How We Rate Credit Cards

Credit card pages carry a KritScore, the same 0–100 scale our deals use. The inputs are different, though. A deal’s score is about price history (see how deals are scored). A card’s score measures how good its current offer is. It doesn’t say whether the card suits you. For that, use Points Path, which weighs a card against your own spending and travel plans.

How a card’s KritScore is calculated

The score is recalculated every time we save the card, from the fields shown on its page. It adds up six signals:

The total is capped at 100. Labels match the deal scale: 55 Fair, 70 Good, 80 Excellent, 90 Legendary. Below 55 we hide the score. A card with no score is neutral, not a warning. Plenty of good no-fee cash-back cards score in the 50s because their bonuses are small. That’s fine, because the score measures the offer, not the card’s everyday value.

Worked example. Take a 75,000-point Chase Ultimate Rewards bonus. At our 2¢ valuation that’s worth about $1,500. Add a $95 annual fee, a 4.8★ rating and transfer partners, and the card scores 73. If that bonus is also the highest we’ve recorded, it scores 85.

Nothing else goes into the score. Affiliate commission isn’t an input, and neither is whether a card is Featured.

Point valuations: estimated value, not cash

To compare a points bonus with a cash bonus, we multiply the points by our valuation for that program. These are estimated redemption values: roughly what a point is worth when you redeem it well, often through transfer partners or award travel. They are not a guaranteed cash value. Cashing points out or using them for gift cards usually gets you less, sometimes about 1¢ a point or below. A cash-back bonus counts at its face value. If we can’t read an amount from the bonus wording, or the program has no valuation, we don’t estimate one, and the card gets no points for value.

Here are the valuations used across card pages, comparisons and Points Path, in US cents per point or mile:

We revise these when programs change their award charts or transfer partners. The reasoning behind each number is in our points valuations guide.

How Featured cards are chosen

Featured is a hand-picked list, not a score threshold. Our team ticks a Featured box on the card, and we set the order of the Featured row ourselves. KritScore doesn’t pick or order Featured cards, and being Featured doesn’t change a card’s score. Featured cards also appear in the deal feed as placements labelled SPONSORED, because we may earn a commission when you apply through them. See our affiliate disclosure.

How offer dates work

Each card page shows when its offer terms were last updated. That date changes only when the sign-up bonus wording changes. Fixing a typo in the perks list doesn’t move it. It’s also separate from the “updated” date on our written guides. Bonus amounts, fees and APRs come from the issuer’s own pages, and each card page links to the issuer’s Rates & Fees or offer page. Offers change without notice, so check those terms before you apply.

How we compare net annual fees

Our premium-card comparisons show a net cost: the annual fee minus the credits a typical cardholder would actually use. Issuers advertise every credit at face value, so we discount them with fixed rules. Every comparison uses the same rules:

• A credit counts only if it’s broadly usable, meaning a typical person would use it without changing how they spend. General travel credits count in full.
• Partly usable credits are discounted. Any-hotel portal credits count at half. Monthly rideshare credits count at 50%. Dining credits tied to one booking platform count at 50%. Airline incidental-fee credits count at 25%.
• Luxury and niche credits count $0. That covers luxury-collection or brand-limited prepaid hotel credits, plus shopping, fitness and other niche credits (such as Saks-style, Lululemon, Equinox or CLEAR). When a luxury hotel credit is large, the page shows a separate “with one eligible stay” figure.
• Lounge access is never part of the net cost. We discuss it separately. Where a page puts a value on lounge visits, it uses $30 per visit.
• Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credits and certificates are left out too. Nearly every premium card has the Global Entry/TSA credit. Companion certificates and free nights need a trip you might not take, so they get their own “with certificate” figure at a conservative value.

A net cost is an estimate for a typical cardholder, not a promise. If you’d use a credit we count at $0, the card costs you less. If you’d skip one we count, it costs you more.

If something is wrong

Card terms change often. If a bonus, fee or credit on our site doesn’t match the issuer, please tell us. Our corrections policy explains how we fix and date it.