travel benefits top of mind. Here are some that could be useful for you, too.

Free two-day shipping and free returns

You might be ordering more items online than you normally do. And if you dislike paying extra for faster shipping or to return products that didn’t fit right, there’s a credit card benefit worth paying attention to.

Many AmEx cards, and some Mastercards, come with a complimentary ShopRunner membership that will get you two-day shipping and returns from participating stores at no charge to you. This membership normally has a value of $79. To activate your membership via one of your cards, set up an account, then you'll be able to start using free expedited shipping. Terms apply.

Some of the participating stores are Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Popcorn Factory and the NBA Store. You can check the store list here. Here are some of the cards that will get you this benefit:

AmEx:

Terms apply.

For Mastercard holders, check to see whether your card is branded as a World Elite or World card, like the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®. Both of these Mastercard categories come with ShopRunner privileges.

$120 Lyft and $120 Grubhub credit

Speaking of the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®, this card has several credits that can helps cardholders offset costs. The two non-travel related ones are a $120 Lyft credit and $120 Grubhub credit. Cardholders are eligible for a $10 Lyft credit after taking three rides in a month. The Grubhub credit is doled out as a $10 statement credit per monthly billing statement.

$120 dining credit

If you have an American Express® Gold Card, you can save up to $120 annually on dining. All you have to do is enroll and you'll get up to $10 every month credited back on your statement when you use your card to pay for your food delivery orders at Grubhub or Goldbelly. The same benefit applies to dine-in options like the Cheesecake Factory, Milkbar and participating Shake Shacks. Terms apply.

With the American Express® Gold Card, you will also earn 4x points for those restaurant purchases — whether you're ordering in or going out. Terms apply.

$100 Saks Fifth Avenue credit

The Platinum Card® from American Express offers a $50 statement credit from January through June, and a second $50 statement credit from July through December for purchases made at Saks Fifth Avenue (both online and in stores). You can use it across multiple orders as long as you keep tabs on the two credit amounts, but it does require enrollment before you purchase. Terms apply.

$240 digital entertainment credit

The newest benefit on the The Platinum Card® from American Express is a $240 digital entertainment credit, doled out in monthly increments of up to $20. This credit can be used for eligible purchases on Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, Peacock, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required.

$60 DoorDash credit

Anyone holding the Chase Sapphire Reserve® credit card can have up to $60 annually credited back to their statements for food orders processed through the delivery service. The best thing about this benefit is that you don't need to register to make use of it, and it’s allotted as a lump sum (so none of that drip-drip-drip benefit like other cards offer every month).

The downside? The terms and conditions say this benefit is only for 2020 and 2021, and so far it doesn’t look like this will continue past this year.

Up to $400 Dell credit

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express will credit up to $200 back to your statement from January to June, plus another $200 from July to December, for purchases with this card at Dell, for a total of up to $400. Terms apply.

$300 travel credit

Did you know that some of those "travel" benefits on your Chase Sapphire Reserve® aren’t only for flights and hotels? Some of your charges for tolls, toll bridges, parking, garages, ferries, taxis, buses and trains may also qualify under the travel category and be offset by the card’s $300 in annual travel credits on your statement.

You don't have to enroll for this benefit, but the merchant has to be coded on the travel category for Chase to recognize the purchase and grant the credit.

If you want to use non-travel credit card benefits

It can be difficult to remember all of the ways you can get the most out of your credit cards. Keep this list handy, or set a quarterly reminder to review the terms and conditions of the cards in your wallet. Then, you'll be lightyears ahead of many when it comes to maximizing these financial tools.

To view rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, see this page.
To view rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, see this page.
To view rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, see this page.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2024, including those best for:

Travel Cards from Our Partners
Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card

on Chase's website

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
5.0
NerdWallet Rating
Rewards rate

1x-5x

5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases.

Points

Intro offer

60,000

Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

Points
Chase Freedom Unlimited Credit Card

on Chase's website

Chase Freedom Unlimited®
5.0
NerdWallet Rating
Rewards rate

1.5%-6.5%

Enjoy 6.5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel; 4.5% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 3% on all other purchases (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year). After your first year or $20,000 spent, enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

Cashback

Intro offer

$300

Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back!

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

on Capital One's website

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
4.7
NerdWallet Rating
Rewards rate

2x-5x

Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day. Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options.

Miles

Intro offer

75,000

Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

Miles
See more travel cards
Get more smart money moves – straight to your inbox
Sign up and we’ll send you Nerdy articles about the money topics that matter most to you along with other ways to help you get more from your money.