Compare accounts
Get guidance
Compare accounts
Get guidance
Money market accounts
Money market accounts are similar to savings accounts, but offer some checking features as well.
Get guidance
Banking
Unlock financial rewards by signing up for a savings or checking account with a bonus offer.
Get guidance
Compare rates
Get guidance
Compare rates
Get guidance
Buying & selling
Find an expert who knows the market. Compare trusted real estate agents all in one place.
Get guidance
Compare investments
Get guidance
Compare plans
Get guidance
Finding an advisor
Get guidance
Compare cards
Find my matches
See your card matches
Answer a few quick questions and we’ll show you your top credit card options.
Compare cards
See what the experts say
Read in-depth credit card reviews to find out which cards have the best perks and more.
Get guidance
Get advice
Build credit
Compare lenders
Get guidance
Compare lenders
Get guidance
Compare lenders
Get guidance
Compare lenders
Get guidance
HELOC
A HELOC is a variable-rate line of credit that lets you borrow funds for a set period and repay them later.
Home equity basics
Home equity loans
Home equity loans let you borrow a lump sum at a fixed rate, based on how much of the home you own outright.
Get guidance
Compare rates
Popular states
Compare rates
Popular states
Compare rates
Get guidance
Calculators
Get guidance
We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free – so that you can make financial decisions with confidence.
Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover.
The advice in this article is offered by the team independent of any bank or credit card issuer. This article may contain from our partners, and terms may apply to offers linked or accessed through this page. as of posting date, but offers mentioned may have expired.
At Bankrate, we have a mission to demystify the credit cards industry — regardless or where you are in your journey — and make it one you can navigate with confidence. Our team is full of a diverse range of experts from credit card pros to data analysts and, most importantly, people who shop for credit cards just like you. With this combination of expertise and perspectives, we keep close tabs on the credit card industry year-round to:
At Bankrate, we focus on the points consumers care about most: rewards, welcome offers and bonuses, APR, and overall customer experience. Any issuers discussed on our site are vetted based on the value they provide to consumers at each of these levels. At each step of the way, we fact-check ourselves to prioritize accuracy so we can continue to be here for your every next.
Bankrate follows a strict editorial policy, so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions.
We value your trust. Our mission is to provide readers with accurate and unbiased information, and we have editorial standards in place to ensure that happens. Our editors and reporters thoroughly fact-check editorial content to ensure the information you’re reading is accurate. We maintain a firewall between our advertisers and our editorial team. Our editorial team does not receive direct compensation from our advertisers.
Bankrate’s editorial team writes on behalf of YOU – the reader. Our goal is to give you the best advice to help you make smart personal finance decisions. We follow strict guidelines to ensure that our editorial content is not influenced by advertisers. Our editorial team receives no direct compensation from advertisers, and our content is thoroughly fact-checked to ensure accuracy. So, whether you’re reading an article or a review, you can trust that you’re getting credible and dependable information.
You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for over four decades. We continually strive to provide consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life’s financial journey.
Bankrate follows a strict editorial policy, so you can trust that our content is honest and accurate. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers.
We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money.
Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories, except where prohibited by law for our mortgage, home equity and other home lending products. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range, can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range of offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service.
Table of contents
Table of contents
Planning a road trip or need a car for a quick weekend getaway? While air travel is typically what comes to mind when you think about credit card travel rewards, redeeming your points and miles for auto rentals is also an option for most cardholders.
Usually, I almost never recommend using rewards for rental car bookings since you can almost always find a rental car deal through AutoSlash, Hotwire, Kayak or Priceline if you don’t care what company you’re renting from. When these kinds of deals don’t exist, however, here’s what you need to know about booking a car rental with miles or points:
Just like booking a flight or cruise with your travel credit card, renting a car with your existing points or miles is a mostly straightforward process. However, some credit card rewards programs make this option easier to navigate.
Nearly every airline has a frequent flyer program that has the option to redeem your points or miles for rental car bookings. The exchange value of airline miles for rental cars typically isn’t as good as using miles for booking flights, but it is a solid option in a pickle. It might also be worthwhile if you’re earning more miles than you can spend on flights through a co-branded airline credit card.
If you have a travel credit card that is part of a flexible credit card rewards program, like American Express Membership Rewards or Chase Ultimate Rewards, you can book a rental car through the travel portal just like you would for booking a flight or hotel. Redemptions are still tied to the cost of the rental but will vary based on the rewards redemption value of your particular credit card.
If you frequently rent cars through any of the major car rental companies like Hertz, Avis or National, you should be earning rewards in the rental company’s own loyalty program. Just like airline or hotel loyalty programs, these programs are free to join.
For example, if you join the Avis Preferred® program, you’ll earn 1X points per dollar spent on rentals and 2X points per dollar spent on accessories (with a minimum of 100 points per booking), and you can redeem your points for free rental days starting at 700 points. Accessories can be redeemed starting at 250 points each, and additional points may be available through promotions — such as those that earn you an extra 100 points for booking within the first three months of joining — or through the company’s higher-tier Preferred Plus® and President’s Club programs.
If you happen to have a stash of car rental rewards, what better time to use them than the present? Likewise, if you don’t have a car rental loyalty account, it’s likely a good time to join since you’ll be earning lots of rewards if you wind up paying for a car rental.
If you’re the kind of rewards collector who likes to maximize the cents per mile you get when redeeming rewards, car rental redemptions might not be for you. Rental redemptions are almost always linked to rental prices, so if prices are high, you’ll have to pay a lot of rewards.
Sometimes it doesn’t make sense to rent a car with your points and miles, such as when the price of the rental is a better value than using your points. For example, say you want to rent a car for a day and the price will come out to $100. But if the same rental will cost you 12,000 points, then the value drops to 0.8 cents per point, which means you’ll earn more bang for your buck just spending the cash.
Value, however, isn’t always only about the numbers. If you really need a car rental and can’t afford to pay a higher rental rate, using points or miles for a car rental may still be good value for you.
Keep in mind: Most travel credit cards only provide an insurance benefit when you use the corresponding credit card to pay for the rental. Do some research in advance to see what your credit card offers.
Booking car rentals with your points or miles may be worth considering when rental rates are high. Though using credit card rewards for car rental bookings isn’t always the best way to maximize the redemption value of your points and miles, redeeming rewards for a rental may still be of great value to you if covering the cost of a car makes your trip possible.
Why we ask for feedback Your feedback helps us improve our content and services. It takes less than a minute to complete.
Your responses are anonymous and will only be used for improving our website.
The advice in this article is offered by the team independent of any bank or credit card issuer. This article may contain from our partners, and terms may apply to offers linked or accessed through this page. as of posting date, but offers mentioned may have expired.
Table of contents
0% APR car deals: Are they worth it?
How to keep earning lots of points beyond your card’s welcome bonus
Can you rent a car with a debit card?
How to start traveling with points, miles and credit cards
Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories, except where prohibited by law for our mortgage, home equity and other home lending products. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range, can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range of offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service.
Bankrate, LLC NMLS ID# 1427381 | NMLS Consumer Access
BR Tech Services, Inc. NMLS ID #1743443 | NMLS Consumer Access
© 2025 Bankrate, LLC. A Red Ventures company. All Rights Reserved.
