About
Credit cards compared on rewards, bonuses and fees
SideBySide Cards lines up 200+ credit cards from all the major issuers so you can compare rewards rates, sign-up bonuses and annual fees in one table. It's for anyone choosing a card who is tired of reading six issuer pages to answer one question.
What we compare
Three numbers decide most card choices, and they're the three the tables are built around: the rewards rate on your spending, the sign-up bonus and what it takes to earn it, and the annual fee you pay to hold the card. Benefits sit alongside, but the table always starts with what the card pays and what it costs.
Current bonuses are tracked and the tables are updated daily, because a welcome offer that was 60,000 points last month may be something else this month, and a comparison built on stale offers is worse than no comparison at all.
Top cards by category
The home page groups cards by what they're best at, which is usually a faster route than sorting 200 cards by a single column.
A $695 card and a $0 card can both be the right answer; it depends on how much you spend, where you spend it, and whether you'll use the perks. The category view is meant to get you to the two or three cards worth comparing closely.
- Travel rewards: Chase Sapphire Preferred, 60,000-point bonus, $95 annual fee
- Cash back: Citi Double Cash, 2% back, no annual fee
- Beginners: Discover it, 5% rotating categories, cash back match
- Premium travel: Amex Platinum, 80,000-point bonus, $695 annual fee
- Flexible travel: Capital One Venture, 75,000 miles, $95 annual fee
- No annual fee: Chase Freedom Unlimited, 1.5% back, $200 bonus
Who it's for
People who want more from everyday spending: a first card, a cash-back card to replace one that earns nothing, or a travel card ahead of a big trip. You don't need to chase points to benefit. Even the difference between 1.5% and 2% back adds up over a year of groceries and gas, and the difference between a bonus you'll earn and one you won't is bigger still.
Verify before you apply
Credit card offers change frequently. Everything here is compared from the issuers' published terms and refreshed daily, but the bonus, fee and rate that apply to you are the ones on the issuer's application page, so always verify current terms with the card issuer before applying.
The compare-all page holds the full table of cards, the blog is where longer guides will live, and the contact page is open for corrections and questions.